The Colombia Government estimates that 600,000 people have died since the conflict began between the country’s authorities and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia—People’s Army (FARC-EP) in the 1960s. A peace talk began six months ago in Cuba and key agreement of land reform has been reached. Colombia has one of the most unequal land distributions in the world, 87 percent of peasants have no land. The agreement seeks to reverse the effects of the conflict and restore land to victims of dispossession and forced displacement. [UN] [IPS]
Pray for Columbia
Praise that the agreement is a firm step towards a final agreement to end the conflict.
Pray for a smooth progress of the land reform. The landless can get distributed land as they need.
[ePrayer – Pray for the cyclone affected communities in Bangladesh and Myanmar]
Bangladesh and Myanmar are bracing for Cyclone Mahasen, a storm which could affect millions in the region. According to OCHA, a red storm alert remains in effect for Mahasen, just east-northeast of Sri Lanka, now moving northwards across the Bay of Bengal towards both countries. Set to reach land on 16 May, the storm is expected to strike just south of the Bangladesh port city of Chittagong, but could, depending upon its final trajectory, bring life-threatening conditions for millions of people in northeast India, Bangladesh and Myanmar’s Rakhine State, OCHA warned on 12 May. It was predicted that Myanmar will have rain and thunderstorm on 15 May, followed by increasing wind and rain, as well as flash flooding later.
Aid agencies in Myanmar say heavy rain and mudslides could bring difficult conditions to about 140,000 displaced people across Rakhine state, mostly Rohingya. Up to 45,000 displaced people living in low-lying areas in Sittwe have been identified as the most vulnerable to cyclone Mahasen. Some have begun to be moved to higher ground. [IRIN]
Pray for the cyclone affected communities in Bangladesh and Myanmar:
Pray that Cyclone Mahasen would be weakened;
Pray for God’s protection to those people and communities who are being threatened by the coming cyclone;
Pray that tens of thousands of refugees who have already had so much troubles and suffering would be protected by the Lord and have peace
Pray that local governments and NGOs will have good preparation and coordination on mitigating the risk of the cyclone.
[ePrayer – Pray for the human rights situation in Eritrea]
The serious human rights violations in Eritrea are pushing people to take the difficult decision to leave their families and homes behind for an unknown future. Since the beginning of the year, close to 4,000 Eritrean refugees have crossed the border into Ethiopia, including a large number of unaccompanied children without the knowledge of their families. Children suffered from dysfunctional family circumstances due to the long absence of the father, most of the time because of conscription, lack of educational opportunities and the fear of forced conscription into indefinite national service as major reasons for their decisions to flee. UN expert expressed particular concern about the indefinite national service, the ongoing practice of arbitrary arrest and incommunicado detention in inhumane conditions and widespread torture, both physical and psychological, during interrogation by the police, military and security forces. [UN]
Pray for the human rights situation in Eritrea:
Pray for God’s protection and provision to those refugees fled from Eritrea, especially the unaccompanied children;
Pray for the change on the human rights situation there;
Pray that local churches and Christian groups would be able to help the them with the Love of God.
The global economy is no more secure today than it was five years ago. International institutions have failed to regulate greed and prevent the next banking crisis. More than 200 million people will be without work; 40% of them are young people. Almost 75 million people lost their jobs in 2012 alone, and this is expected to increase this year. Increasing numbers of workers are being forced into short-term contracts or the informal economy, with low pay, no benefits and no job security.
International Trade Union Confederation’s (ITUC) latest report provides an analysis of the actions of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to weaken collective bargaining. In the last few years, the IMF has utilised its lending programmes, regular reviews of country performance and research activities to attack collective bargaining in Europe. The reforms supported by the IMF are very similar across a range of countries, and this “one size fits all approach” harks back to the much criticised structural adjustment programmes of the 1980s and 1990s. While the statistical evidence shown in the report told us that those countries with strong unions, high collective bargaining coverage and synchronised collective bargaining systems have distinct economic advantages. [ITUC]
Pray for the collective bargaining:
Yesterday was the Labour Day. Let us remember the labourers all over the world together. Pray for decent jobs for all and greater equity. Especially for those dock workers in HK, pray that the strike will be ended soon and the workers’ benefits and rights will be improved;
Pray that IMF, governments and other organisations stop weakening the collective bargaining. Pray also that more workers can bargain for their rights through this solidarity action.
[ePrayer – Remember the incident of factory collapse in Bangladesh]
Bangladesh must strengthen its urban search and rescue capacity, said experts, following the collapse of an eight-story factory building outside Dhaka which has caused over 400 dead. There is a criticism of the authorities’ overall handling of the operation, and the Bangladeshi government’s rejection of international search and rescue offers. More than 2,000 volunteers and local rescue teams rushed to the scene to assist. However, they soon found themselves overwhelmed and ill-equipped. There were no scanners, sniffer dog or even no protective gear (gloves and helmets) for volunteers. Besides, the overall coordination of the operation was criticised. Densely populated Dhaka is indeed at high risk of an earthquake. The incident has revealed the fact that the country is not prepared for a major earthquake. [IRIN]
Remember the incident of factory collapse in Bangladesh:
Pray for the victims and their families. May God’s comfort and healing be with them;
Pray that the government officials can learn from the lessons and make effective measures to prevent the similar tragedies and respond to the possible disasters in the future.
The conflict between for and anti-Syrian Ba’ath Party government is still ongoing after its break out in March 2011. Till February 2013, the Syrian conflict has caused 70,000 deaths, about 1.2 million displaced in Syria and as many as 1 million Syrian refugees fleeing to neighbouring countries such as Jordan.
Za’atari camp is one of the camps for the Syrian refugees in Jordan. It was originally built to accommodate around 60,000 Syrian refugees yet it is now hosting at least 140,000. As the numbers in Za’atari have swelled, safety and security have degenerated. Aid workers have frequently faced attack during aid distributions. Tents, mattresses, gas and other products are smuggled in and out through a thriving black market, which often charges refugees exploitative prices for essential goods. The Jordanian government is implementing measures to improve security for the camp, but aid workers say the efforts are limited by funding constraints and have yet to make a difference. [Guardian, CNN, Reuters]
Pray for the refugees camps in Jordan:
Pray for God’s protection and provision to Syrian refugees in Jordan;
Pray for the safety of aid workers, journalists and citizens there;
Pray that people with experience and proper training can support the fundraising, aid distribution and management of refugee camp sites.