EEA Newsletter June ’12

Dear sisters, brothers,

In the midst of all turbulent news in Europe, be it the UEFA soccer games or another summit on the financial crisis in Europe, this News and Prayer Letter contains a lot that should gain your interest. Let me mention a couple of highlights of this month only:

• EFN, European Freedom Network, had an extremely good conference on human trafficking in Bulgaria medio June. Read the report!
• The launch of the Global Charter of Conscience in the European Parliament was another highlight. Launches in Bonn and London take place this week.
• Last week in Dublin a conference on young leader discipleship took place, one of the results of the youth leaders track at General Assembly 2011!

I gladly commit this edition into your attention and prayers. I can testify that EEA staff works very hard, but we al know:

‘Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain, unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain’ (Ps. 127 verse 1).

Greetings in our Lord.

Niek Tramper

General Secretary

General Assembly in Barcelona

8 – 12 October,  ‘Loving our neighbour’

The GA will be a great opportunity to learn, to meet and share as neigbours. The vision of the preparation team for the GA includes the following

• In cooperation with Mission Net and with EEA 21 a special effort is done to bring together younger leaders and senior leaders in daily ‘encouragement encounters’.
• By the help of KIT, Denmark and other associations of migrant churches GA will be a meeting place for representatives of traditional, new indigenous churches and migrant churches.
• Daily table groups will help to meet around the Word of God  (concentrating on passages from John’s Gospel) and to explore applications for our different contexts.

• In plenary sharing moments we will hear about God’s work in different parts of Europe and Central Asia.
• Several speakers will concentrate on ‘being a neighbour’ related to specific people groups, in particular Muslims.
• In close cooperation with the Lausanne/WEA Generosity Network sharing our resources will be a topic of discussion and we will develop ways to encourage the ‘art of giving’.
• Specific trainings can be chosen (e.g. on finding –financial- resources, with Lee Behar, MacLellan Foundation, on leadership training programmes with dr. Rolf Brynjolfson, WEA Leadership Institute, etc.)
• Regarding our nearest neighbour…Richard Kane will be present and inform us more about the Marriage Week initiatives that raise a global interest!
• Round table discussions will cover topics like ‘Developing neighbourliness in a traditional (Roman Catholic, Orthodox) context, in a secularized context and in post-communist societies.

Among speakers are: dr. Samuel Escobar (Bible expositions), dr. Pablo Martinez, dr. Thomas and dr. Christine Schirrmacher, Evi Rodemann, dr. Sas Conradie,

See further news on the EEA website under ‘Events’.  Invitations and registration forms have been sent last month. If you expect an invitation and you didn’t receive the application form so far, please contact EEA office as soon as possible.

We have a limited number of scholarships for participants from Central Asia, Central and Eastern Europe. You can ask for it by indicating that in your registration form.

EEA office staff

Recently two new staff members were appointed in the EXCO meeting for a first period of 6 months. Both are going to work part time in the office: Eline de Graaf-Klok (left-picture), PA for 1, 5 day a week and Hester Zoutman (Operations  Manager for 2,5 day a week). The General Secretary will continue his work 4 days a week, which means that there is no increase in budget of EEA.

Staff members working in the EEA office from 1 July 2012:

• Eline de Graaf – Klok (31), who will serve as Personal Assistant for 1,5 day a week. She also will work as the coordinator of  the Daniel project (that will be launched soon with the help of GZB, Reformed Mission League). Eline is married and has three children. She lives in Amersfoort. She graduated in Theology at Utrecht University and also studied in Cambridge UK. Eline’s working days are usually Tuesday (partially), Wednesday and Thursday (partially).
• Hester Zoutman – van der Burgh (34), who will start as an Operations Manager for 2,5 day week. Her main tasks: supervising offices in Driebergen en Brussels (including email systems, databases, personal data & legal requirements), developing communication systems (including website, newsletters, EEA brand etc), fundraising and coordination of the preparation of Gen. Assembly. Hester is married, with a daughter and lives in Haarlem. Hester’s office days are: Monday and Wednesday.
• General Secretary Niek Tramper: he will work 4 days a week for EEA, handing over one day to Hester and use the day left mainly for writing (the GS usually will not be available at Fridays).

These changes will be possible without an increase if the budget.

EEA finances

EEA staff worked hard to help the members to fulfil their responsibilities as (affiliate) members to pay the membership fee. We are encouraged but still wait for the contribution of nearly half of our members (!). Besides to that only a limited number of members (4) have contributed extra for EEA ministry in Brussels and the work of Christel Ngnambi, despite the strong plead for ‘Brussels’ from the side of many members during last GA (!).

