Category Archives: BLYM Monthly Cause

Monthly Cause Q2 2025 ‘WE ARE NOT NUMBERS’

Version française Nederlandse verse

BLYM Monthly Cause starting 1/4/2025

The Finance Group and our Treasurer have agreed that from 1st April 2025 the new BLYM monthly cause should be: ‘We are not Numbers’,  WANN.  WANN is engaged both in the long haul and in the immediate crisis in Palestine and particularly in Gaza. It seeks to give young Palestinians a role and voice beyond the statistics of death and destruction.

Quakers have long been committed to seeking peace and justice in Israel and Palestine, outraged as we are by acts against international law and human rights by anyone. Our colleagues in the American Friends Service Committee are particularly active in the region, and Britain Yearly Meeting regularly speaks out on the topic.

The money will be used by the NGO ‘WE ARE NOT NUMBERS’ to support returning destitute displaced Gazan refugees to help them begin to rebuild their lives.

Background to WANN

‘WE ARE NOT NUMBERS’

Will support Gazan writers and their families to survive in the deprivation and destruction wreaked by Israeli military violence, US-provided bombs, and European Union silence.

When the world discusses Palestinians living under occupation and in refugee camps, the
focus often centres on politics and statistics—casualties, displacement numbers, and aid dependency. However, these figures fail to convey the daily struggles, triumphs, tears, laughter, and aspirations that define the human experience. Those stories that are broadcast or printed in the Western media are usually shared through the lenses of Western journalists.

We Are Not Numbers (WANN) was created by established and aspiring Palestinian writers
worldwide to help fill this void. As a youth-led Palestinian non-profit organization, WANN’s aim is to share, promote and celebrate the authentic stories of Palestinians, providing a direct platform where their voices can be heard beyond the statistics. As the name WANN emphasises, Palestinians are humans who deserved to be freed from being just statistics.
Some of their writings have been collected in a book to be published in the UK by Penguin.

Decades-long displacement and humiliation must not pass in silence. Over two hundred
journalists have been killed, and no foreign journalists are permitted to enter Gaza. The
recent winning of several Oscars for the film ‘ No Other Land’ shows how critical it is for Palestinians to be given voice to show the world the evil that continues with hardly a word of reprobation from the countries of Europe and from the EU. As during the holocaust, ‘we didn’t know’ must not be allowed to be a shield for our consciences.

Our Friend, Karen King, has volunteered with WANN and last year worked with a Palestinian
and an Israeli-born British Jew to organise a WANN exhibition in London: https://p21.gallery/node/275). There is widespread hunger in Gaza because the Israeli government, from early March 2025, again sealed the border of Gaza allowing no food, electricity or humanitarian aid to enter. This humanitarian crisis has forced WANN to temporarily suspend broader activities in favour of helping writers and their families to survive repeated displacement and destruction and hopefully to rebuild their lives. WANN is able to reach through thanks to trusted human contacts and electronic links.

Website

In the WANN website, www.wearenotnumbers.org , emerging writers from Palestine tell their stories and advocate for their human rights. Another useful related link is
https://www.amostrust.org/blog/promoting-the-voices-of-young-writers-in-gaza/.

The Amos Trust channels funds to We Are Not Numbers, and will facilitate the reliable transfer of your support to the organisation.

Do use BLYM worship group meeting collection boxes, the Bank Details for making a donation are on our Donation page.– Monthly Cause: -WANN.

Version française

BLYM Cause mensuelle à partir du 1/4/2025

Le groupe des finances et notre trésorier ont convenu qu’à partir du 1er avril 2025, la nouvelle cause mensuelle de BLYM serait : Nous ne sommes pas des numéros”, WANN. WANN est engagé à la fois dans le long terme et dans la crise immédiate en Palestine et particulièrement à Gaza. Il cherche à donner aux jeunes Palestiniens un rôle et une voix au-delà des statistiques de mort et de destruction.

Les quakers sont depuis longtemps engagés dans la recherche de la paix et de la justice en Israël et en Palestine, indignés que nous sommes par les actes contraires au droit international et aux droits de l’homme commis par qui que ce soit. Nos collègues de l’American Friends Service Committee sont particulièrement actifs dans la région et l’assemblée annuelle de Grande-Bretagne s’exprime régulièrement sur le sujet.

