3 months ago
John
Dad joined Oxfam in 1974 as Desk Officer for Asia, having spent 1971-73 with War on Want as Field Director for India and Bangladesh during the aftermath of the Bangladesh Liberation War (1971). His roles over the next 17 years included Field Director for North India, based in Delhi [1978-79], Field Director in Cambodia after the overthrow of the Khmer Rouge [1982], OXFAM representative in Calcutta [1988] and Field Director in Sudan [1989-91]. Through this period, he also conducted research on the international arms race and its cost to the Global South, led important early work on emergencies monitoring and surveillance [1983 sub-Saharan Africa; 1985-87 OXFAM Emergencies Unit] and advised the International Council on Voluntary Agencies on programmes to support refugees.
After he retired - in his words 'exhausted' - in 1991, he was honoured with the award of an OBE by HM the Queen [1992]
Throughout his life, he demonstrated firm but always quiet commitment to the most marginalised and vulnerable communities. That commitment included listening to their voices and co-producing solutions with them that respected their identity and dignity. He was genuinely internationalist, spoke many languages and was always prepared to learn another. Above all, he was patient, understated, principled and deeply compassionate.