Mission Network News - Bangladesh

Bangladesh (MNN) — Bangladesh will soon begin extraditing former prime minister Sheikh Hasina from neighboring India to face charges related to mass killings.

More than a thousand people were killed and hundreds injured during a crackdown on student-led protests against Hasina’s government in July and August. Religious minorities quickly became a target. More about that here.

“When the government collapsed, the police pulled back from their areas, and the streets were like the Wild West,” FMI’s Patrick Anthony says.

Things have since calmed in the streets of Dhaka, Bangladesh’s capital, but violence continues in remote communities. Anthony says, “Hindus and Christians are feeling very vulnerable right now. People see these minorities as cooperatives to the former government.”

(Photo courtesy of FMI)

Although the population of Muslim-majority Bangladesh is only eight percent Hindu and less than one percent Christian, these small percentages don’t offer protection. Attackers recently targeted a Hindu family living near one of FMI’s national leaders.

“A group of 10 attacked their house and raped the wife and mother, which ended up putting her in the hospital,” Anthony says. “There’s a great pressure to ‘hunker down’ and do what you can to protect your family. At the same time, there is tremendous (Gospel) opportunity.”

FMI supports national leaders and church planters in Bangladesh. Learn how you can come alongside their work here. Ask the Lord to supernaturally protect believers and other targeted minorities.

“They’re scared. They’re feeling very vulnerable. Pastor Rajeeb [has] been robbed a couple of times, and he said it would not take much for people to do it again,” Anthony says.

“We’re praying that the Lord’s protection when there is no police would be a testimony to the reality of the God that Christians are following: Jesus Christ.”

Pray for the banking system to resume normal operations and for the police to increase patrols in vulnerable areas. Pray the interim government holds elections on schedule and can establish a permanent government.

“The caretaker government is supposed to hold elections within 90 days to put a permanent government in place. [Our partner] has heard talk that this caretaker government may want to hold power for a number of years,” Anthony says.

“He said if they try to do that, he anticipates the situation in Bangladesh getting worse.”

Header image depicts student protestors in Bangladesh. Students launched the “Bangla Blockade” following a one-point demand for scrapping all illogical and discriminatory quotas in public service through enactment of a law and keeping a minimum quota for marginalized citizens in line with the constitution. (Wikimedia Commons)

Bangladesh (MNN) — Expats and businessmen have begun to return to Bangladesh, but there is still no guarantee of business as usual. An A3 Gospel worker we’ll call Paul* tells MNN, “The situation is a bit unstable right now. Safety and security [are] still not there.”

Religious minorities have suffered greatly under the recent unrest that drove Bangladesh’s former prime minister to India and brought in a new interim government. BBC News recently proved some Muslim-Hindu persecution claims on social media to be false.

However, many recent occasions of political or religious violence are all too true.

“Political parties who were opposite from the previous government are taking different kinds of opportunities. Anybody from the previous government’s party, they are being tortured,” Paul says.

“Even [everyday citizens,] if their address is from the same district [as] the last Prime Minister, they are also being harassed or tortured.”

The instability is affecting Gospel work. A3 recently decided to postpone travel and meetings between Bangladeshi leaders and international cohorts until the situation stabilizes.

“[The] police system is still not fully working, so attacks can happen at any time,” Paul says.

Ask the Lord to continue protecting believers. Pray that the political situation will stabilize further and that minority fears will decrease.

“Some people who are fundamental Islamists stated that [Bangladesh] is their country, and minority people should not be in this country,” Paul says. “Other Muslim people [are] saying, ‘No, no, the minority people should be safe, and [it] is our duty to protect them.’”

*Pseudonym

Header image depicts student protesters in Bangladesh. (Photo courtesy of Rayhan9d/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Bangladesh (MNN) — Student protestors seek justice while Bangladesh’s interim government struggles to maintain order.

Police officers refuse to return to work. Many vanished from their posts after facing mob violence for their role in hundreds of protester deaths.

“It’s (Bangladesh is) ruled by the mob right now. When you have hundreds of people gathering, who will step in the way of that?” FARMS International’s Scott Clifton says.

“The military hasn’t been able to maintain order. The police force hasn’t been able to maintain order. It’s affecting anybody who’s [in] a minority group.”

Hindus protest the mistreatment of religious minorities in Bangladesh on August 12, 2024.
(Wikimedia Commons)

FARMS’ primary contact in Bangladesh says gangs are setting minorities’ houses on fire, and people are dying in the chaos. He tells Clifton, “Our days of terror are not over yet.”

“The first step for our contacts in the country is survival,” Clifton says. “They’re praying, they’re taking it moment by moment. Once there is stability, there will be an assessment of the damage and a plan made about how to move forward.”

So far, this believer has lost $30,000 worth of inventory designated to support ministry projects. “Although FARMS is focused on long-term development, part of that long-term development might be re-establishing businesses that can continue to support people locally,” Clifton notes.

The most important thing YOU can do is pray. “Our action item is to pray, to appeal to God on behalf of all the believers in Bangladesh,” Clifton says.

“[Pray] that He would protect them, that ministry would continue, that He would even use the hardships to soften many people’s hearts and open them to the Gospel.”

Pray also for a peaceful resolution to the current unrest and end the economic “bleeding.” “The economic situation in Bangladesh has been really bad. Now, with everything shut down, it’s [even worse,]” Clifton says.

“You have many people [living] below the poverty line, depending on day laborers’ wages to provide for that week’s food. Everything is closed, so people can’t find work, and there is a lot of economic stress. Once [the situation] stabilizes and people can earn an income to support their family and put food on the table, that will go a long way towards stability in the country.”

Header image depicts a public celebration following the forced ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024. (Wikimedia Commons)

Bangladesh (MNN) — Violence against religious minorities in Bangladesh continues unabated.

Wycliffe Associates’ Tony Tophoney says former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left a power vacuum when she fled to India last week. Minorities are paying the price of lax governmental control.

“The police stepped back and kind of ‘circled the wagons’ [and] the people left out on the fringes of the society are the minority [groups] like Hindus, Buddhists, and Christians,” Tophoney says.

“The opposition party has been waiting for a moment like this. They were burning down Christian churches and Hindu temples, beating the believers in their homes.”

The unrest is directly affecting Wycliffe Associates’ partners. “All Bible translation work in Bangladesh has ceased due to the conflict because most of the Christians are hiding in colonies now,” Tophoney says.

Hindus protest the mistreatment of religious minorities in Bangladesh on August 12, 2024.
(Wikimedia Commons)

“With the violence ramping up and the uncertainty of the political situation, those colonies are being threatened and attacked by the opposition party.”

Many believers have fled to makeshift refugee camps on the border with India, hoping to escape across the border to safety. However, “the Indian authorities are guarding their border and stopping them from going any further,” Tophoney says.

“They’re stuck in that situation and don’t have any food because the agitators have made it impossible for those groups to access food.”

Ask the Lord to intervene and help as only He can. “We’d love to have your prayers,” Tophoney says.

“We need them desperately for South Asia and Bangladesh in general, that the Lord will protect the believers and protect the small light that burns for Christ. It is a fragile light, but it has been burning brightly.”

Header image depicts student protestors on July 11, 2024. Students launched the “Bangla Blockade” following a one-point demand for scrapping all illogical and discriminatory quotas in public service through the enactment of a law and keeping a minimum quota for marginalized citizens in line with the constitution. (Wikimedia Commons) 

Bangladesh (MNN) — Restoring law and order is a priority for Bangladesh’s new caretaker government following last week’s ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

On Sunday, officials said they were working to resolve attacks on Hindus and other religious minorities.

Victory march by protesters after the resignation of Sheikh Hasina.
(Wikimedia Commons)

Hasina fled to India after weeks of student-led protests descended into violence. Scott Clifton with FARMS International says the government collapse paved the way for chaos.

“It provided an opportunity for Muslim fundamentalists to reign the land,” Clifton says. “There’s general lawlessness; these fundamentalists have free reign, and they’ve targeted minority groups, so Hindus have been targeted. Christians have been targeted as well.”

Hundreds of radical Muslims raided the property of FARMS’ primary contact in Bangladesh and took his employees hostage. Inventory losses totaled roughly $30,000.

“Our contact had his businesses completely looted,” Clifton says.

“Stolen livestock, stolen fish from fish ponds – that was money to support orphans and ministry efforts.”

FARMS’ contact tells Clifton he’s hopeful that interim PM Muhammad Yunus will restore security so believers can emerge from hiding.

“They’re fearful for their lives. They’re sheltered at home; they’ve locked every gate,” Clifton says.

“They limit communication because they’re not sure what’s monitored or not, and they’re just living in fear, praying moment by moment for protection.”

No matter what comes next, FARMS’ contact and his family are trusting in God’s faithful presence. Ask the Lord to deliver these believers from the hand of their enemy.

Header image depicts protestors in Bangladesh on August 2, 2024. (Wikimedia Commons)

Bangladesh (MNN) — On Monday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled Bangladesh after a violent crackdown failed to stop student-led protests against her government. Thousands of protesters celebrated her departure.

However, instead of the conflict toning down, reports are coming out about protestors targeting religious minorities and those perceived to be supporters of the former prime minister.

Bruce Allen with FMI says they are getting updates from Christian ministry partners in Bangladesh. “Opposition parties are vandalizing their opponents’ offices, burning down internet facilities, all sorts of things like that.

Protestors after the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. (Photo courtesy of S.M.M.Musabbir Uddin, Wikimedia Commons: CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=151201673)

“Our partners say that they expect violence to increase. In fact, while I was chatting with one of them, he said, ‘I hear gunfire right now. Gotta go.’ So it’s a very volatile situation, even though it looks like things should calm down because their major demand of the prime minister’s resignation has occurred.”

Many churches and Hindu temples have been destroyed, and several people killed. One Christian pastor was approached by a group of people demanding he pay them to avoid harm, according to an FMI partner.

FMI’s ministry efforts in Bangladesh have continued, but engagement has gone down with people hesitant to leave their homes.

Allen says, “The protests began in late June. There were the curfews — which were, in some places, ‘shoot on sight’ curfews. That’s scary enough, so people would be hesitant to go out at all. ‘Do I go to a church service even though it’s daylight?’ People are hunkering down.”

Yet, despite the chaos, “Pastor Rajib, who’s one of our leadership team members, says that services still have gone on with all of our partners [and] church planters across the nation. In fact, I was pleased to see…photos of pastors leading their congregations in prayer vigils interceding for the country.”

In the wake of former Prime Minister Hasina’s departure, an interim government will be set up. Time will tell what kind of reforms this moment will spur in the country, but Allen says we can pray that this may also open the doors for spiritual revival across Bangladesh.

Rajpara Police Office engulfed in flames after the Resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. (Photo courtesy of Nahid Hossain, Wikimedia Commons: CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=151220471)

“This is the third largest Muslim-majority nation in the world,” says Allen. “If Christians can begin to have a voice in this country, what a great opportunity for the country.”

“Pray for calm to be restored, for people to become unified in the vision for government and social reform.”

Also, Allen asks, “Pray for the evangelists and the church planters to have boldness to declare the Gospel of the Prince of Peace.

“Whenever there’s upheaval [and] people are feeling uncertain about life, it’s also a great time to say here’s what is certain: Jesus can be the anchor for you, not just in this life, but for eternity.”

Header photo of Bangladesh protestors cheering after the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. (Photo courtesy of Nahid Sultan, Wikimedia Commons: CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=151233908)

Bangladesh (MNN) — Bangladesh observed a national day of mourning yesterday, July 30, recognizing that nearly 150 people have lost their lives during student protests this month.

The unrest hinges on a former quota system that reserved 30% of government jobs for descendants of veterans. Paul, a gospel worker with A3 in Bangladesh, says when students first protested the quota, the government responded positively.

Photo of 2024 quota reform movement courtesy of Rayhan9d/Wikimedia Commons

“They said they will listen and talk about it. But later because of some misunderstanding, the situation got [much] worse,” he explains.

Eventually, “[the] government deployed [the] army and other forces because many of our national properties like train station, bus station, municipalities, corporation, so many things were attacked. To protect all those kinds of national resources, they introduced [a] curfew.”

Paul says that the situation is now more under control than it was last week. However, tensions remain between the government and protesters. 

“There [is] still [some] communication going on between the two sides,” he says. “Please pray for the general people of Bangladesh — especially for the students, because we have some traumatized situation[s] because of last week, as many people died on the street.” 

On Sunday July 21, the Supreme Court cut the job quotas from 30% to 5%. Since then, the government curfew has begun to ease. Pray for normal life to return soon so that A3’s gospel work can continue. 

“We are not able to organize different types of ministry activities, because of this situation,” Paul says. “So we have been postponing or canceling different programs.”

Paul says the people of Bangladesh need courage and peace from God amid fear and trauma. “Pray for our leaders, so that they can also [make] decision[s] wisely.” 

Learn more about A3’s ministry at a3leaders.org. 

Header photo of 2024 quota reform movement courtesy of Rayhan9d/Wikimedia Commons.

