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Subject: PERSECUTION REPORT FOR OCTOBER 14, 2003.

Date: Sun, 12 Oct 2003 16:59:27 -0700

From: "Bruce Atchison" <ve6xtc@telusplanet.net>

To: "Ted" <thilts@help-for-you.com>

CC: "John M. Lindner" <jml@christianaid.org>

PERSECUTION REPORT FOR OCTOBER 14, 2003.

The Voice Of The Martyrs reports these incidents of Christians suffering for Christ.

Uzbekistan:

Christian "mob" faces fines following closure

In the latest action against unregistered churches, an unregistered Baptist church in Navoi, Uzbekistan has been banned from meeting to worship and the operator of a street library associated with the church faces possible criminal charges.*On September 27, church member Nikolai Nikulin was distributing religious books through a street library in Navoi when anti-terrorist police lieutenant Alisher Kurbanov confiscated the books. According to a report sent by the church to Forum 18, Kurbanov then banned members of the church from meeting for worship.

When confronted with the allegations from the church, Kurbanov told Forum 18, "This is not a church at all, just a religious mob." He also denied confiscating the books. "He (Nukulin) says he was giving them away for free, so I simply took them away to read them," Kurbanov claimed. "I'm very interested in these books."

Nikulin had previously spent ten days in jail on an "administrative offence" for "unlawful religious activity." Consequently, he could face criminal charges for the latest incident.

Belarus:

Churches face challenges gathering to worship

The ability for small groups to meet to worship in Belarus seems connected to the preferences of local officials more than the law, according to a series of reports received from Forum 18 on October 7 and 8.

The religious affairs official on one region of Belarus told Forum 18 that small, unregistered groups could meet in homes "as long as they don't disturb the public order." In another region, however, this was denied. Christians are increasingly finding that renting a public hall for a religious meeting or meeting outside is impossible in some regions but allowed in others.

Pentecostal Assistant Bishop Naum Sakhanchuk said that, in some regions a letter is all that is needed to hold a baptism service outdoors. In other areas, however, they don't bother writing. "I'll be refused - they'll say that the river is polluted, or that swimming is prohibited in the lake."

Even for officially registered organizations, there are similar difficulties. According to Belarussian law, a religious organization cannot use a residential address for its official address, nor can it meet in a private residence. However, for many churches, this is their only option, either because they are small groups or they are denied access to public facilities. Of sixty-four registered Full Gospel churches in Belarus, for example, only five have their own houses of worship. Even these, however, are officially listed as residential. While most house churches have been able to continue to meet without harassment, their meetings remain illegal and their denominations face the risk of failing to gain re-registration or possible liquidation because of these activities. Those groups who attempt to construct or purchase a church building face similar difficulties. "After building applications are rejected two or three times we stop counting," said Sakhanchuk. Applications are frequently refused or revoked for petty reasons.

Sudan:

Special interest group claims Christians are being misled: a rebuttal

For the last month, a U.K-based body calling itself the European-Sudanese Public Affairs Council has been circulating e- mails and submitting "news" reports in newspapers such as Addis Tribune, claiming that groups such as The Voice of the Martyrs, Servant's Heart, Freedom Quest International and others are misleading the public with inaccurate reporting on atrocities committed by the Sudanese government over the last several years.

It is worth noting that this organization has been set up to foster economic development in Sudan and to oppose media coverage that could be seen as detrimental to interests in Sudan. As such ESPAC has a record of hostility towards relief and human rights organisations that have criticised Sudan's human rights record.

The Voice of the Martyrs will continue to speak out about the appalling human rights abuses in Sudan, and we would advise you to disregard any correspondence you might receive or read from ESPAC as being the kind of misleading propaganda that it claims to oppose.

Please check http://www.persecution.net for more information regarding believers suffering for their faith and for ways to help them.

Mission Network News provides this persecution report.

Nepal:

Threats against Americans in Nepal are keeping a team from travelling there.

