SPRING 2015ISSue 111

REMEMBER THE PRISONERSLent Prayer Project

At this time of year, Irish people often ask “What are you giving up for Lent?” Chocolate, cigarettes and alcohol are some of the popular choices though I know someone who even tried to give up sin! In this issue of Church in Chains, we are asking that you consider taking up a habit for Lent.

We’re launching a Lent Prayer Project and asking you to pray for one Christian prisoner each week. Often, the increasing persecution of Christians around our world can seem so overwhelming that it simply seems too much for us to respond adequately and so we do nothing. However, surely each of us can take the time to pray for one prisoner each week? Details of the prisoners are on the following pages and will also be included in our weekly email update. If you don’t already receive this, may I encourage you to sign up at www.churchinchains.ie

Yours for the Persecuted,

What are you taking up for Lent?

In this issue of Church in Chains

Pages 3 – 9 Remember The Prisoners

Pages 10 – 11 Children’s Pages – Pray for the Prisoners

Pages 12 – 13 Updates – Nigeria and Iraq

Pages 14 – 15 Updates – Niger, Libya, Iran and India

Page 16 Working Together

Page 17 Explore

Page 18 Money Matters

Page 19 Action Page – Support Eritrea’s Christian prisoners

SOURCES: The main feature article on Christian prisoners was compiled with reference to numerous sources including Association of Victims of Abduction and Forced Disappearance (Egypt), BBC, China Aid, Elam Ministries, Mohabat News, Morning Star News, Release Eritrea, Release International and World Watch Monitor

COVER IMAGE: Top Row (left – right): Farshid Fathi (Iran), Asia Bibi (Pakistan), Zhang Shaojie (China) Bottom Row (left – right): Bishoy Armia Boulous (Egypt), Twen (Eritrea), Saeed Abedini (Iran)

P.S. Our annual Spring event will have a different format and venue this year. Do join us for “Explore” - an interactive afternoon at Dun Laoghaire Evangelical Church on Saturday 18 April (see page 17 for more details).

3Lent Prayer Project

Remember the Prisoners

From the days of the early church up to the present time, Christians have faced persecution in various forms from those who oppose the message of Jesus. Arresting Christians and putting them in prison was the main occupation of the apostle Paul (before his conversion) and the Bible also tells us that King Herod was quick to arrest Christian leaders.

The reaction of the ordinary Christians who made up the early church is summed up in one verse: “So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was praying earnestly to God for him” (Acts 12 v5). The way in which they gathered together to pray and how Peter was miraculously released from prison (see illustration) is described later in that chapter. However, it wasn’t a one-off event and the writer of the New Testament book of Hebrews includes a general command for Christians to follow: “Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together in prison with them” (Hebrews 13 v3).

They prayed for fellow Christians by name; they prayed for the apostle Paul and his companions when they heard news of their imprisonment. It was part of normal church life. Today, no members of churches in Ireland are in jail for their Christian faith but there are thousands of Christians imprisoned in other countries. It is difficult to pray for people about whom we know little or nothing, so in the following pages you will read profiles of six prisoners. Our hope and prayer is that you will pray for them during the six weeks of Lent.

People pray in many different ways but here are some suggestions:

On your ownAdd a prisoner to your prayer list each week during Lent

Pick a special time to pray for a prisoner

Go to a particular place to pray for a prisoner

With othersOrder an A3 poster to display in your church – use Response Form or email info@churchinchains.ie

Ask your church leader to include a different prisoner in prayers at church each week during Lent

Get your small group/home group to take part in the Lent Prayer Project

Zhang Shaojie (49) is pastor of Nanle County Christian Church in Henan province, central China, and is local president of the government-approved Three-Self Church. On 4 July 2014, he was sentenced to twelve years in prison for “gathering a crowd to disrupt public order” and fraud. He had been arrested in November 2013 after a dispute over church land with local Communist Party officials. They have petitioned the court to lengthen his sentence.

