Suomen Lähetysseura -

Tanzanians unite their forces against drought

Tue, 24 Aug 2010 07:29:42 GMT

The water and environment project supported by FELM has helped Tanzanians who are suffering from drought in Kishapu, Northern Tanzania. The old water pipelines have been restored and the locals are in charge of the water management in the region.

"The people in the Kishapu region have been without water for 20 years, is it not time that this suffering is over!", says Mr. Mark Leveri , as we drive through the dry savannah from Mwanza to the south, towards Shinyanga and Kishapu.

Mark Leveri is a country director of a FELM partner, a Christian refugee aid organisation in Tanganyika, and he is presenting us the environment project in Kishapu. Mr. Leveri sounds excited. The locals are, he says, earnestly involved in the project.

No water, no life

"Everything here depends on the rains. If the rains fail to arrive, there is no life either. When people get water, the development accelerates. The water pipe lines brings teachers to a village, and children have the chance to go to school. The entire region has a hopeful and good atmosphere now", Mark Leveri says.

Water can break the vicious cycle of poverty, or at least give hope for the better. The project supported by FELM brings clean water for about 7,000 people.

The local government is also involved in the project. The entire environment project is a form of grassroots level activity against climate change. Desertification is also fought against by planting of trees.

Climate change worsens the drought

Cutting trees for firewood and construction needs, as well as cattle grazing in the traditional manner, have hastened desertification in Kishapu.

According to Mark Leveri, the people in Kishapu suffer from the lack of water for about six months each year. He estimates that climate change has prolonged the drought seasons from what they used to be.

It has also made the changes in weather more unpredictable than before. Excessive rains with flooding have increased, but the rains fail to arrive where they are most urgently needed.

Children suffer most

The lack of water causes many kinds of problems for the people whose livelihoods depend on farming as well as on the rearing of cattle. Hindering the cleaning of people, animals, homes, and clothes, the shortage of water increases the number of illnesses.

Drought weakens the harvest and, at worst, people suffer from hunger. The thin figures of the people in Kishapu make you think that famine is a familiar guest in the region. The children are the ones to suffer most from the lack of water.

The shortage of water maintains the cycle of poverty in many ways. Girls, for example, often do not finish school, for they simply do not have the time for it. Water must be fetched from afar, and the girls bring it home even three times a day. That may take them as many as six hours every day.

The key word: education

Kishapu is one the driest regions in Northern Tanzania, and drought has been fought against there also in earlier times.

Aid organisations built a system of water pipe lines in Kishapu in the 1970's, but it fell out of use fairly soon. Mark Leveri says that the greatest mistake was not to educate the locals to maintain the pump and to be in charge of the water management in other respects, as well.

The old water pipe lines have now been repaired and new pipe lines have been built. The people of Kishapu dug 18 kilometres of trenches of water pipes. A new water pump has also been installed.

The residents of Kishapu are committed to maintaining the equipment and to working together according to the jointly drawn instructions, as well as paying a shilling (a tenth of a euro cent) for a litre of water.

It takes 5 years

The key persons in the villages have now been trained and they are responsible for the functioning of the water service. These people, says Mark Leveri, are well-motivated, usually young people.

He also says that it usually takes about five years before the set of values and attitudes of a local person have altered enough to change his or her way of life.

The work done to make ordinary people committed is the guarantee for a permanent change.

"It is important to train even the poorest people", emphasizes Mark Leveri.

Water purified in the sun

The simplest way to fight the lack of water is to harvest rain water during the rainy season. The roofs have gutters for this, and the water runs to containers. The roofs of shacks are not sturdy enough for this, but all the roofs good enough are used for water collection. Containers are used by schools, and therefore more children go to school now, as the amount of water has increased. If only it rained more...

A simple but functioning solution for the purification of water has replaced boiling the water and, thus, the system saves trees from felling. According to this SODIS-method water is purified in sunlight when the temperature exceeds 45 degrees Celsius, there is enough UV radiation, and the amount of water is at least 1.5 litres. The water bottles are kept in the sun for a minimum of 7 hours.

Holistic development

The environment project supported by FELM also promotes cleanliness, the use of toilets, and sanitation. The means of drama are used to change people's attitudes towards environment protection, equality, and HIV/AIDS. The purpose of all this is to raise the people’s awareness and to empower them to use their will and to function for the good of the entire community.

Sari Lehtelä
Communications Officer in the FELM

Maria Immonen Elected to the Council of the Lutheran World Federation

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 10:41:14 GMT

Maria Immonen, the FELM Director for Development Cooperation was chosen to the Council of the Lutheran World Federation on July 24, for a membership term of seven years.

The Council is the highest executive organ of the Lutheran World Federation after the General Assembly. It has 48 members from the member churches, as well as a President and a Treasurer. Ms Maria Immonen is the only Finnish member of the Council elected on July 24.

"The most important task of the Council is to ensure that all the work that is expected of the Lutheran World Federation will be done", summarizes Ms Immonen the challenges of her new appointment of trust.

Maria Immonen has worked abroad as a FELM employee in Tanzania, as well as in the service of the Lutheran World Federation in Geneva for five years. She has studied International Development.

Paula Laajalahti
FELM Communications Officer

Bishop Munib Younan elected the President of the Lutheran World Federation

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 13:09:02 GMT

Bishop Munib Younan, Th. Ph.D, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, was elected to be the President of the Lutheran World Federation with a great majority of votes in the 11th General Assembly of the LWF in Stuttgart, Germany on July 24.

The only candidate in the election, Younan received 300 votes from the 360 representatives entitled to vote. He will succeed the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, who has been the President since 2003. Bishop Hanson is the Presiding Bishop of the Saint Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).

Munib Younan was born in Jerusalem in 1950. He has studied in the Helsinki University, obtaining his MA in Theology there. Since 1988, Bishop Younan has been the Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land.

"I was given a cup of hot chocolate by the representatives of the Church, when I was a school boy", recollected Bishop Younan.

"I wondered how I could repay this gift of love, for I had no gold. This is why I want to give myself to the service of the Lutheran World Federation and the churches."

Munib Younan also thanked his wife Suad, who was standing by her husband's side after the election result was announced:

"Without her I could not have done all this."

Lifelong work for promotion of peace

Bishop Younan has promoted peace and communion between religions by organising meetings between Jews, Christians, and Muslim leaders. The Christian Peace Movement in Finland awarded Bishop Younan its price in 2001, and in 2005, Bishop Younan was given The Star of Betlehem Award by President Mahmoud Abbas.

Bishop Younan wants to promote peace also in his new task "so that the wounds of the world would be healed".

He has published a book called "In the Hope of Reconcilation", in which he searches for peaceful solutions to the political-religious problems in the Middle East.

