CHURCH VANDALIZED IN MAHARASHTRA
Mumbai: According to reports, at around 10:40
a.m. on April 19, 2009, a mob of Hindu extremists burst
into a Sunday morning se rvice
at the Douglas Memorial Church.
"As I was preaching," says Rev. Mark Madhukar
Sakharpekar, "a dozen young boys shouting 'Jai Shri Ram'
entered and started beating church members with sticks.
They even threw a knife towards me, which fortunately
missed the mark."
The report says that the radicals were armed with
knives, sticks and swords, and threatened Pastor
Sakharpekar with "dire consequences" if worship services
continued.
After attacking Christians involved in the worship
service, the radicals went on a rampage.
Extremists destroyed church furniture, Bibles, hymnals
and the mission school bus parked outside the church.
So far, seven of the extremists have been arrested, and
a police report has been filed by the pastor.
PASTOR
LOU YUANQI RELEASED FROM PRISON AFTER
INTERNATIONAL ATTENTION
XINJIANG, April 28: At 6 p.m. on April 24,
Past or
Lou Yuanqi of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region was
released from prison under the provision of "bailed out
waiting for trial," a legal procedure called "qu bao hou
shen." Though this provision allows for future arrest
and prosecution, Pastor Lou was released and permitted
to return home. The provision's purpose is also to
prevent Pastor Lou or his family from filing an
administrative lawsuit against the state for
compensation for illegal detention time. Xinjiang
authorities could not find evidence sufficient to
continue his prosecution and indictment. According to
family members, Pastor Lou looked fragile, because of
the horrible conditions he suffered in prison. He
suffers from hepatitis B, and is in great need of
medical attention.
Pastor Lou's faith is very strong, and he, his wife Wang
Wenxiu and their three children are overwhelmed by the
response from the international community.
Pastor Lou was first detained on May 17, 2008 at 1 p.m.
in Qingshuihe town, Huocheng county of Xinjiang Uyghur
Autonomous Region. Pastor Lou stood trial on December
15, 2008 on charges of "utilizing superstition to
undermine the law." Those close to the case say the
authorities' motivation for the charge was to stop Lou's
house church from meeting in his home. Immediately after
Lou's trial, his daughter, Lou Tiantian, 18, was beaten
by court police when she tried to speak with her father
as he was being put into a police car.
Later, the court issued a statement, declaring "the
facts [in Pastor Lou's case] unclear and the evidence
insufficient." Despite this ruling, Pastor Lou continued
to be imprisoned until his release on April 24.
Two other Xinjiang Christians, Alimujiang Yimiti and
Wusiman Yiming, are currently suffering in prison for
their faith.
Alimujiang Yimiti, a Uyghur Christian, was first
detained on the charge of "endangering the security of
the state, " then was officially arre-sted on February
20, 2008 for "suspicion of inciting secession and
organizing people in stealing, spying, buying and
illegally providing state secrets or intelligence to
overseas organizations." However, sources say the real
reason for his detention is because of his Christian
faith and witness among the Uyghur people.
Alimujiang was seen March 31 around 10 a.m. (local time)
at Nongsanshi (Military Farm) Hospital in Kashgar. His
hands were bound and he was observed being roughly
escorted by police and a prison doctor while repeatedly
crying out to onlookers in Chinese, "I'm sick. Tell my
lawyer to come quickly to see me."
Wusiman Yiming, another Uyghur Christian, was sentenced
to two years of reeducation through labor in September
2007 for "revealing state secrets" and "illegal
proselytizing." ChinaAid sources say that he was, in
fact, sentenced because of his boldness as a Christian
and a leader in the Uyghur church. Sources report that
he has aged dramatically in the labor camp and his
health is deteriorating due to harsh conditions.
"We welcome the release of this innocent pastor who has
been arbitrarily detained for more than a year simply
for his Christian faith related activities," said Bob
Fu. "We urge the Xinjiang authorities to release other
innocent people of faith such as Alimujiang Yimiti and
Wusiman Yiming."
Contact Chinese government offices to express your
appreciation for the release of Pastor Lou Yuanqi and to
urge authorities to immediately release Alimujiang
Yimiti and Wusiman Yiming. Write to Ms. Wu Aiying,
minister of Ministry of Justice of PRC <minister@legalinfo.gov>
CHRISTIANS UNDER ATTACK IN SUDAN
Khurtum: Followers of President Omar Hassan al-Bashir
have intensified attacks on Christians and others they
believe support the International Criminal Court's
recent decision to prosecute the president for
atrocities in the Darfur region.
According to reports, Aburahaman Tai, a leader of the
Evangelical Presbyterian Church in the Nuba Mountains
village of Chat, central Sudan, was beaten and injured
by a suspected government militia in early March, 2009.
