Tag: Myanmar

Myanmar Christians arrested for praying, as fears that northern conflict will ‘intensify’

June 26, 2017 Myanmar Baptists, IDPs, Myanmar, Tatmadaw

Five Christians from Myanmar’s northernmost Kachin state have been arrested for holding prayers to mark six years since a return to conflict between the Tatmadaw (the combined forces of Myanmar’s army, navy and air force) and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), reports The Irrawaddy. The 17-year ceasefire collapsed in June . . . Read More

US Commission urges Trump administration to prioritise international religious freedom

May 18, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Abune Antonios, Andrew Brunson, Central African Republic, China, Donald Trump, Eritrea, Eritrean Orthodox Church, Iran, Mike Pence, Myanmar, Nguyen Cong Chinh, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Religious freedom, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, USA, Uzbekistan, Vietnam

An influential US government commission that monitors religious freedom around the world is urging President Donald Trump and his new administration to take concrete steps to make advocacy of universal religious rights a priority in American foreign policy. “Our foreign policy should not simply be about US self-interest – you know, . . . Read More

‘Double suffering’ when women targeted not only for gender, but also religion

March 8, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Boko Haram, Central African Republic, Islamic State, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Trauma, Women

On International Women’s Day, one statistic you may not hear much is that 83% of global women identify with a religious faith. Pew Research asked people in 84 countries how often they pray; in half of them, substantially more women than men say they pray on a daily basis. And . . . Read More

Thai Buddhist calls for action against nationalism

February 17, 2017 Bodu Bala Sena, Buddhist nationalism, Ma Ba Tha, Myanmar, Rohingya, Sri Lanka, Thailand

A Thai Buddhist has called for Buddhist-majority countries like Thailand to halt the rise of nationalism, intolerance and hate speech. “It’s very dangerous, much more dangerous than weapons,” said Sulak Sivaraksa during a recent panel discussion on the Channel NewsAsia programme Between The Lines. As World Watch Monitor reported in . . . Read More

‘UN failing religious minorities and Christian converts’

February 15, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Blasphemy, China, Genocide, Indonesia, Islamic State, Myanmar, Pakistan, Religious freedom, Saudi Arabia, UN

The suffering of persecuted Christians around the world is exacerbated by the failure of UN bodies to fulfil their obligations to uphold religious freedom, a damning report has claimed. The 27-page report, starkly entitled The UN’s Failure to Promote and Protect Religious Freedom, argues that concerns about the protection of . . . Read More

Myanmar pastors charged with ‘aiding rebels’

February 10, 2017 Myanmar Baptists, Kachin, Myanmar, Shan

Two Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) pastors have been charged with aiding rebels in Myanmar’s eastern Shan State, reports Crux. Dom Dawng Nawng Lat, 65, and La Jaw Gam Hseng, 35, are accused of being “informers and spreading false news on behalf of the armed insurgents”, according to Myanmar’s state news . . . Read More

Two missing pastors; Myanmar army link suspected

January 19, 2017 Myanmar Baptists, Chin, Kachin, Myanmar, Rape, Shan, Women

International human rights organisations have expressed concern for two pastors missing since 24 December in Myanmar. Ethnic Kachin live in Shan as well as Kachin State, and the two Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) men had taken reporters to a Catholic church damaged by airstrikes in clashes between the government army and . . . Read More

2017 Myanmar refugee suicide study

January 12, 2017 Myanmar Karen, Myanmar, Refugees, Trauma, Women

A new study has found a high incidence of suicide among women in camps housing long-term refugees fleeing Myanmar’s ethnic conflict, reports the BBC News Magazine. In a study of refugees in Thailand’s Mae La camp, where 90% are ethnically Karen – a group that mainly identifies as Christian – . . . Read More

USCIRF says Myanmar must ‘control’ its military

December 21, 2016 Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi, Buddhist nationalism, Chin, Churches, Kachin, Ma Ba Tha, Myanmar, Naga, Rape, Torture

A new, critical report on religious freedoms in Myanmar by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom says the major challenge facing Aung San Suu Kyi’s government is “bringing the military under civilian control”. The report says the Burmese Army, which, due to constitutional provisions, is beyond civilian control, has . . . Read More

UK Foreign Office hosts global summit on freedom of religion or belief

October 27, 2016 Global News -- No Particular Country Bangladesh, China, Eritrea, Iran, Islamic extremism, Islamic State, Kazakhstan, London, Lord Alton, Myanmar, North Korea, Religious freedom, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates

“Religious freedom can counter violent extremism” was the key message at a two-day global conference held at the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) last week. The conference explored ways to build resilience against extremism and identified opportunities for collaboration. More than 50 expert speakers and over 170 participants from . . . Read More

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