FELM is in partnership with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land. Mission Director Rev. Seppo Rissanen commented the election result with contentment:

"We rejoice as the Bishop Munib Younan from our partner church has been chosen to be the President of the Lutheran World Federation. Bishop Younan is well aware the challenges faced by Lutheran churches both in the north and the south. He is courageously working to promote the gospel and for those who live in poverty and without human rights."

Paula Laajalahti
Communications Officer

Order Bishop Younan's book from FELM Online ShopBazar

50 Years of Mission in Pakistan

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 11:55:44 GMT

This year it is 50 years since the first FELM employees arrived in the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan.

The North West Frontier Province was allocated for the Lutherans

The Christians in Islamic Pakistan believe that it was Apostle Thomas who brought Christianity to the Indian subcontinent. Roman Catholic missionaries arrived in Pakistan in the 16th century, whereas Protestants, Presbyterians from North America, came 350 years later.

In order to prevent their work from overlapping, the mission organisations divided Pakistan into sections. Lutherans were allocated the North West Frontier Province of British India, which became the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan when the country was born in 1947.

The British colonial army was not able to subject the Pathan tribes in the region under their rule - let alone the tribes in Afganistan. The tribes in the frontier region received an autonomy which they are still maintaining.

Making the unknown known

When FELM celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1959, a decision was made to begin work among the Islamic nations, particularly in Pakistan, a country the Finns knew hardly anything about besides its name. Paavo Norkko, a teacher who travelled around in Pakistan during his student days, can be regarded as the father of Finnish work in the Islamic countries.

FELM began its work in Pakistan in 1960 in partnership with the local Lutheran Church. Today, we work together with the Church of Pakistan, a united church founded in 1970 by the Anglicans, Methodists, Lutherans, and Scottish Presbyterians. Our partner in the Northwestern Frontier Province is the Peshawar Diocese.

Pills, bullets, and street power

Pakistan is battling with political, economic, and social problems as well as ethnic conflicts. The war in Afganistan and terrorism have driven the country into a chaos. The national debt and maintaining the army account for approximately 60% of the country's budget.

"We are treating people's health by giving them pills instead of bullets", says Mano Rumalshah, the Bishop Emeritus of the Peshawar Diocese. He says this in the video documentary displayed in the FELM Mission Gathering this year in Varkaus, Finland, in the exhibition with the title "You are one of us" presented in the Upper Secondary School of Varkaus.

Ambassador Kimmo Pulkkinen from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland states that Islamic movements have not succeeded in their political efforts to show their force in election results. They do, however, have "street power" among the people. The poor support the Taliban and the radicals. This is something the educated Pakistanese with a Western orientation need to consider. The government of Pakistan is trying to find a balance between America and its own people.

The untouchables

A Christian minority in Pakistan lives among the Islamic society, and a majority of the Christians are descendants of the casteless Hindus who converted into Christianity at the end of the 19th century. Approximately half of them are Protestants, while the other half are Catholics.

The Pakistanese Christians living in a troubled situation find their faith an extremely important matter, says Bishop Rumalshah. It is not the choice of an individual, people receive it in their mother's milk. "I can only decide on what is my relationship with God", he says. "If people do not respect faith in others, what remains there worth of respect?"

"Give my people livelihood"

In our partnership with the Peshwar Diocese, FELM is focusing on education, Christian upbringing, and health care. The hospitals in Tank and Bannu are Christian institutions, as well as many schools and clinics. Dar ul Hikmat in Lahore is training teachers for the schools of the church.

Bishop Mano Rumalshah states the most urgent problem with the words "Give my people livelihood". The poor school children in the Frontier Province are in desperate need of Finnish sponsors. The FELM Sponsor Programme will provide them with the aid they need.

Christian upbringing creates a good self-esteem

Christian school children have found it hard to succeed in school, both for economic and social reasons as well as religious ones. The low self-esteem the children have often destroys their potential at an early age.

The education given in the schools of the church is a living example of how the right of a minority for a religion and education chances of its own has born people towards social equality. Former mission schools are now under church rule. FELM and the Peshwar Diocese have been constructing schools that have encouraged parents to send their children to learn.

The learning material created for lessons in Religion builds on the local culture. The same material has also been used by other denominations in various parts of Pakistan.

What does God want from us?

Bishop Emeritus Mano Rumalshah feels that the church still has the opportunity of to work in Pakistan. He says: "We are part of this country and nation. Our partnership with FELM is what God wants from us here."

If the hospitals, schools, and clinics are closed, there are hardly any places where Christians can interact with the majority of the nation.

"I believe we can bring hope and a reconciliation to a broken world through diakonia work, health care, development co-operation and education - to people who despise us and perhaps think of us as their enemies. I hope that FELM will be our partner when we continue this journey of our lives."

Jouko Marttinen

The Varkaus Mission Gathering had 15,000 guests

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 11:50:16 GMT

"This gathering has made us feel the warmth and hospitality present in Eastern Finland", said Ms Riitta Sandberg, the FELM Co-ordinator of the Gathering, as the Mission Gathering was approaching its end.

The Mission Gathering in Varkaus ended on Sunday afternoon, June 13, when new mission employees for FELM were consecrated. The gathering was arranged in co-operation by FELM and the Parish and City of Varkaus.

About 15,000 people convened in Varkaus for the three days of the gathering. When the people who attended individual events are taken into account, the number rises to over 25,000. The greatest attraction proved out to be the 25th Anniversary Concert of Jakaranda, with 5,000 friends of African music present there.

Ms Tiina Taavitsainen, the Executive Secretary for the Gathering, and Ms Marja-Muusa Hämäläinen, the Parish Board Chairperson, also seemed content. Both of them voiced their deep thankfulness for the efforts of the voluntaries.

"The voluntaries here have been engaged in creating the atmosphere of the gathering from all their hearts. Our effort was to make a gathering where people can meet and rejoice. The feedback tells us that this goal was achieved. The organisation of the gathering also seems to have worked well," said Marja-Muusa Hämäläinen.

"Our focus was making an event where people could participate in some way, not just children and young people, but also adults. This is how we wished to lower the threshold for people to come to the gathering", said Tiina Taavitsainen.

Nine new mission employees

The last event of the Mission Gathering was the Mass where nine new mission employees were consecrated for the foreign work of FELM. Mrs. Anna-Riitta Holmström, a Secondary School teacher and Rev. Oskari Holmström will leave for Tanzania, and Mr Ari Koivulahti, a journalist-cum-photographer and Mrs. Maarit Koivulahti, a Qualified Nursery Nurse, for Namibia. Ms. Karita Laisi, a Development Co-operation Co-ordinator, and Rev. Janne Rissanen will leave for Israel. Ms. Heidi Uusimäki, M.Soc.Sc, as well as Mr. Tim Mara, Dipl. Eng., and Ms. Kaiju Neiglick, M.Theol., are about to leave for Hong Kong.

