Christian Aid News 44 - Spring 2009

CHRISTIAN AID NEWS Issue 44

Spring 2009

● Revealed: the

world’s worst job ● Help us lobby

leaders on climate

www.christianaid.org.uk

Christian Aid has a vision: an end to poverty.

Help us make this vision a reality Cover.indd 18

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Photo: Getty Images

London n e g a h n to Cope Bike Ride 20 0 9 r e b m e c e D 9-16 Cycle 140 miles in three days Arrive in Copenhagen for the UN Climate Change Conference

Register www.christianaid.org.uk/events Phone 020 7523 2248 Email events@christian-aid.org Quote ref CAN

CAN 002 ADS.indd 18

and still t s ’t n a c u o y If hungr y, while people go join us today!

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020 7620 4444

CONTENTS

F1845

Christian Aid News is printed on 100 per cent recycled paper

20 REGULARS ■ 4 NEWS How Christian Aid is responding around the world… plus other news from the world of Christian Aid ■ 16 CAMPAIGNS Help boost our campaigning over climate change and tax

■ 28 INPUT Your letters and e-mails

Lee Thompson

WELCOME to your new-look Christian Aid News. We told you in the last issue that we’d be smartening ourselves up a bit, and we hope you agree that the magazine looks and feels brighter and sharper.

We had a fantastic response to our reader survey in the last issue of Christian Aid News, and due to your overwhelmingly positive verdict on the editorial content, we’ve retained the overall format while, we hope, adding one or two improvements.

The new look is timed to reflect the broader changes in the way Christian Aid communicates with the wider world – and to launch our powerful vision: an end to poverty. Poverty Over is about what we believe needs to be done – and can be done – to make that vision a reality.

Read our urgent call to arms on page 10.

Finally, Christian Aid News has now fully embraced the digital age and hopefully many of you are now reading these words on your home computer or laptop. We hope you enjoy exploring the links to the wider world of Christian Aid. Happy clicking.

Roger Fulton, editor

Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty Images

EDITOR’S LETTER

■ 30 LAST WORD Reflections of a touring supporter in Malawi

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■ 20 THE BIG PICTURE One startling image…

■ 10 OUR VISION Poverty Over: why we believe poverty can be eradicated for ever ■ 13 FRONTLINE Fighting for change in India and why the time is right to help in Zimbabwe

■ 24 EVENTS Come ride with Christian Aid – to Copenhagen ■ 26 LIFE AND SOUL Volunteering: what’s in it for us – and for you?

FEATURES

24

■ 22 CHRISTIAN AID WEEK A look back at a week of inspiring fundraising – and a collector’s tale

UK registered charity number 1105851; company number 5171525 Northern Ireland charity number XR94639; company number NI059154 Republic of Ireland charity number CHY 6998; company number 426928 Scotland charity number SC039150. The Christian Aid name and logo are trademarks of Christian Aid; Poverty Over is a trademark of Christian Aid © Christian Aid

Christian Aid is a Christian organisation that insists the world can and must be swiftly changed to one where everyone can live a full life, free from poverty. We work globally for profound change that eradicates the causes of poverty, striving to achieve equality, dignity and freedom for all, regardless of faith or nationality.

We are part of a wider movement for social justice.

We provide urgent, practical and effective assistance where need is great, tackling the effects of poverty as well as its root causes.

■ Cover Jamila, seven, is benefiting from a water project in Ethiopia. Photo: Christian Aid/Caroline Wood ■ Pictures Joseph Cabon ■ Sub-editors Catriona Lorie, Carolyn Crawley and Sophy Kershaw ■ Circulation Ben Hayward ■ Design and production Bonnie Coupland/Circle Publishing, 020 8332 2709 ■ Christian Aid head office 35 Lower Marsh, London SE1 7RL ■ Tel 020 7620 4444 ■ Fax 020 7620 0719 ■ Email info@christian-aid.org ■ Stay in touch online at www.christianaid.org.uk

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NEWS GAZA

S.M. Sayid

A TIME TO REBUILD

SRI LANKA

URGENT PLEA TO AID CAMP DWELLERS THE GOVERNMENT of Sri Lanka must act swiftly to improve conditions for nearly 300,000 people living in overcrowded camps, who fled their homes amid the fierce fighting of the civil war, Christian Aid says.

We are funding relief efforts for thousands of traumatised people but more needs to be done to prevent outbreaks of diseases such as cholera, typhoid and dysentery in the cramped and unsanitary conditions.

A combination of monsoon rains, drainage problems and poor sanitation threatens to worsen already grim conditions at camps in Vavuniya, Mannar, Trincomalee and Jaffna in the island’s north and east. Shortages of water and rice have also been reported.

Fighting ended in May between government troops and the ethnic separatist group the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) after a 25-year civil war that left more than 70,000 people dead. However, the

government continues to restrict the movement of thousands of civilians living inside the temporary camps. Access for humanitarian agencies is also limited and Christian Aid is calling for international and local aid groups to have full access to the camps. ‘The situation is dire for thousands of people living in overcrowded conditions.

It is vital that these camps are a temporary measure,’ says Robin Greenwood, head of our Asia and Middle East programmes.

‘The authorities must ensure that the people there are swiftly resettled and given support to help them resume normal lives.’

Christian Aid is funding kitchens that are providing meals for more than 20,000 people.

Partner organisations are supplying soap, mosquito nets, clothes and other supplies aimed at the most vulnerable in the camps, including extra food for pregnant women. www.christianaid.org.uk/srilanka

SIX MONTHS on from the devastating conflict in Gaza, your generosity has enabled Christian Aid to help thousands. You donated an amazing £550,000 to our Gaza Crisis Appeal – that’s a stunning £190,000 more than our target.

Here’s how you’ve helped: the Near Eastern Council of Churches clinic that was bombed has been re-established from a temporary base. Money given will support the building of a new clinic.

The Palestinian Medical Relief Committees ran emergency medical assistance in the midst of the bombardment. They’ve now been able to provide follow-up care – including counselling as well as physical support – for hundreds now facing lifelong disability, and have recruited five new clinical staff.

The Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC) have helped farmers repair greenhouses and rehabilitate their land, creating much-needed jobs, and have used the farm produce to provide food aid to thousands.

Christian Aid has provided art, drama and other cultural and therapeutic play opportunities for children in southern Gaza through our partner the Culture and Free Thought Association.

Finally, we have been pushing for accountability of all those who hold responsibility in this conflict – crucial to building a peace based on justice. Our Israeli partner organisation Physicians for Human Rights sent the first independent fact-finding mission into Gaza. PARC have been investigating damages to agricultural land. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights is gathering evidence to use in claims and investigations.

There are still obstacles to rebuilding in Gaza – the Israeli blockade being one of the greatest.

But your support has helped to start the process of reconstruction.

See also Input, page 28 www.christianaid.org.uk/gaza

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26,154

BURMA

households have been given temporary shelter

Cyclone Nargis: a year in numbers ONE YEAR has passed since cyclone Nargis tore through Burma’s Irrawaddy delta region claiming 140,000 lives and devastating the homes and livelihoods of a staggering 2.4 million people.

Thanks to your support, Christian Aid raised £3.4 million and, through our Burmese partners, has helped around 200,000 people.

Among the achievements: fishing and farming households have received equipment and basic items to restore their livelihoods people ha ve benefite d from cash-for-w ork projec ts in nine villag es

12,487

68,794

households have received food, basic essentials and water

5

women and child ren given clothing and scho ol uniforms

10,450

10,136

870

homes built or repaired (including 100 as a result of a donation of £46,000 from Muslim Han ds, in a groundbreaking example of inte r-faith cooperation)

470

51,479

able and disabled people have been provided with necessary medical care

people have received psychosocial counselling so they can move forward and begin to rebuild their lives. www.christianaid.org.uk/burma

LEBANON

EGYPT

DISABLED GAIN ACCESS TO VOTE MORE DISABLED people were able to vote than ever before in the recent Lebanese presidential elections, thanks to years of determined lobbying by Christian Aid partner the Lebanese Physically Handicapped Union (LPHU).

Responding to LPHU’s four-year My Rights campaign, the Lebanese government passed a decree, in March 2009, committing to providing equal access in elections to people with a disability – unbelievably, for the first time ever.

Sylvana Lakkis, executive director of LPHU, says, ‘It is our human right to speak on our own behalf, and to be part of national policy.’

Christian Aid programme officer Lucy Hayter comments, ‘Stigma and lack of

villages have been helped to regenerate mangrove forests to protect the coastline and its communities

infrastructure mean that thousands of disabled people across Lebanon are discriminated against in terms of access to education, work opportunities and participation in public life. Being able to vote means a democratic voice and a chance to influence policy for an estimated 200,000 disabled people.’

While the decree was passed too late to adapt all polling stations in time for the June elections, disability access was estimated to be 30 per cent, nearly four times greater than in the last national election.

