BPCA volunteer Maqsood Iqbal made a desperate appeal to Thai Authorities after they arrested 7 children during a major raid on Pakistani Christian asylum
seekers on Tuesday, seeking freedom for the frightened children.
BPCA believes the arrest and detention of children in this manner to be in violation of several international laws that Thailand has ratified, an act
that is in contrast to public declarations made by Thai authorities asserting an end to this heartless abuse.
The whole community could not bear the suffering the beleaguered children would have to go through in the IDC and prayed that Thai authorities would
show a modicum of passion for the young victims, so they all set about praying collectively for their emancipation and it seems God answered their
prayers, as the children were allowed to be given to two Guarantors, one was Maqsood Iqbal BPCA Volunteer and the other Shahzad Ghouri.
Mothers weep as the call relatives and friends hoping to find a home for their children.
Three of the children belong to the family of Farzan Joseph: Annya Farzan (6 yrs) Sara Farzan (10 yrs) and Sayras Farzan (12 yrs)
Two children belong to the family of Shoukat Mashi: Acriah (8 yrs) Aran Joy (6 yrs)
Two children belongto the family of
Masih: (Shahriaz (9 yrs) and Zohaid (7 yrs)
Thrust in a very strange dilemma BPCA have agreed to support the desire of the parents of the vulnerable children and have created the best safeguarding
process they can with the limited resources and preparation time given to us to assist. We have asked our officer in Pakistan to obtain
criminal record checks for Maqsood Iqbal and George Naz, and other family members from Maqsood Iqbal’s family who have been designated carers.
We have obtained written consent forms for the named carers to be responsible for their children from the parents and will be working with UNHCR
and with other local bodies to ensure the children are monitored independently.
BPCA have agreed to fund a flat for George and three of the children to live in and have also agreed to cover the monthly costs for food for the
children, all of whom will attend our local school. To make this work we need to raise £315.16 per month indefinitely until we know what the future
holds for these families. If you can help us make the lives of these children more comfortable during what must be a torturous time for them,
then please (click here)
Children wrenched from their families pray that one day they will be united in a safe country far away from Thailand and Pakistan – nations that have only shown disdain for Pakistani Christians.
“It was hard to have to separate parents from their children there were so many tears and I felt myself being overwhelmed, but I agree with the parents the IDC is no place for children they all end becoming so traumatized.
“I felt obligated to help and was awed by the trust the parents have for me, it is a great responsibility and I have sought God’s guidance in prayer and He told me it was right to intervene and save these children from the mental trauma of incarceration.
“It was going to be very hard to finance the children for both my family and I and our brother in Christ George Naz, so I am extremely grateful that BPCA has offered to fill the gap and help us. I ask that Christians pray for these children as we have no idea how long they will remain in our care, but we are aware that many of those in the IDC have been detained for over two years.
“We seek God in making away for these families to be reunited and for their safe asylum in a place a long way from Pakistan where these victims fled and hold such a real fear of return that they refuse to go back to their previous nightmarish lives.”
Wilson Chowdhry, Chairman of the British Pakistani Christian Associatoon, said:
“It is deeply disturbing that despite assurances that child detention would be terminated in Thailand, the practice continues. NGO’s like the BPCA mop up the mess that Thailand has made of so many innocent lives but we merely touch the surface of a dire situation that is immensely deplorable.
“For genuine registered asylum seekers and refugees to be treated in this manner in a country that has ratified conventions against torture, cruelty to mothers and children and is a signatory to the UN Conventions for Human Rights, evidence the ineffectiveness of these international covenants.
“Thailand must do the right thing and free the parents of these children and allow these families to reunite. Any registered asylum seeker and refugee must be treated with care and respect not made to undergo an equivalent torturous existence to the one they fled in Pakistan.”