Sri Lankan Christians facing death threats

|PIC1|Release International has received reports of death threats against a Christian pastor and intimidation from Buddhists and Hindus aimed at preventing worship services from taking place.

The reports come just days after human rights organisations issued a global call to prayer for Sri Lanka, where churches have come under increasing attack amid a prolonged civil war.

According to Release partner the National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka (NCEASL), a church in Hambanthota District was forced to cancel services on Good Friday and Easter Sunday after its pastor received a death threat.

Four men reportedly stood outside the pastor’s house on April 8 shouting “Christian come out” while his wife and children were at home alone. When the pastor hurried to his home, one of the men threatened to kill him unless he left the village by morning. Later in the night, a man allegedly pounded on the door shouting abuse and threats before the police came and arrested him.

A petition was then circulated around the town by Buddhists warning the landlord to evict the pastor or else the house would be damaged. The petition was reportedly signed by villages and the representatives of temples in the area.

The pastor responded to the attacks by calling off the Easter services at his church and moving his children to a safe place. According to the NCEASL, the pastor was told on Monday of a plot to kill him as he went to collect his children.

In the predominantly Hindu Batticaloa District meanwhile, villagers chased away a church worker who came to visit Christian families. The NCEASL reports that Christians in the area have previously been threatened.

“Please uphold the pastors and their congregations in prayer,” said the NCEASL.

Release International is supporting the children of persecuted pastors living in largely Buddhist rural areas with high levels of opposition to Christians. Instances of persecution range from physical violence and death threats, to refusal to buy from or sell goods to Christians.

One pastor’s husband was murdered by militants after converting to Christianity from Buddhism.

The pastor, who is unnamed for security reasons, told Release: “They have killed, they have burned us, and they have bombed us, but they haven’t chased us away. Our God is a wonderful God.”

Last week the Religious Liberty Partnership, of which Release is a member, issued a statement calling on Christians around the world to pray for humanitarian efforts to reach civilians uprooted by the civil war and for the country to respect religious freedom.

The statement addresses proposed anti-conversion laws and the need for support to those affected by the conflict between the Sri Lanka government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). It also reminds Christians of the need to pray for churches located in conflict zones.

“This is yet another example of the Christian family worldwide standing together and calling its members to pray into a complex, but very serious political situation,” said Mervyn Thomas, CEO of Christian Solidarity Worldwide and chairman of the Religious Liberty Partnership.