Christian Aid has supported LPHU since 1999, and has contributed financial and campaigning support to My Rights, as well as supporting LPHU’s ongoing work with people with disabilities in Lebanon.

PARTNER WINS UN AWARD A PRESTIGIOUS UN award has been given to a Christian Aid local partner in Egypt, the Better Life Association for Comprehensive Development.

The Dubai International Award – jointly managed by the UN and Dubai Municipality – was given to Better Life for its ‘outstanding’ work with some of the poorest communities in Egypt: the fisher-folk and quarry-workers of the Minia region.

Set up in 1995, Better Life works with vulnerable communities in Minia to empower people to defend their rights, to conserve their environment, and demand education and other services. Well done Better Life, and thanks to all Christian Aid supporters who have played their part behind the scenes.

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NEWS BANGLADESH

CHRISTIAN AID CYCLONE SHELTERS SAVE LIVES ON MONDAY 25 May, cyclone Aila struck the coastal regions of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, bringing with it heavy rain, 100km per hour winds and tidal surges.

The cyclone wreaked severe damage to homes and crops, and claimed hundreds of lives. However, thanks to the work of Christian Aid partners in preparing for disasters, the death toll from this cyclone was less severe compared to that from cyclone Sidr, which hit Bangladesh in November 2007.

Community-based early-warning systems alerted people that a cyclone was on its way and cyclone shelters, erected by partners with Christian Aid’s support, provided a life-saving

refuge. Our partner Gono Unnayan Prochesta (GUP) had recently completed the construction of two new cyclone shelters.

Mosharraf Hussain Howlader and his family were among the 3,000 people who sought a safe refuge from the storm in one of these shelters. He described it as ‘heavy and strong’, adding, ‘If the shelter had not been strong, we would not have gone there. Rather, we would have protected ourselves by taking shelter in the trees as we did during past cyclones when we lost some of our family members.’

For Mosharraf and many others, the recovery process has begun; rebuilding his house and repairing the collapsed banks of his fish ponds.

Supporters honoured TWO CHRISTIAN Aid supporters have been honoured in the Queen’s Birthday List for their work in fighting global poverty.

John Mills, 73, from Monmouthshire in South Wales and David Bridge, 75, from Scarborough in North Yorkshire, were awarded MBEs.

AGENDA What’s on our mind over the next couple of months 17 AUGUST Countdown to Copenhagen. Launch of the next phase in Christian Aid’s climate-change campaign in the run-up to UN summit. For details go to www.christianaid.org.uk/copenhagen 29-31 AUGUST Greenbelt Festival, Cheltenham. Christian Aid will be there to drum up support for our tax and climate campaigns. www.greenbelt.org.uk SEPTEMBER Launch of our harvest appeal. 5,000 women 5,000 empty acres: 50,000 fed at harvest. An incredible story of extreme poverty and rich generosity. Our free resources are already available to order or download at www.christianaid.org.uk/harvest

28 SEPTEMBER – 1 OCTOBER United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change meeting, Bangkok. Christian Aid and some of its partners will be in Thailand to lobby delegates at this crucial preliminary to the Copenhagen summit.

Lee Thompson

20 SEPTEMBER Great North Run, Newcastle. Come and support our runners – or if you have a place, join our team.

Find out more at www.christianaid.org.uk/events

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Read their story...

Christian Aid/Sarah Filbey

MEET OLIVE and Freddy Samson, and their granddaughter Talindila, who grow food in their garden both to eat and sell.

The irrigation kit that allows them to grow the food in their village in southern Malawi is part of a larger scheme to reduce the impact on livelihoods of disasters such as droughts and floods. The area where they live is especially prone to both.

The scheme is designed to enable the community to secure a better future. It includes damming residual water – creating a pool from which the small fish seen on the counter can be harvested.

You can find out more about the Samson family, and others like them who are benefiting from our work with partners around the globe, by downloading our Annual Review for 2008-09, which will be posted on our website from mid-August at www.christianaid.org.uk

Below: the Samson family in Malawi are benefiting from a Christian Aid scheme

CHRISTIAN AID IN THE NEWS A snapshot of some of the coverage our work has received in the media at large

•

An exposé of major failings and loopholes in a worldwide carbon-trading scheme that have left villagers in India feeling the toxic effects of a giant chemical plant, was featured in the Mail on Sunday’s Live magazine. Christian Aid partner Paryavaran Mitra has been highlighting the villagers’ plight. Read the ‘Great Carbon Credit Con’ at www.mailonsunday.co.uk/home/moslive

•

Our Zimbabwe appeal was picked up in The Voice newspaper… while the work of a Christian Aid partner in the Democratic Republic of Congo, The Unaccompanied Children’s Centre in Goma, which cares for children caught up in the bitter civil conflict, was reported in First News, the paper for young people.

•

The Platform2 volunteering scheme, which Christian Aid helps run and promote, received extensive coverage during June Volunteers’ Week across BBC local radio, national and regional newspapers, including articles in the Guardian, and youth press.

After visiting the AMO-Congo clinic for orphans in Kinshasa, during a trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo, actresses Suranne Jones and Sally Lindsay, left, promoted Christian Aid Week 2009 in Hello! magazine, and on more than 20 BBC regional radio stations. Sally also appeared on GMTV, and Suranne was interviewed about the trip on ITV’s Loose Women and also by the magazines Woman’s Own and Closer.

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NEWS

Simon Williams

Below: on the Janadesh march in autumn 2007

INDIA

MARCHERS WIN LAND RIGHTS IN OCTOBER 2007, 25,000 rural poor and landless people in India joined the Janadesh (People’s Verdict) March, organised by Christian Aid partner Ekta Parishad, to demand their right to land, livelihood and resources, in the biggest non-violent protest since Gandhi’s Salt March in 1930.

One of the consequences of this march (reported in Christian Aid News, issues 38 and 39) was the establishment in January 2008 of the National Land Reform Commission, the first step towards creating land reform policies. In October 2008, the commission submitted the first draft of a new Land Reform Policy to the

Ministry of Rural Development. Ekta Parishad continues to mobilise support and monitor the policy’s progress through Parliament.

Over the past year, the movement has led to the registration of 686,892 land claims. In Bihar, 800,000 acres of Bhudan land have been identified for redistribution to poor, landless families and by July 2008, 42,922 families had received land in Chhattisgarh.

Ekta Parishad’s campaign on forest rights has enabled 11,286 adivasi families in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh to claim their entitlement to land under the Forest Rights Act.

CHRISTIAN AID AIMS TO REIGN IN SPAIN CHRISTIAN AID has launched in Spain, in a bid to increase international backing for our campaigning on climate change and tax and boost funding for our development work in 49 of the world’s poorest countries.

InspirAction is a Spanishregistered foundation and will

be run by a dedicated team based in Madrid.

InspirAction is intended to galvanise support from the Spanish public for Christian Aid’s climate-change campaign in the run-up to the Copenhagen conference.

Matthew Reed, Christian Aid’s director of marketing and

A lifetime of dedication KATHLEEN EVANS, a longstanding Christian Aid supporter in the West Midlands, died earlier this year aged 81. In 1965, she and a loyal team of helpers started the house-to-house collection in their home town of Pelsall, near Walsall.

Over the years this has raised nearly £80,000. Two years later, they set up a sponsored walk, which became an annual event for 37 years, raising more than £96,000 in that time.

A tireless campaigner, motivator, fundraiser and organiser for Christian Aid, Kathleen was a compassionate woman committed to working for the disadvantaged at home and abroad.

Search begins for new director Christian Aid starts its search this month for a new director to replace Dr Daleep Mukarji, who is retiring early next year. For details, see www.christianaid.org.uk/jobs

supporter care, said, ‘We are launching InspirAction in Spain because there is a strong sense of social solidarity among the Spanish people that we feel can be harnessed to increase international support for our vital campaign and development work. Studies also show that Spain is an emerging fundraising market with much potential, both in terms of government and private

funds, and we will be seeking to secure backing for many of our projects in Latin America.’

The decision to launch as InspirAction was taken after research revealed a direct translation of the name ‘Christian Aid’ could exclude many Spaniards who consider themselves Roman Catholic rather than Christian. In addition, the charity does not own the name ‘Christian Aid’ internationally.

8 Christian Aid News

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LAST FEBRUARY, Christian Aid supporter Lynn Day, with help from her friend Deborah Roddick, opened up her clutter-filled home to a handful of local residents and the hit BBC TV daytime series Trash to Cash.

With the help of experts and TV presenters Paul Hayes and Mark Franks, Lynn’s jumble-packed house was quickly cleared as unwanted household trash was turned into cash – half going to the family and half to Christian Aid. Assorted dusty items were dumped, recycled, repaired or put aside for sale.

Specialist buyers were brought in to bid on recently uncovered household gems: an old barometer sold for £60 and some vintage Swarovski costume jewellery earned £120.

Despite the wintry February conditions, the sale, which was advertised on local radio, attracted a stream of visitors and raised £765.

