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Lent Prayer - Maldives

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Published: 00:01 GMT Standard Time - Saturday 17 March 2012

Lent Prayer - Maldives

Country/Region: South and East Asia, Maldives

Behind the island “paradise” lies a darker reality for all Maldivian residents who are not Muslims. In terms of religious freedom the collection of over 200 islands south-west of India is one of the most restrictive countries in the world.

One of over 200 islands
that make up the
Image source: Sarah Ackerman, Flickr

The country’s law requires all citizens to be Muslims; non-Muslims may not vote or hold public positions. All government regulations are based on its interpretation of sharia. The media is banned from producing or broadcasting any programme “that humiliates Allah or his prophets or the holy Quran”. In October 2009 Sheikh Shaheem Ali Saeed, state minister of Islamic affairs, said that places of worship for non-Muslim religions could not be built in the country: “We will not accept it under any circumstances. It cannot be done. All Maldivians are Muslims.”

The very small number of indigenous Christians are ostracised, discriminated against and carefully watched. They practise their faith individually and in extreme secrecy for fear of being discovered. In 2010 a handful of Maldivians identified themselves as Christians in blogs.

Christians among the 100,000 foreign workers and 675,000 tourists who visit the island annually are allowed to practise their faith only in private. They may not share their faith with Maldivians or worship with them, and are immediately deported or arrested if caught. It is also illegal to carry or display in public books on religions other than Islam. In October 2011 a Christian teacher from India who was working in a school on Raa Attol was arrested for transferring Christian songs on to a school laptop and keeping a Bible in his home. At the time of writing he was still detained in prison.

Collect signatures for our Barnabas Fund “Proclaim Freedom” petition
We are called to speak out against the injustice and cruelty that is suffered by many of our Christian brothers and sisters throughout the world. This year Barnabas Fund has launched a petition called “Proclaim Freedom”, which speaks out on behalf of vulnerable and marginalised Christians who cannot speak for themselves. There is a petition form in the March/April edition of Barnabas Aid, or you can download one from our website, Sign now or downloaded and printed. Download. Could you take this to your small group or to church and ask ten of your friends to sign it? The more signatures we can get, the better!

Ask the Lord to strengthen the few Maldivian Christians, who are living out their faith in secrecy. Pray that they will fi nd ways to grow in that faith and to tell the Good News to their neighbours. Pray too for expatriate Christians, who are also severely restricted, that they may be encouraged in their faith and fi nd ways of sharing it with Maldivian Muslims. Pray that the growth of Islamism in the last seven years will stop. Pray that God’s truth and light will shine into the hearts of all Maldivians and that the government will cease its repression and allow Christians to live in peace and freedom.