On March 27, the building used by Tai's congregation and
the Sudanese Church of Christ was set on fire by the
same group, which reportedly supports an Islamist
agenda. Church members fled the scene in fear for their
lives. Tai's congregation has since been meeting for
worship outdoors.
In Dungala, the capital of Northern state, a church
building was recently turned into a mosque and some
believers were forcibly converted to Islam.
SAUDI BLOGGER RELEASED FROM PRISON
On March 28, Hamoud Bin Saleh, a Saudi Christian
arrested in January for writing about his conversion
from Islam and criticizing the Saudi kingdom's crackdown
on individual rights, was released from prison,
according to Compass Direct News.
Hamoud is reportedly forbidden to travel outside the
country or appear in the media. In a recent post on his
blog, Hamoud attributed his release to several human
rights groups that campaigned on his behalf. "A nation
which lives in this system cannot guarantee the safety
of its individuals," he blogged, according to Compass
Direct.
In Saudi Arabia the penalty for converting from Islam,
also called apostasy, is death. Still, in recent years,
there have been no known cases of Saudis formally been
convicted and sentenced to death. The Voice of the
Martyrs encourages you to pray for Hamoud. Ask God to
protect him and encourage him to remain strong in his
faith.
CHRISTIANS KILLED IN VILLAGE RAID IN THE PHILIPPINES
Manila: Two men are dead and another remains missing
following a raid by approximately 40 Muslim rebels on
the predominately Christian village of Sitio Arco in
Basilan province, southern Philippines on Good Friday
(April 10, 2009).
Cosme Aballes, Ernan Chavez and six children were
kidnapped during the raid. Another man, Jacinto Clemente,
was shot and killed by the rebels. The children were
released later that day. Aballes was barbarically
beheaded and his body was found two days later in the
nearby town of Lamitan.
According to a military spokesman, the rebels "will kill
anybody they encounter and the intention they had was to
disrupt the Christian activities during the Lenten
season when they went to Sitio Arco." The spokesperson
also stated that "their second motive was to extort from
local leaders in the area," referring to Chavez, who at
last report was still missing.
EGYPTIAN CONVERT ARRESTED FOR MARRYING A CHRISTIAN
Cairo: Raheal Henen Mussa (22), an Egyptian convert to
Christianity from Islam, was arrested on April 13, 2009
for violating Islamic law by marrying a non Muslim,
Sarwat George Ryia, according to reports .Mussa was
apprehended while on her way home from work and was
detained in a station operated by the secret police
until April 19, when her Muslim family came for her.
Since Mussa was born into a Muslim home, she is
considered a Muslim despite her conversion to
Christianity three years ago. Conse quently, she was
unable to officially marry Ryia, a Coptic Christian.
Mussa was able to escape from her family on April 21 and
fled Cairo with her husband. At last report, the couple
was in hiding.
FORMER CATHOLIC KILLED
The murder of a former Catholic, Bhodoro Toppo, by his
kin in Sukrapara village, of Tilinga parish, Jashpur
diocese in Chhattisgarh took a sectarian turn, when some
Hindus accused Christians of killing the man over
religion, said Fr. Augustus Kujur, the local parish
priest.
Before Toppo's burial with Hindu rites, about 5,000
Hindus held a procession with the body. They shouted
accusations that Christians had deliberately murdered a
Hindu, said the priest. He noted that some of the Oraon
tribal villagers accused of the crime became Christians
only last year.
Toppo had stopped practicing the faith before that, and
the day before he was attacked and killed, he hoisted a
saffron flag. The priest interpreted this as Toppo
reminding the villagers, who he dared to do anything to
him, that he had connections with the Hindu radical
group Bajrang Dal.
Diocesan spokesperson, Fr. Edmon Bara said local Hindi
dailies also published the news and gave it a sectarian
color. "Since it is election time," said the priest
based in the Jashpur Bishop's House, Bajrang Dal
activists "are twisting the whole story to get Hindu
votes." Fr. George Xalxo, assistant parish priest in
Tilinga, said Hindu activists also damaged village
cate-chist Ramael Kispotta's house and took some money
on the night of April 14. "Tension has come from outside
and not from inside," the priest added.
CHRISTIANS ATTACKED IN CHHATTISGARH
April 28, 2009: A group of people attacked a gospel
meeting organised by Christian Community Church on April
20 in Dalli Rajhara, Durg Chhattisgarh.
According to an EFI correspondent, Rev, Akhilesh Edgar,
at about 9:30 p.m. a group of people from the Sikh
community attacked a Christian meeting where four
pastors, all converts from Sikh religion, were guest
speakers .It was also reported that the four pastors
still follow their culture of wearing turbans and
growing their beard.
The attackers accused the Christians of "forceful"
conversion, termed the four pastors as traitors of
Sikhism, demanded their arrests and beat them up.
