Kenyan churches seek humanitarian support for flood victims
From opening church doors to providing food and shelter, Kenyan churches are offering an initial response to the nation’s growing flood crisis. The denominations are appealing for humanitarian support for people who have been left without shelter, food, water and medicines in the growing emergency. Churches have been compelled to accept families into their compounds […]
STRANGESIGHTS: A SLICE OF ROYAL WEDDING CAKE?; OFF WORLD DEPARTURES; AND, FANCY BUYING A 2,500-YEAR-OLD CITY?…
DAVID ADAMS writes about the odder side of life…
Red Cross plans to fight disasters with fast funding
Thomson Reuters Foundation A fund launched by the Red Cross aims to deliver life-saving humanitarian aid before rather than after floods, droughts and other natural hazards hit, so as to reduce damage and trauma in some of the world’s most disaster-prone areas. The “Forecast-based Action Fund”, set up by the International Federation of Red Cross […]
Court orders extra payment to Christian widows of 14 who died in India riots
World Watch Monitor Following a long-fought campaign, the High Court of Odisha state in eastern India has ensured the disbursal of extra compensation awarded two years ago to dependants of 14 Christians killed in the widespread anti-Christian violence that engulfed Kandhamal district in 2008. In addition, the court has forced the Odisha Government to make […]
Australian aid agencies decry lack of support for foreign aid in Federal Budget
Aid agencies have expressed disappointment at the Australian Government’s decision to freeze the country’s foreign aid budget. Helen Szoke, Oxfam Australia‘s chief executive, said a continuation of the freeze put in place last year meant the foreign aid budget equated to just 22 cents in every $100 of gross national income. “This Budget freeze represents […]
ESSAY: WHY QUEENSLAND SHOULDN’T LIBERALISE ABORTION LAWS
WENDY FRANCIS, Queensland state director of the Australian Christian Lobby, argues that liberalising the Australian state of Queensland’s abortion laws would not only not be supported within the community but fail to address the “real needs” of women…
Religious freedom is a prerequisite for democracy – US commission
World Watch Monitor A wealth of research shows that a society’s level of religious freedom is linked to its levels of critical social indicators, such as prosperity, stability and peace, the chairman of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom told British parliamentarians. Dr Daniel Mark, chairman of USCIRF, an independent, bipartisan federal commission of […]