Response: July - October 2020

Your insight into religious freedom

July–October 2020

& prayer diary Also inside this edition:

‘There is no lockdown on persecution’:

Prisoners: What to pray for during the pandemic Perspectives: What I've learned from the UK's lockdown

India's Nehemiah Christie explains

and more...

NurPhoto / Getty Images

COVID-19 special issue - Now includes your Prayer Diary

India: ‘There is no lockdown on persecution…’

‘There is no lockdown on persecution…’

‘As Christians, when we see Muslims being attacked and killed, that worries us a lot. We want to protect our brothers – not just the Christians, but those of other faiths too’

‘ The harsh reality since the pandemic is the severe suffering that the masses of poor and migrant workers are having to endure. Another reality is, despite the lockdown, religious minorities continue to be harassed, discriminated against and attacked. There is no lockdown on persecution…’

This was the message from Nehemiah Christie, a Christian human rights defender in India, when we asked him how the COVID-19 pandemic was affecting the country’s religious minorities. Grave and repeated violations of freedom of religion or belief continue to rise steadily every year.

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REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri

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India: ‘There is no lockdown on persecution…’

‘They chose my name Nehemiah, but I never knew that I would be a real Nehemiah building the walls of Jerusalem to protect the churches and the victims in India’ Services interrupted during live stream Joining ‘online church’ has become commonplace for many of us in recent months. India is no exception to the move to ‘virtual’ church, with larger churches also live streaming services.

However, our church leaders are not interrupted by the police in the middle of their sermons or while praying.

Nehemiah informed us, ‘In one instance, a pastor of a church of about 15,000 members was interrupted by the police and taken away while live streaming his Sunday message. There have been several other incidents of Christian homes being broken into by mobs, where families were beaten and taken to the police station because they were praying…’

Christians arrested and charged for providing aid to those in need Many of us wouldn’t think twice about helping a neighbour in need, especially at this time, but for some churches and church leaders in India an act of kindness has resulted in false allegations and arrest. Sadly, we’ve learned of isolated incidents of Christians delivering aid to those in need and being falsely accused of conversion. Most recently we heard that a church leader and church members were falsely accused by local police of violating the lockdown, when in reality they were making up relief packages for the poor.

‘The pandemic is revealing the reality of the hatred that is prevalent in our society…’

As you may have seen in the news, India's Muslim community has been blamed for spreading the virus, with claims that it’s a conspiracy to commit ‘corona jihad’. The hate speech has turned violent in many parts of the country. We’ve heard cases of Muslim women about to give birth being turned away from hospitals, and Muslims who were distributing aid to migrant workers trapped by the lockdown being beaten by local leaders of the BJP (the ruling political party). Nehemiah told us of one incident where ‘a Muslim vegetable seller was accused of “doing jihad” and beaten just because he was selling vegetable[s]’.

He expressed his shock and sadness at seeing what is happening in his

But as long as there are people like Nehemiah honouring the biblical injunction to speak up for victims of injustice, there is hope. Together we will work, campaign and pray so that justice will prevail.

Watch. Pray. Encourage.

Watch

our Faith in Extraordinary Times interview with Nehemiah.

Go to youtube.com/ cswuk

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country: ‘I am appalled that despite the lockdowns, non-state actors are emboldened to take things into their own hands. They are not afraid of the law and the authorities, because they see this as a service to the nation.

The pandemic is revealing the reality of the hatred that is prevalent in our society for the world to see.’

CSW partners distributing food aid in India.

Pray

for India using p26.

Encourage Send a

message to encourage Nehemiah.

Write to him at the address below:

Nehemiah Christie 18/8 Iraniyan Street-1 Lakshmi Garden Rangampalayam, Erode 638008, Tamil Nadu India

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In focus: Prisoners

Nguyen Bac Truyen

Prisons, prayers and Peter What to pray for during the pandemic

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the world, concerns are growing about the impact in prisons - some of the most crowded places, where it would be incredibly difficult to contain it.

Yet the God we serve is surely the God over all these prisons, as he was over the prison where Peter was held until the angel appeared and led him into freedom (Acts 12:1-18).

Over many years CSW has reported on countless cases of people unjustly imprisoned, and faithful supporters like you have joined us to campaign and pray for their freedom. Now the whole world is being shaken in a way that none of us have ever seen, and so many things will change as a result. Who knows what incredible stories may come out of this pandemic? The fact that some prisoners have been released in Iran is already an answer to prayer! We’re told that before Peter was released, ‘the church was earnestly praying to God for him.’ (v.5) Knowing that we worship a God who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20), let us be bold enough to pray big prayers to our big God. Let us pray that no one will ever again be imprisoned because of their faith.