Bishop Matti Repo to the FELM Board

The Mission Gathering arranged annually during the second weekend of June was born around the FELM Annual Meeting. The Annual Meeting is the top decision making organ of the oldest Lutheran mission organisation in Finland, now in its 152th year of operation.

The Annual Meeting at the Church of Varkaus was attended by 468 people, 414 of whom were parish representatives, 18 were delegates from other member organisations, whereas 35 were private individuals with memberships of the FELM.

Three of the four trustees who were to resign were re-elected: Rev. Simo Juntunen, Executive Director of Herättäjä-Yhdistys from Lapua (the Lapua Diocese) (337 votes), Ms Minna Lairi, Mission Secretary from Järvenpää (the Espoo Diocese) (323 votes), and Mr Kai Juntunen, Diocese Secretary from Savonlinna (the Mikkeli Diocese) (272 votes). For each of them, the term will be their second one in the Board.

Matti Repo, the Bishop of Tampere, was elected to be a new member of the Board (402 votes). Repo will replace Bishop Emeritus Juha Pihkala as the representative of the Lutheran Bishops in the Board. Bishop Pihkala has led the Board for 12 years, since 1998 until the Gathering in Varkaus, when his time at the Board ended and he chose not to be re-elected.

Besides them, the following people will continue to be trustees: Ms. Lotta Gammelin, Student of Theology from Helsinki (the Helsinki Diocese), Rev. Vicar Risto Kormilainen from Suomussalmi (the Kuopio Diocese), Mr Mikko Myllys, Sales and Project Manager from Helsinki (the Helsinki Diocese), Ms Kaija Piispa, an author from Kiikoinen (the Tampere Diocese), Mr. Tapani Rintala, a headmaster from Turku (the Turku Archdiocese), Ms Gina Rivera, Project Secretary from Mustasaari (the Porvoo Diocese), Rev. Kimmo Saares from Helsinki (the Helsinki Diocese), and Ms. Minna-Maaria Sipilä, M.Ed., from Kempele (the Oulu Diocese).

Next year in Pori

Next year, the Mission Gathering will be held in Pori on June 10-12, and the site will be the Karhuhalli sports centre and its surroundings. The theme of the gathering will be Arki@Pyhä. The @ sign will remind people of how mission work done in an everyday setting, but with a connection to the Holy. The part that comes after the @ sign tells the name of the operator; thus, the Holy is present in our everyday and all the time.

More stories, photos, and videos of the Mission Gathering at www.lahetysjuhlat.fi

The 25th Anniversary Concert of Jakaranda was the most popular event of the Mission Gathering. 5,000 people convened to listen to African music, filling the last seat of the festival tent. Photo Joanna Lindén

The mammoth crocheting team of FELM led by Seppo Rissanen and Juha Pihkala battled against local confirmation school youngsters. The winners donated 10 Euro cents for each stitch crocheted, which amounted to 8 euros. The stitches made in the Confirmation School Crocheting Competition raised the staggering sum of 540 euros for the FELM Equal Share Fundraising Campaign. Photo Salla Matilainen

A deaf minister leaves for mission work in the Middle East

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 11:44:36 GMT

"The work includes an immense number of new things", says Rev. Janne Rissanen, who is about to begin working in the Middle East. He was ordained for mission work in Varkaus, Finland, on Sunday, May 30.

"Sign language is God's greatest gift for the deaf, for it enables us to learn new things", says Rev. Janne Rissanen, aged 33. He is the first deaf minister in Finland.

Janne Rissanen was ordained at the end of May in Kuopio, Finland, and consecrated for mission work in the Mission Gathering in Varkaus. The place of his ordination was Kuopio, for the agreement between the Kuopio Diocese, FELM, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land arrived at last year has the aim of increasing communication and mission interest.

Rev. Rissanen will begin his work among the hearing impaired in Jerusalem in August, as an employee of FELM and serving the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL).

"The deaf there are weak: many are in financial trouble and interpreter services are truly appalling. Also, there are families who cannot afford to send their deaf child to a private school for the deaf and hearing impaired."

Rev. Rissanen aims to study the two local sign languages as well as written Arabic, and to familiarize himself with the local culture. His plans also include, among other things, visiting schools and associations for the deaf, arranging services using sign language and translation work, together with visits, for example, to Jordan.

"The work entails a tremendous amount of new things. There is so much to do!"

Encouraged by the Bishop to come and work for mission

Janne Rissanen has been deaf from birth, and so has his sister. Sign language is his natural mother tongue.

"God gave me deafness and sign language", he says.

Rev. Rissanen has studied in Åbo Akademi University in Turku, Finland, and in the Universities of Turku and Helsinki, and also in Copenhagen, Denmark, and in Bristol, UK. Besides Theology, Rev. Rissanen has studied Sociology of Religion, Greek, Hebrew, and sign languages.

Getting to know Munib Younan, the Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, gave a head start for his dreams about mission work.

"The Bishop has urged me to come and work there for several years now. It is finally coming true. I am so much looking forward to going there and having the chance to meet local people."
Prejudices hinder people

A deaf person does not find it easy to find employment in Finland. Even though the position of sign language here is strong, the deaf are facing many difficulties at work, says Rev. Rissanen.

"The deaf are confronted with similar prejudices as the Swedish speaking Finns, the Romani people, the Sami people, or the Somalis. Many deaf people are only able to have temporary employment contracts."

Rev. Rissanen does hope that Finland would ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which it has already signed. This would help to clear the way for the deaf people to participate in employment.

Janne Rissanen has surpassed many obstacles on his professional way. His friends are, indeed, enthusiastic about his leaving for mission work.

"When my friends will come and see me there, I will able to introduce them to the sites of the Biblical scenes in sign language", he is planning.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land works in Jordan, the West Bank, and in Jerusalem. Its language is Arabic and it has six parishes. It is the only Lutheran Church in the entire Middle East. Bishop Munib A. Younan has received his theological education in Finland and he has been leading the church since 1998.

Text and photo: Marjatta Kosonen

Strategy 2010-2015: Eradication of poverty, promotion of human rights and ministry

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 11:38:53 GMT

Eradication of poverty, promotion of human rights and ministry are the scope of the work of FELM.

The focus will be, even more effectively than before, to improve the lives and position of the marginalised and the weakest in society. The share of ministry in our work will be increased particularly among the groups of people who are currently not reached by Christian churches. This will be done, like all the work FELM does, consistently with our local partners.

FELM is a mission organisation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. Our mission is to spread God's love with words and actions. We proclaim the gospel, defend human rights, and work to remove poverty.

"In our work abroad, we will strengthen the parish work of Asian minority churches. In Africa, we will focus on equipping churches there in their mission work. Our actions in Latin America will improve the resources and rights of native peoples and marginalised groups. Our work in Europe consists of support for work among immigrants", states Mission Director Seppo Rissanen when speaking on the future efforts of FELM.

