Release International

Police in the Maldives deported a foreign teacher for having a Bible in his house – confirming fears that repressive new religious laws are being enforced in the island nation.

Shijo Kokkattu, a teacher from India, was detained for about a fortnight, charged with preaching Christianity then sent back to his homeland last month – after a police raid on his house in Raa Atoll.

There had been hopes that religious restrictions introduced under former dictator Maumoon Gayoom would not be enforced under President Mohamed Nasheed, who came to power in 2008 and who is widely considered to be a progressive Muslim.

But new regulations under the Protection of Religious Unity Act 1994 were published in the Government's gazette last month and thereby brought into force, according to the World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission.

The move is considered to signal a renewed commitment in the archipelago to enforce a legal ban on the 'propagation, display and expression' of any religion other than Islam, reports Compass Direct news agency. Any violation of the Act is punishable by imprisonment of up to five years, banishment or house arrest. Foreigners found to be proselytising are to be deported.

The Maldivian authorities claim that all of its more than 300,000 citizens are Sunni Muslim – although many reject this. Its 2008 constitution states that non-Muslims may not become citizens of the nation.

NEWS UPDATE:
Pakistan:  Punjab Christian Ruqqiya Bibi, whose bail hearing was scheduled for October 26, had her case adjourned until November 10 – because the complainant failed to turn up in court. Ruqqiya was sentenced to 25 years for 'blasphemy' in March 2010 and is applying for bail pending an appeal (Prayer Alert, October 25, 2011). Release partner CLAAS (Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement), whose legal team is supporting Ruqqiya and her family, have asked for continued prayer for them. Her husband, Munir, who received the same sentence, was freed on bail last December.
 
China:  Release partner China Aid has just reported details of a brutal beating that the local authorities gave to blind legal activist Chen Guangcheng and his wife while under house arrest in Shandong province. The couple were subjected to a four-hour assault on July 28 after Chen was found to have made a phone call. The ringleader was reportedly the local mayor – and the attack was believed to have been witnessed by the couple's daughter. Chen and his wife were brutally beaten in February after details of their plight were posted on YouTube. China Aid says there has been 'no reliable news' about the couple for months and some sources have reported that Chen may have been killed. Chen has been held under house arrest since September 2010 when he was released from jail after serving a four-year jail term. Supporters say he is being punished for exposing human rights abuses in China.

(Sources: China Aid, CLAAS, Compass Direct, WEA Religious Liberty Commission)

• Pray that the Maldivian authorities will yield to calls for greater religious freedom.
• Continue to pray for Ruqqiya Bibi and her husband, Munir, in Pakistan. Pray that her bail hearing this month will be successful and that they will both be acquitted on appeal.
• Ask God to sustain Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng and his wife amid brutal persecution. Pray that the Chinese authorities will relent and release them from house arrest.

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