‘I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?’

(Jeremiah 32:27) 6

Iran

Vietnam

A number of prisoners have been released, either temporarily or permanently, due to concerns about the spread of COVID-19 in Iran's prison system. These include Fatemeh Bakhteri (Aylar), 35, from the city of Rasht, a Christian from a Muslim background and a member of the Church of Iran denomination. She was serving a twelve-month sentence after being found guilty of ‘spreading propaganda against the regime’.

During the trial, the judge told Ms Bakhteri that her charges would be dropped if she returned to Islam, but she rejected this offer.

In response to the pandemic, prisoners in Vietnam are no longer permitted to receive visits from their lawyers or their families, or to receive parcels. Prisoners used to be able to supplement their insufficient meals with supplies from outside.

Nguyen Van Hoa

Countless prisoners of conscience are held in Vietnam’s prisons, including Nguyen Bac Truyen, a legal expert serving an 11-year sentence who has provided legal assistance to persecuted religious communities, among others. Truyen is a Hoa Hao Buddhist who last year went on a hunger strike to protest the mistreatment of a fellow prisoner, a young Catholic activist named Nguyen Van Hoa. 7

In focus: Prisoners

Wang Yi

Around the world:

Latest news

Eritrea The UN Special Rapporteur on Eritrea called for vulnerable prisoners and prisoners of conscience to be released from the country’s overcrowded prisons, to offset the spread of COVID-19. Tens of thousands of Eritreans are detained without charge or trial in appalling conditions, and last year alone more than 200 people were imprisoned because of their faith, in a campaign that has been ongoing since 2002.

Daniela Kravetz said, ‘Over the years, many have died in Eritrean prisons due to malnutrition, lack of basic healthcare and ill-treatment. Essential medical care services are often unavailable for detainees.’

China On Easter Sunday, at least six leaders of Early Rain Church were taken from their homes and their electricity was cut off after government officials learned they were joining a video call for online church.

The church has endured years of government surveillance and harassment, with some members currently in detention or under house arrest.

Brother Zhou [not his real name] recently wrote a letter describing the church’s experiences under house arrest: We used to study the Bible, pray and worship, and enjoy meals together at Aunt Xu’s house. But after 12.9 8

[9 December 2018, when many church members were arrested], we couldn't go anymore… [Still] this husband and wife are enthusiastic in preaching the gospel to the police and the authorities.

Sometimes they saw the guards standing by the trash can to eat, bitten by mosquitoes in summer, and almost frozen in winter…The couple felt compassion. Sometimes they give hymns to the guards, sometimes they give food, sometimes they give the Bible...This is the way Christians express their love.

Gao Zhisheng is a Chinese human rights lawyer who has spent much of his career speaking Gao Zhisheng up for religious minorities. He has been repeatedly targeted, imprisoned and tortured by the authorities. Most recently, he disappeared on 13 August 2017 and his current whereabouts remain unknown.

Pray

Use p30 to pray for prisoners around the world.

Latest news updates India ‘Thousands of people are hungry without food...We are helping those people with food every day.’ Patsy David, Uttar Pradesh ‘We are even approaching enforcement agencies and giving them masks, gloves and sanitisers.

These police are thankful for our work.

They are given [their] duty but they are not given any safety gear.’ Laxmi Narsimha Rao, Telangana As the world’s largest lockdown continues to affect communities across India, our contacts have been supporting those most in need.

However, there have been cases of Christians delivering aid being falsely accused of conversion, under India’s controversial anti-conversion legislation. In one case, a group of

Christians accused of conversion was taunted, humiliated and detained by local police.

Meanwhile, Muslims were blamed for the virus spreading, after a gathering of 8,000 Muslims took place in midMarch. Other religious groups and political parties have also flouted restrictions, but the rumours were solely focused on Muslims.

Pakistan We’ve heard reports of incidents of food aid being denied to Hindus and Christians. One NGO based in Karachi allegedly told Hindus and Christians that the food aid being provided was for Muslims only. Moreover, sanitary workers on the frontline are mainly from the Christian community and have to work without proper masks or suits.

The Hazara Shi’a community has been blamed for transmitting the coronavirus, referred to as the ‘Shi’a virus’ on social media, following fears of it being spread by people who had recently returned 9

Around the world:

Latest news

NurPhoto / Getty Images

Feature: Refugees and IDPs

from Iran - a predominantly Shi’a Muslim country. In Quetta, the government completely sealed off two Hazara areas as part of lockdown measures, and forbade government employees from travelling to Hazara areas. This will isolate and stigmatise the community even further, which may impact their access to health care.