Family Pastor Zhang’s elderly parents have been harassed and threatened. His eldest daughter Yunyun and her husband and baby daughter had to go into hiding, and in July 2014 they used China Aid’s

“underground railroad” to flee from China to the USA (pictured). On 5 November 2014, more than 20 officials violently abducted another daughter, Shanshan, and locked her in a soundproofed room. On the day of her release, 14 November, the authorities went to the Zhang family home to attempt to force the family to leave so the house and car could be auctioned, as Pastor Zhang had not paid 700,000 Yuan (€98,000) in restitution for his fraud charge. His mother, Mei Xian, threatened to torch herself, and the officials left.

Recent News In October 2014, Pastor Zhang was transferred to another prison and was allowed to meet his lawyers for the first time since his appeal rejection in August 2013. Local authorities continue to target his church: in December 2014, they withdrew money from the church bank account, removed the church cross and blocked the entrance.

4 Lent Prayer Project - Week 1

Zhang Shaojie (China)

Pray for wisdom for Pastor Zhang and his lawyers as they continue to seek justice.

Pray for God’s protection for Pastor Zhang’s family and that the authorities will stop harassing them.

Also in ChinaAlimujiang Yimiti (40) is a uighur Christian from Xinjiang province in northwest China. He was arrested in January 2008 and convicted in 2009 of “instigating separatism and revealing state secrets”, and sentenced to 15 years in labour camp. A former Muslim, he had been questioned often about his Christian activities.

Asia Bibi (49) is a Christian farm labourer from a Punjab village in northeast Pakistan. In June 2009, when working with a group of Muslim women, she went to fetch water. The women refused to drink as it had been brought by an “untouchable” and was “unclean”. After a heated argument, one of the women told the local imam that Asia had said: “Jesus Christ died on the cross for me – what did Mohammed ever do for you?” He filed a blasphemy case, local men beat Asia and the police took her into custody for protection.

In November 2010 Asia was sentenced to death. Two politicians who supported her, Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and Minorities Minister Shabhaz Bhatti, have been assassinated. In June 2013, Asia was moved to a prison more than 290 km from her home, and now only receives one family visit per month. She is being held in a windowless cell (where the picture was taken).

Family Asia is married to Ashiq Masih, and has two daughters, Isha (16) and Isham (15), who has an intellectual disability and walking difficulties. The family receives help from Christian groups, including schooling, but over the past five years has had to move five times to avoid attack.

Recent News In October 2014, Asia’s appeal was heard in Lahore High Court. It was dismissed and the death sentence was upheld. Over twenty mullahs attended the hearing, chanting and celebrating. Asia’s lawyer said an appeal would be filed with the Supreme Court in Islamabad.

In November 2014, Ashiq wrote to President Mamnoon Hussain pleading for a pardon for Asia, so that she and the family might move to France, where they have been offered support.

5Lent Prayer Project - Week 2

Asia Bibi (Pakistan)

Pray that God will continue to protect Asia in prison and encourage her as she waits for the Supreme Court hearing.

Pray for Asia to be released soon and reunited with her family in a safe place.

Also in Pakistan Three other Pakistani Christians are under sentence of death: Shafqat and Shagufta Emmanuel and Sawan Masih. Since 1987, 633 Muslims, 494 Ahmedis, 187 Christians and 21 Hindus have been accused under the blasphemy laws.

Saeed Abedini (34) was arrested in September 2012 while visiting Iran from his home in the uS to build an orphanage. He was put in evin prison, and in January 2013 was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment for “threatening national security” by planting house churches.

Saeed was born into a Muslim family in Iran. He converted in 2000 and moved to the uS in 2005 after interrogations over his church activities, but he continued to visit Iran. He has been subjected

to solitary confinement and severely injured by beatings. In August 2013 his appeal was rejected, and in November 2013 he was moved to the dangerous Rajai Shahr prison, where he faces threats to his life.