EEA staff also worked hard to identify strategic partners, personal friends and major donors, and this process is going on. We are on speaking terms with several, but there is no lasting result sofar. It means that finances are still a great concern, an urgent issue of prayer and action. Because of the extra this year we face a limited deficit in 2012, but there is no guarantee for continuation. For that we need a regular increase of yearly income of ± Euro 40.000.

We need to come with good solutions before September of this year, otherwise we need to cut off staff time considerably and Brussels ministry is in real danger. This may not happen. Just look in this Newsletter how important Brussels ministry is!

Launch of the Global Charter of Conscience

(22 June)

An international group of leading academics and activists launched The Global Charter of Conscience today to expose the growing tensions across the world surrounding freedom of thought, conscience and religion – freedoms that are supposed to be protected by Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Charter was launched in the European Parliament, Brussels, in an event hosted by Finnish MEP Sari Essayah.

The Charter aims to bring religious tolerance into the centre of public debate and underlines the challenges of pluralism in the 21^st-century globalised world. It points to a visionary, constructive approach to uphold fundamental freedoms in the midst of the rising diversity of beliefs, worldviews and ways of life.

The launch of the Charter has been initiated and prepared by the staff of the European Evangelical Alliance.

• Download or order a copy of Global Charter of Conscience at: www.charterofconscience.org
• Look at the EEA website (under News/Downloads) for Biblical base of the Charter in: Biblical Guidelines Civil Public Square (& Summary). Also look for more explanation in ‘Frequently asked questions and answers’ related to Charter of Conscience.

Drafting the Charter was the responsibility of Dr Os Guinness, an English author and social critic, and Dr Thomas Schirrmacher, a German sociologist. It was reviewed over the course of three years by people of many faiths and none, including more than 50 academics, politicians of many persuasions and NGOs, all committed to a partnership on behalf of “freedom of thought, conscience and religion” for all. Together with the authors, they intend the document to make a big impact on civic education.

“The Charter in fact allows everyone to be free to be faithful to what they believe, and acknowledge the ‘dignity of difference’,” said Os Guinness. “We need to provide a solution to do away with the polarisations and aggravating the bitterness surrounding religion in public life before we dive headlong into a culture war between the extreme ends of secular and religious intolerance.”

“The Charter provides that solution and will encourage a new culture of civility where robust and noisy public debate is seen as good for society.”

Dr Heiner Bielefeldt, United Nations special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, said:

“This is a powerful document. It has enormous potential to inspire practical commitment and to contribute to a better understanding of human rights in general.”

Dr David McIlroy, a British barrister said:

“This is the only way we can secure and uphold freedom of conscience in the twenty-first century.”

The Charter is supported by Dr Habib Malik, whose father, Charles Malik was a chief draftsman of the 1948 Universal Declaration. The text is open to further endorsements, whilst a dozen of academics have already showed formal support for this text.

Subsequent launch events will follow in Bonn and in London in this week. 

Building a Bridge to Freedom.

By Julia Doxat-Purser & Jennifer Roemhildt Tunehag

How can you help a vulnerable person avoid ending up being sexually exploited &/or trafficked? Once someone is caught in this dark world, what would enable them to walk out of the darkness and into freedom that Christ intends for them?

These were the kinds of questions considered by 70 European Freedom Network partners in Bulgaria recently. The simple answer to these questions is that the Body of Christ, working internationally, has the potential to provide all of the answers but we must combine our efforts and not just see the issues as something for specialists.

Of course, trafficking ministry specialists are needed to reach out on the streets, to rescue, to fight legal cases and to accompany survivors through the long journey of recovery. But there are so many other potential contributions which can make all the difference, including preventing exploitation in the first place.  These include good children’s and youth work, quality social workers and family support staff, enthusing and training teaching, hotel, café, petrol station, airport etc. staff as well as police and border officers.  Vulnerable people need friends.  They need churches to know how to be family to survivors.  They need employers to give them apprenticeships. Governments need to be encouraged and challenged by our campaigning to do far better in prevention, prosecution and care. And the evil in all of this requires a response of strong prayer.

The consultation was incredibly encouraging and helpful as new relationships were developed and strategic ideas emerged.  Huge thanks are due to the many partners who worked together to make the event possible.  Please pray for EEA as it continues to nurture EFN and help it become even stronger and more effective. And please be in touch if you would like to help wake up the potential of the Body of Christ to build the bridge to freedom.