The new strategy will have a strong focus on decreasing poverty and defending the human integrity of the weakest in society. That is why FELM will increase its work among such groups as the disabled and the victims of human traficking.

All the work we do takes into account the position of women, the action against the spreading HIV and AIDS pandemia, and ecology. To do this, FELM will considerably strengthen its lobbying in Finland and abroad.

The strategy pays attention to the fact the majority of Christians live in the southern hemisphere. That is why our work focuses on the independence of the churches in the south, strengthening their independence and integrity.
Inter-ecclesial co-operation will increase exchange of employees

Inter-ecclesial co-operation will increase in the next few years both in the south, and between churches in the south and north. FELM will initiate work with voluntaries, both abroad and in Finland, as well as exchange of employees in this connection. The ability to understand other cultures and religions will be needed increasingly in the future also in the Lutheran parishes in Finland:
"In our domestic work, we will tighten our co-operation with Lutheran parishes in Finland. We will support the parishes in their cross-cultural work, and will renew our traditional sponsoring work", Seppo Rissanen summarizes.

The strategy has been prepared in co-operation with both the foreign and Finnish partners of FELM.

FELM was founded in 1859. All the parishes in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland are its members. The membership list also contains church organisations and private individuals. The Board of FELM is chosen by the Annual Assembly. FELM works in nearly 30 countries, where it operates in co-operation with local churches and organisations and with the Lutheran World Federation.

FELM is a partner organisation of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, and it is awarded development co-operation funds by the Ministry.

Religion vital for development and environment

Sat, 24 Apr 2010 11:10:38 GMT

Seminar on ‘Role of Religion in Development with focus on Ecology and Climate Change’ was held on Thursday 22 April 2010, at the Finnnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission (FELM) house in the Finnish capital, Helsinki.

Rev Tapio Leskinen, who moderated the seminar, made opening remarks welcoming the participants. He highlighted the role of religion and its linkages between development and climate change.

Organized by the FELM, the seminar brought together experts in the area. Some 40 participants included mostly development workers, environmental specialists, university students, senior representatives of the FELM, university professors and academics, and professional trainers.

Presenting some possible drastic outcomes of the carbon emissions Rev Leskinen expressed his faith that the seminar would contribute some, if not much, on how faith communities should move forward with the climate and environmental issues. He then went on to question how much faith communities share together on tackling the burning issue. Rev Leskinen is also the Deputy Director of the FELM Overseas Department.

Thursday’s seminar was FELM’s fourth annual initiative to bring together experts in the area of Religion and Development.

The panel consisted of Dr Seppo Rissanen, Executive Director of the FELM, who made a presentation on "why is religion important in development?"; Rev Canon Nangula Kathindi, Anglican Church coordinator for AIDS work in Namibia, who presented a paper titled "Southern Africa: Religion, Developent and Ecology and Climate Change"; and Abdalla Ali Duh, University teacher at the University of Helsinki, who spoke about "Religion’s role in Development, Ecology and climate Change.”

The commentators were Professor Elina Vuola, Development Studies Professor Marja-Liisa Swantz and Ph.D. Charles Kessey from Ghana, respectively.

Noteworthy, a FELM’s advocacy advisor Hanna Rinkineva presented on behalf of Rev Nangula who failed to present her paper. Rev Nangula got stuck at Frankfurt following closure of the airspace due to volcanic ash.

Religion and development are inseparable

Welcoming everyone to the seminar Dr Seppo Rissanen pointed at the fact that FELM has had a long history of over 150 years of working in the field of religion and development. He claimed that religion is always very important for human development. Many good ideas for improving the conditions of the poor societies have failed, because this dimension to development has been neglected, he opined.

Reiterating that religion and development are inseparable and that the degradation of environment is questioning the very future of our creation, he emphasised on the growing need to maintain dialogue and interaction among people of different faiths.

Professor Elina Vuola, hailing Dr Rissanen for a precise presentation, stressed on the importance of holistic empowerment of women for tackling environment issues in effective ways. She stated, ‘Islam and Christian feminists have more in common than differences.’

Whille Rev Kathindi stated that religion is an inseparable part of life African life, prof Swantz emphasized the anthropological dimension of environmental issues. Prof Swantz said that local environment and nature are important part of their very identity for many native people. The land they belong to often associates with their beliefs, she added.

Abdalla Ali Duh, referring to the Islamic scriptures highlighted many positive forces for global development and climate change.

He, however, stated some negative forces as well. Charles Kessey underlined on the need to work in harmony between and among the world religions on issues of common interests.

'We have over exploited the mother earth for too long,’ he said emphasizing growing need for such debates and discussions.

The presentations were followed by a lively debate.

Dr Rissanen made the concluding remarks in which he stressed the importance for interfaith dialogues to make the world a better place.

Prakash Dhakal

Speeches can be watched by the following links:

In text:

A Timely Reminder: Don’t Forget the Majority of the World’s People

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 06:47:26 GMT

Finnish development organisations’ campaign for more effective action on cross-cutting themes in Finland’s development cooperation is drawing to a close. The campaign, which particularly targeted MPs, culminated in a meeting between NGO representatives and President Tarja Halonen.

Finland’s official development policy includes three major cross-cutting themes concerning women’s rights, marginalised groups, and HIV/AIDS.

The President fully supports the way development organisations have highlighted these important issues. The Parliamentary Global Affairs Group is now likely to make these cross-cutting themes one of its main topics. And the Foreign Affairs Committee is already running an initiative on cross-cutting themes.

These developments are among the accomplishments of the Don’t Forget the Majority campaign. The campaign has particularly focused on vulnerable groups including women, children and the disabled, whose rights are supported throughout Finland’s development policies.

“Addressing cross-cutting themes is crucial for development. Without action on these issues, there can be no development,” says Niina Pitkänen, advocacy and policy officer of KEPA (the Finnish Service Centre for Development Cooperation).

But Pitkänen believes that this definition of cross-cutting themes has not in practice significantly benefited these groups, who make up the majority of the world’s people. It has enabled lip service to be paid to their interests, while their own voices have been lost in a sea of consensus and platitudes.

Recent evaluations have proven that cross-cutting themes need more attention at the implementation stage of Finnish development cooperation. “Once a theme becomes cross-cutting, it actually seems to receive less support,” rues Pitkänen.

Development NGOs believe the Finnish government should develop a strategy extending beyond electoral terms to ensure that adequate resources are allocated for future work on cross-cutting themes.

Don’t Forget the Majority was a low profile campaign involving no media stunts or public demonstrations, although campaigners sent various gifts to Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen, and also met the Minister, several MPs and Foreign Ministry advisors.

Icing on the cake: meeting the President

The campaign reached its peak on 25 March 2010 when a group of NGO representatives met President Tarja Halonen in her official residence.

“As a group we do not believe development cooperation funds have been wasted, but there is always room for improvement, and that’s what this campaign has set out to highlight,” says Markku Niskala, chair of KEPA’s board.