Lynn said, ‘The day was a surreal combination of panic and calm. My stuff was displayed to the nation and there were strangers treading snow into the carpets, but I was finally rid of the clutter.’

Lynn’s episode of Trash for Cash will be shown on BBC1 on Friday 14 August. If you live in southern England and would like to take part in the next series, e-mail Emma Wigley at ewigley@christian-aid.org, before 21 August.

Below: Lynn sells off her ‘trash’ with the help of presenter Paul Hayes

Christian Aid/Sian Curry

LYNN’S TRASH = OUR CASH

NICARAGUA

NOTHING HAPPENED, NOBODY DROWNED WHEN CARLOS Mejia’s young sons weren’t swept away by the river on the way home from school in Nicaragua, nothing happened, and nobody drowned. He knew it was too dangerous to try to carry them across.

Successful disaster risk-reduction work is often invisible, because it is a tragedy that didn’t happen. Carlos, pictured above, is a member of his riverside village’s emergency brigade, set up with support from Christian Aid’s partner Nochari. He has learnt first aid, evacuation, search and rescue, river-crossing and casualty transport techniques.

‘I wouldn’t have been able to hold on to them and they could have been swept away,’ explains Carlos.

In the rainy season, people in the village often have to wade through the river to reach the school, hospital or market. With his new understanding of currents, Carlos now knows when it is safe to attempt a crossing – knowledge that he believes has saved his young sons from being swept away.

We’ve gone digital YOUR NEW-LOOK Christian Aid News has fully embraced the digital age; this edition of your magazine is also available as a digital version. Many readers have already signed up to receive their copy in this way, and should, by now, have been sent a digital version of this issue via email.

Receiving Christian Aid News in this way costs you nothing, but saves us money on printing and postage costs, and contributes to our push to reduce our carbon footprint.

You can view the digital version of this edition by logging on to http://digitalcan.christianaid.org.uk If you like what you see, you can sign up there, and we’ll do the rest. Meanwhile the print version will still be available for those who wish to continue receiving it in this format.

Christian Aid News 9

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OUR VISION Poverty is an outrage against humanity. It robs people of dignity, freedom and hope, of power over their own lives.

Christian Aid has a vision – an end to poverty. This month we launch a new drive urging others to help us make that vision a reality

Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty Images

Left: a young boy involved in mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Below: an example of our new billboard advertising UK registered charity

number 1105851. Company

number 5171525. Scotland

charity number SC039150.

Northern Ireland charity

number XR94639. Company

P

OVERTY IS an outrage against humanity. It robs people of dignity, justice, freedom and hope, of power over their own lives. More than a billion people worldwide suffer in its grip, denied the life chances available to those more fortunate.

Christian Aid has a vision: an end to poverty. If you share our vision, we urge you to join us in making our vision a reality.

number NI059154.

can be eradicated tianaid.org.uk Find out how at chris

B 2

10 Christian Aid News

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We believe that poverty is political, a scandal created and perpetuated by our own systems and structures. At its core lies the misuse of power, within and among countries, groups and individuals.

That misuse results in fundamental obstacles to a life of dignity and freedom: not least discrimination, lack of income, poor or non-existent education, and high levels of child and maternal mortality.

But a problem created by people can

be solved by people. And we are certain that together we can, and must, end poverty forever.

There has never been a better time to challenge its existence. The economic crisis has hit rich and poor alike, discrediting the financial system that brought about the meltdown in the first place.

Climate change is robbing the poor of their livelihoods, and endemic corruption

Christian Aid/Harriet Logan

Left: Divya, 12, often helps her mother, Palaniamma, 37, to carry water from the public tap as they have no supply of their own

adds insult to injury for those already marginalised by economic injustice.

The gap between rich and poor is weakening social relations and undermining democracy.

History shows us that crises prompt social change. The fear and chaos that accompany crises can have a galvanising effect. Change brings with it the opportunity to shape what is to come, giving birth to hope and a sense of Christian Aid News 11

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OUR VISION purpose. United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon recently stated there was ‘no question’ that poverty could be ended. It would require ‘an unswerving, collective, long-term effort’.

Ultimately, only people can change politics, and only people can end poverty.

Only a global movement of people who care can change politics radically enough to defeat poverty.

The public has been mobilised to fight poverty before. But the Make Poverty History campaign of 2005 was limited, set up to focus attention on poverty for one year only.

Now Christian Aid is opening a dialogue with partners, supporters, allies, leading development thinkers, businesses, the general public and government to identify the new models and ways of thinking that can take us from global crisis to global solutions.

The scale of our ambition must match the scale of global poverty. It has long been clear that poverty could not be eradicated without unprecedented change. That change must include: ● urgent action to combat climate change and to equip poor countries to cope with its impact ● an end to tax-dodging by international business, which costs developing countries around US$160 billion a year in lost tax ● making the system of finance more transparent and supportive of real economic activity, and of people living in poverty ● making international and national markets and economies more just and inclusive, so

Kpachelo Village, northern Ghana

that people living in poverty are better rewarded for their economic activity ● enabling people living in poverty to realise entitlements to health, education, water and reproductive-health services ● the promotion of responsive, representative and accountable governments to fight corruption in poor countries ● providing security from violence and access to justice ● ending extremes of inequality and discrimination.

A new global movement is needed to make these changes a reality, to bring an end to poverty.

Some feel there is no political will to end poverty, that poverty will always be with us. Yet politicians can and do act: look how they recently pumped billions into shoring up their economies.

When the scale of emergency is understood, politicians find the will to act.

They need to do so now. If real progress is to be made, fundamental changes in the global, national and local structures that create and embed poverty are essential.

Christian Aid’s determination to end poverty is driven by the Christian belief that the work of building the Kingdom of God proclaimed and started by Jesus is championed and continued by his followers today.

Challenging the unjust structures that cause poverty is absolutely central to that ongoing work.

We urge you to join us. The opportunity for change may never be more real. Together we must seize the moment and ensure that poverty is over, forever.

Christian Aid/Olivia Arthur

To find out more about Poverty Over, see www. christianaid.org.uk

Poverty Over.indd 12

Daleep Mukarji, director, Christian Aid

Right: two manual scavengers at work cleaning out dry latrines.

And, yes, those baskets really do contain what you think they do

THE WORLD’S WORST JOB Christian Aid is campaigning in India to end the degrading practice of manual scavenging.

Kathryn Irwin reports on a movement that is successfully challenging a system that ensnares the poorest

T

ODAY, LIKE every day, thousands of women in India will set out to do a job that has been passed down from grandmother to mother and from mother to daughter. They will set off for work with a cane basket and an A5-sized piece of cardboard, metal or plastic.

Today, like every day, thousands of

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FRONTLINE

Christian Aid/Elaine Duigenan

Stories from around the world showing how Christian Aid and its partners are working to bring an end to poverty – and empower people to shape a better future

In India, Christian Aid works with women will clear human faeces from homes and businesses, scoop it into their partners to bring about structural and economic changes by addressing the baskets and carry it to dumping sites. social exclusion and injustice that keeps These women wear no masks to protect people trapped in inhuman, poorly paid themselves from the noxious, vomitjobs such as manual scavenging. We are inducing smells, nor gloves to protect supporting a national movement called themselves and their families from the the Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA) to real risk of diseases. challenge the system that ensnares These women are India’s estimated 1.3 generations of million safai families in this karmachari or ‘We need one last occupation. manual scavengers. monumental push to see Since its formation Manual this occupation consigned in 1986, SKA has scavenging is the to the history books’ engaged in a practice of protracted struggle employing a section to liberate and restore dignity and rights of society to clear other people’s to those employed as manual excrement from dry latrines. The scavengers. Today, the movement has so-called dry latrines are toilets that are galvanised activists drawn from the safai not plumbed into a sewerage system, so karmachari communities across 18 states that the excrement and urine has to be scooped up manually from the floor and in India. And it has had success. carried away.

Following a long-running campaign, Manual scavenging is linked to the SKA and others have successfully caste system and the vast majority of influenced the ending of the practice in those involved in it are dalit women who, the southern Indian states of Andhra at the lowest level of the caste hierarchy, Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Now pass the occupation down from SKA has trained its sights on India’s generation to generation. They get the northern states and set a deadline of 31 lowest wages and live in utter poverty, December 2010 for the total eradication facing daily humiliation and of manual scavenging. discrimination. It is this deeply rooted In 1993, the Indian government passed pattern of exclusion that contributes to legislation prohibiting manual the continuing high levels of poverty. scavenging and the use of dry latrines, so

SKA is seeking its full implementation – going to court, if necessary, to ensure that states and districts comply.

‘We have lobbied and pressurised state governments and local administrative officials to implement the 1993 Act. And our efforts have borne fruit. Now we need one last monumental push to see this occupation consigned to the history books,’ said Bezwada Wilson of SKA. SKA’s campaign Action 2010 aims to build the self-esteem of women employed as manual scavengers and empower them to leave the job once and for all. SKA helps them to access government resources aimed at rehabilitation and to find alternative livelihoods. Two years ago, Bharati Devi was encouraged to leave her job as a manual scavenger by an SKA activist.

