* SWISS VOTE FOR RELAXED ABORTION LAWS - The Swiss referendum result on 2 June decriminalised abortions up to 12 weeks into a pregnancy. A majority of 72 percent voted for the government-backed proposal, which was passed by Swiss politicians in March last year, The Associated Press news agency reported. The margin was even bigger, 82 percent, for an alternative vote, which rejected the proposal by an anti-abortion coalition to toughen the rules, AP added. Turnout was a typical 40 percent of the eligible 4.5 million voters in a country that frequently uses referendums to decide issues. Anti-abortion campaigners said the reform vote - and the defeat of their own proposal - showed "an ethical barrier has fallen in this country." CNN, 2 June
Pro-life advocates gathered 160,000 signatures calling for a referendum - more than triple the 50,000 needed. They also added their own tougher proposal banning abortions except when it was the only way to save a woman's life. A group called Swiss Aid for Mother and Child has been campaigning for the tougher abortion proposal, delivering brochures to every Swiss home (about 3 million). (Prolife Infonet, 3 June)
Monika Dätwyler of Aid for Mother and Child, told Christian News: "What great hope is found in standing for the culture of life! When a pregnant woman in a predicament phones our hotline, we offer hope to both her and her unborn baby. We assist her by giving support in solving the problems, not by killing the baby! For this goal we are striving, even though abortion is now legalised. Where there is life, there is hope!"

* CHILDREN BLOW AWAY CIGARETTE SMOKING - Children are heeding health warnings about the dangers associated with cigarette smoking. A national survey of 1400 South African children, aged between five and eight years, found that most declared they would never smoke. Many complained that it was unhealthy, antisocial and affected personal hygiene. The survey - which compared answers with a similar survey conducted a few years previously - found that fewer children were experimenting with smoking. Researchers were interested in guaging children's perceptions of smoking in the wake of new South African legislation banning cigarette advertising. (Sunday Times, 9 June)

* ABSTINENCE WALK IN KWAZULU-NATAL - (South Africa) A group of young people promoting abstinence from sex before marriage have undertaken a long walk as part of efforts to raise awareness about HIV/Aids. The Abstinence Walk Challenge started on Sunday, 9 June, in Port Shepstone, and after walking about 50km per day, the group arrived in Pietermaritzburg on Friday, 14 June. The idea of the walk, coinciding with Youth Month, was to urge the youth to abstain from sex before marriage. A crowd of school children thronged along the sidewalk to welcome the campaigning youth when they entered Durban on Wednesday, 12 June. Among those who took part is Ishmail Maluleke, leading goalscorer for Manning Rangers in the Premier Soccer League last season. "This is a very good cause as many youngsters contract the killer disease and it is up to us to ensure that we are protected against HIV/Aids. The best way to do that is to abstain," Maluleke says. Representatives from all nine provinces, including Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, the Health Minister, and Zweli Mkhize, the provincial Health MEC, came to show their support, and have given the initiative the thumbs-up. (www.truelovewaits.org.za; SABCnews, 9 & 12 June)

* CONTRACEPTIVES FOR S.A. SCHOOL CHILDREN - Parents are heading for a showdown with education and health authorities over a controversial recommendation by the South African Law Commission to issue, without parental permission, contraceptives to school children - some of them in primary school. Mr Gordon Hollamby, senior researcher at the commission, said that lowering of the age limit for access to contraception just meant that contraception could be issued at any age without parental consent. Dr Cyril Naidoo, chairman of the Parents' Association of KwaZulu-Natal, said "It is a short-sighted move made without any consultation with parents. Giving children contraception would just encourage sexual activity..." (Sunday Tribune, 2 June)

* KIDNAPPED MISSIONARY KILLED IN PHILIPPINES - American missionary Martin Burnham - who along with his wife Gracia had been held captive for over a year in the Philippines by the Muslim extremist group Abu Sayyaf - was killed Friday morning, 7 June, in a rescue attempt. Philippine nurse and hostage Deborah Yap was also killed in the firefight. Gracia Burnham escaped with a wound to her right leg. According to CNN Correspondent in Philippines, Maria Ressa, there was a fierce firefight between the Filipino soldiers and the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers, an Al Qaeda-linked group that's been holding the Burnhams since they were kidnapped on May 27 [2001]. Martin Burnham was killed in that firefight. His wife Gracia was wounded [and] was rescued by Filipino troops. She was taken to the hospital at the Southern Command in Zamboanga City. During a CNN news conference, Doug Burnham, brother of Martin, said : "... it hasn't turned out the way we were expecting it to turn out. But we are thankful that Gracia is alive, and our faith in the Lord is still the same. It hasn't changed, and that's what we were hanging on to." (CNN, 7,8,14 June)

