http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/© Tearfund 2009In this section we highlight areas of the world in dire need that don't make the media headlines, where Tearfund's partner organisations are working to lift people out of poverty and transform lives.website.editor@tearfund.orgwebsite.editor@tearfund.orgMCMS 2002 RSS Feed Generatorhttp://www.tearfund.org/NR/rdonlyres/8C74A495-4E1C-4C5F-B5EE-0CC2C6AF1307/0/TF_logo_RSS.jpg13035http://www.tearfund.orghttp://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Crisis+in+Gaza.htmWed, 07 Jan 2009 10:40:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{02CAB7B1-BCEF-4195-9659-8C0F2B140BEC}26 January 2009 Tearfund is urging Christians to unite in prayer for continuing peace in Gaza. Three weeks of clashes between Israel and Hamas has resulted in more than a thousand deaths, mainly among Palestinians. Although Tearfund does not have partners or operational capacity on the ground in Gaza, we are involved as a member agency of the DEC and fully support the appeal. If you would like to donate to this appeal, please visit the DEC website. Tearfund is supporting the prayers for peace of Christian partners in neighbouring Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. Please give thanks for the ceasefires by Israel and Hamas in Gaza and pray they hold. Pray for those who are mourning for lost loved ones and for God’s comfort to those who have been injured. Pray that more humanitarian aid can get through to those who have lost homes and possessions.http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+January+Zimbabwe.htmWed, 07 Jan 2009 11:35:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{C0366ED9-5FE5-4B09-AA99-87E842178A8A} By Abby King, Tearfund Senior Media Officer I’ve just seen 18 bodies in a hospital morgue. This is the cold face of Zimbabwe’s supposedly non-existent cholera crisis. It’s a sight that is burnt on my eyelids, one that will stay with me. I hear from the Mugabe government that Zimbabwe’s cholera crisis is over but my eyes tell me a completely different story. Here in Beitbridge, on the South Africa border, one of the areas worst affected by cholera, the crisis is a continuing reality. My attention is drawn to a tiny body bag on the floor, near the front of the second of three heavy-set mortuary doors. A tiny baby, wrapped from head to toe in a piece of cloth, inside a clear plastic bag, tied at the top. Bodies are stacked three or four high on metal trolleys – the old and the young, both strong and weak, some tall, some short. Some of the bodies have been here for over three weeks. They are in various stages of decay, encased in clear plastic that clings to the contours of their l ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Sri+Lanka+war+reaches+climax.htmTue, 13 Jan 2009 14:36:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{441408AF-79B1-4AB4-ABD3-A1E1DB81AE7C}13 January 2009 While the world’s attention is preoccupied by the battle for Gaza, there’s another long-running conflict that is also intensifying but is largely ignored. Tearfund’s Clare Crawford reports. Civilians gathering in displacement camps, concentrated into ever smaller areas; little food reaching them, medical help almost out of the question; aerial bombing supposedly aimed at tactical targets inevitably hitting civilians; no openings for humanitarian access, no journalists able to report impartially; the displaced are not being allowed out of the firing line Am I writing about Gaza, Zimbabwe or Somalia? No, this is Sri Lanka. Recent weeks have seen advances by government troops as they push to end a 30 year ethnic war against the Tamil Tigers. But is it the end? While the Tigers are being beaten on every front in the face of the government forces' superior weaponry, the Tigers’ leadership remains adamantly defiant, continuing to throw more men and women into the battle. All humanitarian o ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Lives+transformed+in+Nepal+by+literacy+project.htmThu, 15 Jan 2009 10:33:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{CC5C9937-93FE-493E-9C6A-EDC25558071A} 15 January 2009 `Before the reading class I was like the blind man, if I see a book I know nothing. But now since these classes my eyes are open.’ This testament to the transforming power of learning comes from a Nepalese woman called Anarkali Tharu. She’s truly joyful about the knowledge she is soaking up because she knows how it can transform not only her life but those of her children. She told of her delight at being able to study and help her children with their homework and of how she is determined to see them well educated. Anarkali is not the only one in her village of Bardahawa who is a sponge for literacy and learning. Sitting under a tree with her are seven other women facing a blackboard and getting to grips with reading and writing alfresco style, led by church volunteer, Nayam Mali Tharu. This is the local church in action. Transforming lives but in a new and different way to the Nepalese norm. Traditionally the local church focus has been on spiritual renewal. Now it’s increasingly r ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Church+helps+transform+Ugandan+communities.htmTue, 20 Jan 2009 13:18:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{9649E321-75B4-428C-B478-F38304C395F4} 20 January 2009 The local church in Uganda is leading a revolution that is transforming thousands of lives, according to new research from Tearfund. Assessments show that Tearfund partner, the Pentecostal Assemblies of God (PAG), is playing a key role in helping people out of poverty in 20 communities in the district of Soroti. Since 2001, it’s been bringing communities together to take part in a Participatory Evaluation Process (PEP) which essentially means getting them to solve their own problems and take control of their future direction. Together church and communities have been looking at their needs and coming up with practical solutions to tackle material poverty, with the resources to make the changes largely coming from within the communities themselves. In most cases improving health, education and household incomes were identified as priorities and a common way of achieving them was by sharing community resources, such as through saving and loan schemes. Vision One such venture is in the ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Musical+youth+raise+money+for+Tearfund.htmMon, 