L’argent sera utilisé par l’ONG « WE ARE NOT NUMBERS » pour soutenir les réfugiés gazaouis déplacés et sans ressources qui rentrent chez eux, afin de les aider à commencer à reconstruire leur vie.

Contexte de WANN

“WE ARE NOT NUMBERS”

Aidera les écrivains de Gaza et leurs familles à survivre dans le dénuement et la destruction provoqués par la violence militaire israélienne, les bombes fournies par les États-Unis et le silence de l’Union européenne.

Lorsque le monde discute des Palestiniens vivant sous l’occupation et dans des camps de réfugiés, l’accent est souvent mis sur la politique et les statistiques – les victimes, le nombre de déplacements et la dépendance à l’égard de l’aide. Cependant, ces chiffres ne rendent pas compte des luttes quotidiennes, des triomphes, des larmes, des rires et des aspirations qui définissent l’expérience humaine. Les histoires diffusées ou imprimées dans les médias occidentaux sont généralement partagées à travers l’objectif de journalistes occidentaux.

We Are Not Numbers (WANN) a été créé par des écrivains palestiniens établis et en herbe du monde entier pour combler ce vide. En tant qu’organisation palestinienne à but non lucratif dirigée par des jeunes, WANN a pour objectif de partager, de promouvoir et de célébrer les histoires authentiques des Palestiniens, en fournissant une plateforme directe où leurs voix peuvent être entendues au-delà des statistiques. Comme le souligne le nom de WANN, les Palestiniens sont des êtres humains qui méritent d’être libérés de leur condition de simples statistiques.
Certains de leurs écrits ont été rassemblés dans un livre qui sera publié au Royaume-Uni par Penguin.

Le déplacement et l’humiliation qui durent depuis des décennies ne doivent pas être passés sous silence. Plus de deux cents journalistes ont été tués et aucun journaliste étranger n’est autorisé à entrer dans la bande de Gaza. L’obtention récente de plusieurs Oscars pour le film « No Other Land » montre à quel point il est essentiel que les Palestiniens puissent s’exprimer pour montrer au monde le mal qui se poursuit sans que les pays d’Europe et l’UE ne prononcent le moindre mot de réprobation. Comme pendant l’holocauste, il ne faut pas que le « nous ne savions pas » serve de bouclier à nos consciences.

Notre amie Karen King s’est portée volontaire auprès de WANN et a travaillé l’année dernière avec un Palestinien et un Juif britannique né en Israël pour organiser une exposition de WANN à Londres (https://p21.gallery/node/275). LLa faim est généralisée à Gaza car le gouvernement israélien, depuis le début du mois de mars 2025, empêchant ainsi l’entrée de nourriture, d’électricité et d’aide humanitaire. Cette crise humanitaire a contraint WANN à suspendre temporairement ses activités plus larges afin d’aider les écrivains et leurs familles à survivre aux déplacements et aux destructions répétés et, avec un peu de chance, à reconstruire leur vie. WANN est en mesure d’atteindre ces personnes grâce à des contacts humains de confiance et à des liens électroniques.

Site web

Sur le site web de WANN, www.wearenotnumbers.org , des écrivains émergents de Palestine racontent leur histoire et défendent leurs droits. Un autre lien utile est https://www.amostrust.org/blog/promoting-the-voices-of-young-writers-in-gaza/.

Le Amos Trust achemine des fonds vers We Are Not Numbers et facilitera le transfert fiable de votre soutien à l’organisation.

Utilisez les boîtes de collecte des réunions du groupe de culte BLYM, les coordonnées bancaires pour faire un don se trouvent sur notre page Donation : -WANN.

Nederlandse versie

BLYM Monthly Cause starting 1/4/2025

De Finance Group en onze penningmeester zijn overeengekomen dat vanaf 1 april 2025 het nieuwe BLYM maandelijkse doel wordt: ‘Wij zijn geen Getallen’, WANN. WANN is betrokken bij zowel de lange termijn als de directe crisis in Palestina en in het bijzonder in Gaza. Het probeert jonge Palestijnen een rol en een stem te geven die verder gaan dan de statistieken van dood en vernietiging.
Quakers zetten zich al lange tijd in voor vrede en gerechtigheid in Israël en Palestina, verontwaardigd als we zijn over daden tegen het internationaal recht en de mensenrechten door wie dan ook. Onze collega’s van het American Friends Service Committee zijn bijzonder actief in de regio en de Britse Yearly Meeting spreekt zich regelmatig uit over dit onderwerp.

