[l]4. Churches Burned (Sri Lanka)
Last week, the Persecution and Prayer Alert reported on the brutal assault on September 19 of three Christian women who had been working to build the fence around a church in Kotadeniyawa, Sri Lanka (see
http://www.persecution.net/pnparchive/arch6.htm#4). The fence was also destroyed in the attack. VOM sources have since reported that, on the night of September 23, unidentified motorcyclists burned down the church building itself. Click here for pictures from this attack.
The next night, at 2:00 a.m. the Assembly of God Church in Kesbewa was burned to the ground. The church building was doused with gasoline and set alight after tires were placed inside the building to ensure maximum
damage. The building was completely destroyed.
Over the past several months, the believers of the Kesbewa Church had frequently received death threats. The church building as repeatedly been doused with oil, stoned, and a bomb attack injured one person. It is believed that the local Buddhist temple is spearheading the harassment. Click here for pictures from this attack.
Harassment of Christians throughout Sri Lanka is increasing in recent months. Pray that authorities will work to prosecute those responsible for this violence. Pray for peace of mind and heart for Christians facing these constant threats.
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5. Proposed Constitution Omits Vital Freedoms (Afghanistan)
This morning, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCRIF) issued a press release expressing serious concerns about the proposed constitution for Afghanistan, which could be approved as early as December.
According to the report, also published in today's New York Times (
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/01/opinion/01BANS.html), the proposed constitution would enshrine elements of Sharia law, including blasphemy, apostasy, and other religious crimes. When the USCIRF spoke with Afghanistan's chief justice, Fazl Hadi Shinwari, he told them that he accepted the Universal Declaration on Human Rights with three exceptions: freedom of _expression, freedom of religion and equality of the sexes. He said that the Koran is "the only law." If this constitution is ratified by the loya jirga (grand council) in December, Islamic law could be used to suppress any dissenting thought or religious faiths other than Islam.
We encourage you to raise your concerns with your federal government officials, urging them to pressure the Afghani government to accept the entire Universal Declaration on Human Rights. For links, go to
http://www.persecution.net/links.htm. Pray that those drafting the constitution will listen to international concerns and institute the necessary changes before bringing it to a vote.
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6. Question of the Week
The USCIRF, in their press release referred to above, made the following statement: "Even in a self-proclaimed Islamic republic, however, all citizens, Muslims as well as non-Muslims, must be free to debate the role of religion and to question prevailing orthodoxies without fear of being subjected to trials, prison or death."
Our question of the week is this: "Can religious freedom truly exist in a country that gives legal preference to a single religion (including Christianity)?"
To participate in our poll and discussion, go to
http://www.persecution.net and click on "Discussion Forum." If you have not registered on our forum in the past, click on "Register" and select a username and password.
Click here for other recent Persecution and Prayer Alerts
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