Asia

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  3 October 2017
  ASIA/PAKISTAN - Religious minorities under attack: it is urgent to repeal the blasphemy law Lahore (Agenzia Fides) - Christian Washaal Masih and his colleague Bhola Ram of Hindu religion, two humble workers, employed in the town of Behawalnagar, in the South of Pakistani Punjab, were arrested for blasphemy, wit ...
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  2 October 2017
  ASIA/TURKEY - Erdogan to the US: we will release Evangelical pastor Brunson if in return you hand over Fetullah Gulen Ankara (Agenzia Fides) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is willing to release US Evangelical pastor Andrew Craig Brunson - detained in Turkey for one year and accused of espionage (see Fides 29/8/2017) if in exch ...
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  2 October 2017
  ASIA/LEBANON - Maronite Patriarch and the leader of Hezbollah: Syrian refugees must return to Syria Beirut (Agenzia Fides) - The presence of Syrian refugees in Lebanon is creating an unsustainable situation that can only be addressed by promoting the return of Syrian refugees to their Country. This is what Maronite Pat ...
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  2 October 2017
  ASIA/PHILIPPINES - Jesuits: One cannot build a nation on the dead bodies of the Filipino people Manila (Agenzia Fides) - "We cannot build a nation on the dead bodies of the Filipino people. We cannot fight evil with guns and bullets", said the Jesuits of the Philippines in a widespread appeal to all the dioceses, c ...
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  29 September 2017
  ASIA/SYRIA - A Christian becomes President of the Syrian Parliament Damascus (Agenzia Fides) - Hamoudeh Sabbagh ied, 59, is the first Christian elected President of the People's Assembly (the Syrian Parliament) in decades. In the election, which took place on Thursday 28 September, Chris ...
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  29 September 2017
  ASIA/MYANMAR - In Parliament the new law against "hate speech": a step forward Yangon (Agenzia Fides) - The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture of Myanmar has submitted a draft law against "hate speech" to Parliament. The measure will be discussed and submitted to legislators for possible cha ...
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  28 September 2017
  ASIA/JAPAN - "Is the Gospel needed in Japan?" Tokyo (Agenzia Fides) - "A question remains carved in our minds and in our hearts. A question that Cardinal Fernando Filoni provocatively left us during his pastoral visit: Is the Gospel needed in Japan? Where and how to ...
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  27 September 2017
  ASIA/INDIA - Promotion of health care in rural villages, not "proselytism" Gumla (Agenzia Fides) – The Daughters of Sant'Anna, Catholic Sisters present in the Indian state of Jharkhand, are at the forefront of health care assistance for those people who do not have it, especially in rural are ...
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  27 September 2017
  ASIA/PAKISTAN - A woman converts from Islam to Christianity: now she and her family risk their lives Lahore (Agenzia Fides) - A Pakistani woman from Punjab who has chosen to convert from Islam to Christianity has been threatened with death and forced to flee from her home, to take refuge in a secret place and is hiding ...
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  27 September 2017
  ASIA/IRAQ - Governor Nawfal al Akoub: more than 1,400 Christian families have already returned to the Nineveh Plain Mosul (Agenzia Fides) - More than 1400 Christian families have already returned to their homes and villages scattered in the Nineveh Plain, which they abandoned in the summer of 2014, due to the advance of the jihadist m ...
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  26 September 2017
  ASIA/MYANMAR - Cardinal Bo: "A healing process for Myanmar" Yangone (Agenzia Fides) - "The recent sad and tragic events in our country that have hit thousands of Muslims, Hindus and others have brought the world's attention here. The start of violence and aggressive response are ...
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  26 September 2017
  ASIA/IRAQ - Human rights activists criticize Trump’s administration: it helps Rohingya Muslims and not Iraqi Christians Erbil (Agenzia Fides) - The US State Department’s ability to quickly allocate funds to the Rohingya, a Muslim minority affected by violence and discrimination in Myanmar stands in sharp contrast when it comes to direct ...
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  26 September 2017
  ASIA/TURKEY - A cultural Center named after Armenian Patriarch Mesrob II Istanbul (Agenzia Fides) - A cultural Center named after Mesrob Mutafyan, Armenian Apostolic Patriarch of Constantinople, was inaugurated in an Armenian church in Istanbul. Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Barthol ...
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  26 September 2017
  ASIA/PAKISTAN - Asia Bibi nominated for Sakharov Prize 2017: the blasphemy law in the spotlight Lahore (Agenzia FIdes) - Asia Bibi, the Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy and in jail since 2009, has been nominated for European Union’s high-status award edition 2017 of the prestigious "Sakharov Prize ...
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  25 September 2017
  ASIA/JAPAN - Cardinal Filoni: the "false identification" between Christianity and European culture can hinder the propagation of faith Tokyo (Agenzia Fides) - "One of the major obstacles to the propagation of faith in Japan seems to be the false identification between Christianity and European culture". This is one of the views expressed by Cardinal Fer ...