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PERSECUTION REPORT FOR AUGUST 12, 2003.

The Voice Of The Martyrs presents these incidents of believers suffering for their faith in Christ.

Sri Lanka:

Buddhist monks lead attacks on five churches

On the weekend of August 2-3, 2003, five separate churches in the southern district of Galle, Sri Lanka were attacked by mobs led by Buddhist monks. In Rathgama, ten monks attacked the Methodist Church, burning the church pews and benches and beating two church workers. On the same day, the pastor of the Assembly of God church in Thanamalwila was assaulted by a group of Buddhist monks. Pastor Ranjith of the Assembly of God church in Lunugamwhehra was also attacked by a mob led by ten Buddhist priests that afternoon. His sister who tried to protect him was also beaten. That same weekend, homes of Christians in Ganemulla were vandalized and a mob led by Buddhist monks attacked the Calvary Church in Hikkaduwa. The National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka believes that it is very likely that this spate of organized attacks is the beginning of an attempt to incite Buddhists against the Christian community, creating an environment of religious disharmony which in turn will be sited as a convincing platform to launch an impending anti-conversion bill.

Turkmenistan:

Deaf-mute women face fine or prison

On July 18, Olga Shchedrova was summoned to a court in Turkmenabad, Turkmenistan and threatened with fines and imprisonment for attending a non-registered Baptist church meeting. According to an August 4 report from Forum 18, Officials tried to force Shchedrova to deliver summonses to other Christians, but she refused to do so. Three days later the court officials took her passport, without her permission, and used it to gain access to her pension of 300,000 manat ($82.00 CDN). They withheld 255,000 in payment of her fine (which was to be 250,000) and gave her 46,000. When she asked where the remaining 4000 manat were, the officials told her that they had kept it for themselves. Throughout the conversation, the officials made fun of her because Shchedrova is deaf and mute.

On July 21, a similar summons was issued to Nezire Kamalova, also a deaf-mute Baptist. She was threatened with fifteen days in prison if she did not pay her fine. Her mother paid her fine, but then became very hostile toward Kamalova, threatening to send her to live with non-Christian relatives in a distant village so she would be unable to attend Christian services in Turkmenabad. Religious freedom in Turkmenistan is virtually unknown for any faith other than the officially sanctioned Muslim Board and the Russian Orthodox Church. All other faiths are unable to register and are considered illegal. In recent months, pressure has been building against various religious communities, as police burst into private homes where believers are meeting and arrest those attending.

Please check http://www.persecution.net for information on oppressed Christians and how to help them.

Christian Aid Mission has these persecution incidents to report.

India:

Believer murdered, Pastor clubbed in south India

Hindu extremists clubbed a Christian believer to death in Karnataka state recently, beat another pastor till he was unconscious, and then hindered relatives from conducting Christian burials.

Even though Karnataka itself does not yet have an anti-conversion law, the presence of an anti-conversion law adopted last fall in neighbouring Tamil Nadu-and similar laws in four northern states of Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat and Arunachal Pradesh-is thought to have lent a permissive atmosphere for such violence.

The leader of a ministry based in Tamil Nadu told Christian Aid that an 80-year-old man and former member of the local governing body of a village in Karnataka became a Christian, was baptized, and died about ten days later. The local officials and Hindu leaders insisted he have a Hindu funeral. Only after the family members threatened to commit suicide was the body released for Christian rites.

Because of the animosity towards Christians, several families quit coming to the local church worship meetings and worshipped privately at home. One day as the wife in one family was hanging out laundry to dry, radicals barged into the house and clubbed her husband to death. Then they strung a rope around his neck and tied his body to the roof to feign a suicide. Local Hindus insisted on giving the body a Hindu funeral.

The mission leader also said a pastor, converted from the ranks of the Gypsies, was attacked in Tamil Nadu state in late May. Hoodlums came to the village and without warning clubbed the pastor with a log until he lay unconscious. The pastor said later when he opened his eyes they were beating his son like savages.

After this the attackers forced the two men to go to the police station, where authorities warned them to stop converting people to Christianity. On hearing of the incident, other pastors in the area rushed to plead their case with the officials. In the end, local authorities said the pastor could preach inside his own house to his own family, but not to others.

Another team was taking the gospel to remote hill-tribes who live in an area inhabited by wild elephants when some educated youths interrupted and demanded that they stop preaching. The youths threatened to put the team members in jail if they did not leave.

"Yet after seeing us and hearing the gospel, the tribal people have started to believe in Jesus and trust Him for healings and miracles," the leader said. One tribal woman reportedly was healed of paralysis in her hand and leg, and another was healed of severe wounds and sores on her legs and hands.

The mission leader, who also pastors a church, said, "More people are coming to our church after the law was passed and are getting saved." His church currently has 400 members.