Het geld zal worden gebruikt door de NGO ‘WE ARE NOT NUMBERS’ om behoeftige ontheemde Gazaanse vluchtelingen te helpen bij de wederopbouw van hun leven.

 

Achtergrond bij WANN
‘WE ARE NOT NUMBERS’

Wil Gazaanse schrijvers en hun families steunen om te overleven in de ontbering en vernietiging die wordt veroorzaakt door Israëlisch militair geweld, door de VS geleverde bommen en door het stilzwijgen van de Europese Unie.

Wanneer de wereld praat over Palestijnen die onder bezetting en in vluchtelingenkampen leven, ligt de nadruk op vaak op politiek en statistiek – slachtoffers, aantallen ontheemden en afhankelijkheid van hulp. Deze cijfers geven echter niet de dagelijkse strijd, triomfen, tranen, lach en aspiraties weer die de menselijke ervaring definiëren. De verhalen die worden uitgezonden of afgedrukt in de westerse media worden meestal gedeeld door de bril van westerse journalisten.

We Are Not Numbers (WANN) is opgericht door gevestigde en aspirant Palestijnse schrijvers
wereldwijd om deze leemte op te vullen. Als een door jongeren geleide Palestijnse non-profitorganisatie is het doel van WANN het delen, promoten en vieren van de authentieke verhalen van Palestijnen, door een direct platform te bieden waar hun stemmen gehoord kunnen worden buiten de statistieken om. Zoals de naam WANN benadrukt, zijn Palestijnen mensen die het verdienen om bevrijd te worden van het feit dat ze slechts statistieken zijn.
Sommige van hun geschriften zijn verzameld in een boek dat in het Verenigd Koninkrijk zal worden gepubliceerd door Penguin.

Decennialange ontheemding en vernedering mogen niet in stilte voorbijgaan. Meer dan tweehonderd journalisten zijn vermoord en buitenlandse journalisten mogen Gaza niet in. Het feit dat onlangs verschillende Oscars heeft gewonnen voor de film ‘No Other Land’ laat zien hoe belangrijk het is dat de Palestijnen een stem krijgen om de wereld het kwaad te laten zien dat doorgaat zonder dat de Europese landen en de EU een woord van afkeuring laten horen. Net als tijdens de holocaust mag ‘we wisten het niet’ geen schild zijn voor ons geweten.

Onze vriendin Karen King is vrijwilligster bij WANN en werkte vorig jaar samen met een Palestijnse en een in Israël geboren Britse Jood om een WANN-tentoonstelling in Londen te organiseren: https://p21.gallery/node/275). Er is wijdverspreide honger in Gaza omdat de Israëlische regering, vanaf begin maart 2025, opnieuw de grens van Gaza hebben afgesloten, zodat er geen voedsel, elektriciteit of humanitaire hulp binnen kan komen. Deze humanitaire crisis heeft WANN gedwongen om bredere activiteiten tijdelijk op te schorten ten gunste van het helpen van schrijvers en hun families om de herhaalde ontheemding en vernietiging te overleven en hopelijk hun leven weer op te bouwen. WANN is in staat om mensen te bereiken dankzij vertrouwde menselijke contacten en elektronische verbindingen.

Website

Op de website van WANN, www.wearenotnumbers.org , vertellen opkomende schrijvers uit Palestina hun verhaal en komen ze op voor hun mensenrechten. Een andere nuttige gerelateerde link is
https://www.amostrust.org/blog/promoting-the-voices-of-young-writers-in-gaza/.
De Amos Trust kanaliseert fondsen naar We Are Not Numbers en zal de betrouwbare overdracht van jouw steun naar de organisatie vergemakkelijken.