Family Saeed’s wife Nagmeh was also born into a Muslim family in Iran. She moved to the uS as a child, obtained uS citizenship and became a Christian. They met when she went to Iran to visit family, married in 2004, moved to Idaho in 2005 and have two children, Rebekkah (8) and Jacob (6). Saeed now has dual citizenship.

Recent News On 22 January Nagmeh and the children met President Obama, who told them he is working hard to get Saeed home. Nagmeh was encouraged and wrote, “Praise God! We had great conversation… and he listed some next steps to take.” Saeed’s father, who lives in Iran, visited him recently. Saeed was glad to hear news of family and of people praying for him. He was encouraged that President Obama met his family and wrote to thank him. The terrible prison conditions are causing his health to deteriorate, and he continues to suffer pain.

6 Lent Prayer Project - Week 3

Saeed Abedini (Iran)

Pray for God’s protection on Saeed in prison and for good relations with his fellow prisoners.

Pray for strength for Nagmeh as she campaigns for Saeed and that the Lord will open up the way to freedom.

Also in Iran It is estimated that at least 60 Iranian Christians are in prison for their faith. Pastor Behnam Irani has served four years of a six-year sentence for holding house church services, and has endured ill treatment and serious health problems.

Christian Journalist Bishoy Armia Boulous (31), a former Muslim, was arrested in December 2013 when documenting the persecution of Christians in upper Egypt. In June 2014 he was sentenced to five years in prison on several charges relating to spreading false information.

Formerly known by the Muslim name Mohammed Hegazy, Bishoy became a Christian in 1998. He was arrested several times and was tortured, but refused to recant his faith. Bishoy is the first Egyptian to attempt to change the religious identity on his ID card from Muslim to Christian. He took the case in 2007, but in January 2008 the Supreme Administrative Court ruled against him. In 2009 a group of Islamists filed a charge of defaming Islam (“blasphemy”) against him, based on the accusation that leaving Islam casts it into ill repute.

Family Bishoy and his wife Christine, also a former Muslim, were forced into hiding by death threats and attacks. As the blasphemy case continued, Bishoy’s home was set on fire, he was arrested and several times officials beat him in custody. His wife and two children now have asylum in europe, but Bishoy stayed in egypt, knowing that if he left he would never be allowed back.

Recent News In December 2014 an appeals judge found Bishoy not guilty on two charges, but guilty of an unspecified charge (probably inciting sectarian strife) and sentenced him to one year in prison. Bishoy told his lawyer that officials in Cairo’s Tora Prison have tortured him and denied him a Bible, and that he is housed with violent criminals.

7Lent Prayer Project - Week 4

Bishoy Armia Boulous (Egypt)

Pray that Bishoy will be kept safe in prison, will be well treated by guards and will be allowed to have a Bible.

Pray that the Lord will encourage Christine as she looks after their two children.

Also in EgyptFrom January 2011 to March 2014, over 550 Coptic girls and young women from the age of 14 were kidnapped and forced to convert and marry their Muslim abductors. Since the revolution there has been a surge in abductions from five or six girls per month to an average of 15.

eritrean Christian Twen (32) has been in prison for ten years. She has endured terrible beatings and torture at the hands of prison guards, and spent time in a shipping container with gospel singer Helen Berhane, caring for Helen when she was sick and injured.

Twen was arrested in January 2005 at an underground church prayer meeting. In 2006, she was joined by a large group of Christians arrested at a wedding. Twen and the women from that group who refused to sign that they would no longer engage in Christian

activities were sent to one of eritrea’s harshest prisons, Wi’a, on the Red Sea coast, one of the most inhospitable places on earth. Hundreds of prisoners have died in Wi’a prison as a result of the extreme heat and insanitary conditions. It was eventually closed and Twen and her group were sent to Me’etr prison in the remote northwest, which mainly houses Christians. Like all eritrean Christian prisoners, she has never been put on trial.