‘I liked the conversation with her. I had never thought of leaving the work… now I motivate other people to do the same.’

Bharati now earns a living as a domestic help and is proud that she has left manual scavenging. ‘Earlier the money was less, there was no dignity in work. But now, although the work as a domestic is more strenuous, I am able to earn more money, as well as command respect,’ she continues.

In December 2009, SKA plans a mass rally in New Delhi which will act as a rallying call for the final push in 2010.

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FRONTLINE

ZIMBABWE: BEATING POVERTY AND MAKING A PROFIT

Christian Aid/William Anderson

The changed political climate in Zimbabwe means Christian Aid has a greater opportunity to help people there break free of the cycle of hunger and food-aid dependency.

THEY CALL it the hunger season… the months of the year between harvests when families who depend on homegrown food most commonly run short.

Last year, millions of Zimbabweans depended on emergency food aid when home-grown supplies ran out. Some were so hungry they ate the seeds they had put aside to plant.

If sufficient seeds and training had been available when the rains began last October, it would have been a different story this year. But again millions have depended on food aid during the hunger season, due to bad governance and erratic rainfall patterns. A joint UN and Zimbabwe Ministry of Agriculture report, due in late July, is expected to give similarly grim predictions for the coming nine months.

Albert Nkomo is determined that he and his family won’t be among the

Zimbabwe.indd 16

statistics this time. Albert lives in Ward 22 in the drought-prone region of Matabeleland South. At 60, he is elderly in a country with a life expectancy of just 40. He is also living proof that it’s never too late to learn new tricks.

Last year Albert and his family depended on food aid to get through the worst of the drought period, but thanks to farming techniques called conservation agriculture – especially designed for arid soil in drought-prone areas and pioneered by Christian Aid partner Zimpro – this year will be different. The

effects of applying these techniques are impressive. This year the Nkomo family has harvested more than four times as much maize. Albert believes this will last until the next harvest and he can sell enough to cover the cost of school fees for his two youngest children, Kholwani and Sithobekile, health costs and essentials such as soap.

When the rains come this October, Albert intends to apply his adopted farming techniques to the remainder of his land and expects even greater results.

William Anderson, Christian Aid’s Zimbabwe country manager based in Harare, suggests that for thousands more families such as Albert’s, this and future years could hold a very different story.

‘Instead of the fear of disease, hunger and the dependency on food aid, families can have the power to rebuild their own lives in a safer and freer environment, to escape the vicious cycle of hunger and aid dependency, and above all make a profit to improve their lives for good.’

Below: Albert Nkomo at work making his own bricks. With instruction and equipment from Zimpro, Albert has built a more airtight grain and food store from his own bricks. Now he can save food for longer periods, to sell at a better price as well as preserve some to eat later in the year

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Zimbabwe appeal: how you can help • Christian Aid’s Zimbabwe appeal aims to raise as much as possible by mid-August to give our partners time to reach more people before the October rains.

This year seven million Zimbabweans depended on food aid to survive. Our appeal aims to free Zimbabweans from food-aid dependency.

Farmers need seeds to plant and training in land management before the autumn rains in October.

The change in the political situation in Zimbabwe has given us a window of opportunity in which to work. We do not know how long the reduction in violence and intimidation will last, so we must act now to build peoples’ resilience.

Be assured, Christian Aid will only work through our trusted local partners to deliver support with money raised from this appeal.

To donate, please call 0845 700 0300 or donate online at www. christianaid.org.uk/zimbabwe or return the form on the letter accompanying this issue to Christian Aid, Freepost SN1457, Halifax Road, Melksham SN12 7BR.

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COMMENT ‘We need to help people determine their own paths out of poverty’ Miriam Machaya, Christian Aid’s programme officer in Zimbabwe, explains why we must take advantage of a ‘golden opportunity’ to do something tangible to help Zimbabweans hospitals and schools are still not THE NEW era of the inclusive operating at capacity; a lot of teachers government in Zimbabwe arrived and health workers are still not turning amidst pomp and ceremony. African up for work. At a salary of US$100 a leaders celebrated their success in month who can blame them? finding an ‘African’ solution to an The cholera epidemic, which affected ‘African’ problem. nearly 100,000 people and killed more On the streets, I witnessed people than 4,000, has been brought under throwing heaps of Zimbabwe dollar control by the concerted efforts of notes out of office windows and from Christian Aid, our supporters, partners moving cars, then trampling on them. and other agencies. But the breakdown The notes formed a colourful carpet on of basic water and sewage services the ground; it was an amazing sight! that spurred it on This impromptu attack on the ‘We are no longer confronted has not been attended to. The worthless symbol with military police problem will of Zimbabweans’ clutching Kalashnikovs at resurface come suffering was a every street corner’ the rainy season rare opportunity in October. for people to The new arrangement, whatever its express themselves. shortcomings, has ushered in a period More than 100 days later, if you ask of relative stability and peace. This me what has changed so far, my enables us, with our partners’ answer is simple; we are no longer continued support, a rare liberty to confronted with military police reach more vulnerable communities clutching Kalashnikovs at every street with direct material assistance and to corner. But the rigmarole that is daily build peoples’ self-confidence and life in Zimbabwe continues. ability to express themselves freely The uneasy political ‘arrangement’ and participate in decisions that affect has seen the intense international their lives. Who knows how long this spotlight shift away. Now, once again, golden opportunity will last? it feels as if the world has become We can intervene now and prevent oblivious to the continuing and people resorting to using their seed intensifying suffering of Zimbabwe’s stocks as food, perpetuating the cycle poor. Those in a position to provide of food shortages. We need to continue financial support, but wary of the educating people on disease intransigence of the old guard, have prevention. We need to help people chosen to take a wait-and-see attitude. determine their own paths out of One of the greatest ironies I have poverty, including educating on how to witnessed in Zimbabwe’s decline has make a profit from farming rather than been the effects of the introduction of grow just enough food to get by. the US dollar as official currency: We need to support civil society now shops are now full of imported more than ever to demand a products, but poor people can’t afford them. With 90 per cent unemployment, responsible government, to ensure that Zimbabweans are never again the ranks of the poor are swelling as subjected to so much suffering. industries fail to reopen. Many

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CAMPAIGNS Challenging the policies and structures that keep poverty entrenched is a vital part of Christian Aid’s work – including lobbying over climate change, on trade and for tax justice

CLIMATE CHANGE: WHY THE WORLD NEEDS ITS LEADERS The clock is ticking on our Countdown to Copenhagen climate-change campaign. But, says Sarah Spinney, there’s still time for you to have an impact CHRISTIAN AID needs your help to persuade world leaders to put December’s UN climate-change talks in Copenhagen at the top of their agenda.

Stitched inside this issue of Christian Aid News are action cards calling on US president Barack Obama and Chinese president Hu Jintao to attend the Copenhagen summit in person.

We’re hoping that all our readers will send them off to ensure that Presidents Obama and Hu get the

message that their leadership is vital to the future of the world’s poorest communities. As the world’s two biggest fossil-fuel emitters, agreement between the US and China is crucial to securing a fair deal at the talks. We’re urging both leaders to be in Copenhagen from 11 to 14 December.

There are fewer than 150 days left before the world’s leaders must agree a new global deal on climate change in Copenhagen. But the lack of urgency by rich countries

Above: a heavy monsoon shower rains down on Dhaka’s slums.

Poor people in Bangladesh are already feeling the impacts of climate change even though they have done little to contribute to the problem

has prompted a sharp response by the UN’s climate-change chief Yves de Boer. He warned a UN preparatory meeting in Bonn last month that offers by industrialised countries to cut their emissions ‘did not amount to enough’.

Christian Aid believes that if we are to contain global warming to within 2°C, rich countries, which bear historical responsibility for the problem, need to cut their emissions by up to 40 per cent by 2020. They should also provide the resources necessary for poor countries to develop cleanly and adapt to climate change.

Elsewhere Christian Aid is also urging its campaign supporters to lobby Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the EU President, Swedish prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, to commit to attend the Copenhagen talks in person.

Digital readers can take action at www.christianaid.org.uk/ copenhagen

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MARCH IN December is the initiative of the 11-million-strong Stop Climate Chaos coalition of which Christian Aid is a member. Join us and supporters of other coalition members for the march in London on 5 December to give the UK government the vital message that we will all be expecting substantial action on climate change in Copenhagen. www.stopclimatechaos.org/march

Come to Copenhagen HELP US keep up the pressure over the climatechange summit right up to the last minute. We need supporters to join our campaigns team and other campaigners from around the world at the Copenhagen summit for the global day of action during the conference. Our events team is looking for cyclists to join our London to Copenhagen Bike Ride, which will arrive in time for the demonstration (see page 24). If you can’t make it all the way to Copenhagen you could join the London and Glasgow events we are organising on 5 December as part of the Stop Climate Chaos coalition.

