Quakers speak on plight of migrants

The full text of the letter to the Prime Minister, David Cameron, follows:

“Quakers in Britain have been shocked and angered by the needless deaths of thousands of desperate people in the Mediterranean in recent months. Every human life is a precious gift to be treasured – each person a child of God – and the loss of just one diminishes all of us. It is immoral to use the threat of loss of life as a deterrent to migration.

“We urge you as our Prime Minister, in your work with other European leaders, to ensure that Britain, one of the richest countries in the world, plays its part in preventing these unnecessary drownings and addressing the economic inequality and violence which leads to these desperate attempts to reach a new home." The letter is signed by Paul Parker, Recording Clerk, Quakers in Britain.

Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network (QARN) and Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) have previously called for safe paths to legal protection and protested against the cessation of funding for the Search and Rescue Operation in the Mediterranean.

This tragic loss of life will be very much on the hearts and minds of Quakers as they meet for Yearly Meeting at Friends House in London next week (1 to 4 May).