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Sudan country director addresses graduates

World Concern Sudan Country Director Peter Macharia recently addressed a group of graduates from a 21-day training workshop for new leaders of a literacy and financial management program. The workshop was held in Juba and involved participants from all over Sudan.

His comments were published in the Sudan Vision Daily newspaper.

Here are Peter’s inspirational words shared with participants, church leaders and guests at the ceremony.

“This is a great day for all of us. For the trainer, it has been a long tiring month of learning. You have been bombarded with new knowledge, refreshed with new ideas, and challenged with new hope.

You are now being called to go out and make disciples. You are called to be the light to those in literacy darkness. You are called to be the salt to those who are finding life tasteless because of despair and hopelessness. You have been equipped and you now have the tools and the skills to bring transformation in the villages and in the cities.

As you go out, I will say like what God told Joshua, ‘Be strong and courageous.’ (1:6) I am also persuaded to remind you of what Paul told Timothy, ‘And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ.’ (2 Timothy 2:2)

Please go out and train others, empower them and make up. As for us, we will stand by you to support you and encourage you to achieve the program goals. We will also pray for you.

Remember, we are not doing it for ourselves, not for Mothers Union, not for World Concern, but for God and His people!

This program belongs to you. You are the one to make it a success or a failure. I will urge you to make it a success! Be prepared to leave behind a legacy that you will be remembered for. I challenge you to think of how you can achieve beyond your target for you are well able.

Thank you, and unto God’s grace I commend you!”

Timely vote in Sudan is needed to keep peace

Vocational students in Sudan — Students are learning mechanics at a newly opened vocational school in Sudan. This is just one of the ways World Concern is helping improves lives in southern Sudan.

Media coverage of Sudan’s upcoming referendum scheduled for a vote in January 2011 has increased recently as the date draws closer and President Obama spoke on the issue at the UN General Assembly last week. World Concern works in southern Sudan, and the relative peace in that region over the past five years has allowed us to make great progress in extremely poor communities.

As a humanitarian agency, we limit our involvement in the political processes of the countries where we serve. We know, though, that violence hinders our work – and we expect violence if the vote is delayed. Therefore, we hope and pray for a peaceful outcome to the process this January.

Dave Eller, World Concern’s president, shares some thoughts below. He visited Sudan in June and saw firsthand the struggles people face there to overcome decades of war and violence – many of whom lost everything in a conflict they didn’t support.

“On a recent trip to southern Sudan I overheard many conversations about the referendum that is to take place in January. The people of southern Sudan are very anxious to have this vote take place as scheduled. They seem to believe that if the vote does not happen as scheduled it will be postponed indefinitely and may not happen. There is fear that if the referendum is not held there would be a return to violence.

The peace accords that were signed attest to the fact that is it is possible to end fighting. Turning back from the decisions made five years ago would seem to be a significant step backwards. While I am not an expert on Sudanese politics, it is easy to see the benefits that peace has brought.

In this time of relative peace since 2005 significant progress has been made in the development of the South. The people have had the opportunity to start rebuilding their lives. In World Concern’s work we have seen schools reestablished, businesses started, food provided equitably, and community health programs get underway. A return to violence would put the progress that has been made at risk.

This is all that remains of a house that was burned during violence in Sudan, which has ceased since a peace agreement between the north and south of that country was reached in 2005.

The referendum needs to be more than just timely. The voting needs to be free and fair. The voices of the people need to be heard in this very important decision-making process. The people of Sudan desire to have a voice in their future. They have shared with me their heart to see a future lived out in peace and not conflict. The answers may or may not be found in this referendum, but clearly if it does not take place, or if it is not free and fair, it would be a step backwards.

It is my prayer that the leaders of north and south Sudan would find resolution to the remaining issues so that the people of Sudan might live in peace. Sudanese parents I spoke with desire to raise their children free from the threat of violence and war. This is what every parent would want. As international communities we should continue to hold all of the leaders to that standard, and recognize that the solutions must be found to keep from plunging the country back into civil war.

This is a critical time in the history of Sudan. It is a critical time in the lives of millions of people. Let us remember our brothers and sisters throughout the country of Sudan in our prayers.”

Peaceful elections: One more thing we often take for granted

With the exception of that whole Florida recount controversy in 2000, one the many things we take for granted in the United States is that our votes will be counted accurately. Generally speaking, the U.S. population accepts the outcome of elections, whether or not things turn out the way we as individuals had hoped.

