No Justice for Abedini

(Photo: American Center for Law and Justice)

 

 

Last month Naghmeh Abedini (see photo) celebrated her ninth wedding anniversary alone at home in the U.S., while her husband, Saeed, suffered in Iran's notorious Evin prison. He has been in prison since he was arrested in September 2012 while building an orphanage.

His crime was supposedly "endangering national security," but it is quite obvious that Abedini is being held for his work as a Christian leader. While he is not the only Christian imprisoned for his faith in the Islamic Republic of Iran, he is probably the most noteworthy, if only because of his American citizenship.

Reports from sources in Iran indicate that Saeed has been tortured and beaten. Then he was denied medical care as the Muslim doctors who were called refused to treat him. Yet President Barack Obama remains strangely silent, leading to a call for action from Franklin Graham, head of Samaritan's Purse. “Many in the international community are expressing outrage over this blatant example of religious intolerance,” said Graham, who also heads the international relief organization, Samaritan’s Purse. “I ask that our government do the same and demand that Pastor Saeed Abedini be released and allowed to return home to his wife and family in the United States.”

We, in the West, have little to no idea of the horrifying experience many Christians go through in many parts of the world. Iran, China, Pakistan, Egypt, Nigeria and many other nations have been the site of incredible injustices as followers of Christ have been falsely accused, beaten, tortured, imprisoned and often murdered. According to Philip Yancey, "Human rights organizations claim that more Christians were martyred in the twentieth century than in all the rest of history combined."

Christian Freedom International has provided a map and information on their website detailing the worst offenders (the five I listed above made the Top 10 offenders list). While I highlight the plight of Abedini, most Christians in these countries suffer silently, unknown and out of the minds of all but their family and friends. High profile cases like Saeed's often result in release because of political pressure - I hope that happens in this case. Last year we were talking about Youcef Nadarkhani, who was freed, then re-arrested, then freed again; then arrested again. He is currently free, for who knows how long.

Regardless, as a follower of Christ, I must constantly remind myself to pray for those who are being persecuted for their faith. The Apostle Paul, no stranger to persecution, wrote to the church in Colosse from prison and concluded his letter this way: "I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you." (Colossians 4:18) 

Around the world today, hundreds of thousands of Christ-followers would say the same - "Remember my chains." As those privileged to live in one of the freest countries on the planet, we ought to do all that we can to promote the cause of justice for those unable to speak for themselves. Become informed, and use whatever influence that you may have to bring pressure to bear on those who can make a difference. And pray. As John Wesley said, "You can do more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed."

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No Justice in Canada for the Unborn

Yesterday in Ottawa, 15,000+ Canadians rallied at Parliament Hill against Canada's lack of an abortion law. You likely won't hear much of this elsewhere. The event is largely ignored by most media outlets. Remarkably, Canada is the only developed nation in the world without a law restricting abortion.

The mantra continues to be repeated by the mainstream media that the issue is closed and Canadians don't want to reopen the abortion debate. In my opinion, Canadians are ignorant to the facts and are unaware that there are virtually no limits on abortion in the country. See link. What this means is that a child can be legally killed with it's body halfway out of the birth canal. I have yet to meet anyone who believes that this is just, yet this is the law. In fact, according to Angus Reid, 40% of Canadians believe that abortion is restricted after 3 months gestation. How can we have closed debate when many are not even aware of the basic facts?

Recently, backbench MP Stephen Woodworth put forward a motion to review the countries archaic 400 year old law that states that a child is not human until it proceeds fully alive from its mother's womb. Sadly, our Conservative? Prime Minister responded that he was disappointed that it made it to the floor; that he would be voting against it and that he would not allow the bill to pass. The  most defenseless in our society have no-one with any power who is willing to stand up and speak for them.

The battle for pro-lifers seems to be an uphill one. Pro-life groups are shut out of many Canadian university campuses (those bastions of free speech); pro-life ads often become the subject of lawsuits, and any politician who sticks his head up to even look like they support the pro-life position is immediately targeted. Witness the CBC reaction story to the Ottawa mayor proclaiming May 11 to be Respect For Life Day as just one example.

What many don't realize is that this issue is only symptomatic of a much larger issue. The devaluing of human life is justified in the name of women's rights, yet it has resulted in, what has been called, "gendercide" - the aborting of fetuses simply because they are girls. It has now become common practice for women from China, India and other eastern nations to come to Canada to have abortions once it's determined they are carrying a girl. On what basis do we criticize them?

A story just broke last week from South Korea of the seizure of thousands of tablets containing the powdered remains of human fetuses. These were intended for use by people who believe they have medicinal value. According to the Korea Customs Service, the bodies of dead babies are chopped into small pieces and dried on stoves before being turned into powder. Many among the academic elite of North America have applauded China's one-child policy - the reality is not so pretty is it? Revealingly, this story has barely caused a ripple. Does it matter?

When we devalue life - any life - it devalues us all. I still hear people say things like "mind your own business," or "get your hands off my ovaries." Is it really that simple? Ordinary Germans were told by the Nazis to mind their own business, as well, when their neighbors were rounded up and taken to concentration camps. The roundup occurred after a sustained campaign declaring these people groups as sub-human or "untermensch."

The question to be answered is still when does human life begin? Surely, in a civilized society, we can agree that it at least begins when a baby is viable outside of his or her mother's womb. Britain has restricted abortion after 24 weeks, France after 12. Only in Canada, among developed nations, is there absolutely no restrictions. It's long past time for a change. If the subject makes you uncomfortable, get over it, this discussion needs to take place.

Related Articles:
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The War on Women

One of the biggest stories in the news lately has been the trial and conviction of the Shafia family for "Honour killings." Mohammad Shafia, his wife Tooba Mohammad Yahya, and their son Hamed Mohammad Shafia killed Mohammed's other wife, (Mohammed was a polygamist) Rona and three daughters, Zainab, Sahar and Geeti, just 19, 17 and 13 years old, ostensibly because they "shamed" the family. They are pictured below.

This case has rightly enraged people worldwide and drawn attention to the plight of women living in repressive cultures all over the world. In places like Afghanistan, former home of the Shafias, fundamentalist Muslims have used the Koran as an excuse to treat women as property. Because of this view, women who disobey are viewed to be disrespectful and, therefore, bring shame to the family. In the minds of Mohammed Shafia, the only way to restore the honour to the family name is to kill the offending women.

Thankfully, the Canadian court made a clear and emphatic statement that this hate, masquerading in religious garb, will not be tolerated here. All three accused were convicted and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for twenty five years. The very clear and direct message from the judge and jury was that the lives of women are valued in Canada. This judgement should make us all proud.

That being said, I can't help but find the irony here. Just two weeks ago I wrote an article about the emerging trend for women to come to Canada in order to find out the sex of their baby so that they can abort their female children. The National Post did a feature on this on January 16th. Just last week I linked to the just produced film called "It's A Girl!" detailing the gendercide that's taking place around the world as baby girls, born and unborn, are killed automatically -simply for being girls.

Doesn't anyone else find it at least a little bit hypocritical that we, as a society, are turning a blind eye to the killing of baby girls in the womb on our own soil while vilifying the Shafias? They're obviously guilty of a heinous crime - it seems that popular opinion is unanimous on that. But I'm also outraged that the Government of China, with its one child policy, is complicit in the deaths of millions of live born baby girls. I'm outraged that, in India, it's a cultural norm to murder a baby girl so the parents won't have to come up with money for a dowry later. I'm also outraged that we're doing the same thing in Canada - just a few weeks earlier, because the child will make our lives more difficult.

