ICC Note: As Congress discusses the possibility of an autonomous “safe zone” for Christians and Yazidis in Iraq, human rights leaders are concerned that there is not a single Christian or minority leader taking place in the Geneva peace talks to give these persecuted minorities a voice. United Nations’ refugee camps in Iraq are not safe places for the Christian and Yazidi populations, who still find vast persecution and discrimination even in these US funded camps.  These Iraqi minorities need an immediate solution for their families who are living in caves and mountains with no place to go, as they are not even considered a”protected refugee status” under US law.  

2/11/2016 Iraq (AINA) – Former Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) said that Congress is considering the creation of an autonomous region in Iraq to protect Christians and Yazidis from persecution by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), and criticized the State Department’s lack of involvement in the ongoing discussions.

“There are discussions and there will be a resolution introduced in the House, I believe, to set up an into-the-plains, basically a protectorate, whereby Christians, Yazidis and other minorities [will be protected],” Wolf said at an event last week at the National Press Club in Washington.

However, Nina Shea, director of the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, noted that since the State Department was not part of the “serious discussion” in Congress, the prospects of establishing a safe zone for persecuted Christians and Yazidis in Iraq were not good.

Wolf, who championed human rights during his 17 terms in Congress, and Shea were part of a panel hosted by the 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative, an international religious freedom organization.

CNSNews.com asked Shea about the likelihood that an autonomous region for Christians and Yazidis will be created in the Middle East.

“That’s not going to be a part of a serious discussion because [their] voice isn’t there,” Shea said in response.

“Sadly the U.S…. religious freedom people from the State Department, Ambassador [David] Saperstein or a minority advisor, aren’t at those talks either, so it’s going to be very bleak for these minority groups.”

Wolf agreed. “Again, as Nina said, you need them to be at the table,” he said.

Displaced Iraqi Christians who are currently living in Kurdistan “have very little hope of returning home, their homes have been demolished and… most of them have very little desire in returning home. They have no legal route out. There’s no country in the West that will accept them because … technically they are not legal refugees,” Shea continued.

Religious minorities still living within the sovereign borders of Iraq are not considered refugees under international law, which defines a refugee as someone with a “well-founded fear of persecution” who is living outside their home country.

“It is a disgrace that the UN runs these camps that we fund,” Shea said. “We have a lot of leverage over them, we’re the largest funder, and the Christian and Yazidis dare not enter these camps because it is so dangerous for them. The same thing would be true of any safe zones that are established. These minorities must be separated and protected,” she asserted.

“There are talks taking place in Geneva now on the fate of Syria, but there’s no Christian voice. There’s no one representing the Christian, the Yazidi, or minority communities in these talks,” Shea concluded.

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