‘The Week of Prayer is so alive!’

(Research on the Week of Prayer)

 Last couple of months an intern from Evangelical Theological Faculty in Heverlee, Belgium, Roosje Groenveld did a research on the EEA Week of Prayer. She was supported by a sounding board composed of representatives of several National EA’s. She is due to finish her report. About the provisional results she writes:

“The last months I have been busy in putting together, comparing and analyzing all these results on the two surveys we held on the Week of Prayer…

Just to give you an impression: With 18 respondents and 34 questions, I’ve got 612 answers to think about. 612 bits and pieces that tell us something about how the Week of Prayer in the constituency of the European Evangelical Alliance is functioning in the last five years. Now a bigger picture is arising while putting these bits and pieces together. The Week of Prayer is celebrated in at least 21 countries of the EEA constituency. The national EA’s all produce some kind of Week of Prayer program. This program is the basis for all further items organized during the Week of Prayer.

The variety of ways in how the Week of Prayer functions seems endless within these countries.

One example: In answer to a question on the development in the last five years in the Week of Prayer, 14 respondents from 11 countries give 14 different answers.

• increase of information spread through internet,
• growing interdenominational cooperation,
• more prayer for politics and societal challenges,
• a youth event that is added to the Week of Prayer,
• connecting the Week of Prayer to a evangelistic campaign etc.

This is only a sample making visible the dynamic side of the Week of Prayer.

‘If only people could see what I see’ is often what I am thinking while writing down this report:

‘The Week of Prayer is so alive!’

Harry Bryans EEA associate staff member for Children’s ministry

Harry Bryans (54, born in Belfast) lives and works with his wife Catherine and two children as a missionary in Belgium since 1983. He has a wide experience in children’s ministry and participates in several European and global networks, including the Global Children’s Forum and 4/14 Global Initiative. He helped to develop children’s ministries in many countries in Europe and Lebanon. Recently he has been appointed as an associate staff member of EEA

How can we seek to reach the 95% of the 112 million European’s (between 0 – 14 years old) currently outside of church families and structures?

Harry’s task is to help communicate and strengthen the vision for Children’s Ministry in the EEA and the churches. To develop new strategies & encourage effective ministry models in our European context. To represent the EEA in several networks and make the expertise of different networks available in national EA’s.

Discipleship conference in Belfast

Situated on the western fringe of Europe, Northern Ireland is hardly the place where you will find people with a strong European identity. But it was here, just a few miles from the Atlantic ocean that 25 senior leaders gathered to explore how we could develop a learning community which would enable us to better fulfil the ‘everyday commission’ given to us by the Master – to make disciples who make disciples. Jim Brown writes:

‘Disciplers from Moldova, Bulgaria, France, Romania, Poland, Hungary, England, Scotland, Holland, France, Germany, USA, and Ireland spent 3 and a half days wrestling with the call to keep discipleship at the heart of all Kingdom activity.’

Jim Brown continues:

“I think I can speak on behalf of all the delegates when I say this was truly a blessed time, characterised by a heart connection between those called to be ‘first followers‘. As we spent time together the primary characteristic of a disciple became obvious as we grew in love for one another. In this soil, seeds were planted in each others hearts and minds which we believe will lead to a network being developed which will focus less on the passing of information about our ministries and more on how we create the space and opportunities to experience and shape one another’s ministries. This focus will enable us to pass on culture and the values that dictate the culture.

It was truly an inspiring time which ignited something in us individually and collectively which given the time any discipleship process demands, I believe will lead to increasing numbers of young Europeans embracing their call to make disciple who make disciples.”

Italy

A New Season for Evangelical Engagement in Society

On June 15^th nearly 250 people from all over Italy met for a “Christians for the Nation” conference at Parliament in Rome.

The Evangelical movement in Italy is going through a significant transition as far as the public witness of the Gospel is concerned. Having being a persecuted minority for centuries, Italian Evangelicals have developed a skeptical if not negative approach towards the public square. Staying away from society was one of the defining features of true spirituality. However, a change has been taking place for a couple of decades and is now gaining momentum. Beginning from a new awareness of religious liberty issues in the Nineties, Evangelicals have been subsequently encouraged to think about their positive contribution to the welfare of society at large. The Lausanne Covenant and the Lausanne “spirit” have been helpful tools in this transition.

