Nepal: A missionary’s message
NGO’s with centres in Nepal are mobilising hundreds of staff and resources to assist communities with temporary shelter and aid. Among the many Church groups is ‘Himalayan Region Vineyard Churches’. The following is from a recent facebook entry, ‘Each time there is an aftershock the crows go crazy, the dogs howl, and people call out to each other. We still have not heard from five remote villages where there are Vineyard churches and developing communities. Their houses are made of stone without mortar. A concern is the monsoon season which has just started. Bad timing. Heavy seasonal rains will complicate relief efforts. Landslides will become a concern when the ground becomes saturated. Kathmandu Vineyard has stocked up on food and supplies for the Mobile Bible School. We’ve been using these resources to feed the church people and neighbours who have taken refuge in our courtyard away from the brick walls. It is beautiful the way people are coming together and encouraging each other.
Qatar: Nepalese desperate to get home to Nepal
Hundreds of thousands of Nepali migrants working in Gulf States must be allowed to return home after the earthquake devastated their nation, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) said on Tuesday. ITUC has written to the Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates governments, asking them to suspend a sponsorship system which prevents the free movement of workers. (The system is criticised by human rights groups who compare it to modern day slavery) The United Nations estimates up to 8 million people have been affected by the quake. Hundreds of thousands of Nepali migrants are desperate for news of their loved ones, and want to return to Nepal and do what they can to meet their family’s needs, or in many cases bury their loved ones. They are helpless because they must honour a two or three year contract not to leave the country, not even being given compassionate leave at this time.
Chile: Calbuco volcano erupts twice
The Calbuco volcano in southern Chile erupted twice last week, swewing out 2,400 million cubic feet of ash and forcing the evacuation of 6,000+ people. People are now trying to save their possessions and livestock as roofs of homes and businesses collapsed under the weight of 20” of ash and residents feared for their sheep and cows that are unable to graze. Soldiers have been deployed to help with the clean-up. The authorities have warned of the possibility of further eruptions. They also said that should it rain the ash could mix with debris to create dangerous mudflows and turn ash on the roads and roofs into hard crusts. By Monday residents who had been evacuated were allowed back briefly to salvage some possessions and farmers tried desperately to find places for grazing. Recently Chile has had its fair share of disasters with flooding in the usually arid north and wildfires
Cyprus: Presidential election result renews optimism for reunification
Campaigning on a platform of peace in Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus, Mustafa Akinci is the new President, raising hopes of a breakthrough in stalled reunification talks on ethnically divided Cyprus. It is hoped Mr Akinci will end four decades of division on the island. Dr James Ker-Lindsay, an expert on Cyprus at the London School of Economics, said ‘Akinci, more than any other candidate, can reach out to the Greek Cypriots and make the compromises needed to get talks moving forward.’ UN-brokered negotiations, are expected to resume next month. The new leader has signalled he is open to measures that could help bridge fences in tandem with peace talks. (In 1974 Turkey seized more than a third of the island. In 1991 Turkish Cypriots proclaimed independence and have suffered increasing global isolation). In sharp contrast to the affluent Greek south, the Turkish north has slipped increasingly into poverty, hit by international sanctions and recognised only by Turkey.