* NEW BOOK ON 20^th CENTURY MARTYRS - Commentary by Chuck Colson: "On June 6, Martin Burnham, an American missionary, died in a battle between his Islamic kidnappers and Filipino troops sent to rescue him. Burnham, thus, becomes the newest member of ..."the white-robe army of the martyrs" - an army that, according to a recent estimate, is a staggering 70 million strong. But what's even more staggering is that, according to the same estimate, 45 million, or two-thirds of all Christian martyrs, died in the twentieth century. These estimates are contained in a new book, THE NEW PERSECUTED: INQUIRIES INTO ANTI- CHRISTIAN INTOLERANCE IN THE NEW CENTURY OF MARTYRS. It's written by an Italian journalist, Antonio Socci. The estimates are derived from sources such as Oxford's World Christian Encyclopedia.
Many of the martyrs died in places like the former Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. But there are others, lesser known places where Christians were killed for their faith, like Turkey, where 1.5 million Armenian Christians were murdered. And the killing continues. Socci estimates that an average of 160,000 Christians have been killed every year since 1990 in places like Algeria, Nigeria, Sudan, and Pakistan. Socci writes that the "global persecution of Christianity is still in progress but in most cases is ignored by the mass media and Christians in the west." ...How many Christians have to die before the world takes notice?..." (Breakpoint with Charles Colson, 14 June)

* CAPTURE OF KAPOETA A BLOW FOR ISLAMIC SUDANESE GOVERNMENT - The Sudanese People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) has captured the strategic garrison town of Kapoeta in Eastern Equatoria. The battle began on the evening of 8th June, when the SPLA overran all 11 outposts around the town. At dawn on Sunday, 9th June, the main enemy garrison was stormed and fell by 9:15am. As Kapoeta was the administrative headquarters of the Eastern Equatoria state, and as it was defended by a well-equipped garrison of 3000 troops, equipped with tanks, artillery and a wide assortment of light and medium support weapons, this defeat is a serious blow to the National Islamic Front government. For further information on the on-going conflict in Sudan, visit www.frontline.org.za. (Frontline Fellowship, 14 June)

* AMERICAN CHRISTIANS FUND JEWISH IMMIGRATION - A group of 531 North American Jews will be immigrating to Israel next month in a special operation made possible by a $2 million grant from the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. It is the first time the American Christians are funding Jewish immigration to Israel. And IFCJ president, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein says ever since the most recent Palestinian "Intifada," there has been a desire on the part of many Jews to do something more to identify with Israel. "They are coming out of deep Zionist fervor," Eckstein says, meaning a belief in the prophesies of the Bible that spoke of a day when Jews will come from the four corners of the world and return to Israel. "The American-Jewish community, the ones "going up," he says (those who have immigrated) "has really been very small, maybe 1,000 Jews coming to Israel per year." (Agapepress, 14 June)
According to the Washington Times, 17 June, hostility is growing in Europe toward Israel for its tactics against Palestinians, but support for Zionism remains constant among America's millions of evangelical Christians. Some Americans simply empathize with Jewish friends. Those with longer memories believe humanitarianism requires a secure Jewish homeland in the post-Holocaust world. Others embrace Israel as a Middle East outpost of democracy and Western values.

