The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) has issued a statement saying that the "September 18 coup in Thailand is a reminder of the world of conflict in which we live. Thankfully the military action appears to have been peaceful, with no deaths or injuries reported."
BWA President David Coffey and Director of Baptist World Aid, Paul Montacute, were in Thailand in mid-September, a week before the coup, and met many Baptists from Thailand and the Asian region.
"Although there was a certain level of anxiety about the recent election, and the lack of participation by the opposition, few appeared to be predicting this kind of action," said Montacute. "We must hope and pray that this action will not hinder much of the important work being undertaken by Baptists in Thailand, including the tsunami relief work in the south of the country."
Coffey and Montacute, together with 325 Christians involved in relief and development work from over 52 countries, participated in the triennial conference sponsored by the Micah Network and held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, 11 to 15 September. Fifty of the delegates to the conference were Baptists, many working for Christian agencies around the world, and many in areas of conflict.In a world torn by conflict, local churches committed to bringing the radical love of Christ in word and deed in an integral way to their devastated communities have a unique potential to bring healing and reconciliation.
Elaine Storkey, President of Tear Fund UK
The Micah Network is the world's largest network of evangelical Christian relief and development agencies. The Network consists of over 295 agencies and churches from 75 countries in both the developed and developing work.
The Network sponsors the Micah Challenge, a BWA-supported campaign to ensure that the Millennium Development goals are achieved by the United Nations and member governments. Many Baptists from around the world are supporting the campaign, and a large number of pastors in the USA have recently signed the 'Baptist Pastoral Letter Supporting the Micah Challenge' written by Robert Parham of Ethics Daily.