NGOs feel it is important for Finland’s head-of-state to be fully aware of the realities faced by the world’s majority as she travels the world. President Halonen is known as an outspoken supporter of the interests of women, children and the disabled.

“Supporting you in this campaign is not difficult,” Halonen told the campaign delegation. “It takes courage to speak out for the majority of the world’s people, but this needs to be done.”

President Halonen said she strongly believes progress is being made towards gender equality.

Campaign ends, but work continues

After a year of active campaigning Don’t Forget the Majority is now drawing to a close, but its core message remains an integral part of development work within NGOs and on national level in Finland.

MPs as the main target group of the campaign have now been made more aware the importance of the cross-cutting themes. A Foreign Affairs Committee initiative on cross-cutting themes is already under way, and the Parliamentary Group on Global Affairs is in the process of making cross-cutting themes a priority issue for 2010.

Organisations participating in the Don’t Forget the Majority campaign included FinnWID – Finnish Women in Development, The Service Centre for Development Cooperation (KEPA), Finn Church Aid, The World Federation of the Deaf, Save the Children Finland, Plan Finland, International Solidarity Foundation, Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission, UNICEF Finland, World Vision Finland, Finnish Disabled People’s International Development Association (FIDIDA), and the Family Federation.

Esa Salminen
English translation by Tuuli Hakkarainen

Religious leaders agree to eradicate AIDS stigma and discrimination

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 14:02:56 GMT

The first-ever summit ‘engaging religious leaders in HIV response’ concludes with a joint commitment of eradicating stigma and discrimination of people living with HIV and AIDS.

According to a joint press statement, representatives of some 40 religions and faith groups including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism and Sikhism ended a two-day summit in the Netherlands Tuesday by signing a ‘action commitment’ which vowed to commit themselves to a partnership between faith communities, broader civil society, government and other international partners, always involving people living with HIV at all levels.

The joint commitment further states, " we hold each other accountable in the partnership, eradicating stigma, discrimination and jointly enabling the universal access to prevention, treatment, care and support which will lead us to a new world of respect, justice, love and dignity.’

While 33.4 million people globally are living with HIV today, over 25 million people around the globe have already died of AIDS-related diseases, reports say adding, in the year 2008, 2.7 million people were newly infected, and 2 million men, women and children lost their lives.

Director for Development Cooperation at the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission (FELM), Mrs Maria Immonen, who is also the board member of the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance (EAA) viewed the summit as ‘extremely important development’. The FELM joined the EAA in 2007.

‘As we have been running HIV/AIDS related programs in different countries, the partnership with the EAA obliges us to join in the Summit’s commitments and challenges of eradicating stigma and discrimination of people living with HIV and AIDS,’ Immonen added.

The summit was organised by the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance (EAA) and Cordaid, with support from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UNAIDS, International Network of Religious Leaders Living with or Personally Affected by HIV AIDS (INERELA), the Worlds AIDS Campaign and the European Council of Religious Leaders (Religious for peace).

Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission / Prakas Dhakal

Photo Exhibition on Mission and Church work in Namibia

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 11:12:50 GMT

A photo exhibition ´OGU A GENDI KUMONA // Ken kulkee hän näkee // Who passes, sees` was inaugurated on 15 March at Kauniainen in Helsinki Metropolitan area. The photos - taken by Tuomas Merilahti during his three month internship period in Namibia - document mission and church work carried out in Namibia. Moreover, they portray diverse Namibian life, culture, people and nature.

The exhibition serves as a thesis product for Merilahti’s Bachelor degree in Church social work. Merilahti is a student from Diaconia University of Applied Sciences, Kauniainen. The exhibition was subscribed by the Lutheran Church in Kauniainen.

Merilahti is one of the interns sent to Namibia by the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission (FELM) in 2009. According to Leena Havisto, coordinator for trainees and volunteers at the FELM, 35 trainees were sent out to different continents. ‘It is always nice to see when trainees return with a product like this or other life inspiring experiences,’ Haavisto, who also attended the event, said.

Noteworthy, the prominent missionary Rev. Martti Rautanen started his work in today’s Namibia at the Amboland in 1870.

Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission / Prakas Dhakal

Vision Day and European AGM of SAT-7 held at FELM

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:42:49 GMT

The Vision Day and European Annual General Meeting of the SAT-7 was held on 12 March at premises of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission (FELM) in Helsinki, Finland.
The SAT-7 Satellite television channel, targeted mostly to Christians living in the Middle East and North Africa, provides opportunity to witness inspirational, informative and educational television services.

The event brought together SAT-7 representatives and Nordic partners, among others, to discuss the service progress, key challenges and emerging innovation support measures.

Speaking in the program Terry Ascot and Rita El Mounayer- SAT-7 CEO and executive director for Arabic Programming respectively emphasised on how important it is to reach general public and children with message of love, peace, respect and hope.

Moreover, they informed that the SAT-7 has been working to illuminate countries in the region with God’s love for nearly 15 years. The ministry currently has four channels in three languages i.e. SAT-7 ARABIC, SAT-7 PARS, SAT-7 KIDS, and SAT-7 TÜRK.

"Our people and children have lived in violence and hatred for too long. We are trying to reach them with message of forgiveness, respect and hope", Mounayer said adding, "To introduce hope into the society where hopelessness prevails has always been our mission."

Meanwhile, Rev Rolf Steffanson, Director of the Department for Mission Cooperation, expressed happiness for the partnership with the SAT-7. Welcoming the participants he said, "As Christians we always have to remember that it should not be us being able to show superiority over others but our God being ready to get sacrificed and despised for our sake."

The FELM is one of the active Nordic partners of the SAT-7.

Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission / Prakas Dhakal

Female theologians from various parts of the world will meet in Helsinki in June

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 07:22:31 GMT

Female theologians from various parts of the world will convene at an international, ecumenical conference in the Cultural Centre Sofia in Helsinki on June 8-10. The theme of the event is "Called to be Holy", and it is the first one of its kind in Finland. It will be organised by FELM, the YWCA of Finland, and Female Theologians in Finland.

"Women have an important role in the church, but their voices are not necessarily heard, for most of the church leaders are men. We want to arrange a meeting where female theologians from Finland and from various parts of the world can get acquainted and learn from each other, form networks, delve into the Bible, and strengthen themselves and each other in their calling", recounts Rev. Tuula Sääksi from FELM.

"To organise a meeting like this is quite natural for us, for both FELM and the YWCA of Finland endeavour to promote the chances women have to act in their communities, to improve their education opportunities and the position of women in general. The association Female theologians in Finland has also participated in Scandinavian conferences of female theologians."

Room for exchanging experiences

The choice of the theme reflects the wish of the organisers to join in and enrich the theme adopted by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland for 2010-2012, "The Holy". Each day of the conference will begin with a Bible meditation. The introductory speeches will guide into the theme of each day, but there will be plenty of room for discussion and exchange of thoughts. The idea is that by listening to the experiences of others one can learn something valuable.