* WISCONSIN DOCTOR EXPELLED FOR QUESTIONING ISLAM - A young Christian doctor from Wisconson says medical school officials are persecuting him for daring to ask questions at a pro-Islamic lecture. This past January when Dr. Michael Curtiss - a second year resident at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine - attended a required lecture given by two Islamic students. Although medical topics were supposed to be discussed, Curtiss says it turned into a 2½ hour promotion of Islam including the singing of prayers to Allah and the voicing of support for homicide bombers. Curtiss says he respectfully challenged some of their points during the lecture. Within a few days, he was informed by the Family Medicine Department that his contract was not going to be renewed. No explanation was given for the termination... Curtiss says he has decided to go public with his story now because he just wants people to realize "The liberal universities and colleges in this country are morally, intellectually and ideologically bankrupt." (Agapepress, 14 June)

* UZBEK POLICE RAID BIBLE SEMINAR - (Tasjkent) On 13 May police raided a Bible seminar in a flat in the city of Nukus. All literature was confiscated and the 19 attendants were taken to the police station. One of the younger arrested people was warned that they (the police) could ensure that drugs are found in his clothes. An American and a Russian lecturer were released at one o'clock at night, with apologies. The Uzbeks were released the next morning. On 16 May they received fines of about 30 to 45 Euro, due to illegal gathering. Recently the Uzbek authorities banned preaching in the local languages. On 25 May the Nukus police raided the 'Mir church' in the city, saying the service was illegal because the congregation is not registered. In 2000 this congregation's registration was revoked, and since then three attempts to reregister have been in vain. (KNS/Open Doors, 14 June)

* CHRISTIANS IN EX-SOVIET STATES EXPECT SUFFERING - As world attention focused on the India-Pakistan conflict and the U.S.-led war against terrorism, Christians across the former Soviet Union began preparing for a new period of persecution, according to reports monitored by ASSIST News Service (ANS) June 1. In Belarus, which has been criticized by Western diplomats for human rights violations, proposed legislation will lead to the banning of unregistered religious activity, said Keston News Service (KNS). Under the new law foreigners will also be prevented from leading religious organizations, while religious literature is subjected to prior compulsory censorship. In addition, religious groups with fewer than 20 adult citizen members in any one location will be denied the possibility of registering if new proposals to amend the religion law will be adopted by the Belarus parliament, KNS reported.

* BRITISH WOMAN SUES OVER ABORTION TRAUMA - (London, England) In the first case of its kind in the U.K., a woman is suing Britain's state-run health service for emotional distress following an abortion. The woman, who requested anonymity, had the abortion four years ago when she was 24 years old. In an interview with BBC radio broadcast 12 June, she said the abortion was "very frightening." "I was really confused and I didn't know what to do so I ended up having a termination at the local hospital," she said. "I certainly wasn't in the right frame of mind to make any decisions like that." The woman said doctors with the National Health Service (NHS) never inquired about her mental state before the abortion. "There was no warning of any psychological effects or any links to breast cancer," she said. "I just want to make the NHS aware of their approach ... I think they need to do something about it." The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is responsible for formulating national recommendations on what women should be told about abortion. The instructions do not include the possibility of grief or mental anguish... (Cybercast News Service, 12 June)

* EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT COMMITTEE ON WOMEN CALLS FOR ABORTION - (Brussels, Belgium) The European Parliament's Committee on Women's Rights voted 21-11 on 4 June to adopt a report on women's sexual and reproductive health that calls for all citizens of European Union member nations to have access to abortion. The committee adopted an amendment to the report recommending that "in order to safeguard women's reproductive health and rights, abortion should be made legal, safe and accessible to all." The amendment asks the governments of E.U. member countries not to prosecute women who have undergone illegal abortions. The report urges E.U. members to provide support for young people who are pregnant, whether they wish to have an abortion or carry the pregnancy to term. The report is expected to be adopted by the full parliament at a plenary session in Strasbourg next month. (Reuters, 5 June)

* INTERNET PORNOGRAPHY LAW STRUCK DOWN - In Philadelphia, a panel of federal judges has struck down a law aimed at curbing children’s access to pornography on the Internet. The Children’s Internet Protection Act of 2000 was the third attempt by Congress to put some protective guidelines in place to try to keep pornography away from the eyes of kids who use the Internet in federally-funded public libraries. Specifically, the law - which was due to take effect on July 1 - would require pornography filters on computers at any library that received federal funding. But groups such as the American Library Association and the American Civil Liberties Union went to court claiming the law violated first amendment rights. According to a report in the Philadelphia Inquirer, all three of the federal judges on the panel in their ruling today agreed with those groups. One pro-family advocate is denouncing today’s decision as "ridiculous". Pat Trueman is the former head of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation Unit. As an attorney who has fought for years to protect children, he is outraged that the panel’s decision to strike down the law that has now, in effect, given the pornography industry another victory. The Inquirer report said that the decision taken will go directly to the U.S. Supreme Court and an appeal by the Justice Department is considered a certainty. (Agapepress, 31 May)

* LOUISIANA BUDGET TO SUPPORT CRISIS PREGNANCY CENTERS - (Baton Rouge, LA) The final Louisiana budget, LA H.B.1, is on its way to the Governor with an appropriation of $1.5 million in federal TANF dollars to fund abortion alternative services, such as crisis pregnancy centers, maternity homes and adoption centers. Louisiana is the second state in the nation to provide funding for life-affirming services, based on the program in Pennsylvania instituted by Governor Casey in 1995. The next step is the development of a private non-profit corporation to administer the funding. The Louisiana initiative was led by the legal department of Americans United for Life in collaboration with the Louisiana Catholic Conference, Louisiana Right to Life, Louisiana Lawyers for Life, Real Alternatives of PA, the Caring Foundation and valuable assistance from the North Dakota Catholic Conference and the Florida Catholic Conference. Dorinda Bordlee, legislative counsel for Americans United for Life commended the Louisiana Legislature. "Louisiana has always led the nation in life-affirming legislation. This appropriation now provides much-needed funding to already existing pregnancy help centers to give hands-on help to women who courageously choose life for themselves and their children." (Americans United for Life, 13 June)

* JUNE IS ABORTION AWARENESS MONTH - (Washington, DC) Abortion is at crisis proportions in the black American community, and pro-lifers are stepping up their efforts this month to get the word out that abortion causes significant problems. The numbers are frightening. Even though the black community makes up just 12 percent of America's population, black women receive one-third of all U.S. abortions. That translates to roughly 13 million babies killed in the last 20 years. The Rev. Jim Goode, of the group Black Americans for Life, said it is time for families to step in and get involved. It starts, he said, with prospective parents asking the right questions: " 'How are we going to help raise this child?' 'How are we going to bring this child into the world?' 'How are we going to help to try and support this (child)?' " Goode continued: "This is going to be a great challenge for us ... to look at abortion as really taking a life and that this is not what we want to do. We want to be able to raise our children. We want to be able to help our children because they are our gift from God." The abortion problem is now so bad that abortion is actually the number one cause of death in the black community. (Focus on the Family, 13 June)

* 'CHRISTIANS DIFFERENT TO THE WORLD?" - A leading Christian financial expert says far too many Christians are willing to settle for mediocrity - and in doing so, he says, they are hurting their witness for Christ. Larry Burkett, chairman of Crown Financial Ministries says Americans have been trained in mediocrity. "Christians are no different than anybody else," Burkett says. "In fact ... I find that in America, you literally cannot detect Christians based on statistics - not their giving habits, their divorce rate, their bankruptcy rate. It's almost identical to the world." The respected author and financial expert says Christians should strive to be men and women of excellence in a mediocre world. He says God's people must remain committed to biblical standards, rather than to a culturally constructed perspective on life and ministry. "Number one, we are supposed to please God - we aren't supposed to please this world. And we're told that by blending ourselves into this world, that we displease God - in other words, that we don't hold to God's standards," he says. "I think it's very critical that God's people hold to the standard of Scripture - and that standard is pretty absolute. It doesn't give us a lot of room for wiggle," Burkett says. "When you give your word, you keep your word; when you make a vow, you do it; and you work as unto the Lord and not unto men - and it doesn't matter who your boss is, you still give him courtesy and respect." (Agapepress, 3 June)

* MASAI TRIBESPEOPLE DONATE COWS TO U.S. - American diplomats have been given 14 cows by Kenyan Masai tribespeople in a gesture of sympathy following the 11 September attacks. The cattle were handed over to William Brancick, deputy head of the US embassy in Kenya in a remote village near the border with Tanzania. The ceremony was marked by tribespeople in traditional red robes and jewellery, some of whom carried banners saying "To the people of America, we give these cows to help you". It was arranged by Kimeli Naiyomah, a Kenyan-born man who was studying in New York at the time of the disaster. For many of the Masai - who have no running water, electricity or telephones - his recollection to them of the events was the first time they had heard of the attacks in Washington and New York. (BBC, 3 June)