Christian Aid Ireland Magazine | Issue 55 | Spring/Summer 2019 by Christian Aid Ireland

ISSUE 55 • SPRING/SUMMER 2019

SIERRA LEONE: The world’s most dangerous place to give birth

TAX SUCCESS SINGLE MALT SCRAPPED

Monsoon Accessorize

supporting Afghan women

YEARS

to stop climate breakdown

CLEAN WATER for South Sudan

EDITORIAL

Christian Aid Ireland is the official relief and development agency of the Church of Ireland, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, the Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church of Ireland, the Methodist Church in Ireland, the Moravian Church, the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), the Salvation Army, and the Irish Council of Churches.

Charity shops Cullybackey County Antrim

The shop at 69 Main Street, Cullybackey is open Monday to Friday 10.30am until 5pm and on Saturday 10.30am until 1.30pm.

It is a member of the ACT Alliance (Action by Churches Together), the worldwide ecumenical network for emergency relief.

Garvagh

County Londonderry

Christian Aid is a signatory to the Dóchas Code of Conduct on Images and Messages. More details can be found on dochas.ie. Please send any feedback about images in this publication to lfagan@christian-aid.org

Rosamond Bennett Chief Executive, Christian Aid Ireland

Belfast Linden House, Beechill Business Park, 96 Beechill Road, Belfast, BT8 7QN Tel: 028 9064 8133 Email: belfast@christian-aid.org

Deborah Doherty Head of Church & Supporter Engagement

Dublin Canal House, Canal Road, Dublin 6 Tel: 01 496 7040 Email: dublin@christian-aid.org

Jane Burns & Michael Briggs Church and Community Officers

Cork Hill View, Bandon, County Cork Email: cork@christian-aid.org

Andrew Coleman Church and Community Officer NI Company no: NI059154 NI Charity Registration no: XR94639 NI Charity Commission no: NIC101631 ROI Company no: 426928 ROI Charity Registration no: CHY6998 ROI Charities Regulatory no: 20014162

The shop at 85 Main Street, Garvagh is open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 9.30am until 4.30pm and on Saturday 10am until 4pm.

FUNDRAISING LUNCHES Join us for lunch... Every Tuesday: First Lisburn Presbyterian Church, Market Square, Lisburn Every Thursday: Hillsborough Parish Church Editor: Lisa Fagan Contributors: Deborah Doherty, Lisa Fagan, Jennifer Higgins, Paul Maxwell and Dave Thomas. Special thanks to Gemma Murray. Cover photo: Jebbeh Konneh by Amy Sheppey/Christian Aid. Full story on pages 10-12

1st Wednesday of each month: Armagh Road Presbyterian Church, Portadown 1st Friday of each month: Drumbeg Parish Church Hall, Dunmurry

Mission statement The work of Christian Aid Ireland is based on our Christian belief that everyone, regardless of their faith or race, is entitled to live a full life, free from poverty. We believe in tackling the root causes of poverty, not just their symptoms. We believe that the world can and must be changed so that there is equality, dignity and freedom for all. We are driven to make this change happen and to inspire others to make it happen.

To everything there is a season And a time to every purpose under heaven.

s that beautiful verse from Ecclesiastes tells us, to everything there is a season. And a time to every purpose under heaven. Spring is surely the loveliest of all the seasons. At this time of year, we celebrate the arrival of new life after the long winter. And so it seems fitting that, this spring, we focus on those who are working to bring new life into the world. Nurses like Judith Lassie in Sierra Leone who help mums to deliver their babies. Judith runs a small one-room clinic in the remote village of Sawula. The clinic has no lighting to deliver a baby at night, nor refrigeration to keep the drugs at a safe temperature. Women in labour often have to wait up to eight hours for an ambulance to arrive. Every day, ten women in Sierra Leone die in childbirth. But Sierra Leone is working to rebuild its health system after a bloody civil war and the worst Ebola outbreak in history. This Christian Aid Week, please stand with the mums and babies of Sierra Leone. You can read the full story on pages 10-12. It’s been a time of change at home, too as we welcome Rev Dr Liz Hughes as our new Chair. Liz will be well known to many of you from her ministry at Whitehouse Presbyterian Church in north Belfast. Her 9 years ministering in Jamaica and her role as Convener of Global Mission at PCI made her the perfect choice to lead our Board. Please turn to page 19. For hundreds of families in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe, it has been a time to mourn. Cyclone Idai had claimed more than 750 lives as we went to print, with almost half a million left homeless. Please visit our website caid.ie/cyclone-idai and give what you can.