Americans are at risk, according to World Help , a ministry that helps Nepali believers with church planting and evangelism.World Help's Noel Yeatts outlines the problem. "We've recently heard from several of our partners in Nepal that it is not safe for Americans to be there. In fact, it's not safe for our partners to be seen with Americans .We had a trip scheduled for November and we've had to cancel that in light of these recent events." Maoist Terrorists are apparently responsible for the threats and Yeatts says they've have even gone one step further. "There (were) five Nepali pastors kidnapped and held prisoner, specifically because of their connection to Christian ministries in the United States. They were released, which is a miracle.

Our partners tell us that this is very rare. Once these kidnappings take place rarely do they ever see these people again." While the threats abound, ministry continues.

Full Story: http://mnn.gospelcom.net/article/5220

Please go to http://www.missionnetworknews.org for missions news and a weekday audio broadcast.

Christian Aid Mission has these incidents to report.

Laos:

The untold war against Christians

Whereas North Korea's hostility to Christianity is well known, Laos's war against Christians gets little attention. A report this week from Elizabeth Kendal of the World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission reveals how the Lao government is waging this relentless war.

The Hmong, a people group who are a minority in Laos but dwell in large numbers in several countries of Southeast Asia, are major--though not exclusive--targets. Large numbers of them have turned to Christ, and because they sided with the U.S. in the Indochina war of the 1960s, they are considered spies of the West, enemies of the state, and therefore fit for extermination.

Since 1975, Lao believers have been beaten, imprisoned, tortured, and forced from their lands for refusing to renounce their faith. "The government wants us to go back and worship evil spirits," wrote a believer in June. Villagers are encouraged to report any Christians to authorities, so they can be arrested or eliminated.

Early in September the WEA interviewed a Lao observer, who said that many Hmong groups were hiding in the jungle from constant military attack, including the use of chemical weapons.

"The army is attacking in three ways: with ground troops, bombs from aircrafts, and chemical weapons," the observer said. "The government uses helicopters and they spray out something that looks like 'yellow rain.' It creates headaches, diarrhea, blindness, and the teeth fall out of the mouth. Within three weeks people die.

"As these people only eat leaves and roots, they also often eat leaves that are affected by the 'yellow rain.' When they do that, they usually die within three days. These attacks are directly against people (including women and children), water and trees."

The observer said that as a result of these constant attacks, one group of 8000 Hmong has been reduced to a mere 750. Others died from disease and starvation, and some have been captured and killed.

"There are videos of these attacks and hundreds of photos," the observer said. "These have been presented both to the International Red Cross and the U.N., but nobody in the West seems interested to help."

Christian Aid seeks to get financial assistance to those dwelling secretly in the jungles and those bereft of breadwinners because of imprisonment or death. To learn how you can help, write insider@christianaid.org and put MI-440 730-PERS on the subject line.

Laos:

Believer killed; police complicity suspected

The war against Christians is not limited to Hmong. Christian Aid has just learned of the August 4 death of a Lao believer in southern Laos under suspicious circumstances. Here is what is known:

Sompong, unmarried son of Mr. Khamvan of Vernkan village, became a believer while visiting Thailand about four years ago. Upon returning home he began ardently practicing and sharing his faith.

Being the only Christian in the village, he met strong resistance. His father, a non-believer and former military officer, told him he would encounter trouble if he continued to be so enthusiastic about his faith. Still, Sompong persisted.

Then one day in 1999 Sompong and 10 other believers from Attapue and Champasak provinces were arrested for practicing an illegal religion. The police officer who arrested Sompong was named Viryson.

Sompong was released 18 months later. While in prison, he reportedly witnessed to other prisoners and officers. After his release he continued to practice his faith. He told his father to go and tell other Christian leaders if practicing his faith resulted in his death.

On August 4, while Sompong was helping his father build a house, officer Viryson stopped by and requested Sompong to accompany him to an undisclosed location. Sompong got on the motorcycle with Viryson and rode off. He was never heard from again.

Later, learning of the death of an unknown person about 70 km. away, Mr. Khamvan went to investigate. He found it was his son, Sompong, who had been murdered and disposed of near Saynomnoy village in Champasak province. Officer Viryson was nowhere to be found.

