• PERSECUTION INCREASES MOST IN SUDAN AND NIGERIA IN 2011
• ANTI-CHRISTIAN INCIDENTS NEARLY DOUBLE IN INDONESIA IN 2011
• PRAYER BRINGS CHANGE ALONG THE U.S.-MEXICO BORDER
• SOUTHERN AFRICA ARCHBISHOP TELLS MUGABE TO END CHURCH PERSECUTION
• ANTI-CHRISTIAN ATTACKS: THE NIGERIAN EMERGENCY
• NEWBORN SAVED BY ARGENTINE WONDER DOG

PERSECUTION INCREASES MOST IN SUDAN AND NIGERIA IN 2011

Sudan and Nigeria have seen the greatest increase in persecution against Christians, according to the Open Doors 2012 World Watch list of persecutednations. Christians in northern Sudan, were particularly targeted after southern Sudan seceded in July. Sudan jumped 19 places from its 2010 ranking of 35th to 16th. In northern Nigeria, a rash of Islamist attacks and increased government restrictions on Christians contributed to the region leaping on the list, from 23rd to 13th place. “Nigeria continues to be the country where the greatest loss of life occurred, with over 300 Christians killed last year, though the true number is thought to be far higher,” said Open Doors.

As in the previous nine years, North Korea topped the list as the country where Christians are most persecuted. The persecution index for three other countries, namely Egypt, Ethiopia and Indonesia also recorded significant increases. Most of the countries on the list, 38 out of 50, have an Islamic majority – including nine of the top 10. “As the 2012 List reflects, the persecution of Christians in these Muslim countries continues to increase,”said Carl Moeller, president/CEO of Open Doors USA. “While many thought the Arab Spring would bring increased freedom, including religious freedom for minorities, that certainly has not been the case so far.”

In the case of Sudan, the secession of mainly Christian southern Sudan left Christians in (north) Sudan “much more isolated under President Omaral-Bashir,” who is wanted for crimes against humanity, according to the Open Doors report. “In response to the loss of the south, he has vowed to make his country even more Islamic, promising constitutional changes,” the report states.   “On the ground, Christian communities have been attacked in battles over resources, but estimates of thousands killed by the Sudanese military are impossible to verify.”   Territorial violence also flared on border areas with South Sudan in the provinces of Abyei, South Kordofan and Blue Nile.
In Egypt, a bomb attack on a Coptic church in Alexandria killed at least 21Christians on New Year’s Day, 2011, and the Feb. 11 ousting of President Hosni Mubarak was followed by a series of Islamic extremist attacks on Christians that culminated in the Maspero massacre in Cairo on Oct. 9, “when the military turned on its own citizens,” killing 27 Coptic Christian demonstrators, the report notes.   “Some were shot by soldiers or ran over by tanks, while others were killed by Muslim extremists,” the report states. “At the closing of 2011, Islamist parties flourished in the November elections, prompting some to speak of an Arab Winter instead of an Arab Spring for Christians.”

China moved from 20th place to 21st on the list, “mainly due to other countries comparatively getting worse,” though it still has the world’s largest persecuted church of 80 million. A new addition to the list is Kazakhstan at 45th place, and Colombia returned to the list at 47th after being absent in the previous 2 years. Kazakhstan moved onto the list due to the passage of “a restrictive religion law” requiring the re-registration of all religious communities. The law will make youth work virtually illegal and put all religious acts under government scrutiny. Colombia has again appeared in the World Watch List due to left-wing insurgency groups targeting Christian pastors.

During the reporting period these Colombian groups “have branched into drug-trafficking, and Christian leaders that do not cooperate in the drug trade are targeted for assassination,” the report notes. “Five were killed this year, but the number could be as high as 20.” After North Korea, the top 10 on the list are Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Iran, The Maldives, Uzbekistan, Yemen, Iraq, and Pakistan. Pakistan entered the top 10 for the first time with a spike in radical Islamist violence that included the assassination of the nation’s highest-ranking Christian politician, Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, for his efforts to change Pakistan’s blasphemy law.

Source: Compass Direct News

ANTI-CHRISTIAN INCIDENTS NEARLY DOUBLE IN INDONESIA IN 2011

Acts of violence against Christians in Indonesia almost doubled in 2011, with an Islamist campaign to close down churches symbolizing the plight of the religious minority. There were 54 acts of violence and other violations against Christians in 2011, up from 30 in 2010. But worse is yet to come if authorities continue to overlook the threat of extremism, said a representative from the Jakarta-based Wahid Institute, a Muslim organization that promotes tolerance. The Wahid Institute also observed an attempt to institutionalize intolerance in Indonesia where at least 36 regulations to ban religious practices deemed deviant from Islam were implemented in the country in 2011.

A civil rights group, the Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace, noted that both the government and groups in society were responsible for the incidents, with the main violators being religious extremist organizations such as the Islamic Defenders Front. Indonesia’s hot-bed of extremism is West Java, the province that includes the nation’s capital city of Jakarta. This province witnessed 160 incidents against religious minorities. Churches in West Java, suffered the most last year. On Christmas Day, two churches in Bogor city bore the brunt of growing extremism. “Islamist vigilantes threatened us as we sought to hold a Christmas service,” a Church leader said.

