QARN considers its aims
The Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network met for their annual general meeting
At its recent annual general meeting (AGM), the Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network (QARN) discussed its current aims in relation to its ten-year-old constitution.
QARN’s constitution describes its concern as supporting ‘others in need of international protection’. The group agreed that this covers a wide range of social groups, many already dealt with administratively within the asylum system.
Members agreed that QARN’s concern would continue to be for ‘people seeking safety’ and decided not, at this stage, to change the constitution.
QARN member Barbara Forbes said that while the group is happy with the work it did in the twelve months leading up to the meeting, it remains ‘only too aware’ of the challenges posed by the new Immigration Act. She continued that other areas of concern include the increased destitution of families and the challenges faced by already under-funded local authorities as government support is cut.
She added: ‘We were pleased to note the increasing awareness of QARN amongst Friends in the past year and the number of invitations we have had to speak at Local Meetings. We hope that this trend continues as Friends become more aware of the need to engage with political developments and the opportunities for doing this.’
She added that QARN is look-ing at expanding its work with other European Yearly Meetings, something it hopes to do at its Woodbrooke conference in February 2017.
Fellow QARN member Bridget Walker said of the AGM: ‘I had been to two other meetings about refugees that week, which had been rather downbeat. I found QARN inspiring for several reasons: the stories of Friends’ very active involvement in a range of issues and the sense that we were looking at the situation with a wide angle lens.’