For more information e-mail campaigns@christian-aid.org or visit www. christianaid.org.uk/copenhagen

Christian Aid/Emma Boyd

HOW YOU WON A U-TURN ON COAL After our day of action over climate change and coal, there was some good news at last for campaigners CHRISTIAN AID campaigners lobbying to halt the building of a new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth in Kent have won an assurance from the UK government that ‘the era of unabated coal is over.’

In a significant policy shift Ed Miliband, secretary of state for energy and climate change, has said that all new coal-fired power stations must use new emissionsreducing carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology by 2025.

Applications that don’t demonstrate CCS of 20-25 per cent from day one will be turned down.

He also included a long-term commitment to low-carbon coal, saying that, once proven, power stations will have to fit CCS on 100 per cent of their output.

And Mr Miliband told Christian Aid that this policy change ‘could only have happened with public support’. Thanking supporters for their actions, he said, simply, ‘You made it possible.’

more than 1,000 campaigners converged on Coventry on a bright March morning for our climate change day of action.

Their aims were to raise awareness that climate change is a matter of life and death for the world’s poor, who are already suffering its devastating effects; and to send a clear message, that building new coal-fired power stations is morally unjustifiable in a climate-constrained world.

At a joint service with CAFOD at

Christian Aid

Christian Aid/Mohammadur Rahman/Map Photo Agency

March in December

Above: a jazz-band leads the procession through Coventry Below: getting the message across

DAY OF ACTION The secretary of state’s announcement came a month after Christian Aid News 17

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CAMPAIGNS Coventry Cathedral, campaigners heard from climate scientist Dr James Hansen and the Bishop of Liverpool James Jones.

Dr Hansen told the congregation, ‘We cannot burn all fossil fuels without creating, for our children, grandchildren and the unborn, a far more desolate planet than the one that we inherited from our elders. The only practical solution is to phase out emissions from the deadliest and dirtiest of today’s fuels: coal.’

In his sermon the Right Reverend Jones said, ‘Those most affected by the changing climate are powerless to do anything about it; and those who have the power to make a difference don’t yet feel the full disastrous effects.’

Supporters were joined by colleagues from the Stop Climate Chaos coalition in a New Orleansstyle funeral procession through the city centre, before the day ended with a rally, alongside the World Development Movement, outside the headquarters of E.ON, the power company behind the planned new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth. Protesters left a wreath spelling out the starkest of epitaphs: ‘coal kills’.

MORE TO DO Responding to Mr Miliband’s announcement, Paul Brannen, Christian Aid’s head of campaigns, says, ‘In helping to bring about this shift in coal policy once again Christian Aid supporters have shown that they are part of a movement that gets results on behalf of people in the developing world.’

But he warns that your action is still needed in the months ahead. ‘Although we welcome the announcement as a step forward, current government plans would still allow 75 per cent of the emissions from Kingsnorth to be released into the atmosphere. Rich countries should be cutting emissions, not investing in new fossil fuels.’

We need you to write to your MPs, asking that they support Charles Kennedy’s private members bill proposing an emissions performance standard. This would cap emissions, including those from power generation, and make the development of workable CCS an imperative.

Full details on www. christianaid.org.uk/copenhagen

Christian Aid’s Big Tax Return campaign highlights the US$160 billion a year that developing countries lose to sharp accounting practices. So when our campaigns team heard that accountants were meeting to celebrate their achievements at the LexisNexis Taxation Awards on 21 May we could not resist using the event to highlight our Alternative Tax Awards. Jayde Bradley, of the campaigns team, reports from the red carpet

Christian Aid

Below: protestors leave a wreath outside E.ON’s headquarters

TAX DOESN’T HAVE TO BE TAXING…

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Christian Aid

MULTINATIONAL corporations are well-versed at finding ways of cutting their tax bills and boosting their profits.

It’s an achievement that shouldn’t go unrecognised. So, while the accountancy industry celebrated its achievements in tax-bill minimisation inside the Hilton Park Lane in London, we held our own awards ceremony outside. Winners included: Tax Haven Enthusiast of the Year Barclays Low Tax Rate Achievement Award P&O Cruises’ owner Carnival.

(Between 2002 and 2008 inclusive, Carnival paid tax of just US$61.7 million on total profits of US$4.3 billion. This is an effective tax-paid tax rate, over the seven years, of approximately 1.4 per cent. And all entirely legal.)

Most Surprising Use of Tax Havens The Department for International Development and its company CDC Group plc. (DFID argues that if CDC did not use tax havens, then investors in the funds used by CDC would be taxed twice. Christian Aid finds it astonishing that the government department set up to tackle international poverty allows its own company to exploit tax havens as a means of avoiding tax in developing countries.)

As attendees arrived for the official awards ceremony, I asked them if they thought the accountancy profession had a role to play in returning the money lost every year to developing countries as a result of tax dodges. Most expressed surprise at how high the figure was. Unexpectedly, a few supported the idea that the accountancy profession should be part of the solution.

Our friendly, upmarket demo was featured in Taxation Magazine and Accountancy Age. Although

Above left: the campaigns team outside the Hilton Park Lane, London. Above right: Jayde Bradley quizzes an arriving guest

no one from the Big Four accountancy firms – Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), Ernst and Young and KPMG – was able to pick up their award for Greatest Potential for Tax Reform, I delivered trophies to PWC and Ernst and Young the next day and made it clear that they had an important role to play in the call for country-based reporting.

You can watch a film of our Alternative Tax Awards, and find out more about the winners at www.christianaid.org.uk/tax

Government backs our tax demand CHRISTIAN AID has welcomed the UK government’s decision to back country-by-country reporting – our key Big Tax Return campaign demand.

At a meeting of G20 ministers in Berlin last month, Stephen Timms, financial secretary to the Treasury, put forward our proposal for companies to be made to declare the profits they are making and tax they are paying in each and every country where they operate.

Christian Aid says it’s time now for the Big Four accountancy firms to join us and the government in calling for country-by-country reporting. By using their influence at the International Accounting Standards Board the accountancy profession could help deliver billions of dollars to the poorest people in the world.

To send an email to the Big Four go to www.christianaid.org.uk/bigfour ARE YOU AN ACCOUNTANT? Christian Aid is looking for accountants who support the Big Tax Return. If you’d like to find out how you could help promote the campaign to the accountancy profession, please contact the campaigns team on 020 7523 2264.

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THE BIG PICTURE

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WORKING ‘DOWN THE PIT’ is a gruelling way of life for these young Congolese men. Alain Libondo (left), 17, and Nsinku Zihindula, 25, work 24-hour shifts in a cassiterite (tin ore) mine in South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Their meagre wages are just enough to feed their families. And it’s dangerous work: Nsinku lost the sight in one eye when a chip of ore flew into his face.

There is a growing realisation that the illegal mineral trade is a root cause of a conflict that has claimed the lives of more than five million in the past five years and displaced two million more. A UN report last December provided evidence of armed groups financing their activities through the control and taxation of mining. It calls for due diligence from firms sourcing their minerals from the DRC. The DRC is one of the world’s most resource-rich countries. It has 80 per cent of the world’s coltan reserves and large reserves of cassiterite, both of which are essential for the global electronics industry. Yet 75 per cent of the population lives on less than a dollar a day and nearly half will die before the age of 40. Christian Aid is lobbying for tougher action to regulate companies operating in the conflict zones – vital in finding a peaceful solution to ‘Africa’s world war’.

Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty Images

ROCK SCARS

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CHRISTIAN AID WEEK Few occasions sum up your dedication to tackling the impact of poverty better than our annual Christian Aid Week

THE THINGS YOU DO TO RAISE MONEY FOR CHRISTIAN AID 2

motorbike. The 61-year-old Brackley vicar (left) joined more than 30 bikers, aged from early twenties to their seventies, powering through 160 miles of British countryside in red and white Christian Aid bibs.

Christian Aid

THE DEDICATION and passion of our supporters once again helped make Christian Aid Week an inspiring mix of fun and fundraising. And some of you did the most bizarre things to raise a few pounds!

Here are a few of our favourite fundraising moments.

The Rev Will Adams from East Anglia kick-started the week on his Aprilla 750cc

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The Rev Roger Gayler from Barking and Dagenham carried out his Christian Aid Week activities with half his face shaved (right). It’s 42 years since the 65-year-old vicar of St Mark’s Church at Mark’s Gate was clean-shaven. He describes the gesture as symbolic: ‘Half a beard is a reminder of how the other half lives.’

Otley vicar Graham Buttanshaw dressed up as ‘Brainy Brenda’ to host a Quizaid event at the Red Lion

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‘Christian Aid Week brings together our churches, supporters, volunteers, staff and some partners not just to raise funds for our work but to tell our story and grow the movement.

