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Indonesia

• Four Churches Near Jakarta Attacked by Mobs

  Mobs armed with sticks attacked four churches on the southwestern outskirts of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta on Sunday, June 6, injuring a pastor and damaging the buildings and furnishings.

  The coordinated attacks took place during morning services. The mobs burst into the buildings, damaging pews and windows. One pastor was punched in the head, but did not suffer serious injuries.

  According to media reports, the attacks came because the churches were established without the town's permission. Because of difficulties in gaining approval to start new churches, Indonesian believer are frequently compelled to do so without permission, gathering in meeting halls, shopping malls, or business areas.

  Pray that those involved in these attacks will see the trust that can come through faith in Jesus Christ. Pray for the continued ministry of the Church in Indonesia.

  For more information on the challenges facing Christians in Indonesia,click here.

• Update on Pastor Damanik

  For the past two years, The Voice of the Martyrs has been following the case of Rev. Rinaldy Damanik, who was convicted on false weapons charges in 2002. Earlier this month, Rev. Damanik was transferred to Jakarta for emergency surgery, suffering from serious kidney problems (click here for details). On May 25, The Voice of the Martyrs received a report from Jubilee Campaign that, while in Jakarta, Damanik appears to have passed a kidney stone and has made a miraculous recovery, so that surgery appears to be no longer needed. He has been returned to prison in Palu where he is recuperating.

  Praise God for this sudden recovery. Pray that he will return to complete physical strength. Pray for emotional and spiritual strength, as Damanik continues to serve time on these false charges.

  For more information on persecution in Indonesia,click here.

• Pastor Damanik to Receive Surgery

  On April 21 the Persecution and Prayer Alert reported that Pastor Rinaldy Damanik was taken to hospital with serious kidney problems (click here for details). Damanik is serving three years in prison on false charges of "illegal weapons possession."

  Doctors determined that he required surgery as soon as possible and that the surgery could only be done in Jakarta. However, permission from the authorities to transfer to the Jakarta hospital was consistently delayed and, to prevent any problems with his accusers, Damanik refused to be transferred until an official letter had been received.

  In an interesting testimony of God's grace and providence, in a May 4 release from the World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission, Elizabeth Kendal shared the story of a Muslim cleric who, some months ago, had a vision that he should visit Damanik in prison. This man was deeply impacted by Damanik's faith and so, when he heard of Damanik's recent medical problems, he went to the prison authorities and pleaded with them, in tears, to have him transferred to the hospital in Jakarta. That permission was finally granted on May 3 with the transfer to take place on May 5.

  Doctors are concerned that the delay may have affected his chances of a full recovery. Please pray for a full recovery for Pastor Damanik. You may write a letter of encouragement to Pastor Damanik at:

  Rev. Rinaldy Damanik
  Rutan Maesa
  Jl.Bali la
  Palu 94112
  Indonesia

  For more information on Christians in Indonesia,click here.

• Imprisoned Pastor Seriously Ill

  The Voice of the Martyrs has learned that Pastor Rinaldy Damanik, who was falsely convicted of weapons charges in 2002, has been taken to hospital in Palu. Doctors believe he is suffering from kidney problems; a condition he has suffered from before.

  Damanik was sentenced to three years in prison after weapons were reportedly found in his vehicle as he was helping to evacuate Christians from a village threatened by Islamic militants. Despite numerous inconsistencies, all appeals to this point have been lost.

  Pray that Damanik will recover soon from his illness. Pray that further legal action being taken to secure his release will be successful. Pray for peace in the central Sulawesi region of Indonesia where many Christians have been martyred in recent years.

  You may write a letter of encouragement to Pastor Damanik at:

  Rev. Rinaldy Damanik
  Rutan Maesa
  Jl.Bali la
  Palu 94112
  Indonesia

  For more information on the situation facing Christians in Indonesia,click here.

• Seven Injured in Easter Service Attack Two gunmen stormed a church near Poso in the troubled region of Sulawesi, Indonesia on April 10, injuring seven people including a four-year-old girl. The attack happened at 7:15 p.m local time during an Easter service at the Tabernacle Church in the village of Kilo, Poso Pesisir, about 12 kilometres west of downtown Poso.

  According to the Poso police chief, three men dressed in Ninja-like costumes rode motorcycles to the church. Two of them entered and began shooting with M-16 assault rifles. According to the Jakarta Post, police have begun house-to-house searches for weapons but as of noon, April 14, none had been found.

  More than three hundred paramilitary police have been sent to the area to maintain peace and to search for the attackers. There is no indication whether these attacks are connected to shootings in the Poso area at the end of March (click here for details).

  Pray that these recent attacks will not escalate into the type of violence that resulted in more than two thousand deaths between 2000 and 2002. Pray that Christians will not retaliate. Pray that those responsible will be found and brought to justice.

  For more information on the situation facing Christians in Indonesia,click here.

• Pastor Among Three Shot

  When Freddy Wuisan answered a knock on the door on March 30, gunmen burst into his home and shot him in front of his wife. Wuisan was a pastor in Membuke, about fifty kilometres west of Poso, Indonesia. Six hours earlier, Rosia Pilongo, the dean of the school of law at Sintuwu Maroso University in Poso, was shot and wounded as she walked towards her car. At last report, she was still unconscious with serious gunshot wounds to her head and hand. Eyewitnesses report seeing two men on a motorcycle in connection with each attack, but there is no evidence yet to link the two incidents. 

  Three days earlier, a Christian man, Jhon Christian Tanalida, was also shot and killed in Poso's Kawua area. No further information is available at this time.