Here's my question, where are the feminist groups? Why are their voices silent on this? These are baby girls who need protection, but it seems that women's rights groups are so afraid of losing ground on the abortion issue that they remain silent in the face of injustice. I know this is not a popular issue, but it is not going away. The fact that Canada has no abortion law will continue to be a stain on our country's reputation. I hear no cogent defense of this pro-abortion position, only the shrill cry to stop talking about it, and the claim that no-one wants to re-open the debate. Cowardice on our part can only lead to disaster for those who can't defend themselves.

The Shafias deserve the punishment they will receive; their crime was horrific. These four women reached out for help to school officials, police and even a women's shelter. For some reason (some claim because they were Muslim) these cries for help went unheeded. The inaction eventually led to their deaths. The voices of millions of girls worldwide are crying out for justice. Get past your bias and speak up.

Related Articles:
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Let Justice Roll on Like a River

This weekend I spoke about the impact that William Wilberforce had on the culture in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Here was a man motivated by grace and by a desire to see an end to the slave trade and the reformation of a society in trouble. In our day and age we have our own set of giants that need to be brought down.

I want to draw our attention to an organization called the International Justice Mission, an organization headed by Gary Haugen. Gary headed up the U.N.'s investigation into the Rwanda genocide and has made it his life's mission since to work to end injustice wherever it is found. He has since written a book entitled Terrify No More. I had the chance to hear Gary speak at a Leadership Summit event a few years ago and was impacted by his presentation.

Below are two informative videos about the work of Haugen and his organization. We can tend to live sheltered lives and remain blissfully unaware of the challenges facing victims worldwide. Most would be shocked to discover that there are 27 million people affected by slavery today around our world. I hope that this informs you and perhaps inspires you to find a way to make a difference. At the very least, find a way to support someone else who is engaged in helping to bring justice into our world.





Related Articles:
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Deserved Praise

"Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow." (Isaiah 1:17)

I came across a natural follow-up on the last few blogs with the latest recipient of the Wilberforce Forum Award. Each year since 1989 Prison Fellowship has given the William Wilberforce Award to that one person who has made a substantial difference in the face of formidable societal problems.

The winner this year is a man of whom most people would likely never have heard. His name is Gary Haugen, founder of the International Justice Mission and champion of the ongoing struggle to end human trafficking.

Like Wilberforce, Haugen found himself face-to-face with an issue from which he could not retreat. In 1994 he was on temporary reassignment from the U.S. Department of Justice working with the United Nations genocide investigation in Rwanda. The horrific scenes which he visited as he collected evidence would not allow him to return to normal life. The more he read his Bible, the more verses like the one above would speak to him. He decided he had to act.

He surveyed more than sixty-five organizations representing some 40,000 overseas missionaries and relief workers and Haugen found numerous examples of modern-day injustices for which there seemed to be no remedy. Issues like child prostitution, the murder of street children, persecution, etc... abounded, yet those who were aware of the problem lacked the resources or the power to affect change.

So, in 1997 Haugen formed the International Justice Mission (IJM), a human-rights organization founded to seek justice on Christian principles. the organization includes lawyers, criminal investigators, and government relationships workers who defend and rescue victims of violence, sexual exploitation, slavery, and oppression around the world. Their four-fold purpose is:

• Victim Relief - Relieve the victim of the abuse currently being committed.
  
• Perpetrator Accountability - Bring accountability and just consequences under the law to the specific perpetrator(s) of abuse.
  
• Structural Prevention - Prevent the abuse from being committed against others who are also at risk by strengthening community factors that are likely to deter potential oppressors, reduce the vulnerability of at-risk populations and empower local authorities to stop such abuses.
  
• Victim Aftercare - Provide access to services to help victims transition to their new lives and to encourage long-term success.

Haugen is an author of two books: Terrify No More and Good News about Injustice. The advice is not to read them unless you're prepared to do something with what you learn. You will be changed.

Congratulations to Gary Haugen. I hope we hear a lot about the success of his organization. they're helping to make the world a better place.