Bangladesh (MNN) — Bangladesh is slowly lifting an internet and communications blackout after crackdowns on riots and protesters killed almost 200 people.

It all started two weeks ago when student protesters began demanding an end to a quota that reserves 30% of government jobs for relatives of freedom fighters.

Greg Kelley with Unknown Nations says, “One of the greatest fears that the government would have would be a student movement. It’s incredibly intimidating because they know the power of that and the substance of that. That’s what was happening, and so they began to negotiate to ease some of these quota restrictions.

“So the good news is that things are moving in the right direction. The bad news is it just was very revealing of how unstable a country like Bangladesh is.”

Dhaka, Bangladesh. (Photo courtesy of Niloy Biswas/Unsplash)

Along with the social unrest, Bangladesh is a Muslim-majority nation in deep spiritual darkness.

“If the Church around the world is looking at Bangladesh, they’re going to find a country that is in great need of the Gospel,” Kelley says. “I mean, you can’t look at a country of 173 million people, top 10 population of countries in the world, and less than 2% Christian [without] saying, ‘Oh my goodness, where is the Church at? Where are our missions efforts at?’”

So what can the Church do? Kelley says, “We need to get Bibles in there!”

Unknown Nations is reaching Bangladesh with biblical hope. In connection with ministry partners, “We distribute solar-powered audio Bibles by the hundreds in the Bengali language.”

Pray for the peace of Christ to permeate Bangladesh as a result of millions of people hearing Scripture and choosing to follow Jesus.

Support Unknown Nations’s audio Bible distribution ministry here!

Header photo courtesy of Unknown Nations.

Bangladesh (MNN) — Cyclone response is underway in Bangladesh, but the United Nations says more help is needed. UN teams are distributing hygiene kits and water purification tablets as water sources remain contaminated in the aftermath of Cyclone Remal.

Greg Kelley with Unknown Nations says Bangladesh’s geography makes it particularly vulnerable. “The Bay of Bengal is a breeding ground for cyclones,” he explains.

“Every year, it’s not a matter of if but when the cyclones come up. So, you’ve got this massive, highly concentrated area of humanity in low-lying areas, and when a storm comes through, it’s devastating.”

Cyclone Remal, the first tropical storm of the season, hit Bangladesh and eastern India last week. Extremely heavy rain and high-speed winds battered the area for more than 36 hours, making Remal one of the longest cyclones in Bangladesh’s history.

More than three million people were affected in Muslim-majority Bangladesh.

“Electricity is still out in different places; it’s not just your house [that gets] affected, but when the storm surges come in, it destroys all their crops,” Kelley says.

“Their literal source of existence is destroyed, and it’s months and months before they can recover.”

Pray for endurance for the believers meeting storm survivors’ tangible and spiritual needs.

“It’s a great opportunity to come alongside, be the hands and feet of Jesus,” Kelley says. “We’ve heard countless stories of Muslims receiving Jesus in the aftermath of a disaster like the cyclone that just hit Bangladesh.”

Header image shows path of Cyclone Remal through the Bay of Bengal. (Wikimedia Commons)

Bangladesh (MNN) — Did you know Bangladesh has the world’s third-largest Muslim population? Although less than one percent of the population knows Christ, millions of Bangladeshis are learning about the Bible through media outreaches.

Gospel growth is not without resistance. Islamist groups, communities, and local leaders persecute Christians. “Bangladesh sits at spot #26 on the World Watch List of the 50 worst places in the world to live as a Christian due to persecution,” FMI’s Bruce Allen says.

“In the past ten years, Bangladesh’s score has gotten progressively worse.”

FMI develops partnerships with national disciple-makers where minority Christians are impoverished or persecuted. More about that here.

In Bangladesh, “Christians often gather in small house churches due to the risk of attack,” Allen says.

“Bangladeshi believers are often accused of betraying their community – ‘You’re an infidel, you’re apostate.’”

Understandably, new Christians often hesitate to be baptized due to family and social pressures. Pray against the power of fear in the lives of new believers from non-Christian backgrounds. An FMI-supported pastor is preparing eight new believers to be baptized this year.

“Pray that God gives power and perseverance to Christian converts in Bangladesh,” Allen requests.

“Those churches take seriously the fact that they are to reflect Jesus’s purposes and His values to their community. They’re engaged in evangelism to their neighbors, putting them in the crosshairs for further persecution.”

Header and story images courtesy of FMI.