Being given a voice to speak for those who are oppressed is a powerful privilege, and one which Baroness Caroline Cox has been exercising for more than twenty years. In addition to speaking for those who can’t speak for themselves, Baroness Cox has also initiated a way to supply physical aid to those for whom she speaks.

In 1995 Baroness Cox won the William Wilberforce award for her humanitarian work, and in 2005 she was honoured by the All India Christian Council with the International Mother Teresa Award.

Baroness Cox says of herself that she is “I am a nurse and social scientist by intention, but a baroness by astonishment.” Elected to the British House of Lords and thereby bestowed with the title of Baroness, Caroline Cox began exercising her role of speaking for the oppressed almost immediately.

“I found myself with the huge privilege of being able to speak in one of the Houses of British Parliament, and I thought, ‘how can I best use that’? And it is in fact the most wonderful place to be a voice for the voiceless, to speak for people who can’t speak for themselves.”

Baroness Cox’s introduction to the role of advocate came with a visit to Poland in the 1980s during the days of martial law, when she elected to go in person to ensure that the medical aid sent by the British government reached those for whom it was intended. It was an undertaking Baroness Cox never forgot, and ignited her passion for representing the oppressed.

“I’ll never forget the joy on the faces of people as we arrived. They said, ‘you come once, we know you care, you come twice we know you love us’. I went many, many, times and came back humbled and inspired by their generosity, and the courage of the Polish people. I came back having received so much more than I’d been given. I think that’s where the seeds of this particular kind of ministry were born. Experiencing that privilege of making a little bit of difference in some of the dark parts of the world.”

In her role in the House of Lords, Baroness Cox has visited many nations, and many people groups, for whom she has spoken out. Other visits were made in her role as President of Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a role which she retained until 2006, as she advocated for religious freedom for persecuted Christians.

The Baroness’ work in advocacy and aid is based on her Christian faith. “We have the biblical mandate to feed the sick, clothe the naked, feed the hungry speak for the oppressed. And some of the most oppressed people, the most marginalised, are the ones without a voice.”

However, at some point, she began to feel that her mandate in life was more than just being a voice for the oppressed – she longed to do something to ease the physical suffering of the people she met. So, in 2003, Baroness Cox founded The Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART).

“HART was established to provide both the aid and the advocacy. In the early days, I travelled with CSW many times, to the Armenian enclave, to ‘no go’ areas in south Sudan and into Burma, but I always felt unhappy. Because the people there do need a voice, yes, but sometimes it felt a bit thin just to say ‘I’ll be a voice for you’ when they’re actually suffering and dying, and do nothing.”

“I think HART really evolved to be a voice for those people trapped behind closed borders who are off the radar screen of major organisations. Big organisations (like the UN and the Red Cross) can only go to places with the permission of a sovereign government. If a sovereign government doesn’t give permission for them to go to those places, they can’t go in, and so the victims are left unreached and unheard. So I’ve spent quite a lot of time crossing borders illegally and completely shamelessly to be with people who are most off the radar.”

Although founded on Christian principles, Baroness Cox is very clear on the fact that HART works with all people, not just those who are Christians. This too is part of the biblical mandate which she seeks to work by. “As Christians, we have to be unconditional in our love, our advocacy and our aid. Heal the sick, speak for the oppressed – not just the Christians.”

“But on the other hand, the majority of people suffering persecution around the world are Christians. But we’re available for all.”

Baroness Cox recounts instances of oppression which she has witnessed and gone on to represent in the House of Lords.

In Burma, Baroness Cox reports there are some signs of hope, after many years of oppression and suffering. For decades, the peoples of Burma have suffered at the hands of brutal military rulers. Human rights violations include widespread imposition of forced labour, an army with the largest number of child soldiers in the world; several hundreds of political prisoners; sustained military offensives, with a shoot-to-kill policy against ethnic nationals such as the Shan, Karen and Karenni peoples.

In January 2012 HART visited the India-Burma border to meet representatives from Chin State and witness some positive developments.

“The Chin tribe, who are mostly a Christian people in the north west, have suffered tremendously for many years at the hands of the military regime,” says Baroness Cox. “The Chin tribe signed a peace agreement and so they were no longer being attacked by Burmese army, but they were occupied, which is almost worse because you’ve got foreign soldiers in every village – so you’ve got rape, extradition, killing forced labour and theft. The women weren’t educated beyond grade 10, and had virtually no healthcare so the needs were legion.”

Since 2007, HART has supported border clinics, and funded projects which seeks to put health care and development into the hands of isolated villagers along the region of India-Burmese border.

Working even closer to Australia, in East Timor, Baroness Cox says that the people there “really do appreciate Australians. They cherish the support Australians have given them.” HART Australasia is working in East Timor, or Timor Leste as the country is trying to rebuild itself. “There are huge humanitarian needs,” explains Baroness Cox, “one of which is in the area of child malnutrition. Independent figures assess that about 50 percent of children suffer from malnutrition.”

HART work with their partner, Dr Rosaria Martins da Cruz, who built and coordinates Hiam Health. “It is a well designed residential centre for those who can bring a child discharged from the hospital,” says Baroness Cox. There, the people learn to grow nutritious food with organic fertilisers, how to prepare it, cook it, eat it and enjoy it. For most Timor Leste,” explains Baroness Cox, “potential food supplies are there, but cultural taboos or ignorance prevented them from using them. So babies that come into the hospital as skeletons go back healthy, and the other people in the village want to know how it happened. The people are also trained to go back and establish family and community gardens.

“It’s lovely to celebrate their achievements,” says Baroness Cox, “There’s a lovely proud picture of a village holding up an enormous vegetable – I have no idea what it is – with tremendous pride. That’s getting to the roots of the malnutrition problem. It’s not just a food handout but a ‘ground to the table’ solution.”

HART’s work is based around advocacy, aid, authenticity and accountability. Their focus is on working through local partners, who according to Baroness Cox says, “are the real heroes”.

For more information, visit HART Australasia.