SPDC Authorities Shut Down Dai Christian Church in Rangoon

The local authorities in North Dagon Township, Rangoon closed down the Dai Christian Fellowship Church last Sunday, 19 April while the church pastor was attending an International Brethren Conference in Malaysia.

SPDC's local authorities came to the church in the evening and ordered not to do any worship services again, according to one of the church leaders, who added: "This is the only church service that the Dai people in Rangoon have and it is becoming rendezvous for all of us. Unfortunately, the church has been closed down and every church member feels really sad so we need your special fervent prayer for help.'

One of the church leaders, who asks not to be named for the security reasons, said the DCF church, which has got about 70 regular church-goers, was ordered to closed and stop holding church services without any giving reasons by local authority officers.

An orphanage "Victoria Childcare Home" with about 15 children being looked after by the Dai Christian Fellowship (DCF) was also included in the recent closure. Other churches based in Ward 46 of North Dagon were said to have been locked on the same day but the number has not yet been known.

UK-based Dai-Chin pastor, Rev.Shwekey Hoipangs, who co-founded the church in late 2007, told Chinland Guardian: "The Military Regime makes a serious of raids to close down the churches, Bible colleges and orphanages in Rangoon in April 2009. It is clear that the Military Regime's strategies to destroy the Christian activities one by one and one place to another discretely place. It is an ongoing plan of the Military Regime to wipe out the Christian in Burma."

It is estimated that more than 200 Dai people, one of the sub-Chin tribes from Southern Chin state, live in Rangoon, former capital of Burma.

Since December 2008, more than 100 churches in Rangoon's South Dagon, Pabedan, Shwepyithar townships have been shut down, about 50 pastors forced to sign the document promising to stop holding church services, and 80 per cent of churches in Rangoon affected, according to a report by Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) early this year.

Burma's military regime has been condemned by international communities and Chin Christian across the world for its brutal yet escalating crackdowns on Christian activities in the country.

One of the Dai refugee leaders in Malaysia said " We are Christian, small ethnic tribes of Burma and different political opinion of Military government that we are discriminated, arrested, tortured by Burmese Military Regime and faced serious religion persecution. It is very clear and transparency that we cannot build our own home and our churches in our Dai land."