Last Sunday the Mayor of Saffron Walden, Councillor Sarfraz Anjum, was presented with an award at a special meeting held at the Community Church in the town. This was in recognition for his championing of Human Rights, and recent visit to Pakistan to stand in solidarity with the minority Christian community there.
Cllr Sarfraz Anjum travelled to Pakistan in September on the invitation of the Bishop of Lahore in order to highlight the suffering of the Christian community there. The local Amnesty International branch, which is one of the Mayor’s selected charities for the year, is also working hard to fight for the rights of the persecuted Christian community.
During his time in Pakistan the Mayor visited the Anglican Cathedral of Lahore and met with the Christian community. The Mayor also used the opportunity to invite the Bishop of Lahore to Saffron Walden. The Bishop has accepted the invitation and will be visiting the town in October.
At the event last Sunday there was also a presentation by Paul Martin who is a member of the leadership team at the Saffron Walden Community Church.
Mr Martin said: “Cllr Sarfraz Anjum spoke movingly about his pride in being British and discussed in detail his concern for the Christian minority in Pakistan. The local Christian community and all lovers of democracy are very proud of the positive work undertaken by the Mayor and fully support him in his brave efforts.”
Commenting Mayor Sarfraz Anjum stated: “I look forward to welcoming the Bishop to Saffron Walden on Sunday 16 October. I am also delighted that the office of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s has taken note of my visit to Lahore and that they plan to send a senior representative of Lambeth Palace to Saffron Walden to coincide with the Bishop’s visit. This will be a fantastic opportunity to promote the town as a whole and St Mary’s Church. It will also be a great opportunity to help raise funds for the charities I am supporting this mayoral year.“