Displaying items by tag: Asia

Throughout the Bible we read of God's love and mercy toward those who suffer from the horrific disease of leprosy. Leprosy might seem like a tale from the ancient past, but in Asia the disease is alive and afflicting multitudes of new people every year. Each year in India 130,000 new cases (350 a day) are reported. The plight for lepers is extremely grim. Low-caste people in India are called ‘untouchables’. But even the untouchables consider lepers to be untouchable - lower than dogs on the social scale. As a result, they are forced out of society. Many commit suicide when they contract leprosy. It can strike anyone: accountants, housewives, rich, poor, young or old. They are despised and rejected by their fellow-men, their country, and their own families. Christian mission Asia Harvest is touching the lives of lepers with the love of Christ and the salvation he gives.

2,500 US stealth fighters and Philippine marines have blasted imaginary enemies in combat drills, mock amphibious assaults, and other coastal tactics. These drills were the first joint large-scale military exercise under the newly elected president. His predecessor was an outspoken critic who threatened to cut ties with Washington and was against military exercises which could offend Beijing. Held simultaneously with these drills were exercises between US and Japanese forces around Hokkaido island, involving 3,000 military personnel. The USA said the drills ensured that it was ‘prepared to respond rapidly to crises throughout the Indo-Pacific’. Japan’s Ground Self-Defence Force said they would strengthen response capabilities. These drills came as Washington and Beijing engage in heated rhetoric over the status of Taiwan and claims to islands and waters in the South China Sea. See the next article, Taiwan billionaire.

Robert Tsao, a retired billionaire, is pledging one billion Taiwan dollars (£28m) to create a civilian army to help his countrymen and women fight China. The aim is to train up three million civilian ‘warriors’ - a seventh of the population - in three years. Office workers, students, shopkeepers, parents could all learn to pick up a gun; he wants 300,000 sharpshooters. He acknowledges the task is ambitious, but vows it could be done. Born in China but raised in Taiwan, he created the United Microelectronics Corp semiconductor company, making his fortune in an industry Taiwan is now globally known for. As a businessman, he had many dealings in China. An ardent student of history, he has been a high-profile voice in policy debates for decades. He is now among an increasing number of Taiwanese who feel they need to prepare for a possible invasion. See previous article, on military drills.

Duangphan Patphaothanun is wandering outside a childcare centre, clutching a bag full of toys. She wants to know when she can see her grandson, so she can place his most treasured possessions with him in his coffin. Three-year-old Pattarawut is among the 23 children who died on 6 October in an attack at the centre, in the north-east of Thailand. Panya Kamrab, a former policeman, killed at least 37 people, including his wife and stepson, before killing himself after a manhunt. His stepson used to attend the centre but had not been there for a month. The motive for the attack is not yet known, but police said Kamrab was fired from his job in June for drug use. More than 90 children usually attend the centre, but because of poor weather and a bus breakdown only 24 of them were there on Thursday. Only one child has survived.

Iran’s exiled Queen Pahlavi called on military forces not to allow the authorities to use them as ‘tools of repression’. In an audio twitter message she addressed the police, army, Revolutionary Guard, paramilitary Basij forces, and plainclothes agents to imagine their own sisters, brothers, fathers and mothers before their eyes, urging them not to allow leaders to make them tools to suppress people. Describing the regime’s crackdown on popular protests after the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody as ‘brutal and inhumane’, she said people from different walks of life and with different ideologies have risen up to eliminate the oppression. ‘You are also from this nation, so be with this nation,’ she said. Last month she released a similar message, lauding popular protests against ‘forces of darkness’ and decrying ‘harrowing savage crackdowns’ on nationwide rallies. Her son said, ‘Multiple reports indicate strikes spreading from cultural and educational sectors to the service and industry sectors. Nationwide strikes and protests will bring this regime to its knees.’

Hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the floods in Pakistan are living in the open, exposed to swarms of mosquitoes and other hazards. Despite the efforts of government and relief organisations, families need more food, shelter, medical assistance, medicines, and clean water. Stagnant floodwaters, covering hundreds of kilometres, may take up to six months to recede. There are widespread cases of skin and eye infections, diarrhoea, malaria, typhoid and dengue fever. On 24 September the Sindh provincial government said makeshift health facilities and mobile camps had treated over 78,000 patients in just 24 hours. Malaria spreads quickly around stagnant waters. The UN said malaria, typhoid and diarrhoea patients in large numbers were entering medical camps and hospitals; more medicine and test kits are needed. Families are forced to drink and cook with unsafe water. They need to drink to stay alive.

Thousands of defiant protesters flooded Tehran streets on the ninth day after the suspicious death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while held in custody for not properly wearing the hijab headscarf. The regime cracked down with force, killing at least 41 and shutting down the web and social media for 80 million citizens, but outrage over Amini’s death has only expanded. Officials claim Mahsa died due to underlying health issues; her family says that is not true. Women defiantly burn their hijabs and headscarves and cut their hair. The USA announced it will expand Iranian internet services to support free-flowing information.The internet is needed when protesters want to organise themselves and share footage of what is happening with the outside world. Also billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk is giving the country Starlink, a satellite constellation providing internet access to 40 countries - a true game-changer.

The European Evangelical Alliance prayer network has a prayer request from Nazareth Hospital , which began 160 years ago as a Christian medical mission. It has grown from a five-bed clinic to the town’s main trauma and acute care hospital, employing 800 staff from all faiths in the region. Their Christian witness, mission and faith is important; their reach is felt across staff and the annual 250,000 patients. Talks with Israel’s government to find a solution to the funding crisis have been unsuccessful, and many hospital departments have had to close. Despite all their efforts they believe the Lord wants this ministry to continue. They say, ‘Please join us in urgent prayer for the hospital, that a solution will be found for our finances, that we will be able to pay our staff what they are owed, that the hospital will reopen, and that our Christian witness will continue for the next 160 years in Nazareth, or until the Lord returns.’

Sixty members of a Chinese church have submitted applications for asylum in Bangkok, after being denied refuge in South Korea. They had fled the communist regime to escape religious persecution. Pastor Pan’s church has been on the run for years. He said the persecution is growing worse. The group remains stateless, jobless, and homeless, but not without faith. ‘We're thinking of our children's future. We refuse to put their education in the hands of the Communist Party, to give them an atheist education, and to turn their backs on God. So we are willing to pay this price to flee China to allow them to keep going to church school and to know God. Although we don't know what we will encounter in the future, what our God gives us is the best. He will lead us through these issues; God always has the best plan and arrangement.’

‘Those who believed Peter were baptised and added to the church - about 3,000 in all’ (Acts 2:41). This passage reminds us that the early Church grew rapidly during a time of persecution. It is happening again in Laos. Small house churches are scattered throughout the country, and believers in Laos face continual persecution. Converts to Christianity are considered betrayers to their community’s Buddhist-Animist traditions. Unregistered house churches are illegal. Communist authorities intensely monitor Christians. Yet, there is reason for hope. While only 2.5% of the 7.4 million population are evangelical, the yearly growth rate of the Church is 6.8%. Most of the house churches in Laos are led by faithful but untrained leaders, but this is not a limitation for a sovereign God. Pray protection over house church leaders who are targets of persecution; pray for believers to safely proclaim the Gospel to their neighbours and persevere with grace.