Police arrived at the spot and escorted the four pastors
to Balod area and were sent back to Delhi by train the
same night.
Durg's Sikh community submitted a memorandum against the
Christians to the state's Governor, Chief Minister and
Home Minister. The state's Chief Minister assured the
Sikh community that appropriate action will be taken.
Local Christian leaders denied any attempted forceful
conversion.
In another incident in Chhattisgarh, a Christian
identified as Gyan Singh was arrested by police on April
15 on charges of forceful conversion in Chakarbhata,
Balispur.
Hindu extremists falsely accused Singh of luring four
people identified as Arjun, Dhuri , Ramesh Bareth and
Ganesh Kaushik to Christianity by sharing the gospel and
inviting them to a Christian meeting held in the chapel
of the Mission Hospital, reported an EFI correspondent,
Akhilesh Edgar.
A mob of Hindu extremists swelled up in the police
station and filed a police complaint against the
Christian. Gyan Singh was arrested under Section 153(a)
and 295(a) of the Indian Penal Code for deliberate and
malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings
and promoting enmity between different groups on grounds
of religion respectively. Local Christian leaders denied
any attempted forceful conversion in the area.
THREE CHRISTIANS KILLED IN IRAQ
Baghdad: Two attacks on Christian families in the city
of Kirkuk on Sunday, April 26, 2009 evening left three
people dead and two others wounded, police said.
The first occurred in a neighbour-hood in southern
Kirkuk when a Christian woman and her daughter-in-law
were murdered in their home late night Sunday. Police
told CNN the attackers slit the women's throats.
In a neighbourhood close by, gunmen attacked a Christian
family in their home, shooting a father and his three
sons, police said. One of the sons died instantly and
the other son and the father were wounded.
Many of Iraq's estimated 1 million Christians have fled
the country after targeted attacks by extremists. In
October, more than a thousand Iraqi families fled the
northern city of Mosul after they were reportedly
frightened by a series of killings and threats by Muslim
extremists, who apparently ordered them to convert to
Islam or face possible death.
PRIEST, WIFE KILLED IN EASTERN INDONESIA
Jakarta: A Christian priest and his wife were stabbed to
death in a region of eastern Indonesia that has been
wracked by sectarian violence in the past.
The bodies of Frans Koagow, 64, and his wife, Femy
Kumendong, 73, were discovered by their grandson in the
priest's home on Sulawesi island over the weekend with
deep wounds to their heads and necks, said local police
chief Aridan Roero. Authorities have yet to determine a
motive, he said, and no suspects have been named. "We're
still investigating," Roero said. "It's too early to say
anything."
More than 90 percent of Indonesia's 235 million people
are Muslims, but Sulawesi - the scene of religious
clashes that left up to 2,000 people dead from 1998 to
2002 - has a large Christian population.
TALIBAN MILITANTS ATTACK CHRISTIANS IN PAKISTAN
Karachi - April 22, 2009: Taliban militants killed two
Christians in an armed attack on a Christian colony of
Karachi. This marks the Talibanization of Karachi city.
The attack was well organized and heavy firearms were
used by hundreds of Taliban to threaten unarmed
Christian elders, women and children. The Taliban
chalked slogans against Christianity and to accept Islam
on Church walls in Taseer Town in night of April 19,
2009 which horrified Christian residents.
On April 21, 2009, the local Christians took out a
peaceful procession in vicinity of Taseer Town to
attract attention of local administration for protection
of residents but no action was taken nor police guard
were provided for protection of Church.
On the night of April 21, 2009, more than one hundred
masked Taliban intruded in Taseer Colony and attacked
Christians with guns. They locked up some Christians in
their homes but they pulled elders out on gunpoint and
dragged women by their hair on to the streets. They
loudly said "You infidels have to convert to Islam or
die. Why did you wipe away our warnings chalked on walls
of Churches and home doors? Do you dare to take out
procession against Taliban?”
The two Christians who resisted Taliban were killed in
execution style before their families. In a two hour
long attack on Taseer Town Taliban resulted in the death
of two Christians. Dozens were beaten.
Nazir S Bhatti, President of Pakistan Christian Congress
PCC condemned attack and killing of Christians in Taseer
Town and urged government to provide protection to
Christians in Pakistan who are unarmed and peaceful
citizen.
Nazir Bhatti said, "The presence of Taliban was feared
by MQM from months but no action was taken to stop
Talibanization of Karachi which is being started by
attack on Christians which is warning bell for Sindh
government”
“Taliban are planning to expand Sharia law of their
choice in Karachi and Christian colony is fallen first
victim on their target," Nazir Bhatti said.
The Asia Evangelical Alliance (AEA) has condemned this
attack. Please pray for peace in Pakistan.
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