The Syrian refugee crisis has dominated the news in the past few months. Every day, around 2,000 Syrians put the lives of their families, including babies and young children at risk, taking a dangerous and life threatening journey in dinghy boats on the Mediterranean, fleeing the war and devastation inside Syria. The images we have witnessed in the newspapers and on our television screens have been heart-breaking and haunting - particularly the tragic photograph of Aylan Kurdi, the young Syrian boy lying on a Turkish beach.
The obvious solution to the problem is to take steps to stabilise Syria. The way to prevent Syrian refugees from making that treacherous crossing at the hands of exploitative criminal gangs isn’t to place arbitrary limits on the number of refugees we can take; it’s to restore safety to the country from which they flee in such numbers. But this can not happen over night and in the meantime these refugees need our help and support. That's why I welcome the fact the UK Government has committed to accepting 20,000 Syrian refugees over the next five years.
Whilst 20,000 may sound a lot, we must remember that twelve million people have been made homeless by the conflict in Syria, yet so far only 4 per cent of them have come to Europe. It may be necessary to increase this number if the conflict continues to spread and displace others.
Last week I chaired a meeting of the Cross Party Group on Faith in the National Assembly for Wales which focused on the refugee crisis. Speakers emphasised our long heritage of welcoming refugees and the ethical duty we have to honour this tradition and play our part in caring for those displaced by this terrible conflict.
In a Ministerial Statement on the crisis in the Senedd last week, the Communities Minister said a specific number for resettlement to Wales has yet to be agreed and that a taskforce has been set up and will work with local authorities and health boards to access capacity. Assembly Members were in agreement that, whilst Wales might be only a small country, it is vital that we play our part - and from the outpouring of compassion and generosity we have already witnessed across the country, I am sure this is a view shared by many.
Since this crisis first hit the headlines, people’s generosity has been overwhelming. Individuals, charities and churches have all been going the extra mile to help deal with the crisis; setting up collection points, giving cash donations and even offering spare rooms in their homes! Their kind-heartedness reflects the true spirit of the people of Wales and must be applauded.
Whilst it will be Governments, health boards and local authorities who decide how many refugees arrive in our communities, we all have a part to play in addressing the humanitarian crisis facing our world. The Christian faith teaches us to love our neighbour but it tells also us to reach out and welcome the strangers in our midst too - they are our neighbours too.