Many of you have done fantastic things to raise our profile, raise funds and to share time. Thank you for all this – and more. For me this was a special Christian Aid Week – my last as director of Christian Aid. I was happy to get involved where I could and did enjoy collecting again at Waterloo.’ Daleep Mukarji, director of

COMMENT Cool, calm and collecting How would the recession impact on people’s generosity this Christian Aid Week? Collector John Singleton reports on a successful bucket-holding shift at the heart of London’s financial centre, Canary Wharf

Christian Aid

Supporters in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, held their annual bread-and-cheese lunch – an event that goes back 30 years to when Alf McCreary from the Belfast Telegraph wrote about his visit to Christian Aid projects around the world, inspiring annual lunches in Northern Ireland that have raised £95,000 for our work.

Christian Aid

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Above: chic-aid – collecting at London’s Waterloo Station pub and raise funds for Christian Aid. He says, ‘A vicar in drag is not a usual sight, but we’re open-minded in Otley.’

A couple set up a ‘slum survivor shack’ outside their church in Motherwell to highlight the effects of climate change.

Christian Aid

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More than £100,000 was raised at St Andrew’s and St George’s Church, Edinburgh, at the annual Christian Aid Sale. Among several high-value books and pictures donated were a work

by Lynn McGregor and a portrait of Robert Burns by the Scottish artist Calum Colvin.

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IT’S 7.30am and already commuters are pouring off the Jubilee line and streaming through the barriers. There to greet them are members of Poplar church with collecting buckets and highvisibility jackets: Christian Aid Week has arrived in the recession-hit financial centre of London Docklands.

The day gets off to a promising start at this vast, cathedrallike station. Given that we are not allowed to shake our buckets or solicit donations, we are a kind of incarnational presence among these rapidly moving crowds. It seems to work and the first few donations line the empty buckets.

With our high profile as a leading development agency, donations come fairly frequently. Some literally throw a handful of change into the buckets; others thank me for being there or respond with a ‘no problem’ when I thank them; a schoolboy looks carefully at our logo and fishes out some money from his pocket; a man makes a donation and pats me reassuringly on the arm; a lady stops and empties her purse of change. And so it goes on until 9.30am, by which time the flow is a trickle and it’s time to sign off until 4pm when we do an ‘about turn’ to face the homeward bound.

This time there are no waves; people simply stream nonstop towards us down the huge bank of escalators.

It may be our imagination, but they seem more generous on the way home; there are more notes and many folk go out of their way to make a donation, often doubling back as they pass. By 6.45pm, though, the buckets are heavy and it’s time to call it a day.

Later, we find that we have raised nearly £800. This is much the same as last year and proof that, whatever else may be happening, people are still prepared to support a worthwhile cause such as Christian Aid. We’ll be back next year.

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EVENTS We work with some of the poorest communities in the world that face huge challenges every day so why not challenge yourself? Have fun while fighting poverty: join one of our events or do your own fundraising

COPENHAGEN, HERE WE COME CLIMATE-CHANGE campaigners from all over the world will be descending on Copenhagen in December, for the UN convention on climate change (see page 16).

Christian Aid will be there, too, and we want you to get on your bike and join us.

We’re staging a London to Copenhagen Bike Ride from 9-16 December – with three days of cycling covering 140 miles through the beautiful English ‘Knowing that someone’s and Danish life will be changed for the countryside. better by you and your With the UN supporters’ action keeps summit in town from 11-14 you motivated even after a December, this 70-mile day!’ Caroline Williams, really is a onceLondon to Paris 2008 in-a-lifetime opportunity, and a fantastic chance to raise funds for our work while adding your voice to the chorus of campaigners. We have 50 places and they’re open to all levels of cyclist. So whether you’re mad about bikes or just enjoy a leisurely Sunday meander, we would love to welcome you to the team.

For more information please visit www.christianaid.org.uk/events or call 020 7523 2248.

...and we’ll always have Paris Even as you read this, 137 Christian Aid supporters are pumping up their tyres to get ready for the annual London to Paris Bike Ride, which sets off on 22 July. Aged 18 to 76 and from all walks of life, the team have put in many hours of training to be ready to ride 300 miles in just four days. So far they have raised an amazing £150,000 and we are hoping to smash our £230,000 target by the end. Good luck to all our riders – you can do it!

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‘Knowing I was raising the profile of Christian Aid, the laughter from spectators as I trotted round in my costume, and the annoyance of club runners at being beaten by someone in fancy dress made it all worthwhile!’ Vicky Barrett, Great Manchester Run 2009

Do your own thing!

THANK YOU and well done to the 120-plus supporters who have already donned their running shoes to pound the pavements for Christian Aid in 2009.

Our running calendar has been packed, with the London Marathon, Great Manchester Run, London 10,000 and Edinburgh Marathon – 64 miles of Christian Aid running vests streaming through cities.

The 2009 London Marathon team of 21 runners ranged from beginners such as Bishop Richard Henderson, who had never before contemplated a marathon, to more experienced runners such as Matthew Tickle, who, after running the Bath half-marathon last year, went on to run London and raised more than £2,600.

We’re hoping to reach £35,000 by the end

Christian Aid/Philip Ashwin

KEEP ON RUNNING

of the year, so well done guys.

May’s Great Manchester Run, with 60 Christian Aid runners, raised a magnificent £20,000. The team included 74-year-old Ephraim Robinson, who ran with his daughter Florina, and Vicky Barrett, who supported us for the second year, this time wearing an inflatable donkey costume.

The Great North Run, the world’s biggest half-marathon, goes ahead on 20 September and has attracted more than 80 Christian Aid runners, including Soldier Soldier star Jerome Flynn.

If you have managed to secure your own place and would like to use it to raise funds for Christian Aid, you can still be part of our team – we would love to welcome you on board.

If you are feeling inspired, then run for Christian Aid in 2010 and help in our fight to end poverty for ever. We have places on a number of runs, including the 2010 Virgin London Marathon. Please visit www.christianaid.org.uk/events or call 020 7523 2248.

IT’S BEEN a delight to discover how many supporters are out there fighting poverty by raising vital money every which way possible, from family rambles to parachute jumps, overseas challenges to swimathons, weight-loss challenges to sponsored silences. Thank you to all of you.

You don’t have to do something physically challenging to support us… Derek Grover raised more than £830 with a 4½ hour Bach concert, and Linda Anderson has raised £1,000 by asking for donations instead of presents to celebrate her fiftieth birthday.

If you’re thinking about shaving off your moustache, or organising a karaoke night or midsummer party then we can help support you to maximise your fundraising potential.

Just let us know what you’re doing at events@christian-aid.org For information on all Christian Aid’s national fundraising events visit www.christianaid.org.uk/events. We hope to hear from you soon.

S • STOP • STOP PRESS • STOP PRES S ES PR OP ST • S ES PR OP • ST STOP PRESS • STOP PRESS the events team as shown above.

October. For further details contact We have two Golden Bond places

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Christian Aid/Rachel Tavernor

Left: media volunteer John Clay reports on a sponsored walk

HELP US AND HELP YOURSELF! Christian Aid’s volunteering manager, Marie Raffay, looks at how giving time to Christian Aid can also benefit volunteers To gain work experience…

To do something useful in retirement…

To meet people with similar interests…

These are just a few of the many reasons that people give for applying to become one of Christian Aid’s specialist volunteers. The motive they all have in common is a desire to be part of our work to end world poverty.

John Clay, 51, is a communications manager from Durham. Following changes at work he felt he wanted to broaden his experience, so applied to be be a media volunteer at Christian Aid’s Newcastle office. His role involves

helping to raise the profile of Christian Aid in the local media, including writing press releases about events, arranging photo-calls and building relationships with local reporters.

John says, ‘Seeing the material we produce being covered in the local media always gives me a buzz. I’ve also met some inspiring people and being able to get their stories told has been a thrill.’

He admits that he didn’t know much about Christian Aid when he started, but was given a thorough induction and says his understanding of development

Where volunteers help Role Percentage ■ Volunteer teachers 32.3% ■ Office volunteers 19.8% ■ Volunteer speakers 19.5% ■ Gap-year volunteers 5.0% ■ Events and fundraising volunteers 5.8% ■ Media volunteers 3.7% ■ Youth-work volunteers 3.7% ■ Other roles 9.5%

issues has increased greatly, along with his fitness – he is currently in training to raise funds for Christian Aid in this year’s Great North Run in September!

Christian Aid currently has around 450 volunteers working in a range of different roles. Just ten per cent are in London.

The rest are around the UK and Ireland.

Mary Milne, head of our volunteering and community action team, says, ‘Volunteers are really important to us.

They enable us to have a much wider impact. We are committed to providing rewarding and fulfilling opportunities.’

This commitment was recognised recently when Christian Aid became the first national development agency to achieve the Investing in Volunteers standard in volunteer management.

Mary adds: ‘Over the past few years we have become more proactive – recruiting for specific roles rather than just taking any help that is offered. We are definitely recruiting more younger volunteers and not just from our traditional supporter base. Having our opportunities on www.do-it.org.uk has also made a difference. We have become far more professional in the way we recruit, select and train volunteers. Working towards the Investing in Volunteers standard has helped us to achieve that.’

