Displaying items by tag: Asia

Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai has not been seen in public for over a month after accusing former Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault resulting in the Women's Tennis Association suspending all tournaments in China amid concern for her. WTA chief Steve Simon had ‘serious doubts’ that Peng was free, safe and not subject to intimidation. He said, ‘In good conscience, I don't see how I can ask our athletes to compete there. Equality was the founding pillar of the WTA 48 years ago. What was all that hard work for, if serious sexual assault allegations are allowed to be swept under the carpet? If powerful people can suppress the voices of women, then the basis on which the WTA was founded - equality for women - would suffer an immense setback. I will not and cannot let that happen to the WTA and its players.’ The suspension also includes tournaments in Hong Kong. The 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics are set to be held in Beijing in February and March.

India has the second-largest Christian population in Asia, but a recent report states that over 300 attacks on Christians took place in the first nine months of 2021. 169 of them were in four states: BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh, tribal-dominated Jharkhand, and BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh. At least nine states have planned anti-conversion laws, including Chhattisgarh which has emerged as a ‘new laboratory’ for anti-Christian hatred in India. Over 1,000 people recently gathered for a Stop Religious Conversions rally - one in a series of events organised in the garb of anti-conversion protests. Addressing the gathering, a far-right Hindu leader urged the people to ‘arm themselves with axes to teach Christians indulging in conversions a lesson’.

In 2013, China's President Xi Jinping said that ‘whoever controls data has the upper hand’, and ever since he has been on a technological quest to build what some call a blueprint for a digital dictatorship. It would not only allow China's communist government to control huge volumes of data on its own citizens but also of those around the world. Dustin Carmack, who worked as chief of staff for the director of national intelligence, said, ‘You are talking about vast amounts of data they are running between, either in covert or overt cyber-attacks. In other realms, they are sucking up massive amounts of data around the globe that could have nefarious purposes in the long run.’ China has over 415 million surveillance cameras deployed throughout the country. Beijing uses digital currency, social security cards, social credit systems, and online interactions to keep an even closer eye on its citizens. Experts say China wants to be the global leader in exporting its authoritarian surveillance tech to other like-minded regimes.

On 29 November, senior diplomats from Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia met Iranian officials in Vienna to discuss bringing Tehran back into compliance with the 2015 deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which eased sanctions on Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear programme. The talks could pave the way for the US to rejoin the accord. Israel is making efforts to stop a return to the previous agreement and prevent implementing an interim agreement, a plan the US is considering as a stop-gap if a full agreement cannot be reached. The nuclear talks resumed with upbeat comments despite Tehran's negotiating team demanding that all US and EU sanctions imposed since 2017, including those unrelated to its nuclear programme, be removed.

Villagers shamed the family of a girl who took her own life, especially as her mother was a Christian. Local missionaries and other church members were the only ones who came to comfort them, making a deep impression on the mother’s unbelieving son; their love and care opened his heart to the gospel, giving workers a chance to share with him more deeply and lead him to Christ. Local missionaries saw 118 people put their faith in Christ over a six-month period, and they helped train 45 pastors and others for church leadership. Workers need donations for the means to carry out such evangelism and discipleship. They request prayer for provision to fulfill their outreach goal.

Two Christian nurses accused of blasphemy received bail and were released from prison in September. The decision was kept secret for almost two months to avoid backlash from Islamists. Mariam Lal and Nawish Arooj were granted bail by a sessions court in Faisalabad. Those charged with blasphemy in Pakistan usually languish in jail for years until the appeals process is exhausted. This is an unprecedented decision by any sessions court in a blasphemy case. Both women are currently in a safe location. They are very happy and relieved after their release, and are optimistic that the court will absolve them of the charge once the trial concludes. In Pakistan, false accusations of blasphemy are widespread and often motivated by personal vendettas or religious hatred. Accusations are highly inflammatory and have the potential to spark mob lynchings, vigilante murders, and mass protests.

The World Food Programme delivering food in Afghanistan said, ‘The Afghan people need our support now more than ever before. 1 in 3 people are hungry and 2 million children are malnourished. With drought, pandemic, and conflict, the food security situation will continue to worsen, and hunger will rise. Despite security and logistics challenges, we deliver food and nutrition assistance to people uprooted from their homes, but we need your help to reach more.’ We can pray for an increase in donations to this mission which has been in Afghanistan for almost sixty years. See Save The Children reported that more Afghan children are going hungry than ever before. Almost 14 million children are expected to face crisis this winter. These millions of children are hungry, cut off from aid supplies, out of school, and facing the threats of violence and the approaching winter. Temperatures can drop to -16 C on some nights.

It has been thirty days since two planes flew 545 persecuted Christians and at-risk Afghans out of the country. They are now temporarily housed in Abu Dhabi. They have been given ninety days from when they arrived to leave the country and re-settle. They boarded these flights with nothing more than a handbag. Everything was left behind as they fled to safety. While they are all grateful to be alive, they now face uncertainty; pray for those assisting them with paperwork that must be completed for their resettlement, arrangements for flights out of Abu Dhabi, and temporary housing and living expenses when they land in their new home country. Brazil has emerged as a potential new home for these Afghans. Their rescuers have strong contacts in local churches, and the community there is ready to step up and serve as the Body of Christ, welcoming this group of refugees.

As of 9 November there were 89 new cases of the Zika virus in the city of Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh (UP). This is the first time they have found Zika in UP. Health officials said it can quickly spread through the population of 204 million. Mosquitoes spread Zika, and it can also be sexually transmitted. There is no cure, so they must rid the area of mosquitoes quickly. Symptoms include fever, joint head and muscle pain, rash and conjunctivitis. Pregnant women who catch Zika can have babies born with severe disabilities, such as abnormally small heads or underdeveloped brains. Zika is also linked to an auto-immune disease that causes the body to attack its immunities. Pray for healthy babies to be born to women in UP. Several teams are trying to contain the spread with very aggressive contact tracing, and there are additional teams eliminating the mosquitoes’ breeding grounds.

This year’s rainy season in Chennai is as heavy as 2015, when 200 people died in floods. Fortunately, the death count is lower this time, but heavy rains are still pounding the area, so the danger continues. Uprooted trees block roads, cars are damaged, and people wade through knee-high water. The rains are taxing the infrastructure. To avoid the danger of electrocution, the government shut down the power grid in some areas. If the rains continue, other low-lying areas of Chennai will be in danger. Pray for God's mercy for those who are most vulnerable to flooding, cholera, and electrocution. Illegal building has left Chennai vulnerable to flood damage; pray for God to raise up righteous decision-makers. Pray for those suffering amid days of stagnant waterlogging and no power. ‘Drainage water is mixed with rainwater, causing odour, and a lot of insects and snakes are coming into the house,’ said a local.