Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-11-25-Speech-4-310"
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"en.20101125.28.4-310"2
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"Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, on 12 November, a German newspaper ran the headline ‘Iraqi Christians hunted to death’. The picture accompanying the article showed a Christian family sheltering in a church in the capital Baghdad. The family had taken refuge in this house of worship after Islamic terrorists had begun a determined attack on the homes of Christians. The revolting bloodbath of 31 October during a service in the Syriac Catholic cathedral was certainly, therefore, no isolated incident. The Christian minority in Mesopotamia has been exposed to outright religious persecution for years. That is the sad reality in Iraq. Witness the massive exodus of Iraqi Christians. Since 2003, their numbers in Iraq have dropped from 850 000 to 350 000, 115 000 of whom have been internally displaced. What can these courageous ‘hangers-on’ – in quotation marks, because Iraq is where they belong – expect from Europe? After all, this is a Christian minority whose historical roots in Iraq can be traced back to the 1st century AD and include the world’s oldest churches and monasteries. I would plead for three concrete European relief efforts for Iraqi Christians. First of all, support Iraqi Christians who have fled to the Kurdish region to build a new life. Give them a future within their own country. The same is true for the Christian minority in the plain of Nineveh. European aid for vocational training, jobs for young people and loans for new businesses. Secondly, the European institutions should urge the Iraqi Government – and this is a matter of extreme urgency – to drop the statement of the holder’s religion from identity cards, because this omission would significantly increase the personal security of religious minorities, especially Christians. In addition, the existing practice of declaring the holder’s religion on identity cards is currently resulting in discrimination in the job market and in people converting to other religions, amongst other things. Thirdly, at parliamentary level, I would ask our Delegation for Relations with Iraq to show the five Christian members of the Iraqi Parliament our willingness to assist them in word and deed in this precarious period. Anyway, Madam President, Commissioner, I, of course, welcome all parliamentary contacts between Europe and Iraq designed to support this young democracy and I am also very pleased that my fellow member, Mr Mauro, will soon be presenting a report on the European Union and Iraq to the Committee on Foreign Affairs. That is very important. Finally, the Council and the Commission – the Council is not actually represented here, but never mind – I am counting on you continuing to make vigorous efforts to persuade the Iraqi authorities to do what they can to ensure at least the bare survival of Christian communities and churches in the historic land of Mesopotamia."@en1
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