2nd August, 2014
Rallies will be held in Melbourne and Sydney on Saturday as part of worldwide protests being held in support of Christians in Iraq and Syria who are facing persecution at the hands of Islamic extremists.
The rallies, which have been organised by local Assyrian, Chaldean and Syriac communities, have been organised in response to reports Christians in Iraq and northern Syria are facing extreme persecution at the hands of Islamic State militants.
Christians in Mosul were last week given an ultimatum to convert to Islam, pay a tax known as jizya, or "face the sword". There have been other reports of human rights abuses and killings committed against Christians and other minorities while churches have been destroyed and Christian property has been daubed with the Arabic letter ‘N’, standing for followers of the "Nazarene", another name for Christians.
The Australian Christian Lobby – whose managing director Lyle Shelton will address the Melbourne rally tomorrow – is calling for Australia to raise its humanitarian intake to assist Iraqi and Syrian Christians fleeing persecution and has started an online petition to that end.
“France and Kurdistan have been very generous in offering asylum to persecuted Christians and Australia should also share some of the burden,” he said on Friday.
The Melbourne rally will kick off at 1.30pm in Federation Square while the Sydney rally will be held from 10am in Belmore Park, having plans to head to Martin Place were reportedly changed.
The petition can be found at www.makeastand.org.au/campaign/index.php?campaign_id=61.
For more on the Melbourne rally, see www.fedsquare.com/events/christians-of-iraq-peaceful-gathering/.
For more on the Sydney rally, see www.auscma.com/?p=2784.
– DAVID ADAMS
