The continuous reported cases of savage rape in India were a shock to the international society recently. The violence, discrimination and inequality faced by women in India are also common in other South Asia nations, such as Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Being restrained by the traditional caste system, religious culture, poverty and gender inequality, South Asia women usually find it very difficult to recognise and live out one’s self value and dignity.
How can churches and Christians respond to the distress of women in South Asia? In light of the ministries and services of our local Christian partners among poor women and communities in India, we will try to explore how Christianity is related to Caring for the disadvantaged communities and how HK Christians can walk with them together.
Date> 28 March 2013 (Thursday) Time> 7:30pm to 9:00pm Venue> Room 501, Rightful Centre, 12 Tak Hing Street, Kowloon Registration>Online registration. Free of charge. (Deadline: 21 March) Enquiry> Please call Mr. Wu at 2381 9627, or send email to sharing@cedarfund.org Remark> You are welcome to make an appointment with us to share this topic in your churches or cell groups.
[Annual Report 2011-2012] A Word from the Chairman
> Rev Raymond LO, Chairman of the Board
Strain Toward What Is Ahead
In 2011 and 2012, large number of children, women and poor people suffered from ethnic conflicts, natural disasters and kinds of economic and social injustice. Out of the love of Christ, CEDAR’s partners and staff have worked very hard to respond to various disasters by providing emergency relief assistance and recovery support in Africa and Asia. Through our development projects, our supported groups and communities not only received concrete help but are also able to learn to be self-reliant. Seeing the needs around the world are so great, CEDAR has tried to support more in response to partners’ requests. But in past few years, the donations received by CEDAR have not been able to match up a budget for giving those supports. Last year we had reluctantly to cut some of our programme supports for partners who are also suffering from financial difficulties. May I request your prayers and supports on our ministry so that more of those in needs may feel the love of God?
In the coming year, CEDAR will seek to visit more Christian churches in Hong Kong and prepare some material for better understanding by church members about our ministry and the needs around the world. In Christ let us live out our integral mission together! Annual Report 2011-2012 [Download full version]
Since the second half of 2011, CEDAR has put in much attention to evaluate and reflect on the impacts and directions of our children ministry. After a year of study and discussion, we finally set our focus to encourage community-based children development projects and to provide training to child care givers and service providers. This will be an collaborative effort with experienced overseas partners in order to give children better rights to protection, provision and expression.
Children at risk are the main target of our projects in Myanmar in partnership with local Christian partners. Full Moon is one of our local partners, founded in 1997 to provide hostels to conflict affected children. In January 2012, due to the ceasefire agreements reached by the Karen armed groups and the Burmese government, the local situation has so improved that our partner can start planning to help older children/youth to return and reintegrate into their home villages.
Prospect in the Coming Year
Conflict is a cross-cutting issue in Myanmar, having impact on various social issues, such as ethnic conflicts, education, health and hygiene, and human trafficking. Women and children are most vulnerable in conflicts. Therefore, in coming year we will endeavour to assist the resettlement of conflict-affected communities, particularly of the Lisu people in Kachin State and the Karen people in Mon & Karen State, and seek protection for women and children from human trafficking and exploitation, child labour and abuses through education and empowerment.
Lisa’s Sharing
‘During a monitoring visit to Myanmar at one children home with children affected by cyclone, I used a “River of Life” exercise to encourage children to explain the events that they believed are important in the past, present and future of their lives. In the exercise, a girl drew picture of a school of fish swimming together before the cyclone in 2008, followed by a fish left along in the river after the cyclone. At the end of the river of life she had three fishes swimming together again. It breaks one’s heart to see her River of Life yet it helps us to understand the painful experience in her, allowing her to express this feeling and hopefully we and our partner can better response to her needs.’
After the exposure monitoring trips and discussions in the past two years, according to a series of measurement, such as the human development index (HDI), Gini coefficient, political and social stability, uniqueness and the possibility of monitoring project, we have finally chosen Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, India, Nepal, Myanmar and China to be the focus countries for our projects.
The prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe is high and affecting many families. Many widows and orphans are left with insufficient resources for basic living. They have the rights to access to assistance or inheritance if they can present the marriage certificate, birth certificate, and the death certificates of their deceased family members. However, many of the poor delay registering for these certificates for reasons such as complex administrative procedure and lacking fund to pay for the expenses incurred. As a result, they are left without assistance and cannot exercise their rights. Meanwhile, property grabbing by relatives is very common among these families. In many occasions these widows and orphans are chased away from their own houses which may be the only property left by the deceased.
CEDAR supports Trinity Project Trust to organize awareness raising workshops and trainings for empowering children and the communities, demanding and protecting the children’s rights through early birth registration, access to parental death certificates and apply for their shares of the inheritance. Adults are also encouraged to write their wills, safeguarding their family’s access to their inheritance. Our partner also assists the poor who cannot produce the aforementioned legal documents to gain rightful access to their estates or resolve other property grabbing problems.
WHO defines “adolescent” as those aged between 10 and 19. Adolescents are not children but not yet considered to be adult. As a result, they are easily being neglected. During adolescence period, both boys and girls experience physical, psychological and social characteristics changes. They have to prepare themselves for being leaders of future. It is therefore important to provide them knowledge and values on rights and justice issues as well as civil responsibilities.
Nevertheless, many adolescents in Bangladesh do not have schooling opportunities due to poverty. They are illiterate, usually jobless and being ignored most of the time. They, especially girls, know little about their rights and are thus vulnerable. The poor families tend to marry off their daughters as young as 13-14 years old in order to save family expenditure and dowry price. However, it is very difficult for these adolescence girls who are not mature yet to adapt to new lives staying with a new family. Moreover, early marriage and early pregnancy can be very harmful to their lives.
To tackle with this problem, CEDAR supports PARI Development Trust to implement Adolescence Empowerment and Education Project in rural areas of Central Bangladesh. Partner talked about different issues like civil and family responsibilities, relations between two sexes, personal hygiene, psychological health, women rights and marriage issues through games, group discussions and role play to help the adolescence build up rights and justice values. Also, partner train them in vocational skills and build up their capacity for generating income. Meanwhile, seminars are organized for parents, community leaders and religious leaders to let them understand needs of adolescents and encourage them to communicate positively with the adolescents. This project emphasizes girls’ rights and disseminates the bad effect of early marriage in a hope to join hands with parents and community leaders to stop early marriage and early pregnancy to protect the girls.
Rashida was only 15 years old but her father planned to marry her off to a 22-year-old man. Rashida and her mother were told about the bad effect and restrictions of law against early marriage. They seek advice of the local government officials with the help of project staff and finally persuaded her father not to marry her off.
