Displaying items by tag: society

Friday, 19 May 2017 12:07

Yemen: cultural capital of conflict

The city of Taiz has 2.4 million people, living in tragedy resulting from the two-year war. The city is important geographically, as it lies between the southern provinces, controlled by Hadi’s forces, and the northern provinces which are controlled by former President Saleh’s forces and the Houthis. Also, its southwestern coast overlooks the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait, which sees one-third of the oil trade every day. Taiz has become central to the Yemen conflict, and militants are increasingly interested in controlling it. It has become a city ravaged by war and the Houthi blockade. Disease and malnutrition threaten people’s lives. Public employees’ salaries are cut, it is difficult to get relief aid to the displaced and afflicted, and living conditions are going downhill. People have fled to temporary settlements or camps, without access to sanitation or basic needs.

Published in Worldwide
Friday, 07 April 2017 10:35

Court battle over brain tumour boy

Two devout evangelical Christians whose 10-year-old son is in intensive care with a brain tumour are in a High Court battle with doctors. Specialists want a judge to allow them to limit the treatment they provide to the youngster, saying the boy cannot recover and should be made as comfortable as possible without further ‘invasive’ procedures. The boy's parents, who are separated, disagree and say doctors should not limit treatment options. They ‘lavish’ the youngster with love, and play gospel music to him. The judge began considering evidence in the family division of a high court on Tuesday. Lawyers representing the boy's parents said life was ‘precarious and uncertain’, and people sometimes made unexpected recoveries. The parents believe there are things that could be done, but that doctors are giving up.

Published in British Isles
Friday, 07 April 2017 10:30

Domestic violence – the facts

Two women are killed every week in England and Wales by a current or former partner (Office of National Statistics, 2015). One in four women in England and Wales experience domestic violence in their lifetimes, and 8% will suffer domestic violence in any given year (Crime Survey of England and Wales). Domestic violence has a higher rate of repeat victimisation than any other crime (Home Office). Every minute police in the UK receive a domestic assistance call; police say that there are greater dangers in our nations from domestic violence than terrorism. Yet it remains a hidden danger. 1.8 million adults were victims of domestic abuse last year. Much violence can be due to addictions and mental health problems. We can pray for victims to have the courage to seek help, and for the perpetrators to receive help and deal with their anger in a healthy way. Pray for children who witness or are victims of violence.

Published in British Isles
Friday, 07 April 2017 10:24

British attitudes to religion in workplace

A new study on British cultural attitudes at the workplace has found that religion has become the butt of jokes. Workers who would never make sexist or racist jokes feel free to mock faith instead. The recently released ComRes study warned that as many as a million workers may have faced harassment, discrimination or bullying because of their religious beliefs, with some saying they're uncomfortable about mentioning they pray or go to church. James Orr, a fellow in theology, ethics and public life at Oxford University, wrote a report titled ‘Beyond Belief: Defending religious liberty through the British Bill of Rights,’ saying that such targeting is clearly a problem, but questions of humour are not clear-cut. If one is confident in one's belief, one should be able to accommodate and put up with a bit of mocking and humour.

Published in British Isles

Last week’s attack outside Parliament made headlines across the world. Many newspapers questioned how such an attack was possible in a fortified part of the city. Pray for our police and security services as they re-examine the event and implement appropriate additional safeguards. The terrorist, Khalid Masood, used encrypted internet messaging prior to his attack. Home secretary Amber Rudd met technology firms this week to discuss making the internet less secure for terrorists. Pray for all service providers, technology giants and governments to work together to stop the internet being a terror tool. Continue to pray for the families and friends of those caught up in the Westminster attack; pray also for our Muslim neighbours, who may fear retribution. Pray for communities to be at peace, particularly where there is diversity of cultures. See

Published in British Isles
Friday, 31 March 2017 10:55

Russia: a divided people

On 8 March celebrations began for the centenary of the Russian revolution; they will continue for one year. Revolution brought education to those at the bottom of the social pile, while destroying the middle class. Conflicting rich v poor views continue today. Last Sunday Alexei Navalny, an anti-corruption and opposition activist, called on his supporters to protest, and accused prime minister Dmitry Medvedev of personal enrichment through embezzlement. The biggest rally of 8,000 people in Moscow was unsanctioned, and 600 were detained. 3,000 demonstrated in St Petersburg (131 detained), 500 in Vladivostok (25 detained), 1,500 in Novosibirsk, and others elsewhere. Many believe that Russia and democracy are incompatible, and that 2017 will reunite Russians to a legacy of revolutions that continues to divide. See http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/russian-revolutions-1917-centenary-celebrations-2017-vladimir-putin-bolsheviks-lenin-stalin-trotsky-a7605791.html

Published in Worldwide

Last week veteran newspaper journalist Miroslava Breach was shot eight times in front of her youngest son, in the Sierra Tarahumara region. She is the second journalist murdered in a week, and the third this month. The region is rich in precious minerals and old growth forests. It also has ample and hard-to-reach fertile land, ideal for growing illicit crops. Cartel-linked paramilitaries have for years carried out terrifying displacement campaigns against the indigenous Tarahumara residents. In January, gunmen killed the area’s most high-profile indigenous land rights defender, Goldman Prize-winner Isidro Baldenegro. One of Breach’s last reports was about the discovery of mass grave sites that were probably were used to hide the bodies of kidnapping victims and disappeared persons. Without her reporting, the region might become another journalism no-go ‘silence zone’ in Mexico’s media landscape.

Published in Worldwide
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