Persecuted and Forgotten

FOREWORD By Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil, Iraq

Over a hundred thousand Christians were among the many who fled for their lives 10 years ago when Daesh (ISIS) seized vast swaths of Iraq’s Nineveh Plains. For years since, they have lived like refugees in their own country, helped only by their fellow believers around the world – including substantial help from ACN. The genocide that we suffered continues to cast a long shadow – the migration of Christians continues to the point where the Church is threatened with extinction in towns and cities where our presence dates back almost to the time of Christ. Meanwhile, as this Persecuted and Forgotten? report shows, Christians in other countries are today facing jihadist extremism, whether in Burkina Faso or Mozambique – and equally bitter is the oppression of believers by authoritarian regimes like China or Nicaragua. But the report also shows that after the onslaught, Christians can rebuild their lives – just as we did in Iraq – and yet our communities here continue to face challenges due to the lack of livelihood programs. This means the Church has to find money to support the key structures we have built in Kurdistan to ensure Christians stay and be the voice of Jesus in all Iraq: new churches, a Catholic university, four schools and a hospital. Such structures need support to grow and to be maintained; we therefore depend on the international community to listen to our appeals for help. Our prayer is that those reading this report, whether governments or others with influence, will do more than just pay lip service to reports of Christian persecution; they must match their words with action – clear and decisive policy commitment – to help those whose only crime is the Faith they profess. It is vital that they act on early warnings – given in reports such as this – to prevent what happened to us in Iraq taking place elsewhere. I still remember the terror caused by the rise of the jihadists – but also the people’s hope, and the charity shown by our brothers and sisters around the world. Please continue to keep all those who suffer in your prayers and in your love. We keep you in our prayers.

Most Reverend Bashar M Warda CSsR, Chaldean Archbishop of Erbil