Under the ruling radical Hindu party, Hindu extremists seem to be able to perpetrate violence against Christians with impunity. Their actions violate India's constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion. A group of Christians in Orissa have banded together to fight the implementation of the anti-conversion act in that state. They are determined to take their case all the way to the Supreme Court.

Information on how to assist this ministry may be obtained by writing to insider@christianaid.org and putting MI-431 610-TCF on the subject line.

Please see http://www.christianaid.org for missions news and for ways to assist the spreading of the gospel.

Assist News Service provides the following persecution reports.

India:

Hate campaign against Christians heats up in Kerala

Up until recently, the Indian state of Kerala has been, for many years, a safe haven for Christians. The anti-Christian violence which is a regular occurrence in North India and other states had not yet found a place in this state.

The All India Christian Council (AICC) says that there have been powerful secular movements in Kerala state and the state's Communist Party has always been checking the advance of the saffron wave, but now things have been taking a different direction of late. Now a hate campaign against Christians has started in the state.

"The RSS, a fundamental Hindu group, has had phenomenal growth in Kerala," said an AICC spokesperson. "Almost every village in the state has a squadron of militant khaki-clad, sword-wielding RSS volunteers who have been indoctrinated to fight against minorities. The RSS was involved in the destruction of parts of the boundary walls of the Maramon Convention ground in an operation akin to the Babri Masjid destruction. The formation of the Hindu nationalist government has attracted a large number of formerly secular people under the guise of 'Hindu pride.'

"The campaign is so poignant that many claim there is now a concerted effort to destroy the Church in Kerala."

AICC revealed that the Rev. T. A. Koshy, General Secretary of the Mar Thoma Evangelical Association in Kerala, made some startling remarks in a recent speech in Tiruvalla, Kerala.

He said, "The notion that the Church of Kerala is the driving force behind the evangelical activity in India has gained prominence. As a consequence, the idea that the 'Kerala Church must be destroyed' is being secretly propagated. What we see are the organized attempts to destroy the church. It has come to a point that those who wear (priestly) robes are perceived as problematic. The indoctrination now being given even to the children is that Christians, even if they are neighbours, are to be attacked. The religious hatred has increased among the youth."

History disproves Hindutva theory

"The leader of the Kerala VHP, another militant Hindu group, state unit has said that all Christians and Muslims in Kerala are Hindus who have merely converted to other religions," said the AICC spokesperson. "This statement is an absolute falsehood as Aryan Brahminic Hinduism came to Kerala centuries after Christianity was established there. The Aryan invaders of Kerala effectively destroyed the local tribal, Dravidian and Sudroid religions." Jainism and Buddhism were the predominant religions of Kerala in the ancient days. Many Buddhist (and Jain) temples were ransacked or destroyed by the Aryan Hindu invaders from the north.

"Even the famous Sabarimala temple was a Buddhist temple. Thus to claim that all people of Kerala are Hindus by origin is fallacy. The Dalits and Tribals have never been a part of Hinduism. Such falsification of history by the Hindu revivalists is merely placing a stamp of antiquity on Hinduism in Kerala in an attempt to convert Christians to Hinduism."

Christians converted to Hinduism in Kerala

The AICC spokesperson said that five Christian families from a Dalit background have been re-converted to Hinduism by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in Kerala.

"The incident took place in the Dalit colony at Vettikkal-Mulanthuruthi in the District of Kottayam," said the spokesperson. "Eighteen Christians were converted apparently under allurement of reservation benefits and other coercionary tactics by the VHP.

"Ironically, this happened in the wake of a demand from Hindu revivalist outfit, the Kerala Temple Conservation Forum, for legislation that would counter forcible religious conversions in Kerala as seen in other anti-conversion bills passed in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat states."

Clandestine survey of Christians

ANS has learned through news reports that a clandestine anti-Christian, anti-minority survey has been going on for several months in the state of Kerala. It has been reported that a survey in the Nedunkantom taluq of the Idukki district catalogues the names and personal information of all Christians and other minority groups in the area, and has been given to the Central government authorities. The officers conducting this survey claimed to the press that the very same personnel employed for the general census had also been assigned the task of surveying the minorities. Officials also admitted that since these personnel carried out their tasks secretively and without raising any suspicion, the Church and Masjid authorities willingly co-operated with them.

In another shocking revelation, it was confirmed that both the "Special Branch" of the police and the "Intelligence Bureau" have also been engaged in parts of this clandestine survey.

Meanwhile, another survey of Christians and minority groups began in another Kerala district, Palakkad. The churches and mosques in this community will now come under the watchful eyes of the Indian Central Government's Home Ministry. Questionnaires have been distributed to the officers of the villages in this district and the officers have been directed to "collect and compile data with utmost urgency" and return them "immediately". The village officers are required to personally visit each church or mosque and collect accurate data.

This type of survey proves incredibly dangerous to Christians and other minorities. It has been proven that the violence of Gujarat state in 2002 was made easier for the antagonists because a survey of minorities had been done prior to the initial attacks. This is only further proof of the highly coordinated and planned campaign of violence and misinformation that has been launched on Christians and minorities nationwide.

