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Global Human Rights Defence (GHRD) hosted a panel discussion on the persecution of religious minorities on June 28. The lively debate took place at the Residence Palace in Brussels.
The panel was moderated by one of GHRD's very own board members, Marc Wortmann. Member of European Parliament, Jeroen Lenears of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats) opened the event. Lenears stressed the importance of close cooperation between the European Parliament, civil society and NGOs such as GHRD. He underlined how impactful a young, motivated team like GHRD's can be. Lenears also expressed an open invitation to GHRD and promised to connect the organization further, such as other EU human rights institutions and international stakeholders. The panellists present were Koen Stoop (World Uyghur Congress' Policy Coordinator and EU representative), Dr Rubina Greenwood (President of International Sindhi Women Organization), Watson Gil (Overseas Pakistan Christian Alliance), and Wangpo Tethong (Executive Director of the International Campaign for Tibet). The audience was eager to learn about the different perspectives on the persecution of religious minorities. GHRD was particularly curious about the role that the EU can play when tackling and discussing minority rights and human rights concerns. These concerns are often of international nature and go beyond European borders. It was however agreed on by the panellists, that the EU has a realize how conflicts outside of the Union can possibly affect the lives and safety of their citizens. (ANI)
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