“Priority should not only be given to the physical needs of the Yazidis, but to their emotional and spiritual necessities” Elder Jeffrey Holland, Member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as Mormons, said during a panel debate on Monday at Chatham House on the reintegration of religiously persecuted minorities.
The focus of the debate was on the Yazidis, a small Kurdish-speaking minority living primarily in Iraq.
Elder Holland said: “IS (Islamic State) is killing or abducting Yazidis on a massive scale because it considers them to be pagans and devil worshippers”.
Canon Dr. Edmund Newell, an Anglican priest and former Chancellor of St Paul’s Cathedral, believes that the solution to religious persecution can be achieved through education. He said: “The Yazidi massacre has continued for many years, because they are seen as a outsider community. This perception can be diluted through education.” Canon Newell explained that dismissing the argument that Yazidis are devil worshippers will not end their persecution, but it could improve their reputation in society.
According to Holland, the long-term goal is to ensure that no religious minority will ever be persecuted in the future. He said: “It should not happen to anyone else, not just the Yazidis. We need to fight the idea of religious intolerance everywhere”.
The AMAR charity foundation released a report in June on the conditions of the Yazidi minority in Iraq. AMAR General Director, Dr Ali Nasser Muthanna, said that most Christian churches in Iraq have been destroyed by IS. He added: “The mass migration by Christians from Iraq deprived the country of one its vital components”. He explained that the support of NGOs such as AMAR is not sufficient to bring about a long-term peace in Iraq. Instead, a general agreement between different ethnic and religious groups is necessary to achieve a peaceful solution.
AMAR Chair, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, former MP and MEP, explained that the support of the UN is not sufficient to enforce the rule of law in the Middle East. She said: “It is no good to blame it all on the UN. Their rules are fabulous signposts but they are only half way there at most. You need to go more in depth on many issues”.
Elder Holland said that the lesson of the Mormons, who were persecuted in the US in the 19th century, is useful to achieve religious tolerance in the Middle East. He said that the history of Mormons teaches that the key to survival lies in the preservation of identity and faith. He added: “You can live without clothes and without shelter, but you can’t live without hope”.
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