Vietnam Police Kill Christian Farmer Amid Rural Crackdown

Vietnam (BosNewsLife)Degar Montagnard Christians and other believers in several areas of Vietnam's Central Highlands faced another day of persecution Friday, February 27th, after at least one Christian peasant was brutally hacked to death by security forces and an angry mob, missionary workers and a key official told BosNewsLife.The United States-based Montagnard Foundation Incorporated (MFI), which has close ties with Christians in the area,told BosNewsLife it has just learned that Siu Krot, 65, was killed outside his farm, after refusing to sell his land.Local authorities have often pressured indigenous Christians to sell their lands below market value, or nationalized them, according to MFI and other advocacy groups."The Vietnam law is craftily designed to kill the indigenous Degar Montagnard people but protect ethnic Vietnamese as you can see with our Christian brother Siu Krot," MFI President Kok Ksor told BosNewsLife. Communist officials have denied that persecution has been taking place, calling the reports Western propaganda. However, Christian Aid Mission (CAM) quoted local Christians, including a pastor, as saying that homes have been destroyed and burned and that believers have been detained and tortured."Just a few years ago, more than 300 tribal pastors were put in prison ñ or simply vanished. No one has ever heard from them since," CAM added. It remains difficult for tribal churches to operate because to become "legal" they have to receive official permission for Christian activities, CAM said. Yet despite the setbacks, CAM stressed that some missionaries have noted a "sudden change" in attitudes of authorities towards Christians in some areas of the country, where so far tribal house churches were banned. Full Story.
PRAY that the Vietnamese Christians will be strengthened in their faith and that God will protect them from harassment and violent acts against them.
PRAY that Christianity continues to flourish under the regime.
PRAY that the Communist officials will acknowledge that persecution is taking place and that the international community will continue to expose the persecution of Christians in Vietnam.
PRAISE that some of the Vietnamese authorities are becoming more favorable towards Christians.
For more general information, please go to ICC’s website on Vietnam.

http://www.persecuted.org/

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