Gebruik de collectebussen van de BLYM aanbiddingsgroepbijeenkomsten, de bankgegevens voor het doen van een donatie staan op onze donatiepagina.- Maandelijks doel: -WANN.

 

Monthly Cause – Quarter One 2025 – Espace Diwan

Dear Friends,

We are pleased to announce the current BLYM Monthly Cause

Espace Diwan

Our current monthly cause is Espace Diwan an ASBL running a house in

Woluwé-St-Lambert, which offers temporary accommodation for asylum seekers. It is supported by volunteers and by contributions from both Woluwé-St-Lambert residents and by us.  More information about Espace Diwan can

be found at their website.

Diwan

 

 

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Donations to Belgium and Luxemburg Yearly Meeting may be made to:
Account Name: Quakers BLMM
IBAN: BE76 9794 2781 7895     BIC: ARSP BE22

Donations to a Monthly Cause should be made to the same account, specifying in the bank transfer comments section that the donation is for the “Monthly Cause”. 

Friends are invited to recommend a Monthly Cause for donations. There need to be at least two friends who recommend each Monthly Cause. Send your recommendations for a Monthly Cause to the BLYM Fundraiser via our Contact Page.

Make a donation to BLYM Quakers

Please do not hesitate to contact the treasurer if you have any questions.

Caroll Ewen:
Email: quakers.lux@gmail.com

Thank you for your generous support this year.

Monthly Cause – Q4 2023

Dear Friends,

We are pleased to announce the current BLYM Monthly Cause

Support of Conscientious Objectors and Deserters from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus

For September-December, our monthly cause will be the three organisations in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus that support conscientious objectors and deserters in their countries, often under very difficult circumstances. In June, the Russian Movement of Conscientious Objectors was labelled a ‘foreign agent’ by the Russian state. For that reason, the organisation had to move abroad to continue its activities there. In Ukraine, the situation is also very worrying. The Ukrainian Pacifist Movement is currently facing intimidation and harassment by the Ukrainian state. The executive secretary of that organisation, Yurii Sheliazhenko, was charged by the Ukrainian government with the crime of “justification of Russian aggression”. After a house search, he was placed under house arrest. Yurii has always harshly condemned in his publications and statements Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which makes charges baseless. Support for conscientious objectors is also very difficult in Belarus. The organisation “Our House” operates from Lithuania, giving support to conscientious objectors and deserters in and from Belarus. The International Peace Bureau has announced their intention to nominate the three organisations for the Noble Peace Prize 2024. 

More information about the three groups: 

https://pacifism.org.ua/en , https://stoparmy.org/en/  and https://news.house/

Background information can be found especially on the websites of 

EBCO: https://ebco-beoc.org/ and Connection e.V.: https://en.connection-ev.org/

—————————————————————–

Donations to Belgium and Luxemburg Yearly Meeting may be made to:
Account Name: Quakers BLMM
IBAN: BE76 9794 2781 7895     BIC: ARSP BE22

Donations to a Monthly Cause should be made to the same account, specifying in the bank transfer comments section that the donation is for the “Monthly Cause”. 

Friends are invited to recommend a Monthly Cause for donations. There need to be at least two friends who recommend each Monthly Cause. Send your recommendations for a Monthly Cause to the BLYM Fundraiser via our Contact Page.

Make a donation to BLYM Quakers

Please do not hesitate to contact the treasurer if you have any questions.

Caroll Ewen:
Email: quakers.lux@gmail.com

Thank you for your generous support this year.

BLYM and Conscientious Objection

“We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fighting with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretence whatsoever.”

– Declaration made to Charles II in 1660

What unites us as Quakers?

Spiritual insights, often called “testimonies”, tend to unite Quakers worldwide. They spring from deep experience and have been reaffirmed by successive generations of Quakers. These testimonies are to integrity, equality, simplicity, community, stewardship of the Earth, and peace. They arise from an inner conviction and challenge our normal ways of living. They exist in spiritually-led actions rather than in rigid written forms. They are not imposed in any way and they require us to search for ways in which we can live them out for ourselves. Our commitment to non-violence in thought, word and deed is based on the idea that all human beings have something of the divine with us. This idea can be described, in the words of founder George Fox (1624-1691), as “answering that of God in every one” and “seeking the inner light” in each person. (quno.org)

It might seem self-evident that if one believes this fundamental statement, one must be led to objecting to war and armed service on the grounds of conscience, as many Quakers, over the centuries have done. Indeed, the right to this objection is now enshrined in the national law of many countries, including all Member States of the Council of Europe – it is one of the principles to which a country must adhere in order to become a member. This was one of the achievements of a long struggle of the international peace movement after WWI, in which Quakers played an important role (e.g. at the ‘Bilthoven Meetings’ in 1919-21) and we must be alert to trends that threaten to undermine this hard-fought right.