Family Twen’s family home is in the capital, Asmara. Once, because of illness, Twen was allowed to stay with her family in Asmara for a month, but after treatment she made her own way back to the prison rather than arranging to be smuggled out of eritrea.

Recent News Twen is a key women’s leader in prison and cares for the other women prisoners. Others describe her as a “precious, lovely Christian”, determined to follow Jesus and willing to stay in prison as long as God enables her to serve Him there.

8 Lent Prayer Project - Week 5

Twen (Eritrea)

Pray for health and strength for Twen as she serves the Lord by caring for her fellow prisoners.

Pray that other prisoners will see the love of Jesus displayed in Twen’s life.

Also in Eritrea Pray also for long-term prisoners Dr Kiflu Gebremeskel, Pastor Kidane Weldou and Rev Haile Naizghe who have been imprisoned for the past eleven years. The number of Christians in prison for their faith is much lower than it used to be, at about 300.

Pastor Farshid Fathi (35) was arrested in December 2010 and held in evin Prison in Tehran until his trial in 2012. A former Muslim, he is a house church leader. Farshid’s Christian activities were portrayed as political offences, and he was also charged with having and distributing Farsi Bibles. He was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison. During Farshid’s imprisonment, he has spent nearly a year in solitary confinement. He has been described as as “a man after God’s own heart” and “a shining beacon for Christ in prison”.

Family Farshid and his wife Leila have a daughter and son, Rosanna (11) and Bardia (5). In 2013, facing extreme pressure from Iranian intelligence, his family fled to Canada.

Recent News In December 2014, Farshid was sentenced to an additional year in prison, relating to an incident in April 2014 when prisoners in his section protested about conditions. During the protest over 100 guards launched a brutal attack in which more than 30 prisoners were injured; when Farshid went to help one a guard stamped on his bare foot and broke it.

In August 2014, Farshid was moved from evin to Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj, which is so violent that a guard is posted in the open cell to try to stop hardened criminals and drug addicts attacking each other. After Farshid’s transfer, guards in evin prison stated the reason for the April raid was the discovery of two litres of alcohol in an adjacent section of the prison, which they attributed to Farshid. Rights activists believe his conviction and additional sentence is aimed at silencing those injured in the attack.

9Lent Prayer Project - Week 6

Farshid Fathi (Iran)

Pray that Farshid will continue to experience God’s presence in prison and that the extra one-year sentence will be overturned.

Pray also for God’s blessing on Leila, Rosanna and Bardia.

Also in IranThe printing and distribution of Scriptures in Iran did not end with Farshid’s imprisonment. The New Testament continues to be instrumental in impacting hundreds of thousands throughout Iran and the new translation of the complete Bible, published in September 2014, has already strengthened many churches and encouraged many Iranian Christians in discipleship.

Zhang Shaojie (49) is pastor of Nanle County Christian Church in

central China. He was arrested in November 2013 after a dispute over

church land with Communist Party officials. In July 2014, he was sentenced to twelve years in prison. Officials have threatened his family, including his elderly parents.

One daughter was imprisoned for ten days last November, and another had to flee the country with her husband and baby daughter.

Dear God, please protect Pastor Zhang in prison and comfort his family. We pray that Pastor Zhang would be released soon and that he and his family might live in peace. Amen

Asia Bibi (49) is a Christian farm labourer from northeast Pakistan. In June 2009, Muslim women working with Asia accused her of insulting the Prophet Mohammed. In November 2010, she was sentenced to death for blasphemy. Asia and her husband Ashiq Masih have two daughters, Isha (16) and Isham (15).

Dear God, we pray that Asia would be released from prison and reunited with her family. Please grant them a safe place to live, away from the many extremists who hate Asia and want to kill her. We ask you to comfort and encourage Ashiq, Isha and Isham. Amen

Saeed Abedini (34) was arrested in 2012 while visiting Iran from his home in America to build an orphanage. He grew up in Iran and started a network of house churches, but now lives in Idaho with his wife Nagmeh and their children Rebekkah (8) and Jacob (6). Saeed was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment because of the house churches. He has been badly beaten and is in a dangerous prison.