Trust in the democratic process is brought to mind this week as half a world away, Kenyans prepare to vote on a proposed new constitution, which would, among other things, attempt to guarantee more valid elections and limit the powers of the president.

Kenya’s most recent presidential election in December 2007 led to an outburst of violence over ethnic tensions and accusations of fraud and electoral manipulations. Hundreds were killed and tens of thousands fled their homes amid the post-election hostility. Some of the worst violence occurred in churches, including an Assembly of God church where dozens of children and adults seeking shelter were killed when the church was burned.

This week, World Concern will close our Kenya office for four days, beginning tomorrow, Aug. 3. The closure is a security precaution as the voting there takes place on Wednesday, Aug. 4. There has already been some violence leading up to referendum. Six people were killed and more than 100 were injured on June 13 in an explosion in a park where a rally was being held.

While our organization has no opinion on the referendum, we are praying for a peaceful process and that Kenyan citizens will have the opportunity to express their opinions and have their votes counted accurately. It is also a time to be reminded that our employees in the field do face security issues regularly. We serve in places where the need is greatest, and some of these areas are politically unstable. We don’t let this stop us from helping the poor in developing countries. We take every security measure reasonable – and remember to pray. It’s the undergirding of everything we do.

A school boy in Kenya — School children in Kenya.

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” – Ephesians 6:14-18

Documenting Darfur War Refugees

Humanitarian-World-Concern-Chad — World Concern's Derek Sciba is traveling to Chad to visit refugee camps.

Ever since I have worked at World Concern, I have seen the photos and heard the stories about Goz Beida. It’s a small town in Eastern Chad that grew from about 5,000 people to 70,000 people as the Darfur War and associated conflicts. It’s dirty, overcrowded – and the only safe haven thousands of families have experienced since they were chased from their homes by crazy gun-wielding maniacs. They’ve left their farms, they’ve seen their homes and communities burned, they’ve lost loved ones in the violence. Now – they are camping. Camping from now until who-knows-when. Their lives have become upended, and they are trying to see a future in chaos.

World Concern supports these refugees and displaced people with humanitarian aid in a variety of ways. In general, we help ensure thousands of them don’t die from health epidemics and empower them to make money so that they can buy food and provide for their families with dignity.

So that’s why I have the privilege in traveling there right now. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be meeting those who we serve, and seeing the ways their lives have changed since they left their homes. My job is to document what we do in photos and video.

Please let me know what questions you would like answered, as I would love to be your eyes and ears there in the camps.

– Derek Sciba

School Supplies For Darfur War Children

Children in refugee camps in Chad need school supplies.

Did you ever want to have a direct impact on children in Africa? You can make a big difference right now by donating school supplies. Even used supplies would be great!

As kids around here are going into summer break, World Concern is planning for a big shipment of school supplies to Chad, Africa.

You may have heard about all of the craziness in Chad with news about the ongoing war in the Darfur region of Sudan, which is the country just to the east of Chad. The poor families in this region have been burned out of their homes and chased from their villages by crazy men with guns. These families are ending up in Goz Beida, Chad, where World Concern is playing a key role in keeping these families alive and healthy.

So – here’s what we need. We’re looking for anything relatively small, but especially notebooks, paper, pencils, pens, rulers, scissors, calculators … if you think it would be useful for learning here … it will be a huge hit in Chad.

The main purpose of the shipment has been to send furniture and computers to equip a classroom. But a we’re getting this all together, we’re seeing that there is still a lot of space for these school supplies. We want to fill the container!

If you want to help, drop off or mail your supplies to us here at World Concern in Seattle. It would be good to get it to us by this time next week (June 18), if possible, so that we will have time to sort it out.

Here’s where it should go:

Susan Talbot – Gifts in Kind

World Concern

19303 Fremont Ave. N

Seattle, WA 98133

If you have any questions, feel free to email Susan at susant@worldconcern.org

Seattle Pacific University AIDS Humanitarians

Alyssa Musgrave leads an SPU group determined to raise awareness about AIDS and other issues related to global poverty.

Last night, about 10 students at Seattle Pacific University acted as humanitarians, deciding that studying for tests could wait. They partnered with World Concern to construct an exhibit for World AIDS Day, decorating 1,000 small white crosses with red ribbons cut from felt.