26 Jan 2009 11:22:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{3CF7C53F-DC05-4709-B7F8-D1ADDE38FFC8} 26 January 2009 A Christmas musical extravaganza involving 2,000 youngsters in Suffolk has raised more than £35,000 for Tearfund. The ‘One Christmas’ Project brought children from 40 schools together to perform live and to record a CD and DVD of traditional and new carols, as well as songs that focussed on issues covered by Tearfund’s work. Some 1,800 children aged between seven and 11 were involved in singing on the CD and DVD, and 1,100 of them performed on stage at seven concerts in Felixstowe attended by more than 4,000 people. More than 3,500 CDs and DVDs have been sold. Backed up by 45 musicians and 25 dancers, the cross-community nature of the venture was underlined by the involvement of 200 volunteers helping with technical assistance, stewarding and construction. Andy Rayner, the ‘One Christmas’ Project leader, said, ‘This has been a fantastic project involving so many youngsters from across this area and a whole army of volunteers. `Our expectations have been well exceeded and we are excit ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Tearfund+wins+gold+at+New+York+Film+Festival.htmTue, 27 Jan 2009 13:34:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{82CA7C23-8D2E-4BDF-88DF-94BC7B391BF9}27 January 2009 A Tearfund film telling the story of a teenager orphaned by AIDS has won a top award at the New York Film Festival. Rachel’s Story won the gold medal for best cinematography in the charity and public welfare section of the internationally renowned event. The film depicts the life of 13-year-old Rachel, whose parents have died from AIDS, leaving her to take care of her younger siblings, a job she’s been doing since the age of eight. It follows Rachel’s average day as she cooks, cleans, digs the land and cares for six children orphaned by AIDS. It also tells of how the local church is helping the young family. The film was made to promote and fundraise for Tearfund’s work in Uganda, where six in-country partners are involved in AIDS and HIV related projects. The importance of these programmes is underlined by the fact that Uganda has more than a million children who have been orphaned by AIDS. Rachel’s Story was made for Tearfund by London-based Pretzel Films and directed by James Lawe ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+February+Carbon+Fast.htmWed, 28 Jan 2009 16:12:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{7A448CDB-5FA3-4257-AA46-6702E2A46C8D}Fast > verb: abstain from all or some kinds of food or drink, especially as a religious observance. Carbon Fast > noun: a period of fasting and praying with Tearfund to cut your carbon use and help protect poor people from climate change. We’re on a mission this Lent not only to add Carbon Fast to your vocabulary but to get you putting these two little words into practice as well. Each day from Wednesday 25 February until Saturday 11 April, we have daily actions to help you reduce your carbon footprint. For example, why not give up keeping electrical appliances on standby? Eight per cent of the electricity we consume in our homes is by appliances we’re not even using, wasting money as well as causing emissions. Junk the mail Or de-register from receiving junk mail. Four billion direct mail items are sent annually, with a third going unread. All you need to do to join the Carbon Fast is sign up to receive a daily email. Easy. Together the global church can make a big difference. But don’t just take ou ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+February+India.htmWed, 28 Jan 2009 16:25:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{4F3A999E-9D7F-460E-9EB3-CCE286D617A0}Films are big business in India. Every year, Bollywood puts billions of bums on seats as people flock to see the latest features. The power and popularity of celluloid to captivate and transport people to another world shows little sign of waning. Which is good news for Timothy Gaikwad. Timothy is a film-maker who works with Tearfund partner, Inter-Mission Care and Rehabilitation Society (IMCares). Based in Mumbai, he has a track record of making films with a social and spiritual punch, offering sometimes uncomfortable but never irrelevant viewing and showing the local church’s response to seemingly intractable problems in society. His latest offering, Zindagi – Break the Cycle, is no exception. Running to 40 minutes, it tells the story of a rural 16-year-old girl Jyoti, played by Auroshikha Dey, who is trafficked into the big city prostitution industry. Soul-sapping And so begins her descent into sexual squalor attended by physical and emotional pain that comes with the territory of this exploitative ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Zimbabwe+partner+urges+show+of+goodwill.htmFri, 06 Feb 2009 17:22:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{F287E886-E5EC-440A-B93C-EEEED7693CAE}6 February 2009 A key Tearfund partner in Zimbabwe has given a guarded welcome to the formation of a unity government but is calling for confidence-building measures to show a political will to rebuild the country. The Zimbabwe Christian Alliance says it is cautiously optimistic about a power-sharing agreement between Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai. But it admits the deal, brokered by the Southern African Development Community, is not a triumph for African principles and solutions but a reproach because the will of the people as expressed in last year’s elections has not been respected. In a statement, the ZCA said, `It is our sincere hope and prayer, however, that God Almighty will intervene and this transitional arrangement will lead to real democracy and consequently to justice, reconciliation, peace and prosperity in our troubled land. `At present the people of Zimbabwe are rather suspicious and anxious. Anxious `They need confidence-building measures to be put in place to indicate sincerit ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Pakistan+water+project+to+help+thousands+of+families.htmTue, 10 Feb 2009 13:54:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{DFC06897-2D0D-4C5F-8071-0B75FACCB955} 10 February 2009 A Tearfund-funded project is set to improve access to clean drinking water and sanitation for more than 2,000 families in south-east Pakistan. Some 60 villages will benefit from a three year programme covering the district of Mirpurkhas in the Lower Sindh. As well as boosting the health of thousands of people, the work being coordinated by Tearfund partner, the Society for Safe Environment and Welfare of Agrarians in Pakistan (SSEWA-Pak), will improve people’s ability to make a livelihood. Self-help groups are being formed in each village which will take responsibility for the water and sanitation facilities once they are complete. Ashraf Mall, Tearfund’s Country Representative for Pakistan, said, `People who have benefited so far are really happy about it. `Villages have seen less waterborne diseases, like diarrhoea and cholera, and women no longer have to walk such long distances to get water.’ Many of the villagers benefiting are very poor. They tend to be small farmers or tena ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+World+Water+Day.htmWed, 18 Feb 2009 11:14:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{B1CE1147-4A00-475B-A7EC-7776978A8861}`Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water …’ One of the English language’s most famous nursery rhymes opens with a scenario that millions of kids in the developing world, especially girls, can relate to. For them the reality of getting water is a long walk to a source and then a slow, difficult, sometimes dangerous, journey home lugging their precious cargo. The hardship of this situation doesn’t end there. Because they have to spend so much time doing this, many kids drop out of education. Hand-in-hand with the lack of water is a lack of toilets, with all the unhygienic implications that comes with having to urinate or defecate in the open. It all adds up to a poverty-inducing, often lethal cocktail of factors that World Water Day this Sunday is aiming to highlight. Scandal Lack of access to a simple toilet affects 2.5 billion people worldwide or put another way, one in three people. Also one in seven people don’t have safe water to drink. It’s an injustice that cries out for a r ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+Water+Film.htmWed, 18 Feb 2009 12:14:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{C0AA42F9-C21A-4CD1-88A6-FA56AF45B55E}http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Sri+Lanka+partners+get+war+aid+to+civilians.htmWed, 18 Feb 2009 14:14:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{A189D275-EF64-4CDF-A0BD-6442A0B5E012} 18 February 2009 Tearfund partners in Sri Lanka are increasing aid for some of the 250,000 civilians who are caught in the middle of the island’s increasingly bloody civil war. Recent weeks have seen an intensification of fighting between government forces and those of the Tamil Tiger rebel group in the north of the country. Key rebel strongholds have fallen to advancing government forces but many civilians have been caught in the crossfire, despite the creation of `safe zones’. Shelling One local priest said, `The Sri Lankan army continues to shell and bomb places where people have sought asylum, even places which are safe zones. As people flee they are exposed to hot sun and to heavy rain. No food is available and people face starvation.’ Tearfund partner World Concern Sri Lanka, which has been working on tsunami-recovery programmes, has been able to support 1,200 wounded people, including many women and children, who were evacuated from the conflict zone by boat. In just one week more than 1,600 ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/After+the+cyclone+in+Myanmar.htmWed, 04 Mar 2009 16:03:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{2F554BB1-DCB3-46D5-BC37-4CC706E69465}5 March 2009 Tearfund’s Rachel Stevens has just returned from visiting Tearfund partners in Myanmar. Here Rachel reports on reconstruction efforts since last year’s cyclone but also on how emotional healing will take a lot longer. At the end of January, I travelled again to the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar. I was going to see the work that a Tearfund partner has been doing since Cyclone Nargis ripped through the heart of communities last May. After travelling some 12 hours by road to the town of Labutta, we boarded a small flotilla of speedboats for a 2 hour journey into the heart of the delta. We were greeted with curious stares from the local fishermen in their traditional wooden row boats. Recovery The first village we visited had been decimated by the cyclone. More than 400 of the village’s 1,000 residents lost their lives. Recovery has been slow here, and many people are still living in shelters they pieced together using timber and donated tarpaulins. Back in the boats, we made our way to the ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Carbon+fast+news+story.htmWed, 11 Mar 2009 10:38:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{A90403CB-C340-4622-B216-7D8F2E32C6BD}12 March 2009 If you’re one of the 1,500 plus people who have signed up for the Carbon Fast, maybe you’ll relate to twenty-something teacher, John Salberg. He’s been keeping an (almost) daily blog as he ponders the meaning of Lent and tries to use less carbon. The Carbon Fast is a journey through Lent towards a lighter carbon footprint. Every day we’re emailing participants with a simple energy saving action and a short prayer or reflection. John blogs: Day 1 of my Carbon Fast asks me to; ‘Remove one light bulb from your home and live without it for the next 40 days.’ So the bulb in the hall has gone. It’s one of those lights you always have on but never really need. Day 2It seems that I wasn’t aware of how important the light in the hall was! According to my wife it is vital. So the lounge has become a slightly darker place. Day 8‘Act justly: the world’s poorest people are suffering the most from climate change yet they have contributed the least to the problem. Go to www.tearfund.org/carbonfas ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve-Make+Life+Flow+Films.htmMon, 16 Mar 2009 16:01:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{6A282149-DBE5-46AC-AC01-8DD49CB0E803}http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/G20+rally.htmWed, 18 Mar 2009 15:14:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{F21ACD5D-866C-465A-8C99-F9D13A8EB192}23 March 2009 Tearfund is urging people to turn out in force for a major rally and church service this Saturday in advance of next month’s G20 summit in London. The 28 March rally and service concern the global financial crisis and aim to challenge world