HONOLULU – Persecution of religious groups around the world isn’t restricted to Christians, two advocates for religious liberty told a focus group meeting during the Baptist World Congress.
Christer Daelander, religious freedom representative for the European Baptist Federation, reported that in some cases, particularly in former Soviet nations, it isn’t just Christians who are persecuted. Government officials who are seeking power and control seek to eliminate any religious group that refuses to surrender to full control.
Blooming Night Zan, an advocate for the Karen people in Myanmar, said the Karen, largely Buddhists, have been persecuted since Jan. 31, 1949, when militia groups outside the government’s control rampaged against them. Since then, the Karen have sought an independent state or at least a system of justice within the country formerly known as Burma. Thousands of Karen people live in refugee camps along the border between Thailand and Myanmar.
Zan said so many Karen men have been conscripted for military service or have been killed by the Myanmar army that women have been appointed as village chiefs. Women chiefs have been singled out for harsh treatment by the army, with many being raped and tortured or being forced to serve the army as prostitutes.
Forced labor even among pregnant women is commonplace, Zan reported. Karen people are not allowed to work except as forced to do so by the army.
“So what do the people do when they cannot work?” Zan asked. They clean the camp, making it spotless, she said.
“And they study the Bible.” In fact, the Karen women have become so adept in biblical interpretation that a seminary has been established and others in the area come to them for theological education.
In 2004, Zan became a regional leader in the Karen Baptist Women’s Organization, whose 30,000 members work for relief and development in the refugee camps on the Thai border and with internally displaced people in Myanmar. Zan has reported graphic evidence of widespread terror tactics used by soldiers against Karen women in a book entitled Walking Amongst Sharp Knives. She also referred to “State of Terror,” a report published by the women’s organization in 2007 and posted on its website at www.karenwomen.org/Reports.
Zan emphasized that unless Baptists champion the cause of religious freedom for all peoples they are falling short of their ideals. She expressed great appreciation for the Baptist World Alliance Women’s Department for helping to make known the plight of Karen women.
Jeremy Bell, a Canadian Baptist leader who moderated the group, emphasized that Christians and moderate Muslims need to continue dialoguing to discover ways to ensure religious liberties. In addition, where Christians are in the majority, they must offer the same religious freedoms they seek in countries where they constitute a minority.
Jim White is editor of the Religious Herald.