Meet Alumnus Gurinder Jhans, researcher at the APPG for International Freedom of Faith and Belief

Gurinder Jhans graduated from ParliaMentors in 2012, he was a member of the discovering exceptional leaders Q&A panel at the 2016 Interfaith Summit and works for the APPG for International Freedom of Faith and Belief

I currently work in Parliament as a researcher for the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for International Freedom of Religion or Belief. We work with MPs and Peers from across the political parties to advance human rights and influence government policy, but specifically focusing on issues related to persecution of individuals based on their faith or beliefs. This is an issue that is becoming increasingly salient, particularly with the riseof groups such as ISIS/Daesh who have targeted those who do not share their noxious ideology.

Something we have currently been working on is to do with helping Yazidis and other minorities from Iraq,

Something we have currently been working on is to do with helping Yazidis and other minorities from Iraq, as they are not eligible for

resettlement under the UK’s 20,000 vulnerable persons resettlement scheme. We wrote a letter signed by almost 50 Parliamentarians that has been sent to the Home Secretary and Secretary of State for International Development which calls on the Government to consider how they can provide Yazidis and other vulnerable minorities with adequate psychiatric support, particularly for the women and girls who have suffered from sexual violence at the hands of ISIS/Daesh.

So what got me into this type of work – well I’m Sikh and religious freedom is part of our history, in defending our own faith and that of others. It was the ninth Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji who sacrificed his life for the rights of another faith when they were threatened with the choice of forced conversion or death. Something again we have witnessed recently by groups such as ISIS/Daesh.

We also place an incredible amount of importance on the concept of Seva, which simply means ‘selfless service’.

We also place an incredible amount of importance on the concept of Seva, which simply means ‘selfless service’. This is something important to me and has influenced my choice of work as well as the type of career I would like to pursue. In fact, I feel a sense of duty or an obligation to work towards making a tangible difference to help those who need it most. By the way, yes I realise this may sound cliché, however I sincerely hope those reading this can empathise and will understand such sentiments.

Having studied Politics at University and International Peace and Security at postgraduate level you become acutely aware of many of the world’s problems and realise how fortunate many of us are. Knowing about some of these issues motivates me in my life. I would feel as though I was wasting my experiences and education if I was not engaged in something that helps improve some of the challenges we face today, even if it is in a small way.

This was the message I was hoping to get across when I spoke at the Interfaith Summit. We should not waste our talents or opportunities. The ParliaMentors programme gave me a great foundation of skills that has helped me so far which I’m very thankful for and I still have much to learn. If any of the current cohort of ParliaMentors are reading this – with this programme you’re on (and anything in life to be honest) its entirely up to you about what you want from it – it really is a case of the more you put in the more you get out, so make the most of it!