Dear God, please protect and heal Saeed, and comfort Nagmeh, Rebekkah and Jacob. Thank you that they were able to meet President Obama in January: please help him to get Saeed home. Amen

Zhang Shaojie (China)

Asia Bibi (Pakistan)

Saeed Abedini (Iran)

HEY KIDS – Let’s Pray

Twen comes from Asmara, the capital of Eritrea. She was arrested at a secret prayer meeting ten years ago, when she was aged 22. Twen has been in prison ever since, with many other Christians, and has been badly treated. She is known as a very caring Christian leader in the prison, where she looks after the other women.

Dear God, please help and bless Twen as she cares for the other prisoners, in hard conditions, not knowing when she will be released. We ask you to keep Twen safe and well, and to encourage her. Amen

Pastor Farshid Fathi (35) was arrested in December 2010 because of his Christian work, including handing out Bibles. In 2012 he was sentenced to six years in prison, and in 2014 he was sentenced to an extra year. Farshid and his wife Leila have a daughter and son, Rosanna and Bardia.

Dear God, please bless Farshid and protect him from harm in the dangerous prison to which he was moved last August. Thank you

that his faith is so strong. Please bless Leila, Rosanna and Bardia in Canada, where they have had to flee to safety. amen

FOR CHRISTIAN PRISONERS

Twen (Eritrea)

Farshid Fathi (Iran)

Christian journalist Bishoy Armia Boulous (31) was arrested in December 2013, while reporting on Christians being persecuted in southern Egypt. He was put in prison, where the guards refused to let him have a Bible. Bishoy is due for release in December 2015. His wife Christine and their two children had to leave Egypt because of threats and attacks.

Dear God, please keep Bishoy safe in prison, where he is locked up with violent criminals. We ask that he might be released soon. Please comfort and bless Christine and the children, and reunite the family. Amen

Bishoy Armia Boulous (Egypt)

Nigeria’s presidential election is due to be held on 28 March following a controversial decision in early February to delay the election from its scheduled date, 14 February, due to security concerns. The two main candidates are Goodluck Jonathan, the incumbent Christian president from the south and former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari from the north.

Goodluck Jonathan, who has been president for the past four years, has been criticised heavily for neglecting the north of the country and for a largely ineffective response to the growing threat of the violent Islamist group, Boko

Haram. He has been particularly condemned by relatives of the Chibok schoolgirls (219 of whom have been held captive by Boko Haram since April) for caring little about their plight.

Muhammadu Buhari has lost the last three presidential elections. In 2011 he campaigned on an Islamist platform, telling Muslims they should not vote for a Christian. He is hugely popular in the north, and has softened his Islamic fundamentalist image by taking a southern Pentecostal Christian pastor, Yemi Osinbajo, as his running mate. Pastors who support Buhari have assured Christians that Nigeria simply cannot be Islamised as “we are too educated”. Gen Buhari has promised to crush Boko Haram within months if elected.

Boko Haram terror attacks have continued without interruption in the north of Nigeria. In January, Boko Haram overran the town of Baga killing hundreds of people and destroying over 3,700 buildings including a number of churches. In late January, the Nigerian military repelled three attacks on the major city of Maiduguri, where Boko Haram was founded, while in early February, troops from Chad and Cameroon joined Nigerian forces in the biggest offensive against Boko Haram in six years.

Meanwhile, there has been no news about the Chibok schoolgirls (90% of whom are Christian).

(AP, BBC, Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin)

12

What next for Nigeria after election?

Updates

up d a t e

s

• GOODLUCK JONATHAN (left) and MOHAMMADU BUHARI

13Updates

A V i s i t t o I r a q

During 2014, Church in Chains sent over €22,000 (made up of designated gifts from supporters and grants from our General Fund) to provide aid for Christian refugees in Iraq. Tens of thousands of Christians were forced to flee their homes in northern Iraq as Islamic State militants conquered huge swathes of territory including Iraq’s second city, Mosul. In late November, Kris Baraniuk of Barnabas Fund travelled to Northern Iraq and found an atmosphere of fear and despair. No one he met (including the two families pictured) even considered returning home; many had endured great horrors.

