AUSTRALIAN PRAYER NETWORK NEWSLETTER * WHY MYANMAR'S MILITARY JUNTA STEALS FOREIGN AID * BRITAIN ALLOWS MIXED ANIMAL-HUMAN EMBRYOS * EFFECTS OF CYCLONE ON MYANMAR ESCALATING * INDONESIAN CHRISTIAN VILLAGE BURNT TO THE GROUND BY MUSLIMS * HOMOSEXUALS WIN LANDMARK PARENTING DECISION IN BRITAIN * IRAQI PRESIDENT AFFIRMS CHRISTIAN PRESENCE IN IRAQ ----------------------------------------------- WHY MYANMAR'S MILITARY JUNTA STEALS FOREIGN AID Myanmar's generals may have more than self-promoting propaganda in mind by commandeering aid provided by international donors and insisting that the military deliver it without the assistance and expertise of foreign disaster relief personnel. The junta's control of aid and food stocks may rather be a hedge to remain in power. The generals have been widely criticized for not allowing foreign aid workers to assist with distribution. They are haunted by an almost pathological fear of a split inside their own ranks. The generals will likely have come to the same conclusions as many outside observers, that their rice bowl has been badly damaged and will likely not recover quickly. This is going to put a severe strain on existing rice stocks at a time the purchase of foreign rice has become increasingly expensive due to surging global commodity prices. From the junta's perspective, the group that needs to be fed first is the 400,000 strong military, rather than the desperate civilian survivors of the crisis. With their respective family members, the military's associated numbers could be as high as 2 million. To the generals, the people now gathering in makeshift camps can be controlled, but only if the military remains united. An army without food or with starving families, is much more likely to revolt. Lack of food is a perennial problem in Myanmar's army. Army deserters claim that "Threats, physical abuse and under nourishment are rife in the army." Observers have noted the malnourished look of soldiers. Falling morale, however, is a problem in the military and the leaked documents of several high-level military meetings noted rising desertion levels and discontent in the ranks before the cyclone hit. Some of this is due to insufficient rations for themselves and their families. While a pressing problem, it had not become so severe that whole units were deserting or revolting. However with severe food shortages now looming, if soldiers are not given priority in aid distribution and are unable to feed themselves, the possibility of mutiny rises. Cyclone Nargis did not only kill civilians, it also took its toll on the military. No estimates of military casualties are available, but the toll on the soldiers could be on a par with civilian casualties in the area. Many soldiers and their family members in the Irrawaddy Delta and Yangon would likely have lost family members, or currently are struggling to get food and other necessities. For the generals, this is where the importance of international aid comes in. With rice crops and storage facilities destroyed, bases wiped out, already discontented soldiers running out of food and with many of their family members dead, injured or unable to feed or fend for themselves, the military leadership needs to move quickly to preserve their hold over the rank and file and thus their hold on political power. Witnesses claim that aid supplies given by the generals, are only a propaganda exercise. They say that once the video cameras are turned off, the soldiers pack up the remaining undistributed aid and take it away. According to figures presented by the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, based on their own assessments, an estimated 1,215,885 to 1,919,485 people have been adversely affected by the cyclone. They also estimate there are anywhere between 63,290 to 101,682 dead and 220,000 missing. These numbers will likely rise as fuller assessments are made and many survivors succumb to disease, deprivation and starvation. Of particular concern is the threat of diseases such as cholera, malaria, typhus and dysentery. Residents of Yangon and the Irrawaddy Delta say that the local population is increasingly outraged by the junta's lack of assistance and its hoarding of aid. To the junta's top generals, far away in their bunkers in their secluded new capital at Naypyidaw, the aid distribution policy is apparently political survival at all costs. But as it becomes more apparent to the wider suffering population that the junta is only looking after its own, that policy could stoke more unrest than it avoids. Source: by Brian McCartan writing for the Asia Times ---------------------------------------- BRITAIN ALLOWS MIXED ANIMAL-HUMAN EMBRYOS The British Parliament has voted overwhelmingly in favour of radical stem cell research which will allow the creation of mixed animal-human embryos. In an emotional and rare show of cross-party unity, the embattled British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, and the Conservative Leader, David Cameron - both parents of young children with disabilities - joined forces to forge the way for the controversial research techniques. After a heated and often passionate conscience debate in the House of Commons, MPs who argued for greater freedoms in the name of science outnumbered their conservative colleagues by a dramatic 336 votes to 176. Britain has been in the grip of a massive counter attack from religious leaders, including the Catholic Church, over the last few weeks, who have argued that the mixing of human and animal genetic material crosses an ultimate boundary that fundamentally breaches the sanctity of human life. The dramatic changes will allow scientists to boost stocks of embryos by creating what are known as 'admixed embryos', created from both human and animal genetic materials - mainly from cows and rabbits - to make hybrids known as "cytoplasmic hybrids" or "cybrids". These effectively allow the movement of a human nucleus into an empty animal egg - which makes a genetically 99.9 per cent human. The legislation means that what are known as chimeras can also be created, using a combination of human and animal cells. The use of embryo screening to create siblings that could save the lives