Displaying items by tag: Asia

In the Chinese ankang (peace and health) system detainees are strapped onto beds, pumped full of drugs, receive electric-shock therapy, and are left to lie in their own excrement. Some are confined for their entire lifetimes. The system is grounded in the Communist Party's optimistic totalitarian notion that medical treatment can make people obedient. Medics administer drugs that damage prisoners’ central nervous systems, intentionally overdosing them, apply extreme-strength electroacupuncture, and brutally force-feed them. This abuse of psychiatry has continued for seven decades in the People's Republic of China. The Communist Party has changed the organisational structures and the methods of how it destroys people in psychiatric institutions, but the destruction of life continues. Safeguard defenders, and the international community, must finally acknowledge that the Party is inherently murderous. The only way to end the abuse of psychiatry in China as well as the Party's other horrific crimes is to end its rule.

Zaina is just one of the thousands of Christians who suffer for their faith. After she was married her brother-in-law attempted to rape her. She fled to her parents, but they sided with him, enraged at the shame she had brought on the family. She fled to her aunt, but her father found her and beat her unconscious - leaving only when he thought she was dead. Her aunt asked her to leave. During this desperate time Zaina heard about the love and mercy of Jesus and received him as her Saviour. Her family continued to threaten her. She relocated several times, and finally her husband divorced her. She found a church and a job, but when her boss discovered she was a Christian convert he fired her, fearing retribution from the predominantly Muslim community. Her brother ultimately convinced her to come home, but he deceived her and once there he tried to kill her. She has relocated again and is now dealing with several health issues.

Israel and Turkey have announced the return of full diplomatic ties between the two nations, including the reinstatement of ambassadors and consulate generals. This constitutes an important asset for regional stability and very important economic news for Israelis. Their relationship had deteriorated over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Erdogan has been a harsh critic of Israel in its conflict with the Palestinians. Turkey has also hosted several Hamas leaders, which further strained relations between the two nations. Many believe Erdogan’s wish to renew these relations is a result of Turkey's economy floundering and his popularity dipping as a result.

Over 200 security forces entered Roshankouh village in northern Iran to demolish houses and farms belonging to members of the Baha’i faith. They blocked the roads leading to the village and arrested anyone who tried to stop them. They confiscated mobile phones and warned locals not to take photos or videos of them using heavy construction machinery to demolish buildings. Since early June, Iran has intensified its systematic campaign to suppress the religious minority, raiding households, shutting down businesses, arresting many, and putting Baha’i on trial, including three of the former leaders of the community. 50 Baha’i homes were demolished in the same province; the authorities confiscated the assets of 27 Baha’i families who had lived there for several generations, claiming that the money they earned was ‘unlawfully earned’. 20+ Baha'i businesses were closed in July. Very little Christian love and witness to them exists, although some Persian Christians have begun to reach out to them.

In recent years, the United States and South Korea have cancelled some of their regular drills and reduced others to computer simulations, to create space for diplomacy and allay Covid-19 concerns. But after North Korea dismissed South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol's offer to exchange denuclearisation steps and economic benefits, the USA and South Korea began their biggest combined military training in years on 22 August, heightening their defence posture against the growing North Korean nuclear threat. The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, which will continue until 1 September, include aircraft, warships, tanks, and potentially tens of thousands of troops. They could draw anger from Pyongyang, which has pushed its weapons testing activity to a record pace this year while repeatedly threatening conflicts with Seoul and Washington amid a prolonged stalemate in diplomacy. Some say North Korea sees the exercises as rehearsals for an invasion.

Sri Lanka is in talks with the International Monetary Fund about a bailout package. IMF officials will visit them this month. The country’s economic meltdown triggered protests, and President Rajapaksa fled the country. Now the former president will return. International Media Ministries (IMM) partner with believers and churches in Sri Lanka and are working to help the country and the church to live regular lives in the midst of upheaval. They are developing Gospel media resources to expand the vision of what Christianity is and spread the Gospel using the ‘Open the Gospels’ project. They also want to put the ‘Heritage’ project into languages that are regionally important. IMM are requesting prayer for God to strengthen and encourage the Sri Lankan Christian community. Pray that IMM partners can access daily life essentials like food and clean water. They are saying, ‘God hasn’t left us; we have hope.’

In the midst of persecution God is providing spiritual and financial support to Christians: spiritual investment is eternal, while the financial support is temporal. Help the Persecuted (HTP) addresses real needs with Gospel-centred, sustainable methods like an agricultural project in Lebanon that goes beyond providing physical needs. The community created around this farm is hearing the Gospel being shared along with food distribution. One member tells of being strangled by her radical Al-Qaeda husband and in that moment she saw Jesus. He reached out his hand and said, ‘I love you.’ She didn’t know who he was, but shortly afterwards learned about the person she saw in her vision. She gave her life to Jesus and fled alone to Lebanon. She knows he will never leave or forsake her. We can praise God for the work of HTP and need to continue praying for their protection and finances.

The persecution of Christians in India is intensifying as Hindu extremists aim to cleanse the country of their presence and influence. The driving force behind this is Hindutva, an ideology that refuses to treat Christians and other religious minorities as true Indians because they allegedly have allegiances that lie outside India; it asserts the country should be purified of their presence. This is leading to systemic, often violent, carefully orchestrated targeting of Christians. The extremists often use social media to spread disinformation and stir up hatred. Pray that social media companies will do more to combat the spread of fake news and hatred on their platforms. Overall, violence against Christians remains at an extreme level, and levels of pressure in all spheres of life remain very high or extreme. Regions experiencing the most persecution are ruled by the Hindu nationalist party (BJP). Pray that this situation changes with the next elections (Himachal Pradesh in November and Gujarat in December).

In August 2021 Afghans dreading the return of the draconian Taliban regime risked their lives clinging to the outside of departing planes, desperate to escape. Afghanistan is now the most dangerous place in the world to be a Christian. Closing the ministry of women’s affairs demonstrated a return to the denigration of women that had previously characterised the Taliban rule. Except for healthcare workers, women must stay at home ‘to protect their safety’. Girls’ secondary schools stay closed ‘until a comprehensive plan is prepared according to Sharia and Afghan culture’. The Taliban have re-established the ‘Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and Promotion of Virtue’ to enforce their strict interpretation of Sharia. Their drive for only the ‘purest’ form of Islam has left no room for Christians in Afghanistan. Please pray for the safety and protection of secret believers from being discovered, and for the families who have to leave everything behind as they flee to safety. See also

Russian military expert Igor Korotchenko said on state TV: ‘There are 100,000 North Korean volunteers prepared to come and take part in the war in Ukraine. North Korean builders are ready to work alongside ours to repair war damage. If North Korean volunteers with their artillery systems, wealth of experience with counter-battery warfare, and large calibre multi-launch rocket systems, want to participate in the conflict, well, let’s give the green light to their volunteer impulse.’ A South Korean report stated that the North is already preparing to dispatch its workers to the pro-Russian Donbas region in eastern Ukraine. Calling the North Korean troops ‘resilient, undemanding and motivated’, a Russian journalist said that the Kremlin ‘should not be shy in accepting the hand extended to us by Kim Jong-un’.