"Peace is not the absence of conflict, but the ability to cope with it." -Unknown
On the horn of Africa, Djibouti is the eye of the storm in a raging sea of conflicts. It is hailed as the one area of stability and peace in a region known for its civil wars and violence. It is the country that investors are eying to see about building the city of the future in. Its possibilities seem endless. However, Djibouti is now on VOM Monitored Countries List. While their website does not offer specifics as to why they are monitoring the country, we can make an educated guess from other sources. According to the International Religious Freedom Report in 2008, while Muslim Djiboutians have the legal right to convert to another
faith or marry outside of Islam, converts may face negative societal,
tribal, and familial attitudes towards their decision (US 19 Sept.
2008, Sec. 3; Open Doors USA n.d.) and often face pressure to revert to
Islam. Though Freedom House notes that public proselytizing is discouraged by
the government (16 July 2009), others maintain that it is legally
permitted and is not suppressed by the government, although it remains
inhibited by social customs (Open Doors USA n.d.; US 25 Feb. 2009, Sec.
2.c) and is thus uncommon (ibid. Sept. 2008, Sec. 3). There were reports of increased societal hostility toward non-Muslims in
recent years, although representatives of various Christian
organizations described government officials as "tolerant and
respectful" (US 19 Sept. 2008, Sec. 3). So it would seem that while the government is not persecuting Christians, society as a whole has become increasingly hostile towards Christians and Christian activity in recent years. What is behind this change is uncertain, but we know that Christ is our rock amid the storms of this life. Let us remember to thank God for His faithfulness, and pray for our brothers and sisters to stand firm in their faith, secure in the peace that comes only from Christ Himself.
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Djibouti
Basic Info: Djibouti is a country slightly smaller than Massachusetts with a population of 879,053 people. It is a hot, dry, desert enclave between Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia, with
possibly the hottest average temperatures of any country on earth. Djibouti has a strategic location near the world's busiest shipping lanes and close to Arabian oilfields, but the country is mostly wasteland and also has the lowest point in Africa, Lake Assal. About 88% of the population is urban, and French and Arabic are the official languages. Trade languages are Somali and Afar (Somali 60%, Afar 35%, other 5% includes French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian). Attacks from pirates are a concern, but they have decreased significantly in 2012. The International
Maritime Bureau reports offshore waters in the Gulf of Aden remain a
high risk for piracy; the presence of several naval task forces in the
Gulf of Aden and additional anti-piracy measures on the part of ship
operators, including the use of on-board armed security teams,
contributed to the drop in incidents. Djibouti
is a transit, source, and destination country for men, women, and
children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking. Economic
migrants from East Africa en route to Yemen and other Middle East
locations are vulnerable to exploitation in Djibouti. Some woman and
girls may be forced into domestic servitude or prostitution after
reaching Djibouti City, the Ethiopian-Djiboutian trucking corridor, or
Obock - the main crossing point into Yemen. Djiboutian and foreign
children may be forced to beg, to work as domestic servants, or to
commit theft and other petty crimes. Outside of child prostitution, the
government fails to investigate or prosecute any other trafficking
offenses, including those allegedly committed by complicit officials. It
has made no attempt to implement the protection or prevention
components of its anti-trafficking law, and its working group on
trafficking was inactive in 2012; a draft national action plan against
human trafficking remains incomplete (2013).
Government: The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas became the country of Djibouti in 1977.
Hassan Gouled Aptidon installed an authoritarian one-party state and
proceeded to serve as president until 1999. Unrest among the Afar
minority during the 1990s led to a civil war that ended in 2001 with a
peace accord between Afar rebels and the Somali Issa-dominated
government. In 1999, Djibouti's first multiparty presidential elections
resulted in the election of Ismail Omar Guelleh as president; he was
reelected to a second term in 2005 and extended his tenure in office via
a constitutional amendment, which allowed him to begin a third term in
2011. Djibouti occupies a strategic geographic location at the
intersection of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and serves as an
important shipping portal for goods entering and leaving the east
African highlands and transshipments between Europe, the Middle East,
and Asia. The government holds longstanding ties to France, which
maintains a significant military presence in the country, and has strong
ties with the United States. Djibouti hosts several thousand members of
US armed services at US-run Camp Lemonnier. They also host the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa. The country has a mixed legal system based primarily on the French civil code (as it
existed in 1997), Islamic religious law (in matters of family law and
successions), and customary law.
Economy: Djibouti's economy is based on service activities connected with the
country's strategic location and status as a free trade zone in the Horn
of Africa. Three-fourths of Djibouti's inhabitants live in the capital
city; the remainder are mostly nomadic herders. Rare rainfall limits
crop production to small quantities of fruits and vegetables, and most
food must be imported. Djibouti provides services as both a transit port
for the region and an international transshipment and refueling center.
Imports, exports, and re-exports - primarily of coffee from landlocked
neighbor Ethiopia - represent 70% of port activity at Djibouti's
container terminal. Djibouti has few natural resources and little
industry. The nation is, therefore, heavily dependent on foreign
assistance to help support its balance of payments and to finance
development projects. An unemployment rate in urban areas of nearly 60% continues to be
a major problem. Unemployment in rural areas is 83%. While inflation is not a concern, due to the fixed tie
of the Djiboutian franc to the US dollar, the artificially high value
of the Djiboutian franc adversely affects Djibouti's balance of
payments. Djibouti holds foreign reserves amounting to less than six
months of import coverage. Per capita consumption dropped an estimated
35% between 1999 and 2006 because of recession, civil war, and a high
population growth rate (including immigrants and refugees). Djibouti has
experienced relatively minimal impact from the global economic
downturn, but its reliance on diesel-generated electricity and imported
food leave average consumers vulnerable to global price shocks. Djibouti
in 2012 began construction of a third port to secure its position as a
critical transshipment hub in the Horn of Africa and the principal
conduit for Ethiopia's trade. Djibouti also received funding in late
2012 for a desalination plant to begin to address the severe freshwater
shortage affecting Djibouti City, and particularly its poorest
residents. About 42% of the population is below the poverty line. A major import for the country is khat. The khat is imported daily from neighboring Ethiopia, and most of the population participates in its consumption. In a Muslim nation where alcohol is frowned upon, the drug of choice is khat. The leaf produces an amphetamine like high, takes away hunger pains, and makes one more alert. Work stops in the early afternoon and a khat chewing session could last for 5 hours. Djibouti has one television station and two radio networks operated by the government. There are no private TV or radio stations. There are transmissions available from international broadcasters.
Religion: Muslim 94%, Christian 6%
Mission work is a challenge in
this hot, dry, but often humid land, and working conditions are
extreme. Physical and spiritual oppression, economic disparity, ethnic
tensions and a scarcity of believers lead easily to discouragement and
worker attrition. Pray for the present ministries in education, public
health, literature, Bible translation, literacy and youth work –
opportunities to witness abound in these. Pray that contacts lead to
disciples for Jesus. Pray for God to send long-term workers, especially
from nearby countries and people groups. Pray for unprecedented
spiritual breakthroughs, long-awaited but as yet unseen. There is
notable interest in Christianity from a small but increasing number of
locals. Several evangelical fellowships exist among the immigrant groups flooