10/40 Window Emergency Prayer Alert-Bhutan- Buddhist country to hold its first democratic elections on Monday, March 24, 2008
In a major answer to prayer by Christian groups, including Window International Network (WIN) and its Praying Through The Window: Political and Spiritual Leaders in the 10/40 Window, Bhutan will hold its first democratic elections on Monday, March 24, 2008—the latest step in the transformation of the Himalayan nation where Buddhist kings reigned supreme. However, Bhutan is ranked No. 5 in the 2008 Open Doors “World Watch List” of nations that persecute Christians the worst. “We would like to humbly request you all for your prayers,” a Bhutanese Christian wrote in an e-mail received by WIN. “Bhutan is having its first ever general public elections after 100 years of absolute monarchy. … We do still have lot of silent persecutions (of) Christians, and we are badly discriminated by the government and there is no equal right for us.” >>Click here to view the entire article online. Emergency Prayer Alert-Bhutan Buddhist country to hold its first democratic elections on Monday, March 24, 2008WIN PRAYER ALERT
In a major answer to prayer by Christian groups, including Window International Network (WIN) and its Praying Through The Window: Political and Spiritual Leaders in the 10/40 Window, Bhutan will hold its first democratic elections on Monday, March 24, 2008—the latest step in the transformation of the Himalayan nation where Buddhist kings reigned supreme. However, Bhutan is ranked No. 5 in the 2008 Open Doors “World Watch List” of nations that persecute Christians the worst. “We would like to humbly request you all for your prayers,” a Bhutanese Christian wrote in an e-mail received by WIN. “Bhutan is having its first ever general public elections after 100 years of absolute monarchy. … We do still have lot of silent persecutions (of) Christians, and we are badly discriminated by the government and there is no equal right for us. “Two of our relatives are behind bars for the last 14 months, and we are just praying to the Lord for their early release,” the Bhutanese Christian continued. “They were caught while they were showing The Jesus film to some (in) the neighborhood.” Until just a few decades ago, the secluded and mountainous country was a medieval agrarian society, with no paved roads, no electricity, no hospitals and no telephones, the Associated Press (AP) reported. Goods were bartered rather than bought. But much has changed in recent years—television, for example, was introduced in 1999, the AP reported. Now comes the historic parliamentary elections, in which the country’s first elected prime minister should take office a day later. Under a draft constitution, the king, 27-year-old Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck, will become head of state, but Parliament will have the power to impeach him by a two-thirds vote, the AP reported. The Communist Party of Bhutan has threatened to disrupt the elections to Bhutan’s National Assembly or the lower house of Parliament that would formalize the nation’s transformation from an absolute monarchy to parliamentary democracy, Thaindian.com reported. Mahayana Buddhism is the state religion in Bhutan, where Christians comprise a fraction of 1 percent of the population that ranges between 700,000 and 2.2 million people, the AP reported. The law provides for freedom of religion. However, the government limited this right in practice by barring non-Buddhist missionaries from entering the country, limiting construction of non-Buddhist religious buildings, and restricting the celebration of some non-Buddhist religious festivals and limiting others, according to International Christian Concern (ICC). The government also prohibits religious conversion from Buddhism to other religions. Foreign missionaries were not permitted to proselytize, ICC said. Praise for:
Pray for:
Sourced: the Associated Press, Thaindian.com, Open Doors, International Christian Concern
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