The city administration sealed off the half-constructed building of the church in 2010. Before Christmas that year, the Supreme Court ordered the city mayor, to unseal the church building, and later an ombudsman also recommended the same, but the official refused to oblige. Having overseen the sealing of the Yasmin church, Muslim extremists are now targeting a 2,000-member Catholic church in Bogor city. The St. John the Baptist church was able to hold its mass on Christmas Eve, followed by a Christmas Day service, although authorities had formally ordered the church to stop all activities.

The head of the Indonesian Bishops Conference, Benny Susetyo, said there had been no conflict between the church and the people living in its vicinity for six years. District authorities had repeatedly rejected applications made by the church for a permit, without giving a reason. Islamist groups have demanded a similar action against five other churches. These churches – Pentecostal Church of Indonesia, the Church of all Nations and Bethel Tabernacle Church, Javanese Christian Church, and Nazarene Christian Church – have operational permits to hold church services. They had applied for building permits, but authorities never responded.

Central Java is a hub of Islamist extremists. Last year a suicide bomber, said to be an Islamist terrorist, blew himself up at the gate of the Bethel Full Gospel Church in Solo city, injuring about 20 people. Sealing of church buildings and the refusal to grant building permits top the list of major violations of Christians’ religious rights in Indonesia. The Setara Institute criticized President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for inaction. The president urged people to be tolerant in at least 19 of his speeches in 2011, but he has not backed his words with action, it noted in a recent report.

Intolerance has steadily been increasing in Indonesia, whose constitution is based on the doctrine of Pancasila – five principles upholding the nation’s belief in the one and only God and social justice, humanity, unity and democracy for all. The Setara report cited an earlier incident in which a mob of about 1,500 Muslim extremists brutally killed three members of the Ahmadiyya community, which is seen as heretical by mainstream Muslims, in West Java. “Cases of intolerance have intensified this year, numbering more than last year, and at the core of the problem is poor law enforcement bythe government,” Setara deputy chairman Bonar Tigor Niapospos said.

Source: Compass Direct News

PRAYER BRINGS CHANGE ALONG THE U.S.-MEXICO BORDER

It is truly amazing what the Lord has done in response to prayer for the USA-Mexico border. One focused prayer throughout 2011 was for the Lord to reveal what is hidden and this is exactly what happened! From uncovering drug tunnels, to drug busts, to drug kingpins arrested, stories abounded every week of God’s faithfulness in fulfilling His plan for these two nations. Highlights of 2011 include.

129,118 people apprehended while trafficking drugs across the border. Five million pounds of drugs were confiscated in the USA, along with weapons, plus 126 million dollars in “undeclared” currency.

. More than 15 tunnels used for drug trafficking have been uncovered, some labelled as “most sophisticated in Arizona history’. More than 40 tunnels have been dismantled since 2008.

. US drug rings in Arizona, California and Texas broken up.

. The Sinaloa and Los Zetas cartels took major hits in 2011; many of the smaller cartels dissolved.

. Two groups of American Christian leaders had the privilege of meeting with President Felipe Calderon and members of his cabinet twice this year to receive briefings and to strengthen relationships between the USA and Mexico. This has provided greater insight into how to pray for the issues of sex trafficking and drug and arms smuggling, which greatly affect the safety, well-being, and future of both nations.

As we look to 2012 it is time for the capture of Mexico’s leading drug lord, Joaquin Guzman, who leads the most powerful drug trafficking organization, Sinaloa Federation Cartel, in the world. Guzman became Mexico’s leading drug kingpin in 2003 after the arrest of his rival Osiel C ƒ ¡rdenas. Guzm ƒ ¡n is ranked by Forbes magazine as one of the most powerful people in the world. Forbes also listed him as the one of the world’s richest men in 2010 and 2011. After the death of Osama Bin Laden on May 2, 2011, Guzm ƒ ¡n became the FBI and Interpol’s “most wanted person.” In addition, Forbes considers Guzm ƒ ¡n the “biggest drug lord of all time”, and “the godfather of the drugworld.”

The Sinaloa Federation produces and smuggles multiple tons of marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin through Mexico to the United States where it has distribution cells in over 200 cities. Just last week federal prosecutors announced that Guzm ƒ ¡n was proposing attacks on high profile US facilities in Mexico as a way of hitting back at law enforcement for their success in the reduction of drug smuggling. Guzm ƒ ¡n was quoted as saying,”Let it be a government building, an embassy or a consulate, a media outlet or television station. We’ll get something good out of it, and someone else will take the heat.”

It’s time his illegal operation is stopped! Join us as we stand in fervent prayer for the capture of Joaqu ƒ ­n Guzm ƒ ¡n and the end of the Sinaloa Federation.

Please pray:

*   Last Sunday Raul Fernandez – “El Lucky,” head of security for the Sinaloa cartel, was captured! Pray that this arrest will lead to information that will aid in the uncovering of Guzman’s whereabouts and that law enforcement will be successful in capturing Guzman.