Evangelical MP Sandro Oliveri hosted the meeting and the deputy speaker of the Assembly, Rocco Buttiglione, gave an encouraging word about the impact of Evangelicals in Italian society. Various people with an experience in socio-political engagement gave a testimony on opportunities and challenges of Christians involvement in the public square. Giuseppe Rizza of the Italian Evangelical Alliance gave a stimulating paper on the Cape Town Commitment. Then, nine round tables discussed issues of religion freedom, culture, media, school, bioethics, family, youth, social work, business, and integration, resulting in a report on each one of them.

A huge work is before us, but the widespread impression is that we are about to overcome the inward-looking, suspicious, and fragmented attitude to embrace a Gospel-centered and missional outlook. Italy is waiting for the third way of the Gospel which is not what traditional religion is about nor has to do with the secular version of a liberal Christianity. The country is waiting for a Gospel impact that is able to transform its whole ethos. (Leonardo de Chirico)

More News from Italy

“We must be concerned about justice as God is”. This is the summary of what Joel Edwards, International Director of Micah Challenge, told to the Annual General Assembly of the Italian Evangelical Alliance that took place in Catania (Sicily) on 20th-21st April. He was the main speaker of the conference that saw representatives of churches, agencies and missionary organizations gathered together for the annual meeting.

The assembly was also visited by the Mayor of Catania, the president of the Province and the representative of the Governor of Sicily, all giving recognition of the positive role of Evangelicals in society.

This is particularly important giving the traditional prejudice in Italy of Evangelicals being a cult. The Alliance is working hard to change this perspective by encouraging an Evangelical witness which is biblically firm, yet open to co-belligerence and characterized by generosity.

Some standing religious liberty issues were discussed (e.g. a mounting and dangerous phenomenon of places of worship being closed down) which call for attention.

This year the assembly was held in Sicily to encourage the regional EA in its efforts to build bridges and networks amongst Evangelicals.

(Leonardo de Chirico)

Greece

News from Greece

Greek faced- as a nation- the most crucial and critical elections in our modern history two weeks ago. A new government will determine the short and long term relationship of Greece with the European Union and it is going to be critical because of the difficult financial challenges the nation faces. Fotis Romeos writes:

“ There are currently more than 1.2 million unemployed people in Greece. The best brains of the young generation are leaving the country, striving to find a better future in another more promising region of the world. The suicide rate is going up all over the country. Old people see their retirement plan to be cut off dramatically, without having any other means to support themselves, despite their hard work for over 35 or 40 years.

In our small local church, three families are getting ready to immigrate because of the financial crisis and many others are considering this option as well”

As Nikos Dimou, a well known secular Greek writer underlined in his recent interview for the famous German magazine Spiegel:

“Greece is the home not only of democracy, but also of tragedy. The tragic hero is a person who overreaches himself, and violates the natural order of things.”

You may check the entire interview at: http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/interview-with-greek-writer-nikos-dimou-on-crisis-a-837024.html

I would say that we have entered a very tragic period of our history. We do need the prayers of God’s people for our country, for our people, and most importantly, for the small faithful remnant of believers who strive to bring glory to God during these difficult times.

We deeply appreciate your partnership in the cause of the Gospel, especially during these critical moments for our ministry and our land.”

Pray for Greece!

• Pray for the newly formed government that faces a huge challenge.
• Pray for the variety of summer programs we will be having, serving young children and sharing the message of hope with many people all over Greece.
• Pray for the short term teams we will be hosting here in Greece and those we will be sending from Greece like trips to Romania, Moldova and Egypt.
• Pray for our coworkers as they are facing the tremendous financial pressure on their families. Taxes are coming and the following weeks are anticipated to be extremely challenging, as the government tries to collect funds from everywhere.
• Praise the Lord for all those contributing towards our ministry needs in Greece. God is faithful and we are rejoicing His daily provision.
• Keep praying for St. Luke’s hospital and the hundreds of families working hard to maintain the best level of services as the public health system of Greece is collapsing rapidly…
• Pray for our emotional and physical stability as the pressure is overwhelming and we are common human beings…

European Student Forum in Brussels

Serving the Lord in Politics? Economics? Media? Law?  The European Student Forum, Brussels, 22-28 September 2012.

Once again, EEA and IFES are delighted to be organising a fantastic week of participative learning for students and young graduates who feel the Lord is calling them to serve society in the public arena.