The 1,000 crosses represent the number of worldwide deaths in four hours from AIDS. If there is good news this year about the pandemic, it is that the number of deaths is slowing with better prevention and life-extending medication. Still, it is a global crisis and human tragedy on an epic scale. About eight in 10 AIDS orphans are in desperately poor Sub-Saharan Africa, the hardest hit region, where the rate of AIDS in some countries exceeds 20 percent.

Just before World AIDS Day, which is the Dec. 1, SPU students will help me and other folks from World Concern stake the 1,000 crosses into “the Loop,” the prominent grassy field on campus. Drivers on 3rd Avenue West will see the crosses, and likely wonder what is going on.

Our answer: those who are dying from AIDS are not forgotten. And we are part of the solution to stopping it and caring for those left behind.

All day on Dec. 1, World Concern and thoughtful SPU volunteers will sell buttons for $5 each, with the proceeds going to support World Concern programs that benefit orphans from AIDS in Zambia, Kenya and Haiti.

We hope you visit us at SPU’s Gwinn Commons cafeteria, learn more, and donate $5.

It’s a small, but important, way to make a real difference for the most vulnerable people.

Learn more: www.worldconcern.org/spu

Each cross represents a life. With our 1,000 crosses, it's only enough to show AIDS deaths in a four hour period.

Student Amy Whitley helped with the ribbons, one of several students raising awareness about AIDS.

The AIDS crosses will be staked outside on the SPU campus on Dec. 1, World AIDS Day.

A New Leader for Myanmar Humanitarian Aid

New Myanmar Country Director Rebecca Htin will be leading World Concern's Humanitarian Aid. She's a medical doctor and grew up in the country.

I met an amazingly qualified new co-worker of mine yesterday, a medical doctor who once worked in a leprosy mission and has a masters degree in public administration from the Kennedy School in Boston.

Naw Rebecca Htin is a world-class humanitarian. She begins this month as the new World Concern country director for Myanmar (Burma). She’s a mother of three and her husband is a neurosurgeon. And she also grew up in Burma, which was the name of her native country until 1989, when the current military government decided to reinforce the country’s separation from British colonial rule.

Naw is “Ms.” in her language. We call her Rebecca, and she’s also an answer to prayer. Our Humanitarian Aid programs in Myanmar make up World Concern’s largest operation in any country where we work. And yet for several months, we have been searching for a leader who qualified and able to take on the challeneges in this country filled with obstacles.

Rebecca told me, “Not many people in the country has the opportunity like I’ve had to study, to have this exposure. I think I need to give something back.”

What she says is very true. I just returned from SE Asia and visited some of World Concern’s Humanitarian Aid projects in the delta region, where 140,000 people died in a cyclone last year. What we need is a leader who understands the multifaceted need in a region that seems to be getting back on its feet, but still in a bit of a collective shock.

Rebecca told me,”Psychologically, economically, emotionally, there are many things yet to do to continue life again.”

Often people know book knowledge, but don’t know how to put it in to practice. Rebecca used to work as a leader in World Vision Myanmar, and more recently has experience in the hard-hit delta region. She has been serving in a Christian mobile mission in Bogelay, a fishing village where tens of thousands died in the storm.

Before the cyclone and to this day, World Concern has also worked with ethnic minorities in Myanmar, people who have generally not had the same opportunities for education and jobs. Also in this regard, Rebecca brings personal knowledge, as she grew up in the Karen state and understands the challenges.

Rebecca will be off to Myanmar today, a long couple of flights back home. Like many called into the field of humanitarian aid, she says she’s been preparing for an opportunity like this, to show the compassion of Christ through action, not expecting anything in return.

World Concern's humanitarian aid in Myanmar includes supplying fishermen with boats. They repay a small portion of the cost of the boat, and are able to regain their livelihoods after the 2008 cyclone Nargis.

Humanitarian Naw Rebecca Htin received her orientation at World Concern's Seattle headquarters in July.

Help to Injured Civilians in Sri Lanka War

Right now, World Concern’s Sri Lanka staff is helping many civilians injured during recent attacks. World Concern is one of only a few humanitarian relief agencies permitted by the government to help. We’re providing food, bedding, clothing and personal supplies to both the wounded and the weary aid workers.

It appears to be the last deadly throes of a long civil war. The ethnic minority that has been fighting for autonomy has been cornered. Regardless of your perspective, innocent families are paying with the lives of their loved ones because of this war.