USA: Baltimore – Freddie Gray riots
Riots left charred cars and buildings, hospitalised police officers and looted and damaged business in Baltimore. A community centre and flats owned by the Southern Baptist Church were burnt down before firefighters could contain the flames. ‘We’re going to rebuild. We’re going to come back strong from this,’ the church’s pastor Donte Hickman told local media outlets. The Southern Baptist Church fire was one of many the Fire Department battled with riots erupted throughout the city following the funeral of Freddie Gray, a young black man who died of injuries sustained after his arrest for ‘catching the eye' of a lieutenant and running away. Six officers were suspended and a criminal inquiry into Gray’s death is under way but all schools were closed on Tuesday, after a day and night that saw hundreds of arrests, 144 vehicle, and 19 structure fires. See also and
Uzbekistan: Short-term jailing, fines and harassment
Doniyor Akhmedov - a Baptist - was one of three Protestants in Uzbekistan known to have been imprisoned for between seven and fifteen days in March and April. He was held after offering a religious leaflet to a passer-by on the street. For the last part of his imprisonment, Akhmedov was held in a small cell with more than ten people and barely space to sleep on the floor. After he was freed he was fined more than three years' official minimum wage. The Deputy Chief of Police, refused to discuss Akhmedov's case. Protestants and Jehovah's Witnesses are frequently fined and occasionally given short-term prison sentences, but Muslims who exercise their right to freedom of religion or belief often face much harsher penalties, including long prison terms.
Nigeria: Buhari declares Boko Haram a fraud and 300 hostages are rescued
Nigeria's President-elect Muhammadu Buhari said on Monday, ‘The fraud called Boko Haram can be defeated by denying it a recruitment base. No religion allows for the killing of children in school dormitory, in markets and places of worship. They have nothing to do with religion. They are terrorists and we are going to deal with them as they deal with terrorists anywhere.’ Buhari said Boko Haram will be denied a recruitment base. He lamented the destruction of schools in northern Nigeria, an action he said could deny thousands of youngsters access to education and a better future unless something is done urgently to end the crisis. Meanwhile on Wednesday the Nigeria army rescued nearly 300 females from Boko Haram. An army spokesman says the hostages freed during military offensive are not schoolgirls abducted from Chibok last year. For the full story go to:-
NATO says Russia is building up forces along Ukrainian border
The U.S. Department of State published a statement on 22 April saying that the Russian military has continued moving heavy weapons and additional troops to the Ukrainian border, and has deployed additional air defense systems into eastern Ukraine, creating the highest concentration of air defenses in the area since the height of the conflict last August. Russian and Russia-backed separatist forces have been conducting increasingly complex training in eastern Ukraine. Also NATO Secretary General said Russia is building up forces along the Ukrainian border and actively delivering weapons and supplies to eastern Ukraine militants, which allows them to start rapid attacks. Meanwhile the United States and Russian officials are waging a war of words, with each accusing the other of threatening to undo the ceasefire.
Spain: Ferry fire forces more than 150 passengers to evacuate
A fire broke out on a ferry off Spain’s Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean on Tuesday, forcing the evacuation of 156 passengers and crew in lifeboats and injuring three crew members, officials said. The ferry operated by Trasmediterranea was travelling from Palma de Mallorca, the capital of the Balearic Islands, to the eastern Spanish port of Valencia when the blaze broke out in its garage for still unknown reasons, the company said in a statement. ‘Everyone has been evacuated,’ a company spokeswoman told AFP. Passengers and crew abandoned the Sorrento ferry in lifeboats after it became clear that the fire could not be brought under control with the means on board, Spain’s coastguard said in a statement. Three crew members who were rescued by helicopter suffered smoke inhalation, the Mallorca port authority said. It had initially said there were about 170 passengers on board the ferry.
NI Assembly rejects gay marriage for the fourth time
The Northern Ireland Assembly has rejected same-sex marriage legislation by an outright majority for the fourth time. (See last week’s Prayer Alert) Today MLAs voted 49 to 47 against a motion calling for the redefinition of marriage. There were three abstentions. Traditional marriage supporters had warned that the motion sought to limit the free speech of Christians. Callum Webster, spokesman for The Christian Institute, said: ‘This is now the fourth time in three years this motion has been defeated. We’re thankful to those MLAs who have resisted this constant and co-ordinated pressure from activists to redefine marriage.’ He had previously highlighted that a sentence supporting ‘freedom of religion’ in last year’s motion was deleted from this year’s version. Mr Webster said this indicated that supporters of gay marriage only want to allow free speech within church services.