Importantly we must always remember that there is a difference between upholding the right to conscientious objection and being a conscientious objector and indeed, although Quakers resisted the introduction of conscription in 1916 and many chose to register as conscientious objectors, a small but substantial number of young Quaker men did choose to join the armed forces, feeling this was the quickest way to end the war.

The Gent group of the Belgium & Luxembourg Yearly Meeting, along with several other interested Friends, are active in the Belgian peace movement and specifically, alongside EBCO, in support of Conscientious Objectors and the right to Conscientious Objection. EBCO, the European Bureau for Conscientious Objection, was founded in 1979, with the support of the Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) that is still one of the four Belgian member associations. It would, therefore, seem appropriate for BLYM to uphold this work.

Much more information on this can be found through the links below.

The call to BLYM

Minute 23/06-19 (Conscientious Objection to War) of Belgium and Luxembourg Yearly Meeting stated:

We have heard from the Ghent group about their work to raise awareness in Belgium about the right to hold a conscientious objection to war, in the context of our shared testimony to Peace. We thank the Ghent group for bearing witness in this way; they have done us all a service.

We ask the Ghent group, with the Elders, and the Clerk to work together to bring forward to our next Meeting for Business a statement of the Yearly Meeting’s position on Conscientious Objection, as a basis for future action.

Meeting for Business of 24 September 2023 agreed the following statement:

“We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fighting with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretence whatsoever.”

– Declaration made by Quakers to the English King Charles II in 1660

Freedom from the scourge of war will only be brought about through the faithfulness of individuals to their inmost convictions. As Quakers we accordingly uphold the right of every individual to object to war and armed service on the grounds of conscience. We think that deserters should also be considered as conscientious objectors, especially in armed conflicts between countries that don’t recognise the right of conscientious objection.  We condemn the occasions when individuals are persecuted for their refusal to carry arms.

Our Gent Worship group has taken up this concern: as BLYM we declare our support for their endeavours to ensure respect for the right to Conscientious Objection. We ask them to associate with this work: we commit to supporting this work by encouraging individual Friends to support it financially or to work with them for the right to conscientious objection. We ask our Elders and Clerk(s), to consider sympathetically our endorsement as BLYM of statements and petitions in support of conscientious objection brought forward by our Gent Worship Group.

 

Links

https://www.quaker.org.uk/our-work/peace/conscientious-objection#heading-1

https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/42b141794.pdf

https://quno.org/areas-of-work/conscientious-objection-military-service

https://www.quaker.org.uk/documents/wwi-newspaper-1916-final

https://www.ebco-beoc.org/aboutebco

https://centeronconscience.org/friends/

 

More on Conscientious Objection

Since declaring its commitment to peace in 1660, the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) has opposed all wars. World War I was no different and many Quakers resisted the call to arms.

Some volunteered for the Friends Ambulance Unit or the Friends War Victims Relief Committee, providing relief from suffering at the front. Others assisted those at home and campaigned for peaceful resolutions.

Quakers believe that all life is precious. We have always tried “to live in the virtue of that life and power which takes away the occasion of all wars”.

We don’t assume that we can escape from the realities of a world in which violence appears so deeply rooted. We are, however, constantly challenged by the existence of weapons of mass destruction, the number and intensity of violent conflicts, the cycles of poverty, alienation and violence that destroy peace in many deprived communities, and apparently random acts of terrorism.

However hard it is, it is important that we remain true to our principles. We try to show that there is another way of conducting human affairs and resolving conflicts in a non-violent way. In many cases this will involve difficult choices. Our conscience may be troubled trying to work out what is right in areas like peace-keeping.