Many of our alumni are to be found in European and national political administrations, major NGOs, newspapers and law firms across the continent. Go to www.studentforum.ifeseurope.org to find out more.  Young people need to register soon.

Mission Net 

There are many stories from different corners of Europe, showing the impact the Mission-Net Congress in Erfurt has had on many lives. See the nice Congress clips made by the artist San John. They are a fantastic recap of the past congress, a short and long version. See for yourself! And cheers to San John & team!

• 6 min version: http://youtu.be/wzuoRlufx1s
• 18 min version: http://youtu.be/3PHlzMJl6bQ

Mission-Net supports Fusion, running an outreach during the Olympic Games. Their goal for this summer: “Explore the Past – Engage the Present – Dream the Future”. For more information see www.fusionyac.org and click on “British Pilgrimage” or watch this movie: http://vimeo.com/33998641. If you would like to pray for Mission-Net, we invite you to sign up here: http://mission-net.org/mission-net/newsletter

It is certain that Mission Net will continue through God’s grace. And the board is praying and discussing what is the best way to move on. Chairman of the MN board Martin Voegelin writes:

“ The Board put it in January as a first priority to look for a leadership team to be in place well ahead of the final phase of preparation and win some of the bigger, international organisations to become co-owners of Mission-Net.”

Martin Voegelin continues:

“Where are we today?

• We still get lots of encouragement to go forward with Mission-Net.
• Some organisations are in a process of investigating their involvement in Mission-Net, but so far we do not have substantial promises of manpower on the level of the leadership team.
• Several very interested and capable people are offering their service – not being members of a mission agency and partly in need for financial support.

The board is challenged to take a pre-decision end of June as to how we go forward. At the moment not many tangible facts are encouraging us to take bold decisions! The deadline to decide on a congress 13/14 is end of September.

What is the next step?

Would you become part of the recruiting force for part-time workers (on loan of Christian organisations or perhaps financed through other channels)? Detailed information (positions of leadership team and other areas of involvement) are available.  Of course, any financial investment for workers would also be very welcome. I hope you are in touch with your National Mission-Net Motivator regarding your involvement with us. I’m more than happy to give you additional information on any level.

We are looking forward to working with you for God’s Glory further more and wish you His blessings! Thank you for your interest and you prayers!”

WEA Woman’s Commission

Jennifer Roemhildt-Tunehag just has finished her last meeting as the European representative to the WEA Commission on Women’s Concerns (CWC).  She writes that it has been an honour to her to serve the EEA in this way, and to represent the region.

Still we do not yet have a replacement to work with the commission, and to promote women’s issues in Europe.  Do you know of anyone in your Alliance who might be able to serve in this important role?  

We are hoping to find someone to promote the EEA’s agenda in particular on the role of marriage and family.  Ideally, this person would have a strong history of engagement in women’s ministry and a good relationship with their national Alliance.

Please feel free to send your suggestions and recommendations to EEA office (at the attention of Eline de Graaf, PA to the General Secretary).

Ukraine

Pavel Unguryan, member of Parliament in Ukraine and EURO 2012 Outreach Project Director, writes:

“I am glad to inform you about the latest news of our ministry in Ukraine and especially about an outreach project during the European Soccer Championship in Ukraine…From June 8th to July 1st 2012, Ukraine will host the biggest European Soccer Tournament which is commonly called “EURO 2012”…

Realizing the incredible opportunities for evangelism, which EURO 2012 creates, Christian churches and organizations in Ukraine became united under the Alliance. This was done in order to influence the country with effective methods of evangelism during the EURO 2012. Our goal is to spread the Word of God via any available method in a language understandable to the people. The outreach project involves 1200 churches and 12 000 volunteers and mission teams from around the world. They will be spreading the gospel and leaving a mark in history.

Using sports as a bridge to communicate with people in every region of Ukraine there have been created special fan-areas commonly known as “fan-zones”. These are places where Christian youth will conduct charitable and social events aimed to convey to people the love of Christ in a tangible way. At these fan-zones there will be live broadcasts of the championship games and also different sporting, musical and drama concerts. The fan-zones activities also envision the range of social events, in particular, for children’s homes, orphanages, institutions for handicapped children in order to the bring the joy of soccer to these special needs groups.

The project of evangelism during EURO 2012 is a partnership of many Christian Unions and churches from around the world, without which the success of the project could be questioned. We encourage all of our partners and friends to pray fervently for the success of the outreach project and the spread of the gospel among the participants of this major sporting event. For those who are willing to come to Ukraine during EURO 2012 and participate in the outreach projects in all regions of Ukraine we are ready to give you a warm welcome and ensure that you have a great experience of Christian ministry and recreation.

