Burkina Faso — Young catechist Edouard Yougbare was kidnapped and murdered by terrorists on April 19 in Burkina Faso.

“We are heartbroken by the loss of Yougbare,” said Maria Lozano, press director for Aid to the Church in Need. “He served his community faithfully, and his death is a devastating blow for the people of Saatenga.”

Those who killed Yougbare have also reportedly kidnapped and murdered many others in the community.

Burkina Faso, located in Africa’s Sahel region, shares its northern border with Niger and Mali. As a result, the country is no stranger to Islamic extremism. Within the borders of Burkina Faso, three known terrorist groups, Ansaroul Islam, Islamic State in Greater Sahara (ISIS-GS), and Jamaat Nasr al-Islam, perpetuate violence and corruption.

Of the Burkina Faso’s 21.9 million people, nearly 64% are Muslim (predominantly Sunni), about 20% are Roman Catholic, more than 6% are Protestant, and 9% hold Indigenous beliefs. While the country’s secular constitution provides citizens the right to choose or change religion, the coup d’etat that occurred in 2022 and the pervading corruption that followed have nullified the rights guaranteed by the original government.

As a result of the corruption and increased presence of Islamic extremists and jihadists, stories like Yougbare’s are not entirely uncommon in Burkina Faso.

We pray that God’s love will comfort Yougbare’s family, and we pray for justice for those who committed the violent acts against him.
Sources:persecution

http://theendtimeradio.com

South Korea — South Korea’s Supreme Court ruled against a law school’s refusal to reschedule an interview due to a conflict with a religious belief. This decision highlights its commitment to religious freedom.

Jin Im, a Seventh-day Adventist, requested the president of Chonnam National University make an exception to the school’s policy of randomly assigning interview times and groups to accommodate Im’s observance of the Sabbath. The university randomly assigned Im to an interview session on Saturday morning, which directly conflicted with the Sabbath observance of the Seventh-day Adventists.

Im requested a change in schedule from the university, which it denied. Consequently, Im could not attend her interview and the university denied her admission.

The original trial ruled against Im, but the appellate court overturned the case , stating, “The defendant, being the president of a national university and exercising public authority, must consider ways to allow the plaintiff to participate in the interview by her conscience without compromising the fairness and equity of the student selection process. The refusal to accommodate the plaintiff’s request violates the principle of minimal infringement and is unlawful due to the misuse of discretion.”

The Supreme Court agreed with the appellate court, marking it as the first decision by a court that accepts a Seventh-day Adventist’s request for a change in academic scheduling. In April and June 2010 and 2023, the Constitutional Court of South Korea ruled against Seventh-day Adventists’ requests to change exam schedules that fell on Saturdays.

Following the most recent ruling, a spokesperson for the Supreme Court said, “This is the first decision by either the Constitutional Court or the Supreme Court to explicitly acknowledge a Seventh-day Adventist’s request for a change in the test schedule. It clarifies the obligations of administrative authorities to prevent Seventh-day Adventists and other minorities from facing undue discrimination due to their religious beliefs.”

The court’s ruling marks a historic occasion for the small sect of Christianity in South Korea. Only 44% of the country’s population identifies as practicing a religion, 45% of whom identify as Protestant.
Sources:persecution

http://theendtimeradio.com

Myanmar — To mark the Buddhist New Year festival of Thingyan, officials in Myanmar released 3,300 people from prison. Authorities re-arrested one of them, a Baptist pastor, later that night.

The pastor, The Rev. Hkalam Samson, is a well-known and respected church leader and former chair of the Kachin Baptist Convention. He is also an outspoken advocate and defender of the rights of religious and ethnic minorities in Myanmar. The U.S. Department of State has called for his release.

Samson was released in the afternoon on April 17. At 10 p.m. that night, security officials detained him at his home. The reverend, who was originally detained on false charges of unlawful association, inciting opposition to the regime, and terrorism, was sentenced in April 2023 to six years in prison. Originally detained in December 2022, Samson had served 16 months of his sentence at the time of his release.

After being welcomed by friends and family the afternoon of his release, a relative who spoke on the condition of anonymity shared that authorities took Samson, his wife Zung Nyaw, and a member of the Kachin-based Peace-talk Creation Group to Myitkyina prison, where Samson had previously served time, claiming it was for their safety.

About 6 percent of Myanmar’s 54 million people are Christian. However, Kachin state, the country’s northernmost state that borders China and India, has a significant Christian population that is frequently harassed and persecuted. About 35% of the state’s 1.7 million people are Christians.

Pray for Rev. Samson, his wife, and the other believer to be released from prison soon.
Sources:persecution

http://theendtimeradio.com