Throughout history, much has been achieved. The peace testimony involves thinking and speaking the unthinkable, believing this may lead to a real shift in attitudes. What is idealistic in one generation, becomes a cherished right in the next.

The peace testimony also means working for forgiveness and reconciliation and living in a sense of our shared humanity.

May Cause – The Conscientious Objection Association Turkey

Active sponsor: Carla. Two BLYM members in support: Jude and Richard

Conscientious Objection in Turkey

Turkey is the only member country in the Council of Europe that has not recognised the right of conscientious objection to military service. The state uses many different sanctions to force conscientious objectors to do military service. These sanctions lead to objectors facing arrest warrants, a life-long cycle of prosecutions and imprisonment even a “civil death” which excludes them from social, cultural and economic life.

Conscientious Objectors are still criminalised as draft evaders and a continuous arrest warrant is issued. They often get detained in any ID controls by police/gendarmes due to this arrest warrant. After the first detainment, objectors are given an administrative fine. Every arrest entails a new Article 63 Military Criminal Code procedure, which can result in a sentence from 2 months to 3 years or a fine (which is actually more common). They are forced to live an underground life in order to avoid getting detained/arrested.

The European Court of Human Rights calls the situation conscientious objectors find themselves in “civil death” . (Ulke v. Turkey, application no. 39437/98).

Effect of law on Conscientious Objectors

Turkish Law prevents Conscientious Objectors working in either the public or private sector, as it is a crime to employ a draft evader. Secondly, objectors are forced to be unemployed or work illegally and uninsured. Finally, objectors do not have the right to go to the polls or to be elected in neither local nor general elections.

Deprivations while avoiding new detention

As every arrest entails another criminal case and possibly a prison sentence, objectors have to avoid social, economic, legal, cultural activities like:

  •        Applying for a passport
  •       Going to the police/gendarme even when a victim of a crime or accident
  •       Driving anywhere
  •       Walking in a main avenue/square or any central place
  •       Using public transport stations such as train/bus/metro/ferry
  •       Going to an airport
  •       Visiting a courthouse or prison, even if they are a lawyer
  •        Going to polls for voting

People who have religious or conscientious objections against mandatory military service, are facing life-long repeating prison sentences and deprivation of their civil rights.

Conscripts refusing to join the army, but haven’t declared their conscientious objection are also criminalised and subjected to civil death.

Conscientious Objection Association Turkey (VR-DER)

The Conscientious Objection Association Turkey (VR-DER) is an affiliate of War Resisters International (WRI) in London https://wri-irg.org/en. It is also a member of the European Bureau for Conscientious Objection (EBCO-EBOC) https://ebco-beoc.org/ in Brussels. EBCO’s second Vice President is a representative from Turkey. EBCO members in Belgium are the Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA), Mouvement Chrétien Pour La Paix, Mouvement International de la Réconciliation/Internationale des Résistant–e-s á la Guerre, and Service Civil International. Both QCEA and Quakers United Nations Office (QUNO) Geneva hold status as Observateurs permanents / permanent observers.  

See also: https://vicdaniret.org/the-first-issue-of-the-conscientious-objection-bulletin-translated-and-published/

“We, as the Conscientious Objection Association Turkey (VR-DER), aim to document the current situation on the right to conscientious objection in Turkey with the Conscientious Objection Bulletin. The bulletin will be published periodically during the year. The first issue of the bulletin was translated to English and it is now online. We hope that we will increase public awareness of the right to conscientious objection with the help of bulletins which will include applications to our Association, new declarations of conscientious objection and up-to-date information on the court cases of conscientious objectors.”

BLYM Monthly Cause April – Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

MSF – (Doctors Without Borders) Operations Centre Belgium (OCB) https://www.msf-azg.be/fr

For more than three years, MSF OCB has been working with several NGOs such as the Red Cross, Médecins du Monde, Plateforme Citoyenne, and SOS Jeunes in the Humanitarian Hub Brussels (HUB). The goal being to meet the basic needs of those who are excluded from the Belgian welfare system: primarily migrants in transit, but also undocumented people and asylum seekers who do not have real access to the services they need.