Please visit our website at: christianaid.ie Like us on Facebook /ChristianAidIreland

Blessings

Rosamond Bennett Chief Executive, Christian Aid Ireland

Christian Aid Ireland

The devastating cyclone has been described by some as a natural disaster. But climate change is man-made. And it is already claiming lives and livelihoods, mainly in the poorest countries which have done least to cause it. For that reason, aid agencies see climate change as a justice issue. And for young people especially, inheriting an unstable climate from their parents and grandparents, it’s an issue of inter-generational justice. But young people are organising. A grassroots movement is demanding change and it’s led by teenage girls. Please turn to pages 14-16. Ecclesiastes chapter 3, verse 7 tells us there is a time to keep silent and a time to speak. With just 12 years to prevent runaway climate change, this is not the time to keep silent. Please raise your voices. Urge political and business leaders to make deep cuts in carbon emissions and divest from fossil fuels. Join us in asking HSBC bank not to invest in coal-fired power plants in Bangladesh, Indonesia and Vietnam. We are hugely grateful for your financial support, for the gift of your time and for your prayers. This Easter season, we are standing together against climate change. This Christian Aid Week, we are supporting the mums and babies of Sierra Leone. Together we can build a more just and sustainable world. Because there is no greater purpose under heaven.

Spring/Summer 2019

NEWS

CASH?

NEWS

ULSTER HALL BENEFIT CONCERT

Sheep’s Head Hike volunteers

PROBLEM! Newtownards Christian Aid Committee raised almost £4,000 during their 3-day pre-Christmas sit-out in the County Down market town. This was the 31st year of their Christmas street collection which has raised a total of £89,000 for projects in developing countries. But it was the first year they had accepted debit card payments. A contactless payment machine was on hand to allow shoppers and passers-by to ‘tap and give’ either £3 or another amount of their choosing. John Doherty, Chair of Newtownards Christian Aid Committee, said: “With so many people not carrying cash, it’s good we can offer a card payment option.”

Standing (L-R): Robert Mercer, Aideen Fox, Nuala McKeever, Keith Pyper, Megan Pentland, Alan McNeill, Judith Thompson. Seated (L-R): Kat Reagan, Mary Frances Loughran, Alice Johnston.

More than 100 musicians raised the roof of the Ulster Hall in late October, during a Christian Aid benefit concert that brought in almost £4,000 for projects in developing countries. Performing on stage were Downshire Brass, Belfast Operatic Company, the Salvation Army children’s choir, Joyful Sounds and The Victory Rollers. The evening was compèred by comic actress Nuala McKeever.

Portadown soup lunch

If you would like to try out a way to take cashless donations, please contact Helen Newell on belfast@christian-aid.org

The beautiful west Cork village of Durrus was the scene of an event in January to celebrate one of Christian Aid’s most popular fundraising events. For ten years, our annual ‘pilgrimage’ along the Sheep’s Head Way in west Cork has drawn walkers from all over the island. Each September, they come in their hundreds to drink in the rugged beauty of this remote peninsula on Ireland’s wild Atlantic coast. The event, which has raised more than €72,000 over the ten years, is only possible because of the dedication of many local people who give freely of their time - leaders, stewards, drivers and caterers. The event was held at the Philip Green Community Centre in Durrus where a 3-course meal was served to 25 volunteers to thank them for their efforts. The catering was provided by the Gourmet Grill in Kilcrohane, the company that provides refreshments for walkers on the annual September hike at no cost to Christian Aid. On the evening, the sum raised by the 2018 hike was presented to our Church and Community Officer, Andrew Coleman (front row wearing a red hoodie). Save the date: this year, the Sheep’s Head Hike will be on Saturday 7 September 2019.

Jeanne Kamara, Christian Aid’s Country Manager in Sierra Leone dropped in on the Portadown soup lunch recently to thank the volunteers for their support. She explained why her country is the world’s most dangerous place to have a baby, and how Christian Aid Week donations can help mums and babies to survive and thrive. For more information, see pages 10-12. Jeanne also spoke to supporters in Belfast, Cullybackey, Dublin, Enniskillen and Lisburn. 4

Christian Aid Ireland

ANNUAL SUPPORTER SURVEY We want you to know how your support is changing lives. We also want to know what you find interesting and motivating, so we can tailor our communications to suit. Even if you have completed a survey in the past, please complete this one by visiting caid.ie/supporter-survey, thank you.

Spring/Summer 2019

GIVE A CHEER FOR OUR

VOLUNTEER

In late October 1998, the devastation wreaked across the Caribbean by Hurricane Mitch prompted one Belfast lady to approach Christian Aid to help with our humanitarian response. Twenty years on and Suzanne Shepherd is still bringing a ray of sunshine - and lots of delicious home baking - to our Belfast office each Thursday. For two decades Suzanne has helped us with our fundraising and communications. She has organised cycle rides and sponsored walks to raise money for Christian Aid’s work overseas, all without payment. The 20th anniversary of her arrival seemed like the perfect opportunity to show her some appreciation. Unknown to Suzanne, we’d invited some former staff and volunteers to a surprise party, as well as her beloved twin sister Moyra. There were a few speeches, a few tears and of course a huge cake because a party without cake is just a meeting. There was even a prerecorded video message from her sporting hero, Ulster rugby star, Andrew Trimble. Christian Aid isn’t the first organisation to recognise Suzanne for her voluntary work. Her 50 years as a girl guide leader and her twenty years fundraising for Marie Curie have already been acknowledged with a British Empire Medal. 5

SUPPORTER FUNDRAISING

GENDER JUSTICE

Boutique charity shop opens in Cullybackey Photo: Uruj Perwaiz

Monsoon Accessorize funds women’s silk project in Afghanistan

A heritage building which had fallen into disrepair in the County Antrim village of Cullybackey has been transformed into a boutique charity shop by a communityminded local couple.