Kris visited a refugee camp of 200 portacabins, one per family, in erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan. Food is not always available and medicine is scarce. A young man from Qaraqosh told how a mortar attack had killed two local girls. The family and neighbours heard ISIS was approaching, so they packed and travelled through the night to a camp further north, where the man, his wife and 2-year-old daughter have a small, windowless portacabin. Another Christian family from Qaraqosh, with three children under ten, said: “ISIS came to our house and told us to get out... They took everything... We had only our clothes with us.”

In another city, Kris met over 60 families, including elderly people and small children, living in flimsy tents erected on the concrete floors of an unfinished building, in bitterly cold weather. In a nearby village, he visited a small church

hall filled with tents for 24 Christian families who have nothing except some clothes and cooking items. Everything else was taken from them as they fled from small towns on the outskirts of Mosul. To provide shelter for displaced Christians, Barnabas Fund has bought a section of the former Camp Bastion in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, including tents, kitchen facilities, toilets, showers, generators, heating and air conditioning. It will be reassembled near Dohuk in Northern Iraq and is to be called “Sawra Village” from the Assyrian word for “hope”.

“ISIS came to our house and told us to get out... They took everything... We had only our clothes with us.”

Over 70 church buildings (including the Baptist church pictured) were destroyed on 16 and 17 January and ten people were killed, during a weekend of violent protests over the depiction of the Prophet Mohammad on the cover of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Islamists, associating Christians with the magazine despite the fact that it is a secular publication that regularly publishes anti-Christian material, targeted Christian homes and places of worship to express their rage over the publication.

In addition to church buildings, some 30 Christian homes were looted and burnt down, leaving many Christian families without anything. Numerous Christian schools and a Christian orphanage were also destroyed. Hundreds of Christians took refuge in police stations, army barracks and the homes of Muslim friends as protests spread across the country. The protests began in Niger’s second largest city, Zinder, on Friday 16 January, and quickly spread to surrounding towns and then to the capital, Niamey.

(Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin, World Watch Monitor)

A group of Islamic extremists, affiliated with Islamic State, abducted 13 egyptian Christians in Libya in the city of Sirte on Saturday 3 January. This was the third act of violence against egyptian Christians in Libya in less than two weeks.

Photographs of the 13 kidnapped men, along with seven Egyptian Christians abducted on

30 December, also in Sirte, were posted on “The International Jihad Network” (a website used by Islamic state and its allies) by the terrorist group, which calls itself the Islamic state of Tripoli. The photograph was captioned: “urgent. Islamic State soldiers have captured 21 Crusader Christians”. The militants’ statement did not include demands or a condition for the release of the captives. The men’s families were described by an NGO representative as being in shock: “I cannot begin to tell you how devastated they were as they recognised their sons. They have no idea where they are or what their fate will be.”

(Morning Star News, Telegraph, Watani, Daily News Egypt)

14 Updates

NIGER: Over 70 church buildings destroyed

LIBYA: 20 Christians abducted by Islamic State group

Iranian pastor Victor Bet-Tamarz (pictured) was arrested at his home in Tehran on 26 December while celebrating Christmas with a number of fellow Christians who Pastor Victor had invited to his home. A large group of Revolutionary Guards entered the house at 5.30pm and arrested all those present. They seized Bilbles, mobile phones and identity documents and carried out body searches on detainees. They later searched the house and confiscated a computer and a number of books belonging to the pastor.

All those present at the gathering were filmed and asked to explain to the camera why they were at the gathering and why they thought they were being arrested. They were also asked to fill out an eight-page form bearing the logo of the Ministry of Intelligence. Pastor Victor was taken to evin prison, but the other detainees were released. He remains in custody, and has not yet appeared in court.

