HAPPENINGS AROUND THE WORLD n HAPPENINGS AROUND THE WORLD n HAPPENINGS AROUND THE WORLD n HAPPENINGS AROU

Cyclone and Heavy Flooding IN MYANMAR

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yclone Komen caused devastation in Myanmar in late July, worsening severe flooding that affected the

Southeast Asian country during unusually persistent and heavy rainfall that began earlier in the month. The Myanmar Baptist Convention

(MBC) reported that “more than 200,000 people from Chin State, Rakhine State, Kachin State, Magwe Region and Sagaing Region have been suffering from heavy storms and rain that resulted in huge floods since the first week of July.” MBC indicated that “since the last

week of July the lower Myanmar region, especially delta areas (Ayeyarwaddy Region, Pegu Region, Yangon Region), have been flooding as the consequences of Cyclone Komen that left thousands of people homeless and food shortages.” The Baptist group declared that “due to

landslides and heavy rain in Chin State and Rakhine State, highway roads and bridges couldn’t be used. Bridges were destroyed and roads were totally damaged.” Chin State capital city, Haka, “which was seriously damaged due to landslides, is not accessible by roads, except by helicopters.” By August 3, more than 1,200 families

are leading the way, responding with immediate assistance and doing so in the name of Christ through a holistic approach that is making a vital impact. These Baptists are providing hope

in the wake of life’s upheavals. Through commitment to provide volunteers, financial support as well as spiritual support, Baptists in the US are being the hands and feet of Christ to those who are suffering. “Most people think that when the

news cameras and the emergency relief responders are gone, that the disaster is over,” said Bearden of Texas Baptists Disaster Recovery. “Long-term recovery efforts are long, hard and costly. It is the faith-based family that comes together during this time to provide hope. Through the mobilization of volunteers, we start to see real recovery.” Aaron Weaver and Carrie McGuffin are

communications manager and assistant communications

specialist, respectively,

for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship in the United States

of more than 6,600 people were living in 11 displaced people camps. The government declared much of

the country as disaster zones. MBC activated its Disaster Man-

agement Committee and organized emergency relief operations in landslide and flood affected areas. The committee sent survey teams to affected areas to collect data to be used for rehabilitation projects.

The Myanmar Baptist Convention organized

emergency relief operations and sent survey teams to collect data

for rehabilitation projects. Immediate needs included tarpaulins

for shelter, blankets, mosquito nets, sanitary items and food supplies. Severe flooding continued into

September, affecting 12 of the country’s 14 states, resulting in more than 100 deaths and up to one million people affected.

megawatt electricity generation plant for Imphal, the capital of Manipur. The pastors allege that some 12,000

persons, most of them Christians, will be displaced by the construction of the dam. They told the Baptist World Alliance that 777 hectares or 1,920 acres of the affected area comprise rice paddy fields; 293 hectares, or 725 acres, of jhum, land cleared for cultivation; and 111 hectares, or 274 acres, are homestead. In addition, “595 hectares (1,470 acres) of forest areas will be submerged.” “Huge tracts of paddy fields, river, forest

and grazing grounds will be submerged in the upstream Christian villages of Riha (Loutei), Thoyee, Shangkai Kuki, Zalenbung, Sharkaphung of Ukhrul District,” they said. “Downstream villages such as Nongdam Tangkhul of Ukhrul District, Thangjingpokpi and Maphou Village in the Senapati District and Tumukhong and Moirangpurel in Imphal East District are adversely affected.” As a result, “they are losing their

immovable assets handed down by their ancestors which have been the principal means of livelihood since time immemo- rial.” At least two church buildings, one

Baptist and one Catholic, will be destroyed and their burial grounds lost. Protestors allege that the authorities

Pastors Protest Dam Construction IN INDIA

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aptist pastors in the Northeast Indian state of Manipur are protesting the construction of the

Mapithel Dam. The dam, part of the Thoubal

Multipurpose Project, will utilize water from the Yangwui Kong River to provide irrigation for 21,860 hectares (54,000 acres) of farm land, as well as a 7.5

have engaged in a “divide and rule policy” and that “there have been no proper and comprehensive resettlement and rehabili- tation program for the affected villagers.” Furthermore, “no impact assessment on socio-economic and religious perspective [was] ever conducted.” The pastors demand that the

involuntary displacement of villages and the submergence of graveyards be stopped, and that the plights of the villagers be addressed. “Otherwise the grievances and damage caused to the affected people will become irreparable throughout generations.”

Chadong Baptist Church in Manipur state is threatened by the construction of the new dam