Episcopal Church Places 1,553 Refugees
Episcopal News Service. July 26, 1979 [79239]
New York -- Amid mounting domestic and international calls to find a safe haven and new life for thousands of Southeast Asian refugees, the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief's Immigration and Refugee Program Office of the Episcopal Church reports the halfway mark has been reached in the Church's minimum goal of 3,000 Indochinese placements in 1979.
The number of refugee men, women and children from Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos sponsored through July 15 is 1,553, with about 500 of those already in the U.S. and starting new lives, according to the Rev. John A. Huston, the Fund's Consultant on Emergency Refugee Matters.
"The compassion and alertness in the world press on the refugee question has been translated into clear response within the Episcopal Church," said Father Huston. "More and more congregations and dioceses are now saying, 'Let us help.' People are telephoning and saying, 'This is too important to wait until fall; here is our offer of sponsorship now,' " he reported.
In the past few months there has been a doubling and a near redoubling of the numbers seeking escape from Vietnam and Cambodia as the governments of those countries conduct a purge against residents of Chinese descent, Father Huston said.
In June the escape rate was 65,000; it had been 20,000 in January. Reliable estimates indicate that an equal number of persons have died in their escape efforts, drowned in the South China Sea, he said.
Delegates from 65 countries gathered in the old League of Nations hall in Geneva July 20-21, at the call of the United Nations, to discuss the plight of refugees. Secretary General of the United Nations, Kurt Waldheim, invited the Episcopal Church to have observer-participant status at the conference. In the Episcopal delegation were the Rev. Canon Oliver Garver, Assistant to the Bishop of Los Angeles and President of Episcopal Immigration Services in that diocese; the Rev. John Corn, Director of Episcopal Immigration Services and recently appointed counsel to the Church World Service Immigration and Refugee Program; and the Rev. Samir J. Habiby, Director of the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief.
Many dioceses have established programs for helping congregations undertake refugee ministry projects. They include dioceses in Province VIII -- California, Los Angeles, Olympia, Oregon -- and the Diocese of Massachusetts in Province I, and some Province VIII dioceses in the southwest, which have held training workshops under the leadership of the Dallas program. The Dioceses of Chicago, Hawaii and Michigan are planning special efforts.
Resources to assist congregations and dioceses set up refugee ministry and sponsorship programs are available through the office of the Presiding Bishop's Fund. Father Huston's expertise as an adviser and consultant is offered and a new booklet, "How to Resettle a Refugee," developed by the Diocese of Dallas, provides details for parishes wanting to become involved in refugee ministry. Enquiries should be directed to the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief, 815 Second Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017 (212/867-8400).