Turkey and Egypt In Turkey, and to a certain extent in Egypt, government officials and media personalities have commented that their citizens have ‘stronger genes’, ‘better personal hygiene’ and ‘healthier diets’ that protect them from the coronavirus (compared with Europeans and non-Muslims in general). These comments have led to a rise in negative societal attitudes towards non-Muslims.

Nepal Pastor Keshav Raj Acharya from the city of Pokhara has been arrested and detained repeatedly since the end of March. He was originally arrested after a video of him saying that the coronavirus could be healed through Christian prayer was uploaded on YouTube. The pastor denies uploading the video. According to his wife, Junu Acharya, a man called him requesting to visit the pastor’s house to pray for his sick wife, whom he claimed had contracted the virus. Not long after the couple arrived at the pastor’s home, 10

Pastor Keshav

several police officers arrived and made the arrest.

Pastor Keshav was initially bailed but subsequently re-arrested. At the time of writing he is being held in a remote part of Nepal where no means of transportation is available, charged with ‘outraging religious feelings’ and ‘attempting to convert’.

Nigeria A family of four was shot and injured on the evening of 5 May by armed assailants who invaded their home in Gana Ropp, Plateau state, and opened fire at close range as they were praying in their sitting room. This was just one in a series of ongoing armed assaults on Christian communities in Plateau and Kaduna states that continue despite the COVID-19-related lockdowns in both states.

‘They are worried about the transmission of COVID-19 in the camps…’

B urma’s government is making it harder to protect the most vulnerable against COVID-19.

For decades, the Burmese government has prioritised military spending over health spending, leaving Burma in a very weak position to deal with the COVID-19 crisis. The Burmese military (the Tatmadaw) has a long history of violent attacks on religious and ethnic minorities.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the predominantly Christian Chin and Kachin ethnic groups, as well as Rohingya Muslims, many of whom live in refugee camps, have become even more vulnerable.

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Feature: Refugees and IDPs

‘Don’t hide humanity behind guns’ His Eminence Cardinal Bo REUTERS/Ann Wang

‘The IDP community has been anxious [about] the outbreak…’

‘The IDP community has been anxious [about] the outbreak as they are living in the congested situation with limited services...the IDPs are worried for the transmission of disease in camps and their food security in [the] time of COVID-19 pandemic.

‘As humanitarian aid has been decreased during the past several years, the IDPs have to work outside to fulfill their needs. However, [since] the restriction in the camps and outbreak of the disease, IDPs are not [able] to work outside of the camps and have huge concerns on food insecurity.

Some IDPs families are facing many difficulties in camps…’

It was a heartbreaking picture painted by our local partners, who shared with us what life has been like in many camps for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Kachin state over the last few months. IDPs are people who have been forced to flee their homes, but who remain in their home country.

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Over 120,000 IDPs live in 173 camps in Kachin and northern Shan states alone. Most of these families and communities have fled as a result of violent attacks on their homes and villages by the Burmese military.

Living in close proximity in squalid camps, and already suffering from lack of proper food, medical care and sanitation, they are especially vulnerable to COVID-19.

So far, there haven't been any reported cases of COVID-19 in Burma's IDP camps - but the risks are grave.

‘Very few IDP camps have received assistance from the government…’

Victims of Burmese military attacks – many of whom are Kachin or Chin Christians, and Rohingya Muslims – have been forced to flee their homes and have lost everything.

Adding to their suffering, Burma's government places restrictions on the aid they receive, and assistance from international donors is insufficient.

‘The military should focus efforts on fighting the virus and protecting the vulnerable, not killing civilians’ Mervyn Thomas, Founder & Chief Executive Our local contacts told us, ‘The government has been providing rations to some needy communities and many IDPs are not included in the lists to get the assistance. Very few IDP camps received assistance from the government.’

In Rakhine State in western Burma, more than 100,000 Rohingya refugees have lived in squalid camps since their villages were attacked in 2012.

The government severely restricts aid reaching them, causing immense suffering and deaths. Even in this time of crisis, these restrictions are still in place.

In Rakhine and Chin State the government has also shut down internet access in an area where one million people live, preventing them from receiving critical information about how to avoid catching COVID-19.

Meanwhile Cox's Bazar - the refugee camp in Bangladesh which houses over one million Rohingya Muslim refugees - has seen its first reported cases of COVID-19, with humanitarian aid agencies working urgently to prevent a catastrophic escalation.