Christian Aid has learned that prior to the death of Sompong, Christians in Keng village had received both verbal and written death threats. Then when international pressure caused Lao officials to back off, some surmise their attention may have turned to Vernkan village where Sompong was the only Christian.

As a result, many Christians in southern Laos now fear that similar attacks will take place among them.

Christians are urged to pray earnestly for the safety and wellbeing of our Lao brothers and sisters in Christ. To learn how you can help suffering believers in Laos, write insider@christianaid.org and put MI-440 730-CFL on the subject line.

Vietnam:

Police murder Hmong pastor

Laos is not the only place where Christian Hmong are hated. A Hmong believer was recently murdered while in custody of the Vietnamese police.

Christian Aid just learned that Mua A Sinh, a Hmong pastor, was murdered on August 16 while in the Dien Bien Dong police station. Family members said that Mr. Sinh was arrested and imprisoned for leading local church meetings. The local police then attempted to force Mr. Sinh to sign a form agreeing to disband his house-church. After refusing to do so, Mr. Sinh was beaten to death by the police.

Then, in a continuation of this tragic crime, the police arrested Mr. Sinh's brother, put him in the same room where the body of Mr. Sinh was, and pressured him, under threat of physical beatings, to sign a confession stating that he had beaten his brother to death. Having refused to do so, the brother was kept in prison for approximately one month and beaten regularly, until his release.

There are currently an estimated 300 Christian pastors who are imprisoned in these areas, simply for holding legal church meetings.

To learn how you can support Vietnamese missionaries and their impoverished families, write insider@christianaid.org and put MI-440 740-VTC on the subject line.

Please Check http://www.christianaid.org for missions news.

ASSIST News Service has these persecution stories to report.

China:

'Voice OF The Martyrs' finds detained Christians

A leading human rights organization confirmed Friday, October 10, it had discovered the whereabouts of three Chinese Christians who disappeared last month after being arrested for their influential role in China's growing house church movement.

The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM), which supports the persecuted church, said it had learned from a reliable source that two men, Xiao Bi-guang and Zhang Yi-nan "are currently incarcerated at the Detention Center of Lushan County in Henan Province."

Zhang's wife, Ding Guizhen, arrested two days after her husband, is also being held at the facility, VOM said in a statement send to ASSIST News Service (ANS).

The VOM source, which was not identified for apparent security reasons, said local officials were not permitted to question the prisoners. Their case is being directed from the provincial Public Security Bureau (PSB) headquarters and the Bureau of State Security, "the Chinese equivalent of the CIA," VOM said.

"It is clear the Chinese government believes these are 'big fish' in the house- church movement," explained Todd Nettleton, VOM's Director of News Services. "The orders on this case are coming direct from Beijing and the national PSB leadership."

Xiao's wife, Gou Qinghui, has received no official notification of her husband's arrest or location, although Chinese law says family members are to be notified within 24 hours after an arrest, VOM said, quoting the source.

"She was informed by VOM contacts of her husband's whereabouts. She is seeking to hire lawyers to request a formal inquiry into the case, and plans to travel to Henan province soon to attempt to see her husband."

Zhang Yi-nan reportedly has been fasting and praying since his arrest on September 26, and VOM quoted "Chinese sources" as saying he is "spiritually very strong." He is a writer and house- church historian who is believed to have had a great influence across the Chinese church.

VOM has urged Christians to send letters or call the Chinese authorities to protest the detentions. Human rights workers stress these are not isolated cases in a country where thousands of Christians are believed to be in prisons and labour camps because of their faith.

Yet, despite their difficulties, persecuted Chinese Christians continue to preach the Gospel, the Voice of America (VOA) network reported earlier this year. Underground church members reportedly include a former guard, who previously beat Christian prisoners before becoming a Christian herself.

"At that time, I thought, everyone is Chinese, so how can they want to believe in a Western religion and be a slave of the West?," she recalled in a VOA TV interview. "I treated these Christians badly and also beat them...Afterward, however, I slowly accepted them and took the initiative to talk with them...More than a year later, I myself became a believer."

