Oxfam
Oxfam One of the largest voluntary/charity organizations in the UK. This Oxford based organization was established on 29 May 1942 during World War-II. At that time its name was Famine Relief Committee. It was renamed Oxford Committee for Famine Relief in a meeting of the Christian missionaries, Clergy of Churches, University faculties and other distinguished persons on 5 October of the same year at the Oxford University. The meeting was chaired by Reverend T.R. Milford of the Oxford University Church.
The immediate goal of foundation of Oxfam was to save the lives of peoples of different countries in Europe from hunger and famine in the prevailing situation by raising awareness among others to come forward in their aid and assistance. At that time, only in Athens in Greece, on an average two thousand people were dying daily out of starvation.
Oxfam is being governed by the rule of a trust. The Council comprising a certain number amongst the members is the highest policy-making body of the organization. Besides this, there is an Executive Committee under the leadership of the Chairman and the Director.
Oxfam has field offices in Asia, Africa, South America and in different countries in the Middle East. A field office is being run by a Director and a few members. Initially its activities were mainly limited to relief operations among the refugees and famine-affected people. However, its activities were subsequently extended to many countries of the globe such as Nigeria, Biafra, Palestine, Kenya, Hong Kong, South Africa, Algeria, Kongo, Bihar and other parts of India, Brazil, Guatemala, Lebanon, Ethiopia, Cambodia, Sudan, Mozambique, Angola, Iraq, Bangladesh among the war driven refugees, hunger stricken poor and those heavily affected by earthquake.
The lion’s share of Oxfam fund comes through voluntary donations by individuals. It has charity shops in many countries including Britain. These are also its sources of funding. For some years, the British government is also providing a part of its fund. With the passage of time, its sphere of activity has been extended from mere relief operations to cover other areas such as education, health, agriculture, cottage industries, training, etc. Further it acts in unison with developmental NGOs in different countries by providing assistance including technical support.
During the Bangladesh war of liberation in 1971, 100 million Bengalis fled the country out of fear, taking shelter in neighbouring India as refugees. Oxfam carried out large-scale relief operations among them. While such kind of assistance of other foreign voluntary agencies were confined to refugee camps in Calcutta (West Bengal), Oxfam conducted its activities in other places, too, which covered the areas of Bongaon, Balurghat, Paschim [West] Dinajpur, Barasat, Jalpaiguri, Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam, Kuchbihar, etc. Its relief goods included, among other things, food, medicine, sterilized water, blanket, orsaline, and ‘super latrine’.
Besides relief operation, Oxfam made another commendable thing during Bangladesh War of Liberation. On 21 October (1971), it brought out a most touchy publicity material entitled The Testimony of Sixty. Edited by HL Kirkley, the central Director of Oxfam, the literature portrayed the indescribable plights of the Bengali refugees in various camps in India caused by floods, heavy rainfalls, outbreak of cholera replete with vivid accounts of60 eminent eye witnesses throughout the world, which included, among others, the British Members of the House of Commons, Us Senators, leading journalists and chiefs of voluntary organizations. The document was distributed among heads of state/government of different countries, internationally influential bodies and institutions making a significant contribution to the moulding of international opinion towards the cause of Bangladesh.
In the post-independent Bangladesh, Oxfam played a commendable role in the rehabilitation of refugees and reconstruction of the war-ravaged country. At present, it is working among the more than one million Rohingya refugees driven out by the Myanmar military junta into Bangladesh. It may be recalled that Oxfam came to the aid of severe cyclone-affected people of coastal areas in the then East Pakistan (present, Bangladesh) that happened in November 1970.
Oxfam as an organization and Julius Francis, the Chief Co-ordinator of its relief operation during 1971, have been awarded the medals of ‘Friends of Bangladesh War of Liberation’ by the Bangladesh government in recognition of their invaluable contributions at that crucial time. The latter has also been granted Bangladesh’s citizenship in 2018. [Harun-or-Rashid]
Sources Maggle Black, Oxfam: The 50 Years, (Oxfam and Oxford university Press 1992); Harun-or-Rashid (ed.), Bangladesh Muktijuddhya Gyankosh (in Bengali) [Encyclopedia of Bangladesh War of Liberation], Vols. 4,5 and 7, (Asiatic Society of Bangladesh 2020).