As a result of Covid-19, MSF OCB expanded its interventions in Belgium by first setting up an Operations Support Team for Belgium and then a Belgium Mission with a new Head of Mission. In addition to its service with partners in the HUB, the Belgium Mission is addressing medical and psychological needs both for residents and staff in Belgium’s over 1000 nursing/retirement/rest homes, expanding Covid-19 support in homeless shelters, and assisting in the country-wide vaccination effort.

Globalement, en 2021, MSF continue de s’investir activement dans les épidémies (Covid-19, Ebola, malaria), de venir en aide aux victimes de guerres, de conflits, de violences sexuelles, fournir des soins médicaux aux femmes (naissances, contraceptions), aux enfants (vaccinations et soins de base), aux patients atteints du HIV et de tuberculose. MSF continuera également d’apporter une aide médicale aux victimes de tortures et aux migrants.

Conseils de notre BLYM trésorier :

Les personnes qui paient des taxes en Belgique peuvent aussi obtenir une réduction des taxes à concurrence de 40% de leurs dons à MSF Belgium. Donc s’ils versent par exemple 100 EUR, ils récupèrent 40 EUR en déduction fiscale. Le don doit être de 40 EUR minimum sur l’année.

D’un autre côté, s’ils versent à BLYM, le montant est doublé / matché. 

C’est bon à signaler aux Amis. (L’année passé, exceptionnellement la déduction était de 60% mais je ne sais pas si le gouvernement belge a prolongé cette mesure sur 2021).

People who pay taxes in Belgium can also get a tax reduction up to 40% of their donations to MSF Belgium. So if they pay for example 100 EUR, they get 40 EUR back as a tax deduction. The donation must be at least 40 EUR over the year.

On the other hand, if they pay to BLYM the amount is doubled / matched as Dan Flynn is actively working in Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Belgium.

Make a donation to BLYM Quakers

Belgium and Luxembourg Quakers Monthly Cause March 2021

The Belgium and Luxembourg Quakers Monthly Cause for March 2021will be Friends House Moscow. Working in Russia and its neighbouring countries, it is an initiative of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). It’s mission is to foster Quaker spiritual values. Friends House Moscow provides training in alternatives to violence and conflict resolution, promotes alternatives to military service, protects the rights of underprivileged groups and individuals and supports seekers interested in Quaker Faith and Practice. Friends House Moscow also conducts outreach in the Russian language.

Friends House Moscow

We invite Friends (members and attenders) to recommend a Monthly Cause in order to receive matching funds from the Meeting. 

Matching funds will only be available for causes in which members or attenders are actively involved. These members should be taking part in the activities or projects of the Cause. Please send your recommendations to the BLYM Fundraiser.

The account details for Donations to Belgium and Luxemburg Yearly Meeting are:

  • Account Name: Quakers BLMM
  • IBAN: BE76 9794 2781 7895     BIC: ARSP BE22

A Donation to any Monthly Cause you can made to the same account. but please specify in the bank transfer comments section that the donation is for the “Monthly Cause”.

We encourage recommendations for April 2021 and beyond.



If you would like to donate to the Belgium and Luxembourg Yearly Meeting funds. you will find more information on our donations page .

BLYM Quaker Monthly Cause February 2021

Fondación Superemos, Nicaragua

http://www.superemos.com/activities.html

Fondacion Surperemos

The Fondación provides Skills training mainly for women and adolescents, preventive medicine and medical delegations, Intervention, Change and Education Service addressing domestic violence, music education for children, and secondary education for adults.  

Friends (members and attenders) are invited to recommend a Monthly Cause to receive matching funds from Meeting. 

Matching funds are used only for causes in which members or attenders are actively involved, taking part in activities or projects of the Cause. Recommendations should be sent to the BLYM Fundraiser at daniel_flynn39@yahoo.com 

Donations to Belgium and Luxemburg Yearly Meeting may be made to:

Account Name: Quakers BLMM

IBAN: BE76 9794 2781 7895     BIC: ARSP BE22

Donations to any Monthly Cause to receive matching funds from Meeting should be made to the same account, specifying in the bank transfer comments section that the donation is for the “Monthly Cause”.



To donate to the Belgium and Luxembourg Yearly Meeting funds Click Here