Hers was one of eleven interviews that described the physical, financial and social pressures Christians face in China not to practice their religion.

Jiaqi Yan, a Chinese scholar and commentator who fled China in 1989 told VOA, that "there is considerable room for expansion of Christianity and other religious beliefs in China in the 21st century." He said religion seems "to fill the vacuum due to the failure of the communist regime and the people's need for spiritual support."

With one in every five people living in China, the country has seen the fastest church growth in the world, according to Operation World, a respected study book on countries and their prayer needs.

VOM urged Chinese speaking Christians to call the PSB office that oversees the Detention Center of Lushan County to speak on behalf of the detained Christians. The number of the office, when dialled from the US, is 011-86-375-5071209. In addition, a polite call or letter of protest to the Chinese embassy could make a difference in how these believers are treated," the organization said.

The embassy contact information in the US is:

Nigeria:

Shari'a dress codes imposed on Christian schoolgirls and nurses

In Kano State, all girls -- including Christians -- attending state run schools are to be compelled to wear the Islamic headscarf. Meanwhile in Azare, Bauchi State, 12 nurses have been fired for non-compliance with a dress code based on Islamic law (shari'a).

According to the Barnabas Fund, on Friday, August 29 the government of Kano State issued a directive that all girls attending schools run by the State Government should wear the Islamic headscarf, or hijab as it is known. This directive applies to all girls whether they are Muslim or not.

The directive does not apply to schools run by Nigeria's Federal Government or to private schools. However since most private Christian schools in Kano have recently been forced to close, Christians are left with little choice. The schools were closed on the grounds that they do not meet required state standards; these standards include employing imams to instruct in Islam.

Unlike the previous governor of Kano State, present governor Ibrahim Shekarau has made clear his intention to apply shari'a more vigorously. Whilst making a stopover at Malam Aminu Kano International Airport, the president of Sudan, Omar Al-Bashir, pledged any necessary support for the governor to fulfil this aim, so that all the other northern Nigerian states would follow Kano's example.

Neighbouring Bauchi State has recently seen the sacking of 12 Christian nurses who refused to wear new uniforms designed to comply with a shari'a based dress code. The Christian Fellowship pleaded with the Nursing Service Dept of the Federal Medical Centre in Azare to let them carry on wearing the traditional nurse's uniform, but they were told it revealed too much of their legs.

Nigeria has a population of over 120 million, which is evenly divided between Christians, who live mainly in the South and Muslims who predominate in the northern states. Twelve of these northern states (out of Nigeria's 36) have adopted full shari'a law since 1999. However in the wake of the furore surrounding the highly publicised case of Amina Lawal many Muslims are also beginning to wonder if shari'a really brings justice. Amina Lawal had been condemned to death by stoning for adultery, but has now been acquitted.

Indonesia:

Christian convert assassinated; bomb discovered in church

The Washington-DC based human rights group, International Christian Concern (ICC), www.persecution.org, has just become aware of a shooting and bomb discovery in Central Sulawesi.

In 1999 and 2002, this region was the scene of much violence between Christian and Muslim communities. In the Maluku Islands over 8,000 were killed and over a half million Indonesians displaced from both sides. It seems that tensions are starting to erupt again. On Oct. 1, 2003, a Christian convert from Islam, Mr. Jono age 44, was murdered in broad daylight on a public street in the Pandiri village. The murderers were followed by Christians until they entered a Moslem populated village. The two gunmen escaped without being apprehended.

In a separate incident, a bomb was discovered in a GKST church in the Tomata village in the Tojo district before the 9:00 a.m. church service began on Sunday, September 28. The police came and safely detonated the bomb in the street so that there were no casualties.

ICC urges American Christians to pray for peace in Central Sulawesi. Pray that these shootings and bomb discovery will be isolated occurrences and that true safety will return to Indonesia. Pray the Muslim and Christian communities will be able to live in harmony and that Christians will not fear as they enter a Muslim village.

Please check http:// www.assistnews.net for Christian- oriented news stories.

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