Public Discussion: Persecution: how to reach the victims?
Introduced by Baroness Cox
8pm Wednesday 8 May 2013, Elham Village Hall
Wine and other cold drinks from 7.30 pm
Baroness Cox has many responsibilities and concerns focused on human rights, aiming to help groups abused in different ways. At times she runs the risk of being thought politically incorrect. She took part in an undercover operation on the impact of Sharia Councils on women in Britain which was shown on BBC Panorama yesterday evening. and may be seen now on BBC Panorama iPlayer (for 22 April). Her Private Members Bill in the House of Lords aims to make it illegal for these Councils to set themselves up as family courts. And yesterday, by coincidence, she asked a question in the House of Lords on Female Genital Mutilation, another of her concerns. These are linked with global problems, and as founder and CEO of the Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART) Lady Cox travels to HART funded aid and advocacy programmes in Nagorno-Karabagh, Burma, East Timor, India, Nigeria, southern Sudan and northern Uganda. She was involved earlier in helping victims of Communist regimes. In introducing the discussion Baroness Cox will tell of her travels so that we can imagine travelling with her, meeting persecuted groups, helping the victims and exposing those who persecute and enslave others. There will be time for questions and discussion about ways to reduce the occurrence of such horrors in our world. For many people in many countries problems such as these raise many FAQs of Life. We shall be, of course, be free to ask in discussion about the feedback on Sharia courts and other concerns. These are sombre and important themes but it should be a lively discussion.