World Concern provides essential supplies and food for people injured during the Sri Lanka civil war.

You can read more about what we’re doing and donate to help. We need money for our response!

Below is perspective on the crisis, written by World Concern Sri Lanka County Director Ian McInnes:

Sri Lanka’s three decade old conflict between the LTTE (Tamil Tigers) and the Sri Lankan Government is at its fiercest. 70,000 have already lost their lives in a separatist struggle for control of ‘Eelam’, a self-designated homeland for Tamils by the LTTE. Having lost control of the East of the island in 2007 the LTTE now faces a fight for survival in an ever decreasing space in the North.

The safety of an estimated quarter of a million civilians trapped within this conflict zone is of grave concern to humanitarian organizations.

These Tamil families have been on the move now for months, continually retreating as air strikes, artillery fire and ground battles rage around them on three boarders to the North, West and South. Their retreat to the North Eastern corner of the Island has them pressed hard up against the Eastern coast with nowhere further to run.

Continual pleas by humanitarian agencies have resulted in the establishment of ‘safe zones’ within the war zone, but civilians face real danger trying to get into these zones, or indeed trying to flee the North for the Government controlled areas in the South of the Island. The LTTE have blocked their movement holding the population back for political legitimacy and as a recruitment pool as they lose fighters on the front lines.

Meanwhile the constricted fighting space is resulting in mounting civilian casualties. On 3rd February a crowded hospital was shelled three times killing 52 civilians and injuring many more according to ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross). Both sides deny shelling the hospital. Sadly these tragedies are becoming all too frequent.

With a ground victory appearing imminent and geo-political conditions favoring the Sri Lankan government – India broadly support the defeat of the LTTE with Sonia Gandhi having lost her husband to an LTTE suicide bomber; the US under the Bush Administration offered technical support to the Sri Lankan security forces and was the first to proscribe the LTTE as a terrorist organization – the Government are eager to eliminate the LTTE.

However this war is costly both in economic terms at $1.6 billion annually and in lives with scores of government solders dying daily (an independent body count organization, the Foundation for Coexistence, puts the collective death toll in the north at 3,200 for December and January alone).

More than 70,000 people have died during Sri Lanka's civil war. World Concern is helping with food and essential supplies for the wounded.

In order to maintain political support for the war the Government has suppressed its own casualty numbers and is eager to control the message both within Sri Lanka and abroad. Maintaining staunch nationalist support for the military has meant a steady erosion of free speech, credible reporting, and the suppression of discussion of any other solution to this conflict other than the current military one.

Dozens of reporters have been killed in the last year, including a bold assassination of a senior editor in broad daylight on 8th January. Sri Lanka ranks 141 out of 165 countries for press freedom by Reporters without Borders (http://www.rsf.org) having slipped from 51st place in 2002. To put that in perspective Sri Lanka now ranks just beneath Zimbabwe and Sudan and just above the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia.

This is making the work of Humanitarian agencies all the harder as it seeks a non-violent solution for those trapped by the fighting.

It is now simply a matter of time before civilians either flee en masse – around 100 a day are managing to escape now – or face a bloody battle in much closer quarters as the Government try to eliminate the remaining LTTE from their midst.

Humanitarians Act to Stop Child Trafficking

Humanitarian organization World Concern helps stop human trafficking at the border of Cambodia and Thailand.

She’s 13 years old and badly disfigured. Her eye has been gouged from her face, ripped out with a metal shard by a woman holding her captive in a Cambodian sex trafficking operation. The story of Long Pross is a difficult one to stomach, but as described in a recent New York Times OpEd piece by Nicholas Kristof, it is the kind of story westerners must hear.

It doesn’t matter the gender, and sadly it doesn’t matter the age. Trafficking children for indentured servitude, prostitution or sex slavery is an enormous industry. More than 1 million children are trafficked every year, sometimes for as little as $20. World Concern and partner agency CHO see it all the time at the Poi Pet border crossing between Cambodia and Thailand. The photos that you see with this story are all from that crossing.

The classic scenario is that predators will approach a poor family in Cambodia, telling children, or even their parents, that they have work for them in Thailand. Once the children say goodbye, they often never return. If they are one of the lucky ones to escape with their lives, they are often dumped in a park just inside the Cambodian border, near the gate.

