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Malaysia

• Raymond Koh's Wife Demands Answers

  

  Pastor Raymond Koh was no stranger to persecution when he was abducted off the streets of Malaysia on February 13th, 2017. The incident was caught on security cameras and, although no information about Pastor Raymond's captors has ever been released by the authorities, it is believed that government security forces were responsible for the incident. Video footage of the abduction is available here. For previously published reports about the missing pastor, see this list.

• Fifth Anniversary of Pastor Raymond Koh's Disappearance

  

  On February 13th, 2017, surveillance cameras captured Pastor Raymond Koh being forced to bring his vehicle to a sudden stop before masked men abducted him in an operation that appeared to be executed with military precision. The abducted pastor has not been seen nor heard from since the incident. Under suspicion of state police for attempting to convert ethnic Malays to Christianity, Pastor Raymond and his wife Susanna received death threats prior to the incident.

• "Release Raymond Koh" Petition

  

  On February 13th, 2017, Pastor Raymond Koh was abducted from the streets of Malaysia. He hasn't been seen or heard from since, and his car has never been located. Video footage of the entire crime was captured by nearby security cameras.

• State Police Found Responsible for Disappearances

  

  Pastor Raymond Koh disappeared on February 13th, 2017 when his car was forced to stop and he was abducted in broad daylight by masked men (see this report). On April 3rd of this year, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia released findings that placed blame for the attack on the "Special Branch" of the state police.

• Kidnapped Pastor Still Missing After One Year

  

  For more than a year, Malaysian pastor Raymond Koh has been missing. On February 13th, 2017, masked men forced his vehicle to stop, pulled him from the car, and then drove away with both vehicles -- all captured in broad daylight by CCTV cameras. Despite widespread distribution of the video footage, there have been no demands and no word on Pastor Raymond's whereabouts.

• Abduction Fears for Local Christians

  Three Christians have gone missing in Malaysia -- and friends fear they have been abducted as threats were received from jihadists because of their church work. According to surveillance cameras in the area and witnesses at the scene, Pastor Raymond Koh was taken from his car in the city of Petaling Jaya on February 13th by at least five masked men. Another pastor and his wife, who have not been named, went missing about one month prior to Pastor Raymond's disappearance.

• Perpetrators Stir Strife Between Religious Groups

  The Church of Assumption, Malaysia Photo: Flickr / Davidlohr Bueso

  A church in Penang was attacked on January 26th when two men on a motorcycle threw Molotov cocktails at the building. Thankfully, the building sustained minimal damage as only one of the explosives detonated.

  The attack came less than 24 hours after five separate churches discovered banners hung on their property with the phrase, "Allah is great, Jesus is the son of Allah" -- a slogan that is extremely offensive to Muslims who do not want non-Muslims using the word "Allah." The banners appear to have been put up by a group wishing to stir up trouble between Christians and Muslims. Each of the churches has filed a report with police about the acts of vandalism.

• Officials Seek to Legalize Forced Conversion

  In April of 2013, an estranged husband, who converted from Hinduism to Islam in prison, secretly took his two children (aged 5 and 8) to an Islamic Centre where they were officially converted to Islam and given Islamic names. When their Hindu mother sought redress, she was told that because her children were now Muslims, she would have to go through the Sharia courts. Believing that to be futile and possibly even dangerous, she opted instead to lodge a complaint with the police in early June. This case triggered an outcry when it was exposed in the media.

  On Wednesday, June 26th, a bill permitting the unilateral conversion of minors to Islam went to the Parliament without first going to the Cabinet as is the customary procedure. If passed, this bill will further Islamize Malaysian law. (For an historical overview of this country, check the Malaysia Country Report.) It will also legalize the forced conversion of non-Muslim children. Despite the fact that the bill has caused an outcry, particularly amongst Malaysia's non-Muslims, the government is standing firm. For the sake of vulnerable children, we must pray against this bill.

  Please pray that the Spirit of the Lord will arouse passionate indignation in all Malaysians who treasure personal liberty and the fundamental human rights of children so this bill will not pass, thus providing necessary protection of the country's children. May the Malaysian Church look to the 'Lord of Hosts' for wisdom and strength as they face this fierce spiritual battle. Pray that our faithful Lord will establish justice for the children and their parents whose rights have been severely threatened. "Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matthew 19:14 ESV).

• Update: Detained Bibles released

  A seized Bible is stamped with the inscription “For Christians Only.”

  Two shipments totaling approximately 30,000 Bibles detained by Malaysian port authorities in January (click here for more information) were recently released. Authorities seized the Bibles, which had been imported from Indonesia for distribution in schools, churches and longhouses, because they claimed they could cause a conflict with an ongoing court case involving use of the word "Allah" in a Catholic newspaper. Most Christians, however, believe the government is worried that the Bibles will be distributed to Muslim Malays, and see the seizure as part of a systematic plan to deny access to the Bible in Malay. Authorities had taken similar action in March 2009, when they detained 5,100 copies of the Good News Bible in Malay in Port Klang.

  The government's decision to release this recent shipment came with the condition that the books are stamped with a serial number and the inscription "For Christians Only" on the cover. Malaysian Christian leaders have refused these terms, fearing the government would use the serial numbers to track the Bibles and penalize those who accepted them. At last report, the Malaysian Bible Society has rejected the restrictions placed on the Bibles and is refusing to collect them.

  Praise God for the release of these Bibles. Pray Christians in Malaysia will remain faithful in spite of opposition from those in authority. Pray they will know that they are not alone, but part of the Body of Christ. Pray these Bibles will somehow get into the hands of those who long for the life and truth found through Jesus Christ (John 14:6).

  You can learn more about the challenges facing Christian in Malaysia at the Malaysia Country Report.

• Christian literature held by authorities
  

  Authorities in Malaysia's Kuching Port have detained approximately 30,000 copies of the New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs in the Malay language, causing great upset among the nation's Christians. Gideons International imported the books from Indonesia for distribution in schools, churches and longhouses in Betong and other Christian areas in Sarawak state. They have been detained since January. Authorities told an officer that he could not distribute the books because they "contained words which are also found in the Qur'an." The officer was ordered to transport the books to the Home Ministry's office for storage. This same officer recently enquired of the Home Ministry officials on the status of the Malay Bibles, and was told by authorities that they had yet to receive instructions on the matter.

  This is not the first time government authorities have detained Malay-language Bibles. In March 2009, 5,100 copies of the Good News Bible in Malay, imported by the Bible Society of Malaysia, were detained in Port Klang.

  Pray this Christian literature will be released for distribution. Pray that, even among such opposition, the Word of the Lord will continue to go forth in Malaysia. Pray religious freedom will be justly respected throughout Malaysia.