For more information, please visit http://zakubok.info/en/participate/missionteams.html

Christ Day in Estonia

July 28, 2012

Christ Day  in Tallinn/Estonia provides an unique opportunity to see the whole spectrum of denominations and churches working together.

Hanspeter Nuesch (Agape – Europe) writes: “After meeting church leaders from literally all denominations including the Orthodox and Catholic Church, I believe that God has put before us a historic opportunity to experience what God can do if all the churches unite to lift up Jesus Christ and commit their country to the Lord. They already experienced a great start in Estonia with the “40 Days Prayer and Fasting” initiative before Easter.

Christ Day, what it is:

• Lifting up Christ as personal Saviour, Lord of the Church and Light of the World
•  Mobilization of Christians of all denominations and ethnical backgrounds
• Christ-centered Unity not at the expense of Biblical Truth
• Long-Term Process and not merely One-Day Event
• Strategic Prayer Coverage of a Country with Flag Bearers/Prayer Partners from each Municipality
• Start of a National Movement of increasing Transformation of Society

More news, see: www.kristuspaev.ee/en and/or: www.2012.ee

Central Asia, Kyrgysztan

On Monday, April 30th, Pastor Gani Mondoev, the head pastor of our  Church in Almaty, Kazakhstan and Bishkek Kyrgyzstan and his two daughters were in a car accident in Almaty. The girls suffered severe head injuries and underwent surgeries. Their conditions are improving; Deborah, 5, is still in ICU. Mariam, 12, is more stable and out of ICU. The driver, Marina, a recently new church member, was hospitalized with a broken hip. Pastor Gani and the people in the other car were not hurt.

We ask for prayer for a full recovery for the girls and for comfort, peace and strength for the parents Pastor Gani and Sophia. Marina needs special prayer for complete healing and peace for his wife Sophia. Pastor Gani attented EEA General Assembly kast year.  He thanks EEA friends for their love and prayer. You can reach Gani at Skype (ganiggwo)

FEB News

The Fellowship of European Broadcasters (FEB) has been actively involved with MEPs and Organisations working to protect children from inappropriate Internet and Mobile communications.

FEB writes in its Newsletter:

“We are pleased that the European Commission has presented a plan to offer a ”European Strategy for a Better Internet for Children“. 75% of children in Europe use the internet, a third of whom do so by means of a mobile phone. The Commission’s plan was developed in partnership with Mobile Phone Operators, phone manufacturers and social network service providers – and aims to give children the tools to be able to use the digital world in safety.
FEB will continue to press for Software to contain “Opt In” rather than the current “Opt Out” facilities for unsuitable websites. This is currently being initiated in the British Parliament. ”

For more information, see: www.feb.org

WEA: concern for Religious Liberty worldwide

The purpose of the WEA Religious Liberty Prayer Release is to keep you informed and mobilized in prayer and intercession for the needs of justice and religious liberty in the Church around the globe, so that we can stand together for the work of the Kingdom and the healing of the Nations. The Prayer Release is comprised on the basis of different credible Christian based resources. For further information please contact Godfrey Yogarajah, Executive Director, at wearlc (at) sltnet.lk (replace (at) for @), or visit http://www.worldevangelicals.org/commissions/rlc/.

Pakistan’s human rights activist Asma Jahangir, former United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, has courageously spoken for religious minorities around the world. Now, her own life is under threat. She revealed at a recent press conference in Lahore that the country’s intelligence agency, Inter Services Intelligence or ISI, had planned and ordered her assassination.

The threat to the life of Jahangir, who co-founded the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and is president of bar, “should be taken even more seriously given that state actors are allegedly behind it,” Yogarajah said.

Since 1977, when General Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq captured power by a coup and Islamized the country, there have been sustained efforts to take Pakistan away from the vision of the country’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah to create a nation where rule of law prevails and religious minorities are protected.

Jahangir, who is helping the country to return to its foundational principles, is no stranger to threats. She defended an underage Christian boy, Salamat Masih, who was accused of blasphemy, and won the case in 1995. Extremist forces attacked her car and assaulted her outside the High Court. She has also been taken hostage, had her home broken into, and received death threats for fighting for justice.

WEA-RLC urges the government of Pakistan to form a judicial commission to investigate the threat to Jahangir’s life and give her the highest level of security, Yogarajah said.