*   This week Mexican federal police arrested one of the United States’ most-wanted drug traffickers, Luis Rodriguez Olivera, known by the nickname “Blondie.” Pray for more information to come into the hands of law enforcement in Mexico and the U.S. to guide them in the capture of other cartel leaders.

*   For Guzm ƒ ¡n to make a tactical error that will lead to his capture and the dismantling of the Sinaloa Federation Cartel.
*   For safety of all law enforcement officers and civilians that are involved on both sides of the border in the search for this man.

Source: International Prayer Council

SOUTHERN AFRICA ARCHBISHOP TELLS MUGABE TO END CHURCH PERSECUTION

The Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town has called on Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe to put an end to persecution of the Anglican Church after state police recently broke up the annual prayer retreat of clergy from the Diocese of Harare. About 80 priests were meeting  when police intervened and halted the gathering, on the grounds that it had not received official legal clearance. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, primate of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, called the police action shocking and deplorable and called on President Mugabe to ensure that the rights of all Zimbabweans to enjoy freedom of assembly and worship be respected and enforced.
A statement released by the Harare diocese said: “We deplore this action and call upon higher authorities to intervene. So much for freedom of religion.” Zimbabwe’s Anglicans have faced repeated harassment and violence from Mugabe’s police force since renegade bishop Nolbert Kunonga was excommunicated by the Church of the Province of Central Africa in May 2008. A Mugabe ally, Kunonga still claims ownership of the diocese’s Anglican churches and backs the persecution of the country’s loyal Anglicans who are routinely intimidated and prevented from worshipping in their own church buildings.

Makgoba said that “We affirm Zimbabwean Bishop Chad Gandiya, his clergy and people at this time. As they share in the sufferings of Christ, may they gain strength from the experience and never give in to a cynical and sinister government.” Makgoba also called on “ecumenical friends in the Anglican Communion to ask their governments to put pressure on Zimbabwe to end the persecution.” Recently, Makgoba, the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams and the archbishops of Central Africa and Tanzania met with Mugabe, presenting him with a dossier of abuses against the Anglican Church and calling on him to “put an end to all unacceptable and illegal behaviour.”

Source: Episcopal News Service

ANTI-CHRISTIAN ATTACKS: THE NIGERIAN EMERGENCY

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a state of emergency in northern parts of Africa’s most populous nation amid mounting concerns about attacks by Islamist militant group, Boko Haram, against the Christian population. Boko Haram says it wants to impose Sharia, or Muslim law, across the country. Nigerian Christians mourned their dead after at least 35 people died in a Christmas Day bombing at a Catholic Church and at least four others in similar blasts. Hundreds of mourners attended the memorial service in the attacked Church in the town of Madalla, near capital Abuja, surrounded by armed soldiers and bloodstained walls, witnesses said.

In a statement, President Jonathan, a Christian, said “The crisis has assumed a terrorist dimension with attacks on institutions of government, including the United Nations building and places of worship. While still searching for a lasting solution, it has become imperative to take decisive measures to restore normalcy in the country.”   The president added. “Consequently, I have in the exercise of the powers conferred on me, declared a state of emergency.” Jonathan also stepped up security by creating a counter-terrorism force and closing borders with Cameroon, Chad, and Niger, after he was criticized for not doing enough to protect Christians.

The country of 150 million is about evenly divided between Moslems, who mostly live in the north, and Christians who dominate in the south. Pray for the protection of the Christian population in Nigeria. Pray the leaders of Nigeria will find a solution to dealing with this terrorist subversion. Pray that other countries will lift the banner for support and protection of those Christians who are being threatened by the militant Moslem factions. Pray that President Jonathan will be strong and wise in his leadership. Pray for the weakening of the terrorist group Boko Haram and its eventual demise.

Source: Intercessors for America

NEWBORN SAVED BY ARGENTINE WONDER DOG

Canine hero” LaChina” may not appreciate her newfound fame, but her story is so engaging, it practically begs sharing. According to a News report, a 14-year-old girl prematurely gave birth to a baby boy, outside of Buenos Aires, Argentina in what is known as a “shantytown.” Upon delivering her child the young girl became frightened and left the baby in a field, wrapped in a rag. Enter LaChina; a mother herself, that maternal instinct – no doubt- a huge factor in her actions as she discovered the crying newborn. The 8-year-old, medium-small dog somehow brought the infant, into the area where her litter of puppies awaited their mother.
LaChina didn’t seem to mind the fact that this little one was human. He was crying, and most likely she intended to feed the tiny boy. It was then that LaChina’s owner stepped in, and called police after finding his nursing dog’s newest family member. The baby is said to have suffered only “slight injuries” (but no bite marks) and – although said to be premature – weighed-in at 8lbs.13oz. He is in the care of authorities, and his mother has since come forward. LaChina’s owner is worried that the dog’s sudden media spotlight – of which she is reportedly terrified – has made her lose her appetite.

Source: Intercessors Network

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