List of recent attacks in Kerala state

According to AICC, the Indian Pentecostal Church's Faith Home and its Pastor's residence were attacked in Trivandrum District of Kerala state on January 1, 2003. Fifty people who had just attended a New Year's Night prayer meeting were present to witness and fall victim to this atrocity.

Also, the premises of St. Louis Malankara Catholic Church in Pathanamthitta district of Kerala state fell victim to a minor attack stemming from communal violence. Hooligans from the Hindu Unity forum and RSS-sponsored strike team trespassed into the Church compound to prevent pending construction work. Workers and Church officials who intervened were assaulted.

Violence spreads in Kerala

The All India Christian Council has stated that communal violence against minorities has been spreading in Kerala. The council alleges that the attacks are "selective" and "precise" against Muslims - their shops, vehicles and religious structures. The Council refutes statements in the Hindu nationalist newspaper, "Janmabhoomi" which stated that Muslim fanatics were joining forces to fight against Hindus.

It also revealed that unidentified persons destroyed 23 crosses standing on the tombs in the cemetery of the Burnassery Cathedral in Kannur, Kerala.

And that three student missionaries were detained by the railway police at the insistence of the Hindu militant group, the Bajrang Dal and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP).

AICC says that Hindu fascist organizations have attacked the Brennen College in North Kerala and held its principal captive. The attack came after the Hindu group accused the college of publishing a student magazine that carried offensive articles.

Also a group of unidentified miscreants ransacked the Blessed Alphonsa Church in Kolayad, Kerala and displaced the mortal remains of Sister Alphonsamma, a deceased nun from the local Catholic order. The gang also smashed the altar and damaged other religiously significant items in the church building.

AICC went on to say that the Hindu terrorist group, the RSS, attacked a Brethren preacher while he was delivering the sermon on the pulpit of a church. He was attacked indiscriminately with sharp sword-like weapons, received extremely serious injuries and was admitted to the Calicut Medical College hospital in critical condition. Also attacked was a believer named P.V. Varkey, age 45, of Vilangad Valoor, Indira Nagar, Kerala. Mr. Varkey was admitted to the General Hospital in Thalassery.

Additionally, another Brethren preacher, K. N. Thomas, age 56, was attacked in the Brethren Assembly hall near Chakkiath Mukku, Kerala. There were six people, both Christians and relatives of the injured, who were present to hear the preacher's message. At about 8:00 pm, the Hindu fascist RSS terrorists broke open the gates of the building and attacked the preacher with sharp weapons in front of an audience that included a young infant. The injured, as well as the police have confirmed that the RSS was behind the attack.

A statue of Christ in the St. Michael's Church in Kannur district, Kerala, was also damaged by miscreants who had anti-Christian intentions. They smashed the hand on the statue of Jesus Christ. They also defiled the Biblical verses on the structure.

Hindutva launches campaign against Bible college

AICC says that Kummanam Rajasekharan, the extremist Hindu communal leader who was one of the top leaders to whip up anti-Christian communalism in Kerala by spearheading the Nilackal agitation during the last decade, is back once again with his anti-Christian fury. This time around he adorns the garb of the VHP-State coordinator for Kerala.

"Many Indians have been successfully misled about madrassas being 'terrorist training centres,'" said the spokesperson. "Today, the same tactic has been launched by the Hindu communalists on Kerala, too. He has alleged that K. P. Yohannan's Gospel For Asia Bible School is a training centre for Christian militants."

The AICC spokesman has asked for prayer for the Christians of Kerela as the attacks against them continue.

Egypt:

Church opening blocked by authorities

Local authorities in Sheikh Zied City, located 15 km north of Cairo, are opposing a newly built church and have gone to extreme lengths to disrupt the official opening.

According to the UK-based Barnabas Fund, prayers of dedication for the church were due to be held in early July at an official celebration of the church's opening; however on that very day the authorities cut off the electricity and water to the building and even barricaded all the roads leading to the church. Each road had a deep trench dug across it with a correspondingly high bank alongside.

"The congregation had decided to construct a building which looked like an office on the outside, though like a church on the inside," said the Barnabas Fund spokesman. "This decision had been reached because they were aware that it would be extremely difficult for them to get official authorization through the correct channels.

"In addition to the normal permission, Egyptian law requires presidential approval to build a new church. This comes from a nineteenth century Ottoman regulation, and is known as the Hamayouni Decree. It is a slow bureaucratic process, which can take many years, and does not always result in success. To repair or renovate a church permission must be sought from local governors. Whilst this is less bureaucratic local governors are more prone to prejudice against Christians."

The spokesman added, "The Church in Egypt is often faced with the dilemma of either not applying for official permission, or having no building at all."

Barnabas Fund works to support Christian communities mainly, but not exclusively, in the Islamic world where they are facing poverty and persecution.

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