The conference will gather 30-40 foreign female theologians to Helsinki, from students of theology to university professors and church leaders. FELM has invited ten women who will also participate in the Mission Gathering in Varkaus, Finland, on June 11-13. The YWCA of Finland has also invited a dozen of guests. The Hermannsburg Mission, the Gustav-Adolf-Werk, and the Association of Protestant Female Theologians have been arranging a biennial seminar of female theologians in Germany. This year, they and their foreign partners will come to Finland, a group of about twenty women. The language of the conference will be English, but the event will also have interpretation in Finnish.

More information at: www.mission.fi/IECFT

A scholar from Tanzania presented his dissertation on human rights

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 06:30:11 GMT

Dr. Andrew Mollel from Tanzania, who has had a FELM scholarship, submitted his dissertation in international law in the University of Joensuu, Finland, on Jan 15.

The subject of the thesis is a human rights point of view in the prevention and control of the conflicts in the Great Lakes Region in Africa. Andrew Mollel is a teacher in the Tumaini University of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) in Iringa, Tanzania. He will return home at the end of January.

"My thesis deals with how, in particular, the human rights of vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children, and women, are violated in conflicts, and how human rights violations are the reasons for many conflicts. My examples come from Ruanda, Burundi, and particularly from the Congo from the 1990's until the present", recounts Dr. Mollel.

From a Masai herdsman to a human rights lawyer

Andrew Mollel belongs to the Masai tribe. His first 14 years were spent herding his family's cattle, and if his father had had his way, Andrew Mollel would still be a herdsman. A boy with a will to learn, he did, however, find a way to learn to read and write.

His first school was an itinerary one, teaching its pupils under a large tree. Mollel took his herd to graze near the tree and sat down to learn for a couple of hours. When Tanzania introduced compulsory education, his father kept sending his son and the herd to the mountains, as long as the school inspector was in their home. Their neighbour did, however, inform about this and Andrew was able to go to school then.

In less than ten years, Andrew Mollen took his A-levels, and in the mid-1990's he had passed a lower level law degree. Afterwards, he has been working in the Tumaini University of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) in Iringa, where he has been involved in establishing the judicial faculty.

Dr. Mollel received his MA in law in Lund, Sweden, in 2000. He began to study for his doctorate in Joensuu in 2005. Dr. Mollel will return to his teaching post in Tanzania at the end of January, a lawyer with a reputation of a determined fighter for human rights.

"There are not many human rights lawyers in Tanzania, so I will have plenty of work", he says.

"Haiti needs our help through the Common Responsibility Campaign 2010"

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:27:00 GMT

FELM Director Seppo Rissanen is urging Finns to aid Haiti's earthquake victims through the Common Responsibility Campaign 2010. The previously elected target of the campaign is, indeed, Haiti. "Now it is more necessary than ever", says Dr. Rev. Rissanen in his blog in Finnish on Jan 14.

"Typically, FELM operates in disaster situations when we have a previous connection with the disaster region. We have no partners in Haiti, which is why I am urging you to support the aid efforts in Haiti through the Common Responsibility Campaign 2010."

The Common Responsibility Campaign (known in Finnish as 'Yhteisvastuukeräys') is Finland's largest annual fundraising campaign, organised by the Finnish Lutheran Church and its Church Resources Agency (Kirkkopalvelut ry). The campaign result will be delivered through the Department for World Service (DWS), the relief and development arm of the Lutheran World Federation.

The pioneering work of a Tanzanian minister for preventing the spread of AIDS

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 09:50:26 GMT

Rev. Kipangula was the main speaker in the World AIDS Day Seminar arranged by FELM and the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. The seminar titled "AIDS, sex, families" was held in the Mission House in Helsinki, with an attendance of about 60 persons.

Harmful traditions

Anthony Kipangula and his wife Esther are involved in a pioneering form of family work in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania. Their work is shaking the value structures within the Tanzanian family.

The work has revealed to the Kipangulas that many African traditions aid the spread of HIV infections. The common nominator for these traditions is the oppressed position of women. It could also be called male chauvinism.

One example of the harmful traditions is the prohibition to have sex during breast-feeding or after the menopause. This, in turn, promotes the convention of extra-marital affairs of men, allowed for them by tradition.

An HIV infection is often a fruit of an affair, and one which the husband transfers on to his wife and other potential partners.

Men oppress their wives

Esther Kipangula has learnt a great deal about the pain of women and their questions in the seminars led by the couple.

"The women will not speak out when the men are present, but when they are among other women, they cannot stop talking and asking questions. The need of knowledge is huge. 70% of women know nothing about sexual pleasure", recounts Esther Kipangula.

According to Esther Kipangula, Tanzanian men do not, in general, appreciate their wives. Instead, they oppress them, and even despise them. When having sex with their wives, men only think about their needs. What is more, a Tanzanian woman cannot refuse sex.

"Sexual intercourse is often an experience of rape for the wife. Traditionally, the women do not even have a right to tell about their needs."

Since sex is not a joy for the woman, she is not interested in it. This, in turn, makes men look for sex elsewhere.

"When her husband finds himself another woman, the wife must not be offended or be jealous."

Attitudes still in need of repair

Even though the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania is officially denouncing harmful traditions, they do have an effect on the lives of parishioners. That is why HIV/AIDS touches also the Church heavily, even though there still are some people who wish to be silent about it.

Rev. Anthony Kipangula would also like to believe that becoming a Christian would automatically destroy the practice of harmful traditions and the spread of infections in the parishes. Culture is not, however, transformed easily.

The attitudes of parishioners also still have room for improvement, for the HIV-positive continue to face oppression and they are afraid of telling about their infections in their parishes.

Slow improvement

Besides speaking in the seminars, Anthony and Esther Kipangula educate, for example, influential people in village communities as well as teenagers to understand the meaning of the equality of sexes in a good marital relationship. They say that the transformation of attitudes and behaviour is slow and that is also why the battle against AIDS will be long.

The Kipangulas also know that the entire AIDS-related herd of problems is fed by poverty and ignorance. Young girls, for example, are infected when they provide for their families with the necessary income that they obtain by selling sex.

Light at the end of a dark tunnel

"The number of infections is beginning to decrease somewhat, being now about 7% in Tanzania", says Anthony Kipangula.

The AIDS situation in Tanzania is better than in Namibia and Botswana, for example. Persistent work even in these countries is, however, beginning to bear fruit, and the churches there are having a significant role in this.

Sari Lehtelä on Dec 2, 2009.

FELM next year’s budget 29.3 million euros

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 09:49:27 GMT

The FELM budget for 2010 will remain approximately at the same level as this year. The Board of Directors approved an operations and budget plan for 2010 on Dec 10, with the operations expenditure proper for 2010 amounting to 29.3 million euros.