‘The military should focus on protecting the vulnerable, not killing civilians’ Earlier this year we saw a shocking rise in attacks by the Tatmadaw, with even a World Health Organisation (WHO) vehicle being attacked. A temporary ceasefire, announced by the military in May and intended to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, provided a much-needed opportunity for peace. But sadly, the hopes of many people living in Rakhine and Chin states were dashed, when it was revealed that the ceasefire did not extend to these parts of the country.

Our prayer for Burma at this time of crisis is rooted in the words of His Eminence Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, that all sides would be ‘armed with sincerity and truth’, and that all in Burma would ‘take the more difficult path of overcoming differences face to face with courage and intelligence.’

Act against injustice. Today.

Contact your MP urging them to raise this issue with the Department for International Development, and to lead efforts to put pressure on the Burmese government to lift aid restrictions. csw.org.uk/protectrefugees

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Perspectives: Reflections on lockdown

A s the COVID-19 pandemic continues, Benedict Rogers, our East Asia Team Leader, offers some reflections on his experience of lockdown in the UK. As someone who has spent all of my adult life advocating for freedom for others, I have found myself over the past few months willingly accepting restrictions on my own. And as someone who has spent my adult life travelling the world, for the first time I am unable – and unwilling – to go much further than the grocery shops five minutes around the corner, as infrequently as possible, or a short distance for some brief exercise.

No one in Britain in any generation since the Second World War has ever experienced such restrictions on their basic freedoms. The liberties we take for granted – to pop to the shops whenever we want, to hop on a train to visit a friend, to drive a few hours to see relatives, to go to a bar or restaurant, to shop for clothes, furniture, garden equipment, books, or to go to church – are now taken from us.

Maybe – just maybe – the experience of lockdown makes the stories we hear in our work in CSW of those imprisoned, detained or otherwise restricted for their faith and conscience, just a little less abstract.

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Just maybe it helps us to empathise in a new way with those under house arrest or in prison.

Of course there is a vast gulf between our lockdown and the detention of prisoners of conscience.

For a start, the restrictions we face are genuinely in the public interest, and are not in any way targeting our beliefs. We have a government that was genuinely reluctant to impose a lockdown, and while it may be criticised by some for acting too slowly, it is surely good that we do not have a government that is overly eager to curtail our freedoms.

‘It is my prayer that it will make us cherish the freedoms we have until now taken so much for granted’ These restrictions are approved by a democratically elected legislature, and are temporary. I have no doubt that when the government and its

REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng

Reflections on lockdown Rohingya refugees receiving food and aid.

advisers believe it is safe to ease the restrictions they will do so. I don’t doubt that places of worship will re-open when it is possible. Don’t forget that the decision to close places of worship was taken with the agreement of religious leaders. And none of us is tortured for our beliefs.

Indeed, we have access to church online. No one is stopping us reading the Bible, praying, surfing the Internet, calling our friends and family, reading the newspapers or books, or watching television. We have access to highquality medical care. And, despite the economic hardships suddenly inflicted on us by the pandemic and the panic-buying in the early days of the crisis, most of us have good food.

Nevertheless, we know that if the police find us gathering with people with whom we do not live, they will disperse us. And if we fail to comply, we could face a fine, or even prison. So although the context, reasons and nature of the restrictions are very different from those in places of persecution and repression, we suddenly find that the government and the police have unprecedented powers over us.

How does this make us feel? It is my prayer that it will make us cherish the freedoms we have until now taken so much for granted. And I hope it may enhance our solidarity with those for whom such restrictions are far more serious, long-term and painful.

It is one thing to be confined to one’s home for one’s own safety and that of others, for a period of time, in the public interest. It is quite another to be under house arrest or in a prison cell for a lengthy sentence, enduring torture, being denied medical care, being beaten for praying, prohibited from reading the Bible, refused family contact.

So whenever the lockdown ends, whenever our freedoms are restored, let us not forget what it feels like – even for us, with all the comforts and liberties we enjoy – to have some freedoms suspended. Let that motivate us to pray and protest and campaign with greater empathy and passion for those around the world who suffer far graver deprivations, at the hands of authorities who wield power not for the public good but to repress ideas and beliefs.

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On the frontlines: China

Wang Yi in prison.

Photo: China Aid.

‘If it were not for believing in God, we would not have hope’ A letter from China F or years you’ve been praying faithfully for the community of Early Rain Church in China. Now, as they face the additional challenges posed by the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re asking you to remember them again. A letter from the church details what life is like for them at this time.