  With elections planned for April, there is fear that violence against Christians in this volatile region of Indonesia may escalate. As many as one thousand people were killed in sectarian violence in Poso in 2000 before a peace agreement was reached.

  Pray that incidents such as these will not be a catalyst for more violence and that Christians in the area will not retaliate. Pray for healing and strength for the Wuisan's wife and other family members of those shot, as they grieve their loss. Pray for fair and peaceful elections in Indonesia.

  For more information on the situation facing Christians in Indonesia,click here.

• Mother Killed in Machete Attack

  A mother was killed and five other villagers injured when unidentified men entered the predominantly Christian village of Maranatha in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia and began slashing the people with machetes. According to an eyewitness, Noci, a forty-year-old mother of two died while attempting to crawl toward her screaming baby after she suffered machete wounds to her head, neck and back. Four men on motorcycles raced through the town, slashing villagers. The five wounded victims were identified as Pianus, 18, Efrain, 30, Kanus, 30, Kalfin, 25, and Listin, 17

  It is unknown if this attack is connected to an incident in January when another villager in Maranatha was killed and others wounded in sectarian violence in the area. Authorities are also looking into possible links to the sentencing of five Muslim militants on March 15. The five were members of the militant Islamic Jemaah Islamiyah (JI). JI has connections with al-Qaeda and has been linked to a nightclub bombing in Bali as well as several attacks on Christians in Central Sulawesi.

  Pray that more violence will not erupt in this volatile area of Indonesia. Pray that Christians will respond with peace, demonstrating the attitude of Christ Jesus.

  For more information on the problems facing Christians in Indonesia,click here.

• Short Term Improvement; Long Term Risk

  A report released on February 3 by the International Crisis Group (ICG) suggests that, while there has been some progress in the battle against militant Islamic groups in Indonesia, there remains an "under appreciated longer term security risk," particularly with the rise of a new group, "Mujahidin KOMPAK."

  Jemaah Islamiyah Operations Chief and al Qaeda operative, Hambali. Arrested August 2003

  In the wake of violent attacks in the Central Sulawesi province and the bombing of a night club in Bali, eighteen members of Jemaah Islamiyah have been arrested. ICG reports that Jemaah Islamiyah remains active, though their activities are presently focused primarily on religious indoctrination. Mujahidin KOMPAK comes from members of Jemaah Islamiyah who are looking for more aggressive action. ICG describes Mujahidin KOMPAK as "leaner, meaner, and quicker." It is believed that Mujahidin KOMPAK is responsible for a series of recent attacks against Christians and that they have been trained in militant camps in the Philippines and Afghanistan. In January, security forces discovered more than forty bombs, along with handmade guns and ammunition. It is believed these weapons were to be used in a series of attacks on Christians in Central Sulawesi. The full report from International Crisis Group is available at http://www.crisisweb.org/home/getfile.cfm?id=1086&type=pdf.

  Pray that the violence that had dominated the Central Sulawesi region of Indonesia will not flare up again. Pray that God will thwart recruitment efforts by the Mujahidin KOMPAK. Pray for inner peace for Christians in Indonesia in the midst of uncertainty.

  For more information on challenges facing the Indonesian Church, go towww.vomcanada.com/indonesia.htm.

• Increasing Violence from Militant Islamic Groups

  For over a month, the Indonesia Bethel Church in Pucung, Indonesia had been under threat by a group calling itself the "Muslim Communication Forum" (FKM) who is demanding that the church stop their meetings. On Sunday morning, November 30, the church's pastor, Onisimus Moelyono, was called to a meeting with the village chief and representatives of the FKM, while a mob of over one hundred and fifty Muslims gathered, calling for the end of the services and threatening Moelyono's life. When the meeting failed to stop the services, the mob moved against those gathering to worship, throwing rocks at the building. Only police intervention prevented them from entering the building. The mob dispersed only when the service was cancelled. Further meetings are planned for December 3 to try to resolve this issue.

  On the same weekend, Christians in three villages in Central Sulawesi were attacked by unidentified militants. On November 29, two men, I Made Simson and Ketut Sarmon, were shot and killed and four others injured in the village of Kilotrans. In the village of Morowa, Ruslan Parrafik and Ririn Bode were shot dead when attackers on motorcycles opened fire on villagers who had gathered for prayer at a church. The next night around 9:00 p.m., shots were fired in the predominantly Christian village of Tiwa'a, fifteen kilometres from Poso. There are no reported casualties from this incident.

  In recent weeks, Indonesian Christians have faced increasing violence from militant Islamic Jihad militia groups. Pray that the authorities will take aggressive action to prevent this violence from continuing. Pray for the families of those killed and for a quick recovery for those injured in these recent attacks. Pray for the members of the church in Pucung, as they attempt to peacefully resolve the problems they are facing.

• Four Christians Killed in Violent Outburst

  Over two thousand troops have been put on alert in the area around Poso, Indonesia, after the latest eruption of violence this week. Since the anniversary of the bombings in Bali on October 12, there has been a marked increase of violence in the region, which Indonesian officials are blaming on a militant Islamic group, Jemaah Islamiah.

  On November 15, three Muslim men suspected of being involved were arrested in Poso. One was shot to death when he resisted. The next day, thousands of Muslims took to the streets in protest, besieging the police station. At least one Christian was killed by the mob. Three other Christians, missing since November 13, were also found on Sunday, beaten to death. They were Mr. Oranje Tadjodja, his nephew Yohannes Tadjodja and Mr. Denny Lingkuliwa.

  Pray for the families grieving the lost of these loved ones. Pray that the violence will subside and that Christians will not retaliate in any way, but will be a testimony of the strength and grace that only God can give. Pray for justice for those arrested in connection with this violence.