For more volunteer stories or to search for opportunities in your area go to www. christianaid.org.uk/getinvolved

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UK PUBLIC WANTS STRONGER LEAD ON CLIMATE CHANGE A NEW poll commissioned by Christian Aid as part of its climate-change campaign, reveals the extent of the British public’s concern about global warming.

In the YouGov survey, three in five (59 per cent) of UK adults say they are worried about the effects of climate change and 77 per cent think our government ought to do more to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions.

And 70 per cent want to see the UK government taking a leading role at the international climate-change talks in Copenhagen in December.

Paul Brannen, head of campaigns at Christian Aid, said, ‘The public are sending Gordon Brown a clear message; step up your leadership on climate change. He must personally lead the UK delegation.’

Three-quarters (75 per cent) of those who believe the government ought to do more want public money to be invested in renewable energy, closely followed by better and cheaper public transport (73 per cent).

Sixty per cent want to see increased grants to pay for solar panels, wind turbines and insulation in their homes, 53 per cent feel investment in electric and hybrid cars would help the motor industry clean up its act and 52 per cent

want to see companies that pollute the most pay higher taxes.

The poll revealed that people are already changing their own habits. Only 10 per cent of those surveyed said they had done nothing to reduce their own carbon emissions. Three-quarters (75 per cent) of consumers have switched to energy-efficient light bulbs and 70 per cent do not leave electrical items on standby, while more than half (57 per cent) no longer heat rooms at home unnecessarily and 42 per cent tumble-dry less. Lifestyle changes have also extended to transport, with 36 per cent of respondents using the car less and 19 per cent taking fewer flights.

77%

believe the UK government ought to do more to reduce carbon emissions

70%

want the UK government to take a leading role in international climatechange negotiations

90%

have taken steps to reduce their own carbon emissions

Accolade for unsung heroes JULY MARKS the the first Church Website of the Year Awards, run by Christian Aid’s community website Surefish.co.uk in association with the Church Times.

The competition recognises the unsung heroes who create and maintain church websites. The overall winner was voted for by visitors to the Surefish and Church Times websites.

Prizes for the winners included a year’s free web-hosting

by Christian Technology, the award-winning internet service provider and partner of Christian Aid, as well as a consultancy day by think-tank Ekklesia, hampers of Divine chocolate and tickets to the Greenbelt festival.

To find out more about the competition winners visit www.surefish.co.uk/web and for more information about the internet services offered to Christian Aid that also helps support its work to end poverty visit www.christiantechnology.co.uk/christianaid

LIFE AND SOUL The way we lead our own lives can have a tangible impact in the fight to end poverty. By ‘doing the right thing’ we show we have a commitment to a sustainable lifestyle that places a high value on helping others

A POLICY WITH BENEFITS FOR THE POOR CHRISTIAN AID has teamed up with the insurance provider Ecclesiastical in a new relationship that can benefit you and us.

Take out a home-insurance policy with Ecclesiastical, and ten per cent of your first annual premium will go straight to Christian Aid. This donation will average around £20 – enough, for example, to pay the labour costs of building a simple house for a family of flood refugees in Bangladesh. We’ve also negotiated a ten per cent discount for our supporters.

And if your existing policy is not yet up for renewal, you can still raise money for Christian Aid just by telling Ecclesiastical your home-insurance renewal month.

They have pledged 50p for every renewal date that they receive by 31 March 2010.

It won’t commit you or cost you anything, but it will raise funds for our vital work.

Matthew Reed, Christian Aid’s director of marketing and supporter care, comments: ‘I am very pleased to welcome Ecclesiastical Insurance as a new corporate partner for Christian Aid. There is a strong fit between the values of our two organisations and this scheme offers our supporters a way to raise money for our vital work while making savings on a product that most of us need to buy.’

To find out more call 0800 731 7616 (lines open Monday to Friday 8am-6pm, excluding bank holidays) or visit www. ecclesiastical.com/christianaid

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INPUT

Enquiries or requests for information should be sent to Supporter Relations at the address on page 3

Inspired? Enraged?

Send your views to the editor. Christian Aid News, PO Box 100, London SE1 7RT or email canews@christian-aid.org OPEN UP GAZA In your excellent edition on Gaza, Janet Symes’s article was one of the few I have seen that goes to the root cause of the problem: the blockade in 2007, following the free democratic election that gave Hamas a substantial majority. This was too much for the Israelis, so they forced the whole of Gaza to become a prison camp. The only long-term solution to the problem is to provide the Palestinians with an independent state having free sea and air access to the outside world without having to go via Israel.

Charles Hughes Felixstowe, Suffolk

for an eye and a tooth for a tooth’ as a call to vengeance, which it is not. It is an insistence that people pay for the damage they themselves do. If Israel were forced to pay for the complete rebuilding of Gaza by international law, and to pay for lifelong pensions to all it has disabled, and compensation to families for each family member lost, would it have been so eager to go to war in the first place?

We need just such an international law for all nations, and with the power to freeze funds until such dues are paid.

Felicity Crow Stroud, Gloucs

A BOTTOMLESS PIT? WHO PICKS UP THE BILL? It is good to see so many groups around the world jumping to Gaza’s aid. But where is Israel? We often misinterpret her law ‘an eye

We ask, you reply...

THANK YOU to all those readers who responded both online and on paper to our readership survey in the last edition of Christian Aid News. Your overwhelmingly positive views are appreciated and have been helpful to us in implementing the new look of the magazine. The styling is an expression of Christian Aid’s Poverty Over vision, which is being rolled out across all our communications in the coming months.

See page 10

Your report on Gaza says that the clinic for mothers and children that was destroyed

by Israeli shelling was funded by, among others, Christian Aid. My wife and I are among the thousands of people who have helped to raise funds for Christian Aid for such projects to carry on. But some will ask, ‘Isn’t that like throwing money into a bottomless pit? Might it not happen again?’

It would be respectful to donors who have made such efforts in past years for Christian Aid to pursue Israel for war damages payable to Christian Aid for their property destroyed and people injured and payable to the people of Gaza themselves for the deaths and extensive damage caused by the Israeli Defence Forces. There is a wider question, too, why voluntary organisations in the UK should have to provide services that are primarily the responsibility of the government of a modern state with a vibrant economy and

one in receipt of massive aid from western donors and that receives privileged trading status with the EU – although it is not in Europe.

Janet Symes’s call for ‘all to be held accountable for their actions’ is an acknowledgement that humanitarian aid alone is not enough. Failing to move beyond aid into the field of political action encourages those in despair to adopt violent retaliatory action, which is invited, welcomed and then exploited for propaganda reasons by those already employing violence.

James Armstrong Dorchester

TOUGH TACTICS Janet Symes is totally correct in saying that a long-term, viable peace built on justice is the only way forward in Gaza.

While looking back can be counter-productive, I believe that as Christians we should be aware of the difficulties that have to be overcome.

In London, in 2002, Palestinian Professor Khalidi made a speech in which he revealed that in the 1950s Arik Sharon devised a tactic that Israel has used ever since: 1. preparation for conflict 2. provocation 3. massive retaliation.

Israel prepared fully for the latest conflict. The provocation was the cruel blockade and checkpoints.

The massive retaliation was clear for the world to see.

Jim Grave Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

WHAT OF CAIRO’S COPTICS? Channel 4 last year reported that Coptic Christians in Cairo were forced to eke out a living sorting the city’s rat-infested rubbish for recycling and living among it.

What is Christian Aid doing to help these people and other Christians in Middle Eastern

countries who are not treated with the tolerance afforded to Muslims living here?

Roy Hammond Torpoint, Cornwall

Tabitha Ross, Middle East communications officer, replies: Christian Aid works through six local partner organisations in Egypt to support the poorest and most vulnerable, including Christian communities. For example, our local partner organisation the Coptic Orthodox Church Bishopric of Public Ecumenical and Social Services (COC Bless) works in 28 communities throughout Egypt, tackling dire shortfalls in education, healthcare, sanitation and employment opportunities. COC Bless also helps people living in poverty by giving training and small loans to start up new businesses. Another partner, the Coptic Evangelical Organisation for Social Services (CEOSS), is based in the farming and fishing communities in Upper Egypt.

As well as doing socialservices work similar to that of COC Bless, CEOSS is engaged in intercultural dialogue, bringing Muslim and Christian community members and faith leaders together through workshops and activities to tackle the prejudices that lead to conflict and misunderstanding.

TAXING OUR PATIENCE While not condoning tax evasion, and agreeing that in an ideal world if everyone paid the tax that they should a great deal of good would be done, I do wonder if Rachel Baird’s article ‘It’s time to file The Big Tax Return’ (issue 43) makes too many assumptions.

