Burmese authorities last week increased restrictions on Christian activities in the capital Rangoon and surrounding areas, several churches were closed. The order came on 05.01.09 and had already forced many Christians to stop meeting for church services in homes or apartments.
Officials last week ordered several major churches in Rangoon to suspend services and continued to enforce the 05.01.09 ban on meetings in unauthorized locations.
In the late 1990s, authorities stopped issuing permits to purchase land or build new churches, causing many Burmese Christians to hold services in rented apartments or office buildings, according to Burmese news agency Mizzima. The Kyauktada Peace and Development Council invited pastors from more than 100 churches in Rangoon to a meeting on January 5, 2009 to sign documents pledging to stop running churches. Around 50 pastors attended, according to Mizzima. The documents threatened punishment, including potential jail sentences and closure of church facilities, for those pastors who refused to obey the closure order. Mizzima quoted an anonymous Burmese Christian who claimed that 80 percent of churches in Rangoon were affected by the order. (Compass Direct/Danish European Mission)