On Easter Sunday, at least six leaders of the church were taken from their homes and their electricity was cut off, after government officials learned they were joining an online church service. And this was just one incident in years of intrusive government surveillance and harassment the church has endured.

‘If it were not for believing in God, we would not have hope even in all kinds of suffering’ Recently a letter has been widely shared on Chinese social media describing the church members’ experience. The letter is by Brother Zhou,1 a member of Early Rain.

Brother Zhou said: Three families from our church are under guard. The guards stayed in Brother Guoqing’s home, and he had 1

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to keep the bedroom door open when he slept. They meticulously recorded all the details of his life in a small notebook, including how many times he went to the toilet.

We used to study the Bible, pray and worship, and enjoy meals together at Aunt Xu’s house. But after 12.9 [9 December 2018, when many church members were arrested], we couldn't go anymore… [Still] this husband and wife are enthusiastic in preaching the gospel to the police and the authorities.

Sometimes they saw the guards standing by the trash can to eat, bitten by mosquitoes in summer, and almost frozen in winter… The couple felt compassion. Sometimes they give hymns to the guards, sometimes they give food, sometimes they give the Bible...This is the way Christians express their love...

independent churches such as his. He received a nine-year prison sentence in December 2019. Jiang Rong and many others have been released on bail, but some remain in detention or under house arrest.

Our three families have now been under guard for more than 480 days...

But gradually, some of the guards showed a little compassion. And one said, ‘Someone has been promoted because of you!’ Another said, ‘Thank you for creating a job for me that pays five thousand a month.’

‘But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.’ Matthew 5:44-45a

Jesus was interrogated, convicted, whipped, teased, spurned and mocked, and finally crucified, died and was buried… If it were not for believing in God, we would not have joy, peace, patience, and hope even in all kinds of humiliation, intimidation, and suffering.

Lord, we pray for the police [in China].

Lord, you give them the authority and power - let them use it properly. We pray that the Lord will give them an upright and righteous heart and let them work in accordance with the laws and regulations, not just the command of their leaders. We pray that the Lord will give them a brave heart and that they will dare to say no to the darkness!

We pray this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.

In December 2018 Pastor Wang Yi and his wife Jiang Rong were detained, along with over 100 other church members, after he criticised the government’s policy towards

A prayer for the police

In a remarkable act of obedience to Jesus’s words in Matthew 5, Brother Zhou wrote a prayer for the police who are in his home.

Pastor Wang Yi and his wife

Pray

Use Brother Zhou’s prayer above to pray for the police who are guarding the homes of members of Early Rain Church.

Name changed for security reasons.

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Get involved

Locked down but still speaking out A lthough we’re restricted in many ways, encouragingly there’s still so much you can do to speak up for those suffering for their faith.

Invite a CSW speaker

Use your voice

Even when churches are meeting online, we can still provide a speaker – either by sending a pre-recorded video, or joining live. The message can also include encouraging testimonies about drawing close to God in isolation, from those who endured prison because of their beliefs.

You can still speak out – whether that’s for the children of Du Merci orphanage in Nigeria, forced from their home while the only father they’ve ever known languishes in jail. Or for over one million Uyghur Muslims in China forced into ‘re-education camps’ amid the threat of COVID-19. Take action now at csw.org.uk/campaigns

To book, call 020 8329 0010 or visit csw.org.uk/inviteaspeaker

Join online events We’re finding new ways to meet, and the results have been very exciting – including a prayer meeting for Nigeria attended by over 250 people!

Our weekly ‘Faith in Extraordinary Times’ series shares a powerful video interview with guests like Meriam Ibrahim, who was sentenced to death for apostasy in Sudan in 2014 but eventually released. Catch past episodes on youtube.com/cswuk and, for the latest events info, check csw.org.uk/events or call 020 8329 0010.

Set up a regular gift The coronavirus has hit vulnerable faith communities hard. They were already suffering harassment and violence for their beliefs, and their situation has only been made worse by the crisis. We’ve seen countless people set free to believe over the years, but many others still need help.

When three churches in Indonesia were attacked in May 2018, we were able to visit them and respond to the crisis they were facing. This wouldn’t have been possible without regular gifts from people like you.

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Clockwise from top left: Archbishop Angaelos, Helen Berhane, David Linden MP, Pete Greig and Matt Redman during our #PrayforLeah online event

Act

Consider making a monthly gift to CSW, and help bring justice to our world. Call 020 8329 0010 or visit csw.org.uk/give 19

Our manifesto #13

We believe in the power of prayer to bring change.

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