leaders to come up with sustainable policies focusing on jobs, justice and climate change. Tearfund is joining more than 50 organisations including faith groups, trades unions, environmental and development charities in organising the rally, entitled Put People First. It’s being staged prior to one of the most important gatherings of world leaders this year, the G20 summit on 2 April, which is being hosted by Gordon Brown and is focusing on the global financial meltdown. Failed systems Tearfund’s Paul Cook said: `World leaders must now work to ensure that failed systems are re-structured to fairly accommodate the poor in society. `In a biting recession, developing countries are hit even harder. And we are getting the church involved because, both loc ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Sri+Lanka+suffering+rises+as+war+rages.htmThu, 26 Mar 2009 09:05:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{13B66A64-EF82-47E2-8275-1FB4998199A2} 30 March 2009 New evidence of the scale of civilian suffering in Sri Lanka’s war has emerged from Tearfund partners responding to the crisis. Thousands of people fleeing the war zone in the north of the Indian Ocean island are facing severe food and water shortages. There’s been no let-up in the fighting which has seen government forces take large tracts of land previously held by the Tamil Tiger rebels. In response, Tearfund has provided more than £150,000 for four partners to meet humanitarian needs. One partner, Leads, is sending staff into camps for the displaced at Jaffna to provide essentials but also to spend time giving people emotional support and help with contacting family members in other areas. Another partner, World Concern, is the only aid group to have access to the war wounded being treated in hospitals just outside the conflict area. It’s providing the wounded with meals, bedding, toiletries and clothing and supporting hospital staff with food, beds and other services to help the ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Thousands+march+to+urge+G20+action+for+people.htmMon, 30 Mar 2009 12:40:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{4F8AB286-96C6-4FB2-8C7C-1A735E8AC2D0} 30 March 2009 Tearfund supporters have joined tens of thousands of marchers through the streets of London to urge world leaders to `Put People First’. Police estimate 35,000 people took part in Saturday’s rally for jobs, justice and climate, which was organised to send a message to the G20 Summit meeting to discuss the financial crisis this Thursday. Before the Put People First march, some 1,600 others attended an ecumenical church service at Central Hall, hearing from UK and international speakers. Among them was the Bishop of London, the Rt Revd Richard Chartres, who called for action to help the world’s poorest people who are suffering most in the current economic climate. Bishop Chartres said, `This is an interconnected world. If we take more than our fair share of resources and contribute to climate change, then the poorest people in the world will suffer.’ Father Joe Komakoma, Secretary General of the Zambia Episcopal Conference and a CAFOD partner, also speaking at the service, said, `Where ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/African+floods+leave+thousands+vulnerable.htmThu, 02 Apr 2009 09:54:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{E99CBB65-3002-4DAB-93BA-82DDC13D56B3}2 April 2009 Hundreds of thousands of people are suffering after severe flooding hit Angola and Zambia. More than 220,000 people have been affected in Angola and the UN says food and shelter is needed there. The local church is responding after many homes collapsed as well as schools and bridges. In the south east, in Kwando Kubago, more than 1,000 houses have been destroyed and 23,000 people are in need of relief assistance. In the area of Moxico, at least 1,000 houses have collapsed and 16,000 people are affected and need support. In another area, Cunene, many people are now living in camps requiring water, food, tents, medical drugs, blankets and chlorine. António Maiandi, from Tearfund partner the Reformed Church in Angola, said, `The situation is very bad, in some locations the schools have closed. Tents, medical drugs, food are needed urgently.’ Church aid This weekend the local church in Angola, which is celebrating the seventh anniversary of peace in the country, will be staging a massive c ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/G20+summit+reaction.htmThu, 02 Apr 2009 17:30:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{894D0D43-A0B9-4664-AC24-25E9E709FCA8}2 April 2009 The G20 today made some significant progress on funding for stimulus packages, tackling tax havens and shadow banking. However the reported 1.1 trillion dollar programme of investment pledged to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) needs to be looked at closely, according to the development NGO Tearfund. It says that much of it is not new money and that far more will be targeted at the world’s richest countries and not the poorest. Tearfund acknowledges that on the surface there will be several billions of new money for developing countries. 'We welcome the new money in this huge fiscal package but the G20 today missed a major opportunity to ensure that all new investments constitute a genuinely Green New Deal,' says Paul Cook, Tearfund’s Advocacy Director. 'With no clear commitments to ensure that stimulus money is invested in low carbon technology the world risks a recovery which is based on business as usual. It locks us into a path which will result in runaway climate change and devas ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Rising+sea+levels+force+islanders+to+flee.htmThu, 16 Apr 2009 14:20:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{A911B12E-9A23-48D0-913E-3AFD4895F0A9}16 April 2009 This week saw the announcement that the population of the Carteret Islands, near Papua New Guinea, are the first entire people to be evacuated because of man-made changes in the climate. With rising sea levels, their drinking water and crops are now poisoned by salt and one island has been cut in half by the waves. The 1,000 islanders are now being evacuated and their homes abandoned. As the news broke, governments were meeting in Bonn to continue UN negotiations on a new climate treaty, with the aim of reaching agreement at the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen this December. Tearfund plays an important role in the talks – lobbying governments to make sure the voices of the poorest and most vulnerable communities are heard – supported by the prayers and concern of the global church. Green technology Sara Shaw, Tearfund’s Climate Change Policy Officer, says, ‘We urgently need a tough and fair deal that drastically cuts the emissions of rich countries and provides adequate finance ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Zambia+project+tackles+child+labour+problem.htmTue, 21 Apr 2009 09:54:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{A6BFC514-729A-43C6-80C4-BC1C7FBAB685}21 April 2009 A Tearfund partner has helped prevent more than 600 Zambian youngsters from being used as child labour. Many low-income families in the southern African nation, where 45 per cent of the population is aged under 15, rely on their children to help work the land so they can survive. Jesus Cares Ministry (JCM) is helping people in the country’s eastern province find new means of making a livelihood, enabling youngsters to continue or return to education. More than 200 parents and carers have been trained and given new skills such as goat rearing, vegetable production, baking, tailoring and knitting. They’ve also received help to start businesses in groups of ten as well as ongoing monitoring and support. Thankful JCM helped 42-year-old Patricia Njobvu’s son return to school by teaching her to tailor to boost her income. Patricia, who has also been given a school uniform, books and pencils for her son, said, `I now sustain my simple life by making clothes on a sewing machine, one of the skil ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Tearfund+pre-Budget+climate+call.htmTue, 21 Apr 2009 15:04:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{951EC2BF-BC94-44BC-B56D-B681497102E6}21 April 2009 Tearfund is calling on the government to announce greenhouse gas emission cuts in tomorrow’s Budget that will kick-start the economy, save the planet and protect poor communities. In practice this means a science-based target of 42 per cent cuts by 2020 based on 1990 levels, with the vast majority of cuts being made within the UK and not offset in developing countries. This target would incentivise early climate action in the UK and put the country at the forefront of new green industries. It would also send a powerful signal to the international climate negotiations – setting an example to other developed countries and building trust with developing countries, which are hit hardest by climate change. Tearfund is concerned that the likely outcome may be an announcement of 34 per cent cuts on 1990 levels by 2020, which is what the Committee on Climate Change recommended in the absence of a global climate deal. Tearfund's Climate Policy Adviser Sara Shaw says, `While 34 per cent sounds a ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Hunger+adds+to+Sri+Lanka+war+suffering.htmWed, 22 Apr 2009 11:01:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{C5D83D81-7808-4D88-9BC6-5B63A0E9FC64} 22 April 2009 Tearfund partners are feeding thousands of hungry Sri Lankan civilians fleeing intense fighting between government forces and the Tamil Tigers. Tens of thousands of people have escaped the conflict zone in the country’s north east in recent days as the offensive against the rebels nears its climax. The Tigers now control only a narrow strip of land on the east coast as government forces have made steady advances since their military push against the separatists began last January. However the UN remains deeply concerned about the civilians unable to escape the war zone and has condemned the army’s use of heavy weapons inside it. Conditions within the zone are said to be atrocious with food shortages causing severe hunger. People are living in tents and facing inadequate access to water and sanitation. Community kitchens Tearfund is funding three partners as they respond to the humanitarian crisis left in the wake of the conflict. One partner, Leads, is supporting 15,000 people in camp ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Budget+response.htmThu, 23 Apr 2009 13:41:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{B8835937-9EC0-4703-AA0A-6A79F68A3F77}23 April 2009 Tearfund has welcomed the government’s announcement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 34 per cent but believes a huge opportunity to show global leadership has been missed. The Chancellor’s statement offered the chance for the UK to become a global leader in green industries and technologies which would create thousands of new jobs, help save the planet and protect poor people. Tearfund's Climate Policy Adviser Sara Shaw, says, `While 34 per cent sounds ambitious and is ahead of many other developed countries, it is scientifically inadequate. A target of 42 per cent is more in line with the latest research and we urge the government not to ignore the advice of experts. `It appears that the government has ducked the opportunity to take early action in moving towards a low-carbon economy and we face having to make much bigger cuts far faster after 2020. `There are huge benefits to taking action now. Investing early in energy efficiency, renewable energy sources and innovative technologi ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Myanmar+cyclone+anniversary+update.htmMon, 27 Apr 2009 14:56:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{39E36BA4-807B-41F1-AB8C-E93872201B47}It’s a year since a devastating cyclone hit Myanmar (Burma) leaving 140,000 people dead or missing and uprooting 800,000 others from their homes. Here we update you on how Tearfund has been helping rebuild tens of thousands of lives. 30 April 2009 Life is looking up for Daw Aye Kyi after Cyclone Nargis did its best to drag her to the depths of despair. The 39-year-old lost her house in the storm’s 120mph winds and 12ft tidal surge that smashed into the Ayeyarwady Delta, on Myanmar’s southern tip. `We managed to escape from our house which was completely swept away and take refuge in the chapel,’ recalls the mother-of-five. `Then we moved into a tarpaulin and bamboo shelter where we lived for six months. It was about 9ft by 18ft so very cramped for the seven of us. The tarpaulin also made it very hot during the dry season.’ Thanks to the generous response of the global church to Tearfund’s Myanmar emergency appeal, our partners were able to respond quickly to help people like Daw Aye Kyi. Collab ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+May+2009+Myanmar+cyclone.htmTue, 28 Apr 2009 16:47:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{BD4A1D4D-7B9C-44FE-8598-FE5A9792F417}12 May 2009 Win Tint and wife Daw San Aye were out fishing when Cyclone Nargis struck without warning. Their boat capsized and the couple had to swim for their lives, ending up clinging onto water reeds until the worst had passed. Clambering ashore, they ran to their home and were confronted by the life-shattering extent of their loss. In the wreckage of their badly damaged house they discovered their three children aged two, seven and nine had been swept away. To this day their bodies have never been recovered. Bereft of belongings, Win Tint and Daw San Aye were left with nothing. One of Tearfund’s local Myanmar-based partners has helped the couple take the first tentative steps on the road to recovery by rebuilding their home, complete with structural strengthening to help it withstand future storms and give them a sense of security. It’s bigger than their former home and they feel safe within it, even with the impending monsoon. Church's help Without a fishing boat to earn a living, the couple g ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Mexico+swine+flu+outbreak.htmTue, 28 Apr 2009 17:05:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{72780BA0-F5DF-46EB-A62B-609D9A969935}28 April 2009 People from poor communities in Mexico are set to receive face masks and dietary supplements from a Tearfund partner to help them ward off swine flu. The virus is believed to have claimed 150 lives in Mexico and 2,000 people are said to be infected. All schools have been closed until 6 May, public events have been cancelled and many cities are quiet as people stay at home. The Mexican government is using the media to reiterate information about the symptoms and preventative measures, such as the need to regularly wash hands and disinfect dishes. Tearfund partner Amextra (Mexican Association for Rural and Urban Transformation) is drawing up plans to distribute face masks in communities where it is working. Amextra’s Jennifer Allen said, `Society in general is voluntarily choosing to go outside as little as possible to avoid being infected which most commonly occurs through coughs and sneezes. Boosting immunity `We are already hearing reports of the illness in our communities although det ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+May+Sri+Lanka.htmTue, 05 May 2009 09:12:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{D970E48E-6C8F-4CF1-8581-684876F9C628} While the world hopefully witnesses the last gasps of Sri Lanka’s two-decade-old civil war, the cries of civilians suffering can still be heard loud and clear. It’s a call that demands a response from local churches around the globe to enable Tearfund’s partners to increase the amount of help they can give to ordinary people already struggling on the margins of poverty. Tens of thousands have fled the war zone in the north east of the island where conditions are said to be atrocious, with people facing acute food shortages and families living in tents with inadequate access to water and sanitation. Those who do manage to escape have no choice but to enter government-run displacement camps with limited facilities which have been hastily arranged, increasing hardship. Conditions for those who escape are little better. Many are being forced into government-run displacement camps, surrounded by barbed wire, with few facilities. Malnutrition Thanks to the generosity of supporters towards our emergency app ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Afghan+radio+spreads+water+message.htmFri, 08 May 2009 07:57:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{27E74FBE-1E2E-4775-B814-5A4368427A47}8 May 2009 Tearfund teams in Afghanistan have been taking to the airwaves to get across messages about the importance of using water wisely. Three national radio stations broadcast a special programme produced by Tearfund with contributions from Afghan government departments. Listeners heard how water should be seen as a valuable natural resource which shouldn’t be wasted. The message was underlined in interviews with people living in parts of Afghanistan where water is scarce or where clean drinking supplies are limited. People also heard about how to avoid contaminating drinking water by the careful selection of locations for toilets, wells and waste disposal areas. Feedback from listeners included: `My family and I didn’t know that many people don’t have access to safe drinking water,’ (Kabul resident). `I learned that water must not be wasted particularly the safe water,’ (Wardak province resident). `Now I know, why I go to the toilet so often with diarrhoea. I must use only safe water for d ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Rebuilding+lives+in+Indonesia.htmTue, 12 May 2009 14:27:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{897B41F2-FCD8-400A-9212-2D1FEF22C97A} 13 May 2009 People uprooted by years of conflict in Indonesia are getting help to rebuild their communities and lives from Tearfund. Residents of seven villages in the Panga and Krueng Sabee area on the island of Sumatra have returned to find their houses destroyed and farming land completely overgrown. They had been forced to leave in 2003 because they were in the middle of a conflict between the Indonesian army and the Free Aceh Movement. Tearfund partner Kotib (Koalisi Untuk Transparansi Bantuan Bencana), which means Coalition for the Transparency of Disaster Aid, has been helping villagers get back on their feet. Greater strength Village leader Zurihan has been working on restoring livelihoods with Kotib: `I lead meetings and we share ideas about how to improve and develop the community,’ he said. `I want the village to progress and for us to get ourselves out of poverty by rebuilding livelihoods and community structure.’ Skills training has helped farmers grow crops more efficiently but Kotib ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Living+water+in+Liberia.htmWed, 20 May 2009 07:54:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{9A22138B-A112-410B-9F60-E1D3BDC7F7C6}20 May 2009 Imagine drinking from a muddy swamp - about as much fun as diarrhoea which is likely to be the result. Take a trip to the West African state of Liberia and the Dukuleyla community and you’ll find people who don’t have to use their imagination. They’ve got bitter experience of doing so and it’s not something they would recommend to anyone. Community leader Isaac Barker said, `We didn’t have safe drinking water here. The only water we could use was from the mud, from the swamp. `It wasn’t good for us. It gave us diarrhoea, even worms – you can see them in the well.’ What changed the lives of the community in Gbarpolu county was some help from a group of local churches in the form of a Tearfund partner. The Association of Evangelicals in Liberia (AEL), which has experience of water-related construction projects, approached the Dukuleyla community to ask their needs. Clean drinking water was top of the priority list for villagers and the result was AEL began work on building a new well. Th ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Asia+cyclone+brings+misery+to+thousands.htmThu, 28 May 2009 15:31:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{70F06BC5-C29D-44C0-96F0-785866E976A8}28 May 2009 Tearfund partners are assessing aid needs after Cyclone Aila affected hundreds of thousands of people in Bangladesh and India. More than 200 died after the storm brought high winds and heavy rains from the Bay of Bengal. Homes were washed away, crops damaged and many people are struggling without food, water and shelter. But thousands in Bangladesh were helped to safety thanks to Tearfund partner Heed. It implemented early warning procedures to get 18,000 people to cyclone shelters, including some that were built with Tearfund help after Cyclone Sidr killed 4,000 people in 2007. More than 80 Heed teams went out onto the streets of 14 areas with megaphones and sirens to warn residents of the impending storm, while warning flags were raised at nearly 100 other communities. Dam threat Some 1,200 Heed-trained community volunteers were involved in evacuation and rescue operations. Heed says the cyclone has left coastal areas particularly affected by saline contaminated drinking water. Fell ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Mexico+swine+flu+latest.htmMon, 01 Jun 2009 13:58:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{2EABFFE1-D785-431B-8509-1FA6B466A833}1 June 2009 Rural Mexicans are receiving help from a Tearfund partner to prevent them contracting swine flu. More than 4,900 cases of the influenza have been diagnosed in Mexico and 85 people have died there, according to the World Health Organisation. Tearfund partner Amextra is working in two regions outside Mexico City to boost awareness of the A (H1N1) strain which has been reported in 48 countries since the outbreak began in Mexico. Many poor families in rural areas have not received Mexican government help to combat the flu, so Amextra staff have been training people about how to prevent its spread, with information backed up with flyers and posters in public places. On a practical level, 3,800 bars of soap have been given out by our partner to help hygiene, as well as face masks and vitamins for children. With Mexico facing a shortage of face masks, Amextra is also providing materials for 11,000 new ones and volunteers have been making them. Commenting on the effect of swine flu, Jennifer Allen ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+June+Pakistan.htmMon, 01 Jun 2009 15:06:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{3B3ABB36-8907-4FE4-8D26-2455EB3BCEB6}Safia was just days away from giving birth when panic started to grow on the streets of her home city of Mingora in Pakistan. A dozen Taleban bombs had exploded in quick succession across the north western city and people were urging residents to leave immediately. Safia joined the departing throng and walked for three hours before managing to get a lift to the town of Mardan where she went to stay with relatives. Four days later baby Anosh was born but Safia’s family didn’t have enough food and supplies to look after the pair for long. They were taken in by the Christian Vocational Training Centre, run by the Diocese of Peshawar, which has 70 displaced families within its walls who are being supported by a Tearfund partner, SSEWA-Pak, (Society for Safe Environment and Welfare of Agrarians in Pakistan). Safia is one of more than 3 million people who have been forced to leave their homes because of fighting between Pakistani forces and the Taleban. Tidal wave of humanity The conflict in the North Wes ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Twelve+June+Tim+Vine.htmWed, 03 Jun 2009 08:11:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{9BE8A5EE-C0A8-4D38-87AA-CA80232725FE}`So how would you fancy coming out to Africa at some point to visit one of our projects? See what we’re doing about helping to put clean water and loos in towns that don’t have any?' `Yeh, I’d be up for that.' That casual exchange in a coffee shop in Banstead with a staff member from Tearfund had been the starting point. And now here I was, fully inoculated, cramming shirts into a case and wondering what had possessed me. It didn’t add to my confidence that I had got the start of a sore throat and my glands were up. Great Timing. It’s the secret of comedy. Still there was no way out now. I was going to Ethiopia. Suddenly staying at home and watching the results of Dancing On Ice seemed like heaven. It had never felt like that before. We were met in Addis Ababa by our new friends from the Kale Heywet Church, Tearfund’s partners in Ethiopia. Tearfund works through the local church, because of the impact that can be made by an organisation on the ground who really know the communities intimately and ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Church+should+have+bigger+water+role.htmWed, 03 Jun 2009 09:25:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{C3BD87C2-BDB1-463B-944E-24CD5DC5D2C8} 3 June 2009 Tearfund is calling on governments to step-up work with churches to tackle the global water and sanitation crisis. Some 2.5 billion people lack access to decent toilets and 900 million don’t have access to clean drinking water and internationally agreed targets, called Millennium Development Goals, aimed at improving this by 2015 are massively off track for sub-Saharan Africa. A major effort is needed to prevent the targets being missed, according to a new report from Tearfund called Keeping Communities Clean – the churches response to improving sanitation and hygiene. The report explains