How do we ensure that developing countries spend the extra money on development not defence? If the West gets more money

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Turning hope into action in Burma and Bihar

Andrew Hogg’s report from Gaza and Janet Symes’s comment piece in issue 43, struck a chord with many readers. More of you are joining the debate about population control, while inter-faith cooperation and tax have also got you writing in.

Are you ready for Christian Aid Week?

The anguish of Gaza As a shell-shocked population faces an uncertain future, we report from the frontline on how our partners are responding to the humanitarian crisis

Issue 43

will it really increase international aid or just use the money as collateral to borrow even more money to bail out its economies (or worse, finance protectionist policies that harm the developing world even more)? And what about the assumption that multinational companies are just going to be forced to pay up?

Sadly, I believe that if you are rich enough, the amount of tax you pay will always be, in effect, voluntary: limited only by the amount you are willing to pay on lawyers and relocation expenses.

Tim Fox Beckenham, Kent

SIMPLE CHOICE I was delighted to see the coverage of the population issue on your Input pages.

For too long this subject

Climate and tax: a campaigning double

Spring 2009

www.christianaid.org.uk

has been a no-go area.

To those who say we should concentrate on reducing consumption in the developed world: yes, of course we should. But we are over-using the world’s natural resources to such an extent that it is impossible to conceive of a successful solution that does not include less consumption and stabilising population.

To those who say we do not understand why poorer nations have large families: yes we do, just as we understand why richer nations do not want to give up their affluent lifestyles. But we have to choose whether to change our behaviour in both cases, or suffer the consequences if we do not.

To those who point to the lower per-capita consumption of countries with large populations: look at the

examples of China and India for what happens when countries with large populations start to catch up with the affluent West: just, perhaps, but environmentally disastrous. To those who speak of respect for life: I also respect life. That is why I would prefer population numbers to be controlled voluntarily rather than by mass starvation.

Finally, I hope coverage of the issue continues whatever the views expressed: for silence and ignorance are the biggest danger.

Andrew Burnett The Lee, Bucks

A HOPE UNFULFILLED The world’s population is currently growing by nearly a quarter of a million a day. One pregnancy in three is unintentional; over 200 million couples would practise family planning if they had access to it; there are seven condoms per man per year in subSaharan Africa. The dearth of family planning gives rise to 19 million unsafe abortions resulting in 68,000 deaths and more than two million permanent disabilities annually (all figures from the United Nations Population Fund). There is clearly a huge unfulfilled demand for family

planning, and it is not so much a matter of imposing family planning as trying to keep up with that demand.

Roger Plenty via email

REALITY CHECK I would like the Pope to start facing reality. Contraception is a good thing. It reduces population, which means fewer mouths to feed, and the natural habitats of other species are not destroyed by one species that thinks it has a God-given right to behave that way when it hasn’t. Then people will have better lives and in a more beautiful world that is not out of control.

Justin Barnard via email

GIVE PEACE A CHANCE I was delighted to read Nigel Varndell’s article in the spring issue of Christian Aid News.

‘Faiths together’ have the potential for a great impact. At your next conference will you place peace, with all its facets, at the centre of your agenda.

My vision is one of all faith leaders on the same platform talking of a political and religious peace from a commonly held belief.

John Webster, Isle of Arran

You ask, we reply...

JANET SYMES, Christian Aid’s head of Middle East region, replies to the letter from reader James Armstrong Is humanitarian assistance to Gaza like throwing money into a bottomless pit? Is the answer for us to pursue Israel for war damages? James has a point. It is hugely frustrating to see projects – which our supporters have worked hard to fund – destroyed. But, as a humanitarian agency we cannot stand by while a humanitarian crisis unfolds. We cannot watch as ordinary people suffer from the political failings of those in power. We have an obligation to alleviate the suffering whether the cause is an earthquake, hurricane or conflict. This is why we use funds raised by you to help the men, women and children of Gaza (see page 4). But while we have an obligation to provide

humanitarian aid, Israel has obligations as the occupying power. This is why we support our partners as they push for the accountability of those who hold responsibility in this conflict. Accountability is the cornerstone to future progress.

We want to ensure the destruction doesn’t happen again. In fact, we do not believe it needs to be a bottomless pit. This is a crisis that is well within the grasp of those in power to solve.

And this is why our advocacy is crucial. We are in constant dialogue with the UK government, urging them to do all they can to bring an end to the blockade strangling Gaza. This is why we asked you to write to Gordon Brown to ensure Israel’s relations with the EU are not upgraded while violations of international law continue – and you did so in your thousands.

With your support we will continue to work to ensure Palestinians and Israelis can reach a just and peaceful future.

Christian Aid News 29

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LAST WORD A reflection on how the fight against poverty is being waged and won in an arid part of Malawi, in Africa

FROM DEVON TO MALAWI

T

Mary Fallon, a 68-year-old Christian Aid organiser from Brixham in Devon, describes her impressions of an eye-opening trip to Malawi in May – the first of our new supporter-tours – to see, first-hand, how the work of our partners is helping to lift people out of poverty

Your chance to join us Xxxx xxxxx

RAVELLING FROM Mzuzu to Euthini village on dusty, potholed roads, I learned what ‘rural’ really meant. As a farmer’s daughter and a keen gardener, the joy of seeing the difference that our support has made to the farming community here was only surpassed by the fun and exuberance of our welcome. I couldn’t resist joining in the singing and swaying, and Jane stepped forward to partner me.

Jane Nyirenda is one of 160 farmers benefiting from the Kabiya Dam. The local river had been drying up every year, often resulting in a drought. The dam, funded by our partners, has stopped the river drying up and now there is enough water for three crops of maize a year instead of one.

The community has built channels for the water to run through the crops – a little bit of straw in the outlet holes controls the amount needed. The maize takes three months to mature, so a month after it is planted the beans are set (they take just take two months to mature). Tomatoes take six weeks and the Chinese cabbage four weeks – food all year from one small dam.

And the wonder did not end there; good compost was made from the maize stalks and goat droppings.

Not only is Jane less affected if the rains don’t come at the right time, but the extra money from selling some of her produce means she can buy school uniforms and other things her family needs. Who wouldn’t go door-to-door collecting to enable that sort of magic!

The farmers explained how they are in their third planting season, and are expanding each year, and they told us of their hopes and plans to expand still further. It was wonderful to see how Christian Aid had empowered the people of Euthini.

I am a volunteer teacher, collector and general dogsbody for Christian Aid. At times I do feel I am treading a lonely path, with so many retired people around me putting their energies into beach-holidaying and taking a well-earned rest from the general hassle of life.

I had not flown since 2005; I needed

Above: Mary with her new friend Jane Nyirenda

renewal. Malawi was carbon well spent.

The joy of meeting our partners will stay with me and inspire me to continue to help end poverty. This trip has shown me how much Christian Aid’s partners empower people to change the things that keep them in poverty.

Now I’m back home in Brixham I’m telling everyone about the people we met and challenging them to do more to help empower people such as Jane.

THE NEXT tour leaves for India on 22 November 2009. Experience the inspirational work of some of our partners and enjoy the richness, diversity and beauty of northern India on this 14-day tour.

Upcoming destinations include Bangladesh, Peru and South Africa.

For a detailed dossier or to book a tour, contact Paul or Lizzie at our award-winning ethical tour operator, Skedaddle, tel: 0191 265 1110, email christianaid@skedaddle.co.uk or go to www.christianaid.org.uk/tours

30 Christian Aid News

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He lp 10 ,0 00 No one lives forever. But what you leave behind can be a little more long-term.

For example, a sub-surface dam costs £3,800 and provides water for 2,000 African

CAN 031 ADS.indd 18

l. Put a dam si r wil x fe u o y et n un ei l de p o r. e p

families. Because the rain water is stored underground, it doesn’t evaporate. This means it lasts through the dry season and stays clean. It also leaves space for crops to grow

and livestock to graze. And with locals trained to build and maintain the dam, they’re self-sufficient. If you’ve written a will, there is a cheap and simple way to add a PS

for Christian Aid (it’s called a Codicil). You may be gone, but you won’t be forgotten. To find out more, call Colin Kemp on 0207 523 2173, or email ckemp@christian-aid.org

30/6/09 16:36:36

5,000 WOMEN 5,000 EMPTY ACRES 50,000 FED AT HARVEST

Christian Aid/Chiara Goia/Getty images

Order your free resources this harvest and multiply your impact

Chandramma Moligeri worked for meagre wages in other people’s fields for most of her life.

But that changed when she joined a women’s group supported by Christian Aid partner the Deccan Development Society (DDS). Working together, the women used sustainable farming methods to turn wasteland in a drought-hit region of India into their own productive land.They now have enough to feed their families.

DDS works with 5,000 women across the Medak region.These women distributed their excess harvest to help feed 50,000 of the poorest people in their communities.

Be inspired by Chandramma Moligeri this harvest Order free resources or download all you need to tell Chandramma Moligeri’s story, hold a service, or even have a ‘x10’ dinner!

Visit www.christianaid.org.uk/harvest or call 0870 078 7788.

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