of sick family members through the donation of umbilical blood was also poised to be passed by the Parliament . The Prime Minister, has argued publicly for some weeks that embryonic research is a moral and pioneering pursuit that has the potential to save lives and improve the quality of life for millions of human beings. His Conservative counterpart, David Cameron, said that current laws are outdated and that medical science must be helped in their quest to understand genetic diseases. Source: BBC ----------------------------------------------- EFFECTS OF CYCLONE ON MYANMAR ESCALATING Official numbers released by the Myanmar Red Cross put the death toll in Irrawaddy Delta at 130,000 people. The smell of rotting bodies is now present. People are becoming more angry, disillusioned and desperate. Food is scarce. People have stopped eating fish as they are finding jewellery, rings, and human body parts such as fingers in the fish. The Myanmar army has tightened its lock down on this area and now locals are finding it difficult to get in and out. A strict curfew has been employed restricting the looting in the area. There has been a total lock down on any news or pictures coming out of this area. The only pictures available are ones made available by the army showing the army doing distribution. Any other pictures of the area are taken from a helicopter high in the air. Any form of camera has been banned, and detection carries serious penalties for the local people. There is an urgent need for food, water and medicine. Mass dehydration is evident as the water is now contaminated with the dead. Many of the locals are now suffering with diarrhoea indicating food contamination. Logistics seems to be the main problem. Army distribution is slow and has limited capacity. Global Aid Network is distributing dry noodles, however volunteers can only carry limited amounts of supplies, as they do not want to draw attention to this distribution channel. At the moment, going back and forth by foot is the only mode of transport. Volunteers have requested transport vehicles such as motorbikes and boats to make at least some of the trip easier. It has been reported that Humanitarian Aid items supplied by foreign agencies have now hit the black market. Source: Global Aid Network ----------------------------------------------- INDONESIAN CHRISTIAN VILLAGE BURNT TO THE GROUND BY MUSLIMS The mainly Christian village of Horale was recently attacked by a mob from the neighbouring village of Saleman which is predominantly Muslim. The Muslims burnt down 120 houses, three churches and the village school. Four Christians were killed and 56 wounded. Fifteen hectares of crops were destroyed as well as 20 fishing boats and 2 motor-cycles. Three of the four victims had their throats slit, but all were attacked in other ways as well. Horale village is home to 175 families, a total of around 2,300 people. Dr Patrick Sookhdeo, International Director of Barnabas Fund, comments, "Horale is situated in a remote area on the island of Seram in Maluku province. Such areas have seen a number of similar incidents over the last five months. Maluku province experienced intense anti-Christian violence between 1999 and 2001, and it is alarming to consider that this may be starting again. Please pray for a return to harmonious and peaceful relations." Prayer points: * Pray for the Christians of Horale village, many of whom have lost their homes and everything they owned. * Pray especially for the families and friends of those killed, that the Lord would comfort and provide for them. * Pray for those who have been wounded that they will be healed. * Pray that the Christians of Horale will be given grace to forgive and love their enemies. Source: Barnabas Fund Australia ----------------------------------------------- HOMOSEXUALS WIN LANDMARK PARENTING DECISION IN BRITAIN Britain has forged landmark rights for homosexual parents after the House of Commons unexpectedly threw out proposals that would have required fertility clinics to consider a child's "need for a father" before providing treatment.The father's role will now be replaced by the "need for supportive parenting" and both partners in a same sex relationship recognised as parents on birth certificates. At present, as in Australia, only the natural mother or father is automatically considered to be a parent when homosexual couples have fertility treatment. The vote came as a surprise to the Labour Government, which had been prepared for a big defeat on the issue. The conscience vote was won by a majority of 75 to 68. Fertility clinics will now be banned from refusing lesbian or single women treatment if they cannot provide a male paternal model. This reason was often advanced by clinics for refusing treatment to lesbian or single women. MPs opposed to the new laws warned that traditional families would be weakened law changes, while the significance of a father would be undermined in comparison to that of a mother. Source: BBC ----------------------------------------------- IRAQI PRESIDENT AFFIRMS CHRISTIAN PRESENCE IN IRAQ Iraqi President Jalal Talabani recently invited Christian leaders of Iraq to a formal dinner at his residence in Baghdad to discuss issues of concern to the Christian constituency. In his address, President Talabani acknowledged that the Christians were one of the founding inhabitants of Iraq and therefore deserved the support and assistance of the government. In return he asked them to embrace their country and their history and encouraged the Christians not to leave Iraq in spite of the difficult situation the country is passing through. Talabani emphasized that he will do his best to lift the oppression imposed on Christians, and will work on solving their problems and meeting their legal demands, He added that he was "convinced that it is necessary to defend the Christians on all levels, and respond to all their needs. The President also stressed "the important role played by clerics in fighting the dark terrorist ideology, spreading love and peace education, and encouraging people on unity and national brotherhood." Source: Adventist Press Service
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