that headway can be made if governments and international donors work in partnership with local churches which are at the heart of many poor communities. This position means the local church is ideally placed to be a force for positive change and development, a fact reinforced by Tearfund’s 40 years experience of working on relief and development with church partners. Shaping attitudes The report cites ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/New+skills+bring+new+hope+in+Cambodia.htmWed, 03 Jun 2009 12:58:04 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{B298A582-7CD8-4105-8542-FBF171D6845C}4 June 2009 The Khmer Rouge era left Cambodia one of the world’s poorest countries. Unicef says 40 per cent of the 14 million population earn less than US$1.25 a day. Tearfund is working with the local church to tackle poverty and the approach is winning recognition from the Cambodian government. Kuan To-na is only 14 but already knows the painful realities of living in poverty. One of seven children from a village near the Thai border, he had to give up going to school because his parents’ wages as day labourers couldn’t pay the fees. `Day to day the living standard of my family is getting worse and it cannot support my siblings and me to go to school anymore,’ says Kuan. `I feel sorry about this and I worry about my family and our futures.’ Working life for Kuan after leaving school comprised collecting rubbish for recycling and labouring on a farm in Thailand. Not surprisingly, it wasn’t an existence Kuan relished: `I don’t want my life to be in the same situation as my family is now.’ Bikes He rec ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Nepal+partners+are+quick+on+the+draw.htmWed, 10 Jun 2009 09:05:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{009C43C5-7E95-419B-83D3-09EE664E8BAF}10 June 2009 Drawings and drama are being used by Tearfund in Nepal to get churches and their communities involved in shaping their futures. Nepali local church partners are learning to use creative approaches to help them engage with people in the wider community they serve who are illiterate. People are being taught drawing skills which they can then use to communicate development and Biblical messages. Tearfund consultant Bill Crooks, who ran courses with Jackie Mouradian, said, `There’s huge scope for these non-written forms of learning. Within two hours people had the confidence to draw.’ Energising Representatives from Tearfund partners Sagoal, the United Mission to Nepal (UMN), International Nepal Fellowship (INF), Share and Care and Community Transformation Society (CATS) have taken part. Elung Rai, from UMN, said, `It’s been a good experience and useful learning for me about how we can guide and support our churches and Christian communities. `I learned many new ideas and concepts about ho ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Churches+call+for+calm+in+Peru.htmThu, 18 Jun 2009 13:06:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{D7E14488-B553-46F2-8079-E8470274BF81}18 June 2009 Churches in Peru are calling for calm after a frenzy of violence left dozens dead. Clashes between the police and indigenous people in the Amazonas department have caused fatalities on both sides and left hundreds injured. Hard facts are difficult to come by, amid curfews and restriction on the media, but it’s clear relations between the Peruvian authorities and the indigenous inhabitants are at an all-time low. The causes go back years and have their roots in exclusion and abuse, according to Tearfund partner Paz y Esperanza (Peace and Hope). Since the 1990s, a number of laws have been passed that are restricting the land rights of the local people in both the rainforest and high mountain regions. Obstacle These laws have granted mining and oil companies greater powers over indigenous lands. The current Peruvian government has tried to continue this trend and President Alan Garcia has articulated resentment against the indigenous people in articles where he has described them as lazy, u ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Brazil+water+venture+praised.htmTue, 23 Jun 2009 10:42:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{03B002EE-9F1A-48DE-A65C-B718B4A55894} 23 June 2009 Thousands of Brazilians are receiving improved water and sanitation facilities as a result of a pioneering venture between Tearfund partners and local authorities. This life-improving work is benefiting the semi-arid town of Antonio Martins in the State of Rio Grande do Norte, in the northeast of the country, an area where there has traditionally been little in the way of centrally-provided services for the thinly spread population. Tearfund partner Diaconia has received vital support from the municipal government in Antonio Martins to increase the supply of drinking water and sanitation to the locals. The council has provided transport for building materials, technical advisers and help with building a 24,000-litre water storage tank and now construction is underway of more than 700 bathrooms. Diaconia has helped the council authorities realise Antonio Martins does not require grand schemes to make a serious difference to the lives of its people. The mayor of Antonio Martins Municipal ...http://www.tearfund.org/News/World+news/Christians+under+attack+in+Nepal.htmWed, 24 Jun 2009 11:48:00 GMTwebsite.editor@tearfund.org{B177B78E-24FD-469F-AB33-E657826A2679}24 June 2009 Christians in Nepal are facing worrying times amid threats against them by Hindu extremists who recently carried out a bomb attack on a church. Three people died and 13 others were injured when an improvised explosive device detonated at a catholic church in Dhobighat in Lalitpur district. Responsibility for the attack was claimed by the Nepal Defence Army (NDA), a Hindu fundamentalist group. Worryingly, the NDA issued new threats, saying it was planning to explode ten further bombs at the homes of Nepali Christians. In a statement, the group said the action was in response ‘to the open rape of Hindu culture through open religious conversion’. Deadline The NDA has pointed the finger at Christian aid groups and given `unholy elements’ until tomorrow to leave Nepal. Ominously the statement goes on: `If this warning is ignored they will have to bear a punishment beyond human imagination.’ Tearfund is closely monitoring the situation with our nine partners in Nepal who are taking steps to r ...