Photo via gfa.org

Conflict over new Indian state threatens missionary work

Strikes and protests are bringing life to a standstill in Andhra Pradesh as a 50-year-old conflict over the creation of a new state, Telangana, is again being discussed in New Delhi, the nation's capital, reports Gospel for Asia.

Advocates of the new state, including the Maoist parties who hope to gain some power in the breakup of Andhra Pradesh, are using everything from hunger strikes to mass demonstrations to press their demands.

While Gospel for Asia leaders say the creation of a Telangana state would not necessarily create any problems for the ministry there, the current unrest by protesters has resulted in the cancellation of dozens of trains and the disruption of major bus lines. Both are vital to everyday life in India and are making it difficult for ministry and outreach to continue on a normal basis.

People are suffering from things like a lack of medicine and even food as the transportation system is disrupted.

Negotiations over the issue, which goes back to the earliest days of Indian independence, are continuing in New Delhi among multiple political parties and government officials, with protests continuing during the talks. Andhra Pradesh and the newly proposed state are Telugu-speaking areas, but the people of the Telangana region have historically favored a separate state, agreeing to be a part of Andhra Pradesh only after promises of political and economic development were given in the 1950s.

The region in question is governed by the local Communist Party. The people who live there have always protested that the promises made to them have not been kept. They are adamant that a separate state is the only answer to their grievances.

Gospel for Asia supports some 1,400 national workers in Andhra Pradesh, who are involved in a wide variety of ministries. This state is India's fourth largest state (106,204 square miles) with the fifth largest population (76.2 million in 2001). The proposed new state, Telangana, would have about 35 million people and occupy the landlocked and underdeveloped north central part of Andhra, including its capital, Hyderabad.

So far, no details have been received about the strikes' effects on GFA–supported missionaries or the believers in their churches. But the longer the transportation standstill lasts, the more severe the effects will be.

GFA workers in Andhra Pradesh request prayer that the Lord will prevent the situation from spiraling into the kind of violence they saw in 1969 and that lives would be spared. They also request prayer for the state and national leaders to make the right decision regarding the re-drawing of state lines.

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TAGS: India Andhra Pradesh Telangana missionary work Gospel for Asia persecution

[01/12/2010]

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