Story number 1 for 4 Jun 2002

(Pakistan)–Topping the news, there are reports of border fighting between Indian and Pakistani forces. The latest violence takes place as leaders of the two nations arrive in Kazakhstan for an international summit on Asian security. Voice of the Martyrs’ Gary Lane observed firsthand the effect of the tensions on their workers in the area. “The Christians there, primarily in Pakistan, were very fearful and very concerned about the future. They don’t want to go to nuclear war. When things heat up in Pakistan, the Christians always seem to be the fall guys. We need to pray for divine intervention for Lord’s protection over our brothers and sisters in Pakistan.” Lane asks people to pray for their work in the area. “Christians are second and third class citizens there. As I said earlier, they’re only about two-percent of the population. There’s institutionalized persecution; in addition to that, there’s cultural persecution, where Christians are forced, because of their poverty, to work for Muslims, and then Muslims will pressure them.”