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Church youth visit wrecked by visa refusalA visit to the West Midlands by young churchgoers from India is in tatters, because most of the visiting group have been refused visas. Eight young people from West Bengal are due to stay with families from churches in the West Midlands area of the United Reformed Church, in return for hospitality given last year. Only two have so far been granted visitor’s visas, and time is fast running out.
One of the organisers, Ruth Maxey, said ‘Our local young people are devastated. It is a fantastic opportunity lost, not only for the group coming, but for those hosting them. Last summer, I remember one of our local youngsters speaking of the pride with which their host family showed their daughter’s passport. It was a dream to come to the UK and visit the Church here, a dream which has now been shattered’.
The church has enlisted the support of local MPs to put pressure on the British authorities in India. Clare Short (Birmingham, Ladywood), Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme), Andrew Mitchell (Sutton Coldfield), and Lorely Burt (Solihull) are all involved.
The visiting young people were due to stay in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Newcastle-under-Lyme and Gloucester.
The West Midlands area of the United Reformed Church, which extends from Birmingham to the Welsh border, has had a partnership since 2002 with the Church of North India and particularly the Diocese of Durgapur, in West Bengal. Last summer, twelve West Midlands young people, in their teens and early twenties, spent two weeks in Durgapur. They painted children’s cots in a rural hospital and helped in a child development centre which caters for slum children. They came back saying the families who hosted them had little to give, but the generosity had been overwhelming.
According to Ruth Maxey, the reason given for refusal of visas is that the visitors do not have sufficient financial backing. But she says this is ‘nonsense’ because the United Reformed Church is underwriting the cost. There is little time for a change of heart; the group from West Bengal are due to arrive on June 24th. Further information from co–organisers Ruth Maxey tel. 0779 190 1468 or Chris Burgham tel. 01743 or 246320 or 0797 678 8543.
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