(Mohabat News/FCNN)

The continuing silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (pictured) and his government on the topic of religious freedom in India has led many observers to conclude that a blind eye is being turned to the growing number of attacks on Muslims and Christians. uS President Obama spoke on the issue during a visit to India in January saying, “Upholding freedom of religion is the utmost responsibility of the government…we see violence and terror perpetrated by those who profess to be standing up for their faith.”

Senior church leaders issued a joint statement in December expressing serious concern about incidents such as forcing a Catholic school in Bastar to put up the statue of Hindu goddess Saraswati, the burning of a church in Delhi, the declaration of “Good Governance Day” on 25 December to undermine the importance of Christmas, and the call by some fundamentalists to convert 4000 Christians to Hinduism on Christmas Day.

(National Catholic Register, Times of India)

15Updates

IRAN: Pastor arrested at Christmas celebrations

INDIA: Prime Minister silent as attacks continue

16 Church in Chains in Action

Working Together

Thank You Bert

More Questions in the Dáil

NGO Standing Committee on Human Rights

Bert-Jan van Embden has recently stepped down from the Church in Chains Board of Trustees, due to pressure on time from family, church and study commitments. We would like to thank Bert for his faithful service over many years as a trustee and committee member and are delighted that he is continuing to be involved in the Dublin Prayer Group where he leads praise every month.

In January, Michelle Mulherin (Mayo) asked about the extent to which Ireland has challenged authorities in countries where Christians face persecution, while Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan) asked about the outcome of discussions at recent eu Foreign Affairs Council meetings regarding the persecution of Christians. In response, Minister Charles Flanagan stated that Ireland raises the issue of the safety of Christians through its official bilateral contacts with the countries in question, stressing the responsibility of the governments to protect minorities.

Church in Chains has recently been re-appointed to serve on the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade NGO Standing Committee on Human Rights for a further three-year term. The Standing Committee meets four or five times a year and gives human rights NGOs the opportunity to discuss Ireland’s policies and actions with members of the Department’s Human Rights unit.

Iran PetitionThank you to all those who contacted local TDs and Senators asking them to sign a petition to the Iranian Ambassador calling for the release of Christian leaders from prison. The petition has been signed by twenty members of the Oireachtas, including the Fianna Fáil leader, Micheál Martin. Arrangements are being made for the petition to be presented to the Ambassador at a formal meeting.

18

2014 Overseas Gifts

Money Matters

The primary calling of Church in Chains is to be an Irish voice for persecuted Christians, but we are also pleased to send financial aid overseas, as we are able, to help victims of persecution. During 2014, Church in Chains distributed the following overseas grants, totalling over €80,000 (consisting of designated gifts and legacies from supporters, grants from churches and trusts, proceeds from fund-raising events and allocations from our General Fund). The largest distribution made was €22,712 to Iraq (see page 13). Money was also distributed to partner organisations working in the following countries:

This money was sent via AsiaLInk to assist in various humanitarian and discipleship projects and also to support the printing and distribution of a new translation of the North Korean Bible.

This money was sent to the All-India Christian Council to support victims of attacks by Hindu extremists, to offer legal support to pastors and churches under threat and to document incidents of anti-Christian persecution.

This money was sent via Barnabas Fund to assist Christians suffering as a result of the civil war. It was used to provide displaced Christians with basic essentials such as food, bedding and heating.

This money was sent via Release eritrea to assist the families of Christian prisoners and also to assist former prisoners by training in skills such as driving, weaving and hairdressing to enable them to earn a living.

OTHER COUNTRIES€6,000 was sent to Pakistan to support Christian schools, €5,962 was sent to Nigeria to aid displaced Christians who have had to flee from Boko Haram attacks while €3,565 was sent to Iran for the printing and distribution of New Testaments. Smaller amounts were sent to Mexico and Central Asia.

