Pastor sentenced to 3 years in Bhutan prison

Proselytism and incitement to
convert are illegal in Bhutan.

ASSIST News Service is reporting that the Bhutan High Court sentenced Gospel for Asia-supported missionary Ugyen Tashi to three years in prison for “attempting to promote civil unrest” for showing a film about Jesus.

In late May, Tashi walked for two days, carrying a generator and a projector, into interior villages of Bhutan to give people a chance to learn about Jesus. When one of the village chiefs learned of the movie’s content, he informed the chief of his district, who then called the police to arrest Tashi.

After multiple postponements and cancellations, Tashi was taken to court two months after his arrest.

GFA leaders initially met with local officials to appeal for Tashi’s release on bail, but the officials refused their petition, because they considered Tashi’s case very serious and a possible violation of Bhutan’s constitution, which states, “No person shall be compelled to belong to another faith by means of coercion or inducement.”
Tashi was asked to write a statement for the court, but his first statement was considered insufficient. He rewrote his statement nine times, paying $2.50 each time.

On August 17, the court presented all of Tashi’s statements in the presence of the officials and asked Tashi to screen the controversial film on the life of Jesus before the court the following day. Although it was reported that the court officials wanted to watch all the films Tashi had shown before a final verdict was pronounced, not one was shown.

Bhutan’s High Court declared Ugyen guilty and gave him three years in prison.

You can read the full report here.

Please pray for Pastor Tashi while he is in prison. Pray for his health, and that he will be able to effectively minister while he’s behind bars. Pray also for the other believers living in Bhutan. Pray for their protection, strength to endure persecution and discernment on how to share the Good News with those around them.

Watch VOM's December Persecution Report

The December 2010 edition of VOM's Persecution Report is ready for viewing!

You'll see how Christians who escaped North Korea are preparing to go back to the "Hermit Kingdom" and bring light into darkness. You'll learn about the ongoing violence facing believers in Iraq and a 22-year-old Pakistani Christian who was killed after being released from jail on a charge of blasphemy. You'll also hear of six Christians beaten in Nepal after being accused of blasphemy against traditional gods, and how a follower of Christ was given a 3-year jail sentence for showing Christian films in Bhutan.

Watch this video and be encouraged! (Length: 9:59)



You can watch more videos like this one at Persecution.TV.

Jailed for showing a film about Jesus

Bhutan means "Land of the Dragon."

Think about all the films you’ve watched in your lifetime. How many, if you had to guess, had a Christian theme or presented some angle of Jesus’ life on earth? Countless, no doubt. When thinking about what Jesus might look like, who in the Western world hasn’t thought of Franco Zeffirelli’s Jesus of Nazareth, George Steven’s The Greatest Story Ever Told or Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ?

And, whom among us thought twice about watching those films or ones like them?

Last month, VOM sources reported that a Bhutanese Christian was sentenced to three years imprisonment for "attempting to promote civil unrest" by showing films about Christianity.

Prem Singh Gurung, a 40-year-old ethnic Nepalese citizen living in southern Bhutan, was detained while showing Christian films in the Gonggaon and Simkharka villages. A court in Gelephu, reportedly said Gurung had violated Sections 105(1) and 110 of the Bhutan Information, Communication and Media Act, requiring authorities to screen all films before public presentation.

Bhutan is one of the world’s least evangelised nations. Proselytism and incitement to convert are illegal. Bhutanese officials are reportedly defending Prem’s sentencing, saying that although they respect the freedom of religion, “no person shall be compelled to belong to another faith by means of coercion or inducement."

This past Friday, police attempted to arrest two more Christians for involvement in showing a film about Jesus. The two Christians were not found and were still in hiding, said advocacy group International Christian Concern (ICC), which closely monitors the case.

Please continue to pray for our Bhutanese brothers and sisters who make up less than 1 percent of the country’s predominately Buddhist population. Pray for true spiritual liberation and for growth of the Church in this land.

Bhutanese government may legalise Christianity

Bhutan

As Christians living in the Western world, it can be difficult to imagine daily life without Bibles, Christian literature and our pick of churches in a 15-kilometre radius. And, yet, there are populations of people in this world who are unable to freely worship or attend a church of their choice.

In the South Asian country of Bhutan, government officials recognise only Buddhism and Hinduism as the country’s two religions. As a result, only these two communities have the right to openly practise their beliefs and build places of worship.

That may soon change as Bhutan’s religious regulatory authority is expected to consider recognising Christianity before the year’s end.

For the first time in Bhutan’s history, the Buddhist nation’s government seems ready to grant much-awaited official recognition and accompanying rights to a miniscule Christian population that has remained largely underground. The authority that regulates religious organisations will discuss—at its next meeting in late December—how a Christian organisation can be registered to represent its community.

Thank the Lord that movement forward is being made. Pray for our fellow Bhutanese brothers and sisters and their efforts to share Jesus Christ with those around them. Pray that the meeting will take place in December and that God will move among those gathered and open hearts to hearing His name and the words of His people.

You can read more about the plight to legalise Christianity in Bhutan by viewing “Legal Status Foreseen for Christianity in Buddhist Bhutan” posted on Charisma Magazine.