Christian Aid has thanked Monsoon Accessorize for supporting a project that enables Afghan women to earn an income working in the silk industry.

the poorest nations in Asia, with more than a third of the population living below the poverty line. Women are considered to be of lesser value in Afghan society, denied access to basic rights and services. One in nine Afghan women face physical, sexual or psychological violence, or are forced into marriage. The security situation is difficult and for that reason, we adopt the name CAID

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A key aim of the project is to help widows and womenheaded households to earn money

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inside Afghanistan and are not naming our representative. But we have worked there for more than three decades, under four different regimes, from the Soviet occupation to the current government that was voted in after the US-led invasion of 2001.

A Christian Aid staff member (left) visited the Forestside mall in Belfast to thank Deborah Lacey of Monsoon Accessorize.

Christian Aid Ireland

Photos: Darren Kidd/Press Eye

unding from the MonsoonAccessorize Trust is reaching thousands of women in western Afghanistan, enabling them to earn an income through silk production. Our partner RAADA has provided materials, equipment, training and solar electrification to modernise the traditional silk industry. A key aim of the project is to help widows and women-headed households to earn money, lifting 3,150 women and their families out of poverty. The women spend their income on their children and send them to school to create a better future for them. For the last four years, Shagufa has been a trainer and supervisor for RAADA’s silk projects, training women in silkworm rearing and silk weaving. She is able to support her husband and their seven children and pay for their education. Afghanistan is one of

ichael and Oonagh Dalton spent months renovating the beautiful 200-year-old building before opening its doors last November. The ribbon was cut by Chief Executive, Rosamond Bennett on what is only the second Christian Aid charity shop in the UK and Ireland: the first, in nearby Garvagh, is managed by Rachel McCormick whom Oonagh and Michael say inspired them to follow suit. Oonagh thanked the public for their generosity: “We’ve been overwhelmed with donations. Beautiful things, china tea sets, designer clothing, vintage dresses, a sheepskin coat from the 1970s, complete wedding outfits worn only once, bags and shoes with the labels still on, quirky and unusual things.” Spring/Summer 2019

Christian Aid CEO Rosamond Bennett (centre) cut the ribbon at the launch of the new charity shop in Cullybackey. Michael and Oonagh Dalton spent months renovating the 200-year-old building.

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We need volunteers to give us a few hours a week to help us run the shop

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Bargain hunters, magpies and vintage lovers should ‘like’ the shop’s Facebook page, The Changing Room, Cullybackey for daily updates on new stock. Please turn to page 2 for the address and opening hours of our charity shops in Cullybackey and Garvagh.

Designer label shoes are among the items on sale at The Changing Room, Cullybackey.

PEACE BUILDING

Rowan Williams: UK ‘directly complicit’ in Yemen war! Christian Aid is calling on the UK to stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia and invest in peace-building.

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams: UK Govt is directly complicit in the Yemen war which has driven 14 million people to the brink of famine.

countless civilians. The vast majority of this country’s citizens want to see an end to arms sales to countries engaged in wholesale slaughter. “The UK Government is putting its own perceived national security and domestic interests ahead of human security and protection of those living in conflict.” Carlow native, Karol Balfe, leads on Christian Aid’s global peacebuilding programme: “While the UK is to be commended for spending 0.7% of Gross National Income on aid and 50% of its aid budget to conflict-affected states, as one of the world’s biggest arms dealers, it is fuelling war instead of peace. “Over the last five years, the UK has sold 49% of its major arms exports to Saudi Arabia. No other arms exporter comes close to this dependence on the Gulf market. The Royal Saudi Air Force is hugely dependent on British-made aircraft and missiles, maintained and supported in-country by British military and civilian technicians. “This casts a shadow on the UK’s attempts to profile itself as a values-based international actor committed to tackling global conflict. Germany, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, Denmark (future exports only) and Finland have all suspended arms sales to Saudi Arabia.” Christian Aid’s global peacebuilding programme is led from Dublin by Carlow woman, Karol Balfe.

Christian Aid Ireland

Photo: Phil Magowan/Press Eye

hristian Aid has accused the UK Government of double standards and complicity in the war in Yemen, calling for an end to arms sales to Saudi Arabia and a commitment to peace-building. A report published in December accused Britain of violating its own international commitments to regulate its arms exports to states acting illegally and repressively. Entitled Resourcing war and peace: time to address the UK Government’s double standards, the report finds that the UK spends three times as much on the military as on aid. And a poll, commissioned by Christian Aid and undertaken by ComRes, found that three in five (61%) British adults think the UK Government should stop selling military equipment to Saudi Arabia which has been leading a bombing campaign in Yemen. To coincide with the report’s publication, Christian Aid supporters sent cards to British Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt MP, asking him to suspend arms sales to Saudi. Speaking as the report was launched, Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury, said: “The UK Government is directly complicit in a war that has driven 14 million people to the brink of famine and claimed the lives of

Pictured in Crawfordsburn village, Rev Mairisine Stanfield of First Bangor Presbyterian and Rev Canon Michael Parker of St Gall’s COI, Carnalea sent Christmas cards from their congregations to Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt asking him to stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia.

In 2017, the world spent an estimated $1.74 trillion dollars on weapons and its military. The 2018 figure is likely to exceed $1.8 trillion, the highest it has ever been. Around two billion people live in countries affected by fragility, conflict, and violence. These countries typically have the highest poverty rates. Without a safe place to call home, reliable access to food and an income, people cannot plan for the future. Spring/Summer 2019

Christian Aid calls on the UK Government to: Stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia, and other states which are violating international law. With other countries around the globe, to commit to significantly more spending on peace and less on militarisation. Adopt a clear vision of peacebuilding, putting those living in conflict, in particular local peace actors, at the heart of its approach.

MATERNAL AND INFANT HEALTH

Tom Pilston/Christian Aid

MATERNAL AND INFANT HEALTH

Happy Birth Days Above: Jebbeh Konneh whose sister Fatmata died in childbirth. Now she’s pregnant, she fears she could be next. Left: 10-day old twins in Sawula village.

Christian Aid Week will focus on maternal health in Sierra Leone, the world’s most dangerous country in which to deliver a baby.

ierra Leone is a country about the size of Ireland, lying on the west coast of Africa. Scarred by a long and bloody civil war (1991-2002), and the worst Ebola outbreak in history (2014-2016), Sierra Leoneans are now battling to rebuild healthcare. People hope to bring their country from the painful shadow of death, to a new era of health and life. Jebbeh Konneh lives in Sawula village, about six hours south of Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone. Jebbeh is extremely anxious about the birth of her own child. When her sister Fatmata went into labour, she was unable to access an ambulance and had no choice but to walk for three hours under the baking sun to the nearest hospital. The road was long, she 10

struggled to keep walking and sadly she died on the side of the road. She never gave birth. There are a number of reasons why giving birth is so dangerous in Sierra Leone. If there’s no health clinic in their village, women in labour have to wait up to eight hours before the ambulance arrives. Some women travel to hospital on

surely, I know “ For the plans I have

for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.

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Jeremiah 29:11

the back of a motorbike. The poorest women have no choice but to walk for hours on foot. Another reason is the lack of trained healthcare workers. 10% of healthcare workers died during the Ebola crisis. Many women are left to give birth with traditional birth attendants who have very little medical training and are not equipped to deal with serious emergencies. Inadequate health centres are also a factor. Even if a woman has a health centre in her village, it is likely it will be poorly equipped, with not enough drugs available, not enough delivery beds, and no light to deliver the baby at night. From May to December, it’s hungry season. There isn’t enough food, and most families eat just one meal a day. This Christian Aid Ireland

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With your support this Christian Aid Week, we hope to build a bigger and better health centre with a delivery room, a drug store, a room for children under 5 years old and importantly, equipped with solar lighting.

means that many pregnant women often don’t have the strength to give birth. Pregnancy should be a time of joy, not a time of fear. Instead of buying new clothes for her sister’s baby, Jebbeh went instead to her sister’s burial. As her due date looms closer, Jebbeh fears she could be next. ‘I’m afraid,’ she says. ‘I pray, when that day comes, God will help me to deliver safely, so that I can have a bouncing baby and I’ll be healthy.” In Sawula village, the Spring/Summer 2019

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community struggles with an ill-equipped health centre which has no electricity and just two delivery beds. Judith Lassie is a nurse. When she first came to Sawula village, she saw how mums were in desperate need of medical care. Judith works around the clock to meet the needs of mums and young children who come to the clinic. But the need is great, and sometimes she’s forced to send people away. The health clinic is the size of a small bedroom. Operations,

IN SIERRA LEONE: • Ten women die every day giving birth. • One in nine children don’t reach their 5th birthday. • 10% of healthcare workers died during the Ebola crisis. • Women in labour may have to wait up to 8 hours before an ambulance arrives. • Rural health centres have no light to deliver a baby at night.

MATERNAL AND INFANT HEALTH

HUMANITARIAN

Clean Water

deliveries, baby check-ups, everything happens in one single room. When women come to the clinic at night, there’s no light for Judith to use. She has to ask her patients to bring a torch. This makes giving birth so much more dangerous. There are often not enough drugs at the clinic. Judith sees diseases like malaria, typhoid, cholera and diarrhoea claim the lives of children. She has to go on a motorbike or sometimes walk for three hours to collect drugs. ‘I need help, she

• £300/€350 would purchase a locally made delivery bed with mattress • £60/€70 would purchase a lockable drugs cupboard • £15/€18 a stethoscope • £5/€6 a baby weighing bag

for

Nurse Judith Lassie runs this cramped one-room clinic.

says. ‘Women are dying from childbirth, children under five are dying, because of poverty.’ A new health centre is like a dream for Sawula village. With your support this Christian Aid Week we hope to build a bigger and better health centre with a delivery room, a drug store, a room for children under 5 years old and importantly, equipped

with solar lighting. Visit caweek.org to download your church resources including worship materials, ideas for young people and a film featuring the very passionate and committed nurse, Judith Lassie. Alternatively, you can contact the Belfast or Dublin offices for additional support or information: belfast@christian-aid.org dublin@christian-aid.org

DROP SIERRA LEONE’S DEBT Sierra Leone is burdened with debt following the Ebola crisis. Write to the UK Chancellor telling him it must be scrapped. Why is this important? When Ebola struck Sierra Leone, its government had little choice but to accept loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help it cope with the crisis. Now we’re asking the UK Chancellor to push the IMF to drop Sierra Leone’s debt. The country lacks funds for 12

proper health clinics, health training and enough ambulances. This makes it the most dangerous place in the world to become a mum. Debt repayments have left Sierra Leone with even less money to provide the healthcare so desperately needed to ensure mums and babies survive childbirth.

The UK Government has a lot of power within the IMF to do something about this. Ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to ensure that all Sierra Leone’s debts on the loans it received for fighting the Ebola outbreak are written off. Download a petition sheet to use in your church or community from our website, caweek.org Christian Aid Ireland

South Sudan

A Dublin engineer has donated almost €13,000 to Christian Aid Ireland for the rehabilitation of twenty boreholes in South Sudan.

he project will provide clean water for conflict-affected communities, reducing death and illness from water-borne diseases. The donation was made by the MacMahon Foundation, established by Des MacMahon and his family to help make a difference to the lives of people living in poverty overseas. In November, Des and his daughter Meg met Rosamond Bennett, CEO of Christian Aid Ireland to receive an update on the situation in South Sudan

following her visit there in September, shortly after the peace agreement was signed. Rosamond described some of the mainly positive changes she’d noted since her previous visit. As an engineer, Des understood the importance of functioning boreholes and insisted that sustainability should be a key element of the project. Pump mechanics will be trained

and equipped, meaning that communities will not be reliant on external organisations. The project aims to benefit thousands of individuals and households, particularly the most vulnerable and those least likely to be able to access clean drinking water, including women and babies, the elderly and internally displaced people.

ks Rosamond Bennett (centre) than Meg. hter daug his and ahon MacM Des

mechanics “ Pump will be trained and

equipped, meaning that communities will not be reliant on external organisations.

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Spring/Summer 2019

Credit: Amy Sheppey/Christian Aid

CLIMATE CHANGE

12 YEARS LEFT

to stop CLIMATE BREAKDOWN The effects of climate change are being felt already by people like Lope and Eva who live on the island of Tabugon in the Philippines.

The clock is ticking on a climate catastrophe. Scientists have warned that we have just twelve years left to prevent runaway climate change.

he world’s leading climate scientists have told us we have less than 12 years to prevent climate breakdown. Twelve years to prevent the worst impacts of climate change being visited on the developing countries – and on the young people – who have done least to cause them. But the effects of climate change are being felt already. As we go to press, the death toll for Cyclone Idai in southern Africa has passed 750. And although we cannot attribute any individual weather event to climate change, extreme weather events are set to become more common and ferocious. In our Lent and Easter appeal, Christian Aid called on people to ‘rise up’ with 14

affected communities and climate activists around the world to protect our planet. Lope and Eva (pictured) live on Tabugon, one of the smaller islands in the Philippines which are isolated and increasingly vulnerable. In 2013, Lope had to sell the only means to his livelihood, his fishing boat, to pay for medication when he fell ill. One of his sons was forced to drop out of school to work and support his family. That same year, Super Typhoon Haiyan hit with unprecedented force. As the water surged and the terrifying winds pounded the island, the family hunkered down and prayed for safety; people in the village, with nowhere else to go, crowded into Lope

and Eva’s home for shelter. There was barely enough food for the family, never mind all the neighbours, but somehow everyone was fed and safe. In the aftermath, they saw that nearly everything around them was swept away, including precious coral reefs and protective mangrove trees. Seven people died; the survivors were confronted with the shocking sight of nothing but torn, brown stumps where once it was green and lush. In 2015, Lope began

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The latest science shows that we need to reach ‘net zero’ emissions by 2050.

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Christian Aid Ireland

As Jesus said, ‘Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?’ Sadly, today’s children have been given a hostile climate by their parents’ generation. campaigning against illegal fishing in the area, which destroys the marine life and the livelihoods of the local fishermen. Now, thanks to support from our partner ICODE, he and his team can protect the environment, patrolling the seas by boat and watching from a guardhouse. The villagers were also able to set down an artificial reef, made from over three hundred concrete jackstones. These safely anchor the coral, allowing them to grow into healthy reefs again and attract an abundance of fish, while keeping illegal fishermen away. For Lope and Eva, all of

Christian Aid’s Policy and Advocacy Adviser Jennifer Higgins attended the UN climate conference in Poland.

Spring/Summer 2019

this now means that they, and others, can eat well, and keep their children in education. Climate change threatens communities and livelihoods across the world, including here in Ireland. The world’s leading climate scientists have warned that we have less than 12 years to prevent global warming exceeding 1.5 degrees, the target set in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. Christian Aid is calling on political leaders, institutions and businesses to urgently change course, to stop investing in fossil fuels and instead make deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to the human costs, which will be much higher in developing countries, there are financial costs associated with climate change. Christian Aid’s report, Counting the Cost, showed that in 2018, ten climate-related disasters cost more than $1 billion USD each and four of them cost more than $7 billion each. For one fifteen-year-old girl in Sweden, enough was enough. On a Friday in August last year, Greta Thunberg skipped school and began a weekly ‘strike for the climate’ outside the Swedish parliament building. Months on from that lone protest, Greta has sparked a global movement which in March this year ignited ‘school climate strikes’ in Dublin, Cork and Belfast, as well as in other cities around the world. Christian Aid’s Youth and Campaigns Manager, Richard Baker, said: “It’s understandable that children are angry about the state of the climate their forebears are leaving them. It’s a bitter inheritance. The fact so many

of them feel the need to take this drastic action is a damning indictment of our political leaders. While the nature of the action may divide opinion, the most important thing is that we all listen and respond to what they are saying. As Jesus said, ‘Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?’ Sadly, today’s children have been given a hostile climate by their parents’ generation.” Christian Aid’s advocacy staff used their voices at the most recent UN climate conference in Poland to call on negotiators to implement the Paris agreement, provide finance for poor countries to adapt and renew efforts to curb emissions. Christian Aid is also using its voice to demand that institutions and businesses stop investing in the fossil fuels that cause climate

Here are some practical steps each of us can take to cut the greenhouse gas emissions we are personally responsible for. • Reduce our consumption of meat and dairy products. • Walk or cycle rather than driving. • Minimise air travel. • Ensure our houses are well insulated. • Use the clothes line rather than the tumble dryer. • Don’t leave appliances on standby, turn them off completely.

POLICY AND ADVOCACY

CLIMATE CHANGE

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An estimated 10,000 young people joined the school climate strike in Dublin on 15 March.

For one fifteenyear-old girl in Sweden, enough was enough. On a Friday in August last year, Greta Thunberg skipped school and instead started a ‘strike for the climate’.

TAX LOOPHOLE ABOLISHED

In November 2017, Christian Aid Ireland identified the Single Malt, a tax avoidance scheme which enabled multinational companies to reduce their tax bill by routing their profits through Malta.

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change. Throughout Lent, many of our supporters visited branches of the multinational bank HSBC. The bank, which claims to be a leader on climate change, is continuing to invest in new coal power plants in three countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change: Bangladesh, Indonesia and Vietnam. Recently activists and staff met local politicians in Belfast to encourage them to support an amendment to the UK Climate Change Act. Rather than aiming for 80% cuts in carbon emissions by 2050, the latest science shows

LAST ORDERS FOR THE ‘SINGLE MALT’

T that we need to reach ‘net zero’ emissions by that date, to have a hope of limiting the rise in average global temperatures to 1.5 degrees. Net zero emissions means that any greenhouse gases that are emitted are balanced by the amount absorbed by other means, such as tree planting. East Belfast MP, Gavin Robinson indicated after the meeting that he would sign the pledge calling for net zero emissions.

On 26 June 2019, Christian Aid and others will take part in a mass lobby of the UK Parliament calling for net zero emissions. Climate change is an urgent and complex challenge, but for the sake of people like Lope and Eva, schoolchildren like Greta Thunberg and those protesting in Dublin, Cork and Belfast, we must grasp this nettle, demand political action and make changes in our own lives.

Helen Newell, our Senior Church and Community Officer and Peter Copes (3rd from left, a student on work experience with Christian Aid) urge David Simpson (1st), DUP MP for Upper Bann and Gavin Robinson, DUP MP for East Belfast, to support a net zero target for the UK.

he Single Malt had the effect of depriving poor countries of much needed tax revenue, something we identified in our 2017 report ‘Not Without Cost’. After only a year of lobbying, our efforts were rewarded when the Irish Government announced its intention to abolish the Single Malt. This victory came three years after the Government abolished a similar tax avoidance scheme known as the Double Irish. Sorley McCaughey, Head of Policy and Advocacy at Christian Aid Ireland explained: “Welcome though these measures are, closing down avoidance schemes one by one is a piecemeal approach and

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we are therefore asking the Irish Government to revisit their Spillover Analysis, published in 2015, which made the claim that Ireland’s tax code was not negatively affecting developing countries. Our research clearly shows that this is not so.” Please use your voice to ask Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe to ensure Ireland’s tax regime requires multi-national companies to properly pay the tax they owe to poor countries, so they can invest in healthcare, education and infrastructure and reduce their dependency on aid. Download a petition sheet to use in your church or community from our website, caweek.ie Meanwhile the Occupied

So rle

y McCaughey Please ask the Minister for Finance to ensure that Ireland’s tax code requires multi-national companies to pay the tax they owe to poor countries.

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Territories Bill has cleared the Seanad and has started its journey through the Dáil. The Bill would ban the importation into Ireland of any produce that originates in Palestinian land that has been taken over by Israeli settlers. These settlements are illegal under international law.

Most of the coal burnt at Moneypoint power plant in County Clare comes from a vast Colombian mine accused of environmental and human rights abuses. Cerrejón is the largest open-cast coal mine in Latin America, and one of the largest in the world, around 100 times bigger than the Phoenix Park. Over 90% of the fuel burnt at Moneypoint, Ireland’s only coal-fired power plant, has been sourced from Colombia, predominantly from Cerrejón. 16

Christian Aid Ireland

Spring/Summer 2019

In October 2018, a report in The Guardian linked Cerrejón to forced displacement, land grabs, militarisation and adverse impacts on the health and safety of local communities. ESB which owns Moneypoint is 95% owned by the Irish Government, linking the state purchasing of coal to human rights abuses in Colombia.

Please write to the Minister for Communication, Climate Action and Environment, Richard Bruton TD, asking him to ensure that buying coal from Cerrejón does not contravene our National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights which commits Ireland to human rights-compliant business practices at home and overseas. 17

CHURCH NEWS

CHURCH NEWS Photos: Karen Bushby/Belfast Cathedral

Rev Dr Liz Hughes to chair Christian Aid Ireland Rev Dr Liz Hughes (66) has been appointed Chair of Christian Aid Ireland, succeeding Bishop Trevor Williams, former Church of Ireland Bishop of Limerick who held the position for the previous eight years. Rev Dr Hughes is Convener of Global Mission for the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, making her the ideal candidate to lead the aid agency’s Board. Rev Hughes was minister of Whitehouse Presbyterian

Black Santa

The tradition was started by Dean Sammy Crooks in 1976 and is carried on by the current Dean of Belfast, Stephen Forde. Christian Aid is honoured to be the only international charity to benefit from the sit-out. This year, Dean Stephen received some large donations including one anonymous cash gift of more than £31,000.

Photo: Belfast Telegraph

In February, Christian Aid Ireland CEO Rosamond Bennett visited Casa Noeli safe house, a refuge for women and children fleeing domestic violence in the Brazilian city of Ariquemes, and the focus of this year’s Presbyterian World Development Appeal. Rosamond met the founder and manager of the safe house, Rev Elineide Ferreira (centre) and shared with her the publicity material produced for the appeal. Fabiola (left) agreed to share her experience of living in Casa Noeli for the appeal. For more information or to view a video about the appeal, visit: www. presbyterianireland.org/Mission/MissionProjects/World-Development-Appeal.aspx

RECTOR COMPLETES 4-DAY FAST

“I have been privileged to visit and learn from church partners in many different parts of the world through my special interest in mission and development over the years, in Indonesia, India, Iraq, Ghana, Rwanda and Malawi.”

Presbyterian support for women’s refuge in Brazil

Deborah Doherty, Head of Church and Supporter Engagement at Christian Aid Ireland, was presented with a cheque for £20,000 by local celebrity Lynda Bryans during the Good Samaritans’ service at St Anne’s Cathedral on Sunday 3 February. The service is held every year to disperse the monies raised by the Dean’s annual pre-Christmas ‘Black Santa’ sit-out.

During Advent, Portlaoise rector Canon Peter Tarleton (72) completed a 4-day fast to raise funds to tackle hunger among some of the world’s poorest people. The spritely minister who marked his 70th birthday by climbing Mount Kenya

Church in Newtownabbey until her retirement but she and her husband Brian served as mission partners with the United Church in Jamaica from 1987-1995 where she gained an understanding of development issues.

(16,000 ft), fasts regularly because he believes that Christians are called to pray and fast. To read a longer version of this story, please visit caid.ie/news

Christian Aid Ireland

Spring/Summer 2019

“During seven non-stop days, we travelled around Pietermaritzburg and Durban seeing the work that Church Land Programme (CLP) do and meeting various groups and organisations who work alongside them. “A personal highlight for me was the day and a half spent in Durban with Abahlali baseMjondolo which describes itself as the largest organisation of the militant poor in post-apartheid South Africa - essentially a movement of shackdwellers and other impoverished people. “During our time with Abahlali, we spent a night sleeping in a shack community where a woman pregnant with triplets very kindly moved out of her home to make room for us. We heard many harrowing stories of the shack-dwellers’ struggles with the authorities and neighbouring communities. People told us of multiple evictions, arson attacks and physical assaults. “We also visited a settlement of around 300 homes built in 2016 in Cato Manor. Here we were told how the authorities regularly cut off the electricity and water supply (2-3 times a week) and attempt to demolish their homes. “With the help of Abahlali and CLP, the community of Cato Manor has built a community hall which was officially opened soon after our visit. One of the community leaders said to us, “Your visit gives us dignity. The fact that you have come to us from the UK and Ireland means so much to us.” “Since coming home, I’ve been wondering, what if Christian Aid was to bring a group of church leaders from South Africa to Ireland? What if they met the 1,700 families, including the 3,800 children who live in emergency accommodation in Ireland? Or the 450 women who reported domestic violence to Carlow Women’s Aid in 2018? Or the families who received more than 900 food parcels from The Food Pantry in Carlow Methodist Church? “This is messy, this is hard work, this is the Gospel. And as we seek to live out our calling as followers of Christ, there is much we can learn from the Church Land Programme.”

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Right: A typical dwelling in one of the slum settlements visited by Rev Paul Maxwell

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Carlow minister Rev Paul Maxwell travelled to South Africa to visit projects supported by Christian Aid Ireland and the Irish Methodist World Development and Relief Fund.

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CHURCH NEWS

Photo: William Cherry/Press Eye

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GIVERS

23 Spring/Summer 2019 F2381NI

They give £20 a month to Christian Aid by direct debit. To read a longer version of this story, please visit caid.ie/news

Lisa Fagan asked one family why they had signed up for a monthly donation to Christian Aid. F2381ROI

If you’d like to sign up for a monthly direct debit to Christian Aid, please complete the form opposite or visit caid.ie/directdebit

“It’s important that our children realise how privileged their lives are and that children across the world live in very different circumstances to them. We feel that as young Christians they should be shown how to care for those in need. Our regular direct debit is an example of how our family can give financially to improve the lives of those living in poverty.” It’s supper time and our conversation ends as Susie’s attention shifts to the task of dishing up. Brian jokes that Susie is needed outside - there’s another cow having difficulty calving - but Susie’s not fooled. And it’s clear, as the family tuck into their evening meal, that the generosity of one Saintfield couple is filling the tummies, and bringing smiles to the faces, of more children than these lucky three. We receive a lot of our income via appeal mailings but this can be a costly way for us to raise money due to printing and postage. That’s why we’re encouraging our supporters, if they can, to consider direct debit giving. Predictable giving allows us to plan our long-term work and respond immediately when disaster strikes.

“I remember watching news coverage of the East Africa famine. A 7-year old boy who’d been orphaned by the food shortages had walked for 2 weeks to reach a refugee camp. I watched as he received his first meal. Instead of tucking into the food, he began to cry tears of relief that finally he was safe and would be cared for.” usie Armstrong was a young vet when, one evening in May 1998, she was called to the farm of Brian Hamilton to calve a cow. It was a complicated delivery for someone who’d only qualified ten months before. But her training paid off and she managed to save the cow and her calf. More than twenty years on from that first meeting, Susie and Brian are married with three children. The couple are at a busy - and expensive - stage of life. Susie (44) works 4 days a week as a vet and Brian (43) manages the family farm near Saintfield, County Down. With three ‘tweenagers’ to feed and clothe, I wonder what prompted them to sign up for a monthly direct debit to Christian Aid. Susie explained:

Susie and Brian Hamilton at home on their farm near Saintfield with their children Connie (12), Jacob (11) and Jessica (10).

COMMITTED

‘Beryl’s looking down from heaven saying: “I’m happy with that.”’ Bob, Beryl’s friend and executor of her Will

Wouldn’t you be happy to leave the gift of life? Beryl Hadwin died in 2015. But ever since she’s been helping bring happy children into the world – like baby Hassan here. Because after a lifetime caring for others, Beryl chose to include Christian Aid in her Will. Now her gift is supporting our maternal care work in Sierra Leone. Having been a midwife, it seems perfect that Beryl’s still helping some of the world’s poorest mums. If you’d like to continue spreading love, life and happiness after you’re gone, contact Mark to find out how to leave a gift in your Will.

Find out more about remembering all God’s children in your Will. Request further information on how a gift in your Will can change lives for generations to come. Alternatively, you can call our Fundraising Officer Mark McMahon on 028 9064 8133 or 01 496 7040. Name: Address: Postcode/Eircode: Telephone: Email: Christian Aid will never share your details with any other organisation for marketing purposes. If you are happy for us to contact you by email or telephone, please provide these details above. We will use these details for campaigning and fundraising purposes. By providing them you consent to receive marketing from Christian Aid by these methods. For further information on how Christian Aid processes your personal data, please see our privacy policy at caid.ie/privacy.

Please complete the form, cut it out and return to: Christian Aid Ireland, 96 Beechill Road, Belfast, BT8 7QN or Christian Aid Ireland, Canal House, Canal Road, Dublin 6. Photo: Christian Aid/Adam Finch