From the budgeted expenditure of FELM for next year, 21.4 million euros, about 72%, has been allocated for the work abroad. Domestic fundraising, communication, training and education, as well as planning, will have 5.8 million, amounting to 19.4% of the expenditure. The domestic expenditure includes, for example, the mission secretaries employed by FELM in each Lutheran diocese in Finland. The share of the general administration will be 8.9%.

"The income this year has followed the estimates. The depression does have, though, an effect on our plans for future, for expenditure will be considered very carefully. Unemployment and the decrease of corporate income tax will diminish the income of Lutheran parishes in Finland. This, in turn, will have a delayed effect on the income of mission organisations", says Päivi Ranta, Deputy Director for Finance and Administration.

"2011 will probably be the most difficult year for Lutheran parishes. Our next year budget will be a moderate one, with an increase of 0.4% of expenditure", continues Päivi Ranta.

The most important tasks are spreading the gospel and decreasing poverty

"FELM has a new strategy which will be implemented from the beginning of 2010. The priorities of the work abroad, as defined in the strategy, are the projects strengthening the ministries and diaconia work of churches, and ones decreasing poverty and promoting social justice. The growth regions are Angola, West Africa, China, the Mekong Region, and Nepal", says Rolf Steffansson, the Director of Mission Cooperation.

Next year, 5 million euros of the expenditure of the work abroad will be used for ministry and parish work. In Tanzania, for example, FELM supports the work of the parishes in the regions of Lake Victoria and Mtwara-Lind, where the proportion of Christians of the population is still very small. In Ethiopia, FELM is involved in creating a new model of operation aimed at encouraging dioceses to begin parish work among minorities.

8.5 million euros will be used to improve social justice and diaconia. This includes projects concerned with such topics as education, the improvement of health services, community development, and disaster aid.

"Next year, the greatest growth will happen in Nepal and the Mekong Region. Several new projects beginning in Nepal are aimed at improving the living conditions of various marginalised groups, such as the disabled and casteless. A project beginning in co-operation with the state in Laos will develop multi-linguistic basic education. Work against human trafficking in the Mekong Region will also be strengthened. Parish work and co-operation with churches will be stronger in Nepal as well as in the Mekong Region", says Rolf Steffansson.

"Mauritania in West Africa will be the target of the Equal Share Fundraising Campaign in 2010. FELM supports community development projects in Mauritania in co-operation with the Lutheran World Federation, and the central issue in these projects is the right to food and water."

Besides these projects, FELM is focusing on developing the independence of its partners, in operational, administrative and economical respects, and also on HIV and AIDS work and peace and reconciliation work.

FELM is the mission organisation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland operating in nearly 30 countries in co-operation with local churches and organisations as well as through the Lutheran World Federation. At the end of 2008, FELM had 345 employees, of whom 165 work abroad.

FELM is supported by Lutheran parishes in Finland and Christian organisations and individuals. FELM is also a partnership organisation of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. This year, FELM has been celebrating its 150th Anniversary.

World AIDS Day is approaching: A minister from Tanzania raises a difficult question

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 08:10:46 GMT

World AIDS Day is approaching (Dec 1), and, yet again, AIDS will be the talk of the world for a moment. FELM and the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland are arranging a seminar dealing with the HIV/AIDS situation from many aspects, both in Finland as well as in the developing countries. Children's experiences are also taken into account.

FELM works in many countries where HIV/AIDS is spreading with force, with the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa most severely under attack.

The seminar has the title 'AIDS, sex, and families', and its main speaker is Rev Anthony Kipangula from Tanzania. He and his wife, Mrs Esther Kipangula, give their very personal input for family work in their church, for example in marriage seminars.

Against AIDS with full force

The Kipangulas focus on the basic reasons for the AIDS pandemia: harmful traditions such as the prohibition to have sex during breast-feeding or after menopause, domestic violence, and the social acceptance of infidelity.

"When there is love between marriage partners, you do not want to have an affair", says Anthony Kipangula.

Rev Kipangula is a charismatic speaker, well able to captivate his African audience, Christians as well as Muslims.

He used to have well-paid job at a tea plantation, but the calling of a minister was stronger. Now he is fighting AIDS with full force.

Rev Kipangula is involved in a deep-reaching project aimed at lasting results in the fight against AIDS. The project is led by the Tumaini University at Iringa, Tanzania, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania.

The Church has a key role

The HIV/AIDS work of the churches supported by FELM has the aim of removing the stigma that the disease still has particularly in the developing countries. This is the subject spoken about by Riitta Laakio, FELM Programme Co-ordinator of AIDS Work, who is convinced of the power of the work the church does.

"The AIDS projects launched in developing countries with a great deal of money are not effective. What we need is a deep change of culture where the church has a key role", says Ms Laakio.

Martti Esko, Executive Secretary for Family Issues, will speak about the effects of AIDS on children in various parts of the world. Every year, approximately 380,000 children die in AIDS, and 90% of them are from Africa. Every day, 2,500 children are also orphaned in Africa owing to the disease.

Deacon Iiris Kontra who has worked as a missionary in Botswana will recount her experiences there with HIV positive people and their families.

Dr Tuula Pelkonen, Consultant Pediatric, will bring a medical view to the seminar, as a result of her years as a mission doctor in Angola.

The chairperson of the seminar will be Ms Maria Immonen, the FELM Director for Development Cooperation .

The AIDS Mass will be held after the seminar in the Mission Church, Tähtitorninkatu 18, Helsinki, at 4 p.m. The seminar will be held in the same building.

Maria Ruth Sanabria, a human rights defender: "It is important that the world knows what is happening in Colombia"

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:21:50 GMT

Maria Ruth Sanabria, 48, has lived all her life amid persecution and violence - she has no experience of what peace is like. Nevertheless, she dreams of freedom, equality and social justice. What is more, she not only dreams of them, but also works for them - despite the fact that Colombia is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for human rights defenders.

"In the evening, I often think about stopping after I have finished what I am working for at the moment. In the morning I have changed my mind again. I have to go forward, because going backwards is even more frightening", says Sanabria.

"An advocate of the poor"

Right from her childhood onwards Maria Ruth has been called an advocate of the poor, at first by her grandmother, because she was always defending others and getting mixed up in things. The threat of violence was always present. Sanabria is still having nightmares of the incident when her grandfather took her hiding, keeping his hand over her mouth and telling her to be quiet, because gunmen had intruded on their farm at night.

Life with the grandparents was, however, financially secure. The situation changed with the death of the grandparents when Maria Ruth was 9 years old. She was forced to move elsewhere with her mother, and she was also expected to do her share to support the family. They had no knowledge of where her father was.