NORTH KOREA

€12,010

SYRIA

€9,890

ERITREA

€7,768

INDIA

€10,000

For the past ten years, eritrea has imprisoned thousands of Christians indefinitely without trial. In 2002 the government banned all religious groups except the Eritrean Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Lutheran churches and Sunni Islam. Other Christians discovered meeting together were imprisoned in appalling conditions in shipping containers, open air facilities in military camps, pits in the ground and police stations, without any charge. The number of imprisoned Christians has fluctuated between about 1,500 and 3,000. Many of the prisoners have families who were left without any support.

Church in Chains’ partner, Release Eritrea, is led by respected Eritrean Christian emigrés who have extensive links throughout Eritrea and are able to distribute aid to the families of prisoners.

The situation in eritrea seems to be changing, as Dr Berhane Asmelash, Director of Release Eritrea, recently explained:

“Currently the total number of prisoners is much lower than it used to be. The number of new arrests is low. Last year, there were only 36 arrests and most of them were released after a few months in prison. At present we have 173 long term prisoners in our list – these prisoners have been in prison for more than six years. The total number of prisoners is not more than 300 at present. Most newly-arrested Christians are released in weeks or months.

“However we have hundreds of ex-prisoners who have served more than six years. Most of them were in their teens when they got arrested but are now over 25 and should no longer be dependent on their parents. We are helping them to start new businesses and learn a new skill, such as driving, weaving and hair dressing.”

Please give, as you are able, to help our persecuted brothers and sisters in Eritrea. Your gift will be sent, without any deduction, to Release eritrea to support families of current prisoners and also to assist training for ex-prisoners.

19Action Page

Support Eritrea’s Christian prisoners

1. use the Response Form to send your gift by post (cheque or postal money order)

2. Donate online via PayPal (visit our website www.churchinchains.ie)

Two Ways to Give

CONTAINERS USED AS PRISONS

BERHANE ASMELASH

An independent Irish charity that encourages prayer and action in support of persecuted Christians worldwide.

CHURCH IN CHAINS PO Box 10447, Glenageary, Co. Dublin,Ireland.

T E W

Director: David Turner

Church in Chains is a member of Aontas, evangelical Alliance Ireland, The Wheel and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade NGO Standing Committee on Human Rights.

Registered charity in Ireland (CHY 15443).

Church in Chains magazine is published four times a year and is edited by David Turner and Virginia Chipperfield.

TRUSTEES Pamela CoulterDavid Franklin (Chair)Norah Lynch (Secretary)

PANEL OF REFERENCE Bishop Ken ClarkePastor Vincent GannonRev Nigel Mackey

GIVINGChurch in Chains is entirely supported by voluntary donations. Gifts are used to pay for all the necessary expenses, including salaries, associated with our campaigning work and to distribute grants to overseas partners in China, eritrea, India, Iran, Iraq, Mexico, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Syria and Turkey.

Cheques etc should be made payable to Church in Chains. Bank Details: IBAN : Ie22 IPBS 9906 1020 1759 05 BIC : IPBSIe2DDetails about standing orders, legacies and tax-efficient giving available on request.

PRAYER NETWORKDUBLIN CITY First Friday night of the month at Grace Bible Fellowship, Pearse St.Contact David Turner 01-282 5393MIDLANDS REGION Rotates between Athlone, Ballinasloe, Banagher, Birr, Longford, Mullingar, Roscommon, Tullamore. Contact Seán Ó Cluaid 090-647 5410 CORKCORWILLISGALWAY GREYSTONES Miriam Beattie 01 687 3183

Jenny Gray 091 842479Roy Rohu 098 27110Mary Gill 053 9144795

Brendan O’Brien 021 4373369Olive Sturgeon 047 55137Frank McMurray 091 755 360

01-282 5393 info@churchinchains.ie www.churchinchains.ie

LOUGHREAWESTPORTWEXFORD

Davood MahmoodnezhdJim McGingKeith Talbot (Treasurer)