Humanitarian Organization World Concern works to educate children and families to prevent this from ever happening. We do this with our School on a Mat program. An instructor gathers children in a shady area to hear an urgent message: do not believe the lies of work and opportunity. They learn how the scam works – and how to say no. Separate from that, we offer children a chance to learn and find opportunities in legitimate business. Some children learn how to sew; other teen-agers may learn how to repair motorcycle engines. We offer real, sustainable solutions, far from the horrors of trafficking.

Young men learn how to repair motorcycles as part of the World Concern program to stop human trafficking.

My background is as a reporter in broadcast news. I have covered dozens and dozens of murders. After a while, even the awful seems to run together with the basic statistics of the story; how many bullets were fired, the status of the investigation, the time of the crime.

But I recall a situation where a news director specifically wanted to reveal graphic details in the heartbreaking murder of a young woman killed in a nightclub. I will always remember this case. The teenage girl went into an all-ages show at a nightclub, but no one remembered her coming out. There was a massive search across the city. She was only found days later buried in debris inside a storage closet. The accused murderer had a history of aggression and sexual deviance. All of this and more came out in the police investigation, and a great deal of it actually made air.

The news director’s rationale for disclosing these details: to cause outrage. To let the community know that this crime is something out of the ordinary, something heinous, something to not forget. And as I followed the criminal case of the sex offending murderer, I believe he was held accountable because the community knew the gravity of the crime.

This is why child trafficking stories like that of Long Pross need to be told. Life really can be horrible for vulnerable people like her. Though these stories may be difficult to hear, those of us with resources can and should act to protect the innocent.

Learn more about how World Concern protects children.

Teach one child how to be safe from trafficking for $35.

Humanitarian organization World Concern teaches children about the dangers of child trafficking.

Your End of Year Donation Matters

Humanitarian organization World Concern provides tuition for children in Kenya.

World Concern maintained a remarkable record of success in 2008, in a year with plenty of challenges. It is only by God’s grace and your support that we are able to reach families in need.

As you likely know, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 36% this year. Your finances are probably hurting.

It’s especially painful to hear about people facing retirement who realize it is just not possible. For me, it is only with great hesitation that I look at the status my family’s modest investments.

With that in mind, we prayerfully consider the choices made by our supporters as the end of 2008 quickly approaches. We rely on their generosity, especially at this time of year. We are thankful that many are able to supply the poor with a gift through humanitarian organization World Concern.

I spoke with Dave Eller, the President of World Concern, a moment ago, asking him what he would tell donors if they have any reservations about giving this year.

Dave said, “We are going to make the most out of their donation. We have been around, we are going to be around, and we are making a difference.”

He is right.

For more than 50 years, World Concern has responded to desperate needs in some of the most far-flung places on Earth. We have an outstanding track record, and 94% of donations (cash+gifts-in-kind) go directly to programs.

This was year of some significant achievements.

In 2008, we’ve helped cyclone victims in Myanmar rebuild their homes, mend their fishing nets and find work. We’ve walked with AIDS orphans in Kenya, showing them a better life through good health and education. We’ve fed the starving in Haiti, as an out of control economy left families unable to provide for their children. And these are only a few mentions, from the 24 countries where we work.

Next year, we want to make more significant impacts in the lives of those we touch. We want to elevate people in Haiti and Myanmar to move beyond the crises – and receive job training and education. We plan to increase our investment in microfinance in Bangladesh, to allow women to provide for their families. We want to continue to play a role in freeing millions of people from parasitic worms.

Whenever possible, World Concern provides sustainable solutions to the problems of poverty, so that people can help themselves and teach others once we move on to the next project or respond to the next disaster.

John Beck, World Concern’s donor relations manager, enjoys this passage from Eugene Peterson’s translation of the Bible, The Message:

“Gently encourage the stragglers and reach out to the exhausted, pulling them to their feet.” – 1 Thessalonians 5.

That’s what World Concern does. We bring people to their feet, perhaps for the first time in their lives.

We pray that you will consider the poor this year, a year where you may even feel poor yourself. Know that your donation does matter. And on behalf of the 5.5 million people whose lives we touch, we sincerely appreciate your support.

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Humanitarian organization World Concern provides seeds for farms and educates women about effective agricultural techniques. — Humanitarian organization World Concern provides seeds and teaches women how to farm.