Besides going to school and working, Maria Ruth devoted her time to a youngsters' theatre group in the evenings. The group performed in poor villages for people with no land or home. When she was a little older, she was involved in a student movement, and this is why she was branded a revolutionary. Wherever she has lived, she has always been a member of some socially active group with the aim to help to the poor.

"In Colombia, it is the poor, and not the rich, who are helping the poor", she says.

Four times an internally displaced person

In the mid-1980's the Colombian government and the guerillas were engaged in peace negotiations, and there was a truce between them. The FARC guerillas were involved in founding the Patriotic Union (Unión Patriótica, UP), which aimed at functioning as a legal political party, taking part in the presidential and parlamentiary elections in 1986. Since then, thousands of UP activists were murdered by right-wing paramilitary groups which led to FARC resigning from the UP and returning to open warfare.

Maria Ruth Sanabria and her husband were members of the UP at the time. Sanabria tells that the UP gathered together a large number of peace loving people who had nothing to do with the guerillas. Neither had her husband - an uneducated farm worker - been politically active in any way whatsoever before joining the UP. He said the UP was bringing hope to people's lives.

Sanabria was also threatened several times, even with a gun pointed at her forehead. The first time she was forced to flee from her hometown San Alberto to Bucaramanga was in 1988. Her husband stayed home and they met only occasionally. In a year's time, the paramilitaries had left, and Sanabria returned home.

A few years went by peacefully. Sanabria was employed by the local council and was engaged in farming with her husband the small plot that had become available for them recently. Then Sanabria's husband was killed in 1990. He had been taking his drunken friend home from a bar when the friend had made jokes about the gunmen at the street. They attacked Sanabria's husband and he fell into a coma first and died in a hospital a week later.

Sanabria began taking the soldiers to court but she was later forced to abandon the proceedings due to death threats. The second and last time she fled from San Alberto was in 1994, again to Bucaramanga. Other people were also forced to flee San Alberto where farmers of small holdings were persecuted by the paramilitaries hired by plantation owners. Sanabria was helped by a human rights organisation, and later she was involved with the organisation to help other internally displaced persons. Later, she has had to flee two more times for the death threats she has received for her actions.

A human life is cheap in crossfire

For the last ten years, Sanabria has lived in the town of Arauquita in the province of Arauca. She belongs to the town council of Arauquita and is involved with an organisation called the Permanent Human Right Committee (Comité Permanente por la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos, CPDH). In charge of the work for political prisoners and their families, she receives no pay for her work.

The province of Arauca, at the Venezuelan border, is one of the most violent regions in Colombia. Both of the Colombian guerilla movements, FARC and ELN, are present there, and they are fighting not only against the government, but also each other. The province has the largest oil reserves in Colombia, but the riches are filtered to the international oil companies, not to local people. The oil companies, naturally, have security forces of their own. Many farmers have been driven away from their land by the oil industry. The locals cannot even work for the oil companies, because they have all been branded guerillas for the critique they have directed at the oil companies. When they have no other income, it is the cocaine business that provides them with it.

Since he became president in 2002, Alvaro Uribe created a policy he calls 'democratic security'. It gives the army a wide authority to end the guerilla activities and violence. In reality, it has led to random mass arrests of civilians and illegal executions. The army is awarded rewards, promotions and vacations for the results it achieves. Lately on several occasions, corrupt soldiers in Colombia have been revealed to have kidnapped and executed civilians, having disguised them as guerillas killed in battle. The perpetrators are, however, difficult to charge even when evidence is avaibable, for the procecutors and their families face death threats themselves.

International attention protects human rights defenders

In 2005, Martin Sandoval, the leader of the CPDH, gathered the local human rights organisations together to send an open letter to the world, a plea for help.

"And the world responded. The representatives of 40 international human rights organisations came to get acquainted with the situation in Arauca. This was unforgivable. Since then, human rights defenders have had to face even more persecution", tells Sanabria.

Martin Sandoval was arrested in last November and accused of terrorism. The international pressure resulted, however, in the court decision that the evidence against Sandoval was false, and he was acquitted in May this year, after imprisonment for six months.

"It is important that the world knows what is happening in Colombia. We are truly greatful for all the support we receive. We are not paid for our work. We do it for the love of our country and human rights", says Maria Ruth Sanabria.

Plans for larger premises: the Changsha Bible School educates employees for the congregations in Hunan

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:18:09 GMT

The capital of the Hunan Province, Changsha, has a small bible school, which is one of the 18 theological institutions in China. Eight of these institutions are approved by the government, including the one in Changsha. The school premises are far too small for the current number of students, which, in turn, is definitely not adequate for the needs of the Hunan congregationses. That is why a new bible school to be built in 2010-2011 is now under planning.

"The bible school premises were intended for one group only. We have three groups per year now, with a total of 95 students and 16 teachers", says the Dean of the bible school, Rev Chen Zhi. He is also the chairperson of the Hunan Christian Council.

According to Rev Chen, there are 1,200 registered congregations in Hunan. They have altogether 300,000 Christians under the guidance of the China Christian Council. In addition to this, approximately the same number of Christians have a couple of thousand unregistered congregations that convene in homes. The registered congregations have only 65 ministers and some 200 evangelists, which means that most of the congregations have neither.

Strengthening Christian education is necessary

The Changsha Bible School has three-year preacher courses. With four years of work experience, they will become evangelists, and another two years of work means they can be ordained.

The construction drawings for the new bible school are ready, and Rev Chen hopes that construction will begin next year or the one after. The government will provide a plot in an exchange deal, but the current economic depresson has slowed down the decision of the government.

Help from abroad is needed for the cost of construction

The new school will have premises for 300 students, and the courses will then last for four years. The new premises will also enable the school to arrange short-term courses.

As a result of the lack of educated employees, knowledge of the Christian dogma is not widely spread in the congregations. The teachers of the bible school hold short-term courses in the congregations, and the bible school prepares study materials for their use, but more education is needed. Heresies are a real danger.

One of the secrets why the Church in China grows is the strong emphasis on evangelisation, but, according to Rev Chen, more focus in the future needs to be paid on the care and Christian education of existing congregations. This is also another reason for extending the work of the bible school and developing the further education of the employees of the congregations.

The young want to serve their congregations

When Rev Chen studied theology in the 1980's, there were 10,000 Christians in Hunan, whereas now there are over half a million there. Hunan is known for its conservatism and, in fact, the growth of the Christian Church has been slower there than elsewhere in China. Nearly all the Christians in Hunan are first-generation ones, for there are very few that were born to Christian parents. Even among the teachers of the bible school, only one has Christian parents.

Rev Chen tells that only some city congregations can afford to pay their ministers. The people in the rural congregations are older and poor and these congregations have to manage with voluntary workers.

The young are, however, willing to serve their congregations and interested in education. The students are sent to the bible school by their congregations, and their education is paid either by the congregation or by the students themselves. Some students also have a foreign scholarship. FELM is currently supporting five students in the bible school.