Open Doors

Navendu Mishra MP at an Open Doors event in Parliament alongside MPs Mary Glindon and Stephen Timms.

I recently attended the Open Doors 2023 World Watch list in the House of Commons. Open Doors is an organisation that works with, and highlights, the plight of persecuted Christians around the world. 

It is shocking that in 2022, 5,621 Christians are reported to have been killed for faith related reasons. 89% of those killed were in Nigeria alone. Open Doors has also reported that 2,110 churches were attacked in 2022, and around 140,000 Christians were displaced from their home or country for faith-related reasons. I was deeply concerned to learn of this. 

In July, Britain hosted an international ministerial conference to promote freedom of religion or belief, which was an important opportunity for the British Government to ensure it continues to advocate for the rights of individuals being discriminated against or persecuted on the basis of their religion or beliefs.

I think the protection of human rights, including freedom of religion or belief, should be at the heart of British foreign policy. That means using the full range of the financial and political resources that we have to intervene in religious persecution of all kinds. It also means using all diplomatic tools available, including bilateral relations and multilateral forums such as the United Nations, to ensure that international law is adhered to where there are humanitarian issues and breaches of human rights.

I will continue to monitor this issue closely.