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Oxfam - Pakistan in Pakistan Directory

 

Provides news and information about Oxfams programmes, case studies, papers and resources. During the Second World War, Greece was occupied by the Nazis. In 1941, the Allies imposed a naval blockade, and scarcely any food or medical supplies could get through, even to civilians. Famine quickly took hold. A national Famine Relief Committee was set up in May 1942 and support groups were formed throughout the country. They tried to persuade the British government to allow essential supplies through the blockade, and they raised funds for war refugees and displaced people across Europe. The Oxford Committee for Famine Relief met for the first time on 5 October 1942. Among its founding members were Canon T R Milford of the University Church and Professor Gilbert Murray, a member of the national Committee and former Regius Professor of Greek at Oxford. The commitment of Cecil Jackson-Cole, a London businessman appointed Honorary Secretary in December 1942, drove the Committee’s work for many years. Many of the Relief Committees were wound down after the war, but the Oxford Committee saw a continuing need and enlarged its objectives to include ‘the relief of suffering in consequence of the war’. Activity then centred on the provision of food parcels and clothing to Europe. From 1948 grants were made to projects in Europe and elsewhere and in 1949 the Committee’s objectives were again broadened to ‘the relief of suffering arising as a result of wars or of other causes in any part of the world.’ The Committee gradually became known by its abbreviated telegraph address, Oxfam (This name was formally adopted in 1965). In 1951, Howard Leslie Kirkley was appointed General Secretary. Registered as a conscientious objector in 1939, Kirkley had helped found and run the Leeds Famine Relief Committee. He remained with Oxfam for 24 years, latterly as Director, and his own presence in disaster situations, the swift response of his organisation and his work as Chairman of the UK Publicity Committee for the UN World Refugee Year in 1959-60 brought Oxfam to the attention of a wide audience.

 

Address: Oxfam House, John Smith Drive, Oxford OX4 2JY.
Telephone: 44 (0) 1865 473727
Website: http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_we_do/where_we_work/pakistan/