Lebanon's national unity government has collapsed after 11 ministers from Hezbollah and its allies resigned. Energy Minister Gibran Bassil said the decision was prompted by a dispute over the UN tribunal investigating former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's murder. The announcement came as Prime Minister Saad Hariri, his son, was meeting US President Barack Obama in Washington. Tension has been high in Lebanon, amid indications that Hezbollah members could be indicted by the UN tribunal. The Canadian broadcaster, CBC, reported in November that evidence gathered by the Lebanese police and the UN pointed ‘overwhelmingly to the fact that the assassins were from Hezbollah’. Hezbollah has rejected any suggestion of involvement in the assassination. Its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has called the tribunal an ‘Israeli project’ and warned of dire consequences if it indicts his followers. Pray: against any violence in Lebanon and a release to this political deadlock. (Pr.15:18)
On June 13th the NY Times reported, ‘Protests by an increasingly forceful movement against increases in bus fares shook Brazil’s two largest cities on Thursday night, the fourth time in a week that activists have taken to the streets in demonstrations that have been marked by clashes with security forces.’ Since then the violence has steadily worsened to encompass more than 100,000 people sweeping through at least a dozen major cities on Monday night. Protesters are calling for better public services and an end to corruption. With organisers planning further protests the authorities appear to be uncertain what to do next. Police in some regions cracked down hard.
Pray: for President Dilma Rousseff to recognize what steps to take in addressing corruption, and ending the demonstrations peacefully. (Ps.17:19-20)
More: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jun/18/brazil-protests-authorities-back-foot
Brazil: Drought
23 Oct 2010
Brazil has extended emergency drought measures across the Amazon State as key waterways and rivers are completely parched in the worst drought in decades. The seven months drought has affected 40,000 people in communities depending on the rainforest for sustenance and the government has airlifted six tonnes of food and 200 tonnes of donations to 25 stricken villages. Aid delivery has been slow due to the low water levels in rivers preventing large vessels from navigating them, consequently transportation can only be done by canoe. In some places, people are running out of food and many people are suffering intestinal problems caused by poor water quality. The drought is an extreme weather event resulting from El Nino in late 2009 with its fallout being felt this year. Pray: for God to show entrepreneurs, farmers and governments His way forward as they work with the earth's resources. (Ps.65:9) More: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/10/2010101704539981971.html
Botswana: South African outreach
23 Jun 2011
A month of outreach by South African Christians in areas where ancestral spirit worship is very strong has been blessed with 2,600 people giving their lives to Christ. Praise God! The organisers of this outreach have asked for prayer for the new Christians needing discipling to know the leading of God's Holy Spirit. Pray also for the local churches working under very difficult circumstances with no regular financial income, some without transport walking long distances between villages to do follow-up visits to cattle posts and small hamlets. They are doing this because they believe and know that there is eternal life after death and they want to guide and teach their people about these things. Pray for God to give them the courage and endurance to continue working in the Lord’s harvest field.
Pray: for Africa's most stable country with relative freedom from corruption and good human rights records would see powerful spiritual revival. (Is.44:2-4)
Bolivia: New law to control Churches' beliefs
19 Sep 2013Protestant church leaders in Bolivia are bucking a new law that they claim imposes religious beliefs contrary to their own and denies them the right to be a church. As a result, the National Association of Evangelicals of Bolivia intends to file suit this week asserting that Law 351 is unconstitutional and demanding it be revoked, according to Morning Star News. Law 351 stipulates a standardized administrative structure for all religious organizations that would force churches to betray their true ecclesiastical traditions, legal advisor Ruth Montano told Morning Star News. The law requires all churches and not-forprofit organizations to re-register their legal charters with the government; this process requires data on membership, financial activity and organizational leadership. Protestant leaders claim that the new law gives the Bolivian government regulatory power over the internal affairs of their denominations to the point of defining what is and isn't a church.
Pray: for the Church in Bolivia that it will be able to meet the requirements of Law 351. (Is.44:3)
More: http://www.worthynews.com/12566-new-bolivian-law-to-control-churches-beliefs
Bhutan: Christian imprisoned for film show
23 Oct 2010
A court in predominantly Buddhist Bhutan sentenced Prem Singh Gurung, a 40-year-old ethnic Nepalese Christian, to three years in prison for ‘attempting to promote civil unrest’ by screening films on Christianity. Gurung was arrested after neighbours complained he was inviting villagers to watch Nepali movies, then between each feature he showed films on Christianity. Government attorneys could not prove that Gurung promoted civil unrest so he was charged with an attempt to promote civil unrest, and violation of a Bhutan law requiring authorities to examine all films before public screening. While Gurung has the right to appeal it is unclear if he had the resources to take that course. Over 75 per-cent of the people in Bhutan are Buddhist. In the south of Bhutan there are 6,000 Bhutanese Christians. In this landlocked nation between India and China Christians are not officially acknowledged. No Christian institution is officially registered and believers practice their faith in their homes. Pray: for Christians and house churches to be strengthened and for Christian material to be available through the media networks. (Ps.18:6) More: http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/12469/27133/
One of the two main political parties of the indigenous people in Bangladesh’s south-eastern hill tracts prevented Christians from celebrating Christmas, sources said. The United People’s Democratic Front (UPDF), which has demanded that Christian converts return to Buddhism, threatened tribal Christians of at least seven churches in Khagrachari district, some 300 kilometers (180 miles) southeast of the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka. A source requesting anonymity said that a local leader of the UPDF, a regional party seeking autonomy, warned Christians not to hold a Christmas gathering. ‘Members of the Kalapani Bethlehem Church could not celebrate Christmas this year,’ the source said. ‘UPDF members threatened them, saying ‘You cannot play the harmonium, drums and sing here. You cannot even worship silently’. Christian elders told the UPDF leader by telephone that they had arranged food for around 100 people, and the UPDF members allowed them only to eat their rice and curry. Pray: as further attacks occur on Churches gathering, that God would protect His saints and open the doors for worship. (Ps.20:6) More: http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/bangladesh/30238/
Bangladesh: Democracy in peril
09 Jan 2014Earlier this week the country's religious minorities deserted the polls following threats from Islamists. The election results saw the ruling party win. The opposition boycotted the poll when police failed to protect voters and people died in factional clashes. Anger and cynicism best describe the voices on the streets of Dhaka. The mood inside Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s residence is jubilant. At her press conference she was asked about the legitimacy of her win. On Tuesday the BNP called for a nationwide strike, disregarding the reality that in the last three months more than 300 people have lost their lives in violence generally attributed to the highhandedness of the Awami League (AL). Many believe the return to power of AL in the general election is widely regarded as lacking credibility and likely to be challenged by angry opposition in violent street protests in the coming weeks and months. See also