Colm Fitzpatrick
A Catholic church destroyed by ISIS militants in Karamdes, Iraq, is examined by a priest following the predominantly Christian town's liberation. Photo: CNS The Government needs to “wake up” and commit to protecting Christians who are persecuted globally for their faith, an Irish charity has said.
Church in Chains, an outreach group which focuses on raising awareness of the plight of persecuted Christians world-wide, said that our Government is failing to protect the rights of religious groups.
Launching the third edition of the Global Guide in Dun Laoghaire on September 27, the charity revealed that over 200 million Christians in 60 countries are persecuted, threatened, and fear for their lives weekly or daily.
The Guide intends to inform readers about what is happening to Christians in these countries and motivate leaders and readers to respond. According to David Turner, Director of Church in Chains, and author of the document, more Irish awareness of worldwide Christian persecution is needed so that real action can be taken to fight against and eradicate it.
“The persecution of Christians rarely makes the headlines but is a weekly if not daily lived experience for millions of Christians worldwide – we estimate that over 200 million Christians are at constant risk of persecution,” David said.
Belief
He added that governments and regimes worldwide are failing to uphold the right to religious freedom and belief, and that our own Government must prioritise this so that violations against persecuted and discriminated Christians can end.
“It is time for people in Ireland to wake up to what is happening around the world and for the Irish government to put flesh on the bones of its oft-repeated commitment to prioritising freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) in its foreign policy by raising the issue of violations of religious freedom directly with the governments that are actively persecuting Christians or facilitating the persecution of Christians,” he said.