1 / 17

Trans-Faith Humanitarianism: Muslim Aid and the United Methodist Committee on Relief

Context (1). A 60% increase in the number of humanitarian crises/complex political emergencies over the last 10 years in comparison to the previous decade;Humanitarian disasters will continue to occur with greater frequency and with greater ferocity; (Source: speech by Gareth Thomas MP, Minis

montgomery
Download Presentation

Trans-Faith Humanitarianism: Muslim Aid and the United Methodist Committee on Relief

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

    1. Trans-Faith Humanitarianism: Muslim Aid and the United Methodist Committee on Relief

    2. Context (1) A 60% increase in the number of humanitarian crises/complex political emergencies over the last 10 years in comparison to the previous decade; Humanitarian disasters will continue to occur with greater frequency and with greater ferocity; (Source: speech by Gareth Thomas MP, Minister of State for International Development to the Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, 7 October 2008).

    3. Context (2) International NGOs channel an estimated US$29 bn. per annum in emergency or humanitarian aid and faith-based organisations feature prominently among their numbers (Riddell 2007: xv & 316); For instance, six of the 15 NGOs represented on the board which oversees the SPHERE Humanitarian Charter have an explicit faith-based ethos as do five of the 13 NGOs that constitute the (UK) Disasters Emergency Committee;

    4. Sri Lanka and the Iconography of Sinhalese-Buddhist Culture

    5. Map: Muttur and the Surrounding Area

    6. Religious Institutions Provide Sanctuary: An Islamic College and Catholic Church in Muttur where thousands took refuge, 2-4 August 2006.

    7. The Continuing Impact of the Conflict on Civilians: Damage to homes in Muttur from artillery shells, rockets and gunfire still evident in June 2008

    8. The Krandi Rock Incident, 4 August 2006

    9. The 17 Action Contre La Faim staff murdered in Muttur, 4 August 2006.

    10. Emergency Field Offices in mosque and Catholic church to assist Muttur returnees

    11. UMCOR House Reconstruction in Muttur with UNCHR support

    12. Muslim Aid Established in 1985; Significant growth since 2004/05; Estimated income of Ł24m in 2008; Employs 1,217 staff in the UK and overseas; Draws its values from the Qu’ran and the Ahadith; Politically, many of its Trustees influenced by the social justice agenda of Jamaat-e-Islami (Pakistan & Bangladesh); Culturally, it remains close to Britain’s Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities;

    13. The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) Established in 1940; 2007 income of US$78 (Ł39m as of 9.08) Employs 500 staff in the US and overseas; Official organ of UMC & GBGM; Dual structure: UMCOR & UMCOR-NGO; Draws inspiration from Bible and from Methodist doctrine (eg. Social Creed); Political context: declining UMC membership and conservative v liberal tensions;

    14. Successes to date Sri Lanka: On-going multi-sectoral response to the Muttur Emergency; Sri Lanka: New cooperation around nationwide inter-faith and pro-peace community mobilisation and advocacy; Bangladesh: 2,000 school kits for children affected by cyclone Sidr; Lebanon: 15,000 school kits to communities affected by Israel-Hezbollah conflict.

    15. Set Backs to Date July 2008: Israeli government lists Muslim Aid as a banned organisation > disrupts plans to collaborate in Palestine and Israel; Leadership changes in both organisations in 2008 > erosion of some of the earlier momentum;

    16. Challenges Trans-faith partnerships generate concern and opposition among conservative elements of the faithful; Conservative elements in beneficiary communities can be even more suspicious; Trans-faith partnerships also give rise to tensions between hardware and software, or between tangibles (such as joints grants or projects) and intangibles (such as personal relationships and inter-organisational knowledge)

    17. Lessons Faith-based humanitarian agencies have an important role to play in responding to natural disasters and conflicts, in significant part because of the trust vested by local communities in local religious institutions and leaders FBOs have a significant ability to mobilise volunteers and other forms of support on the basis of their distinct values and resultant links to local communities

    18. Lessons (cont.) FBOs often provide a vital response to instances of state failure during conflicts and natural disasters; Partnerships among FBOs across cultural and religious boundaries can undermine cross-community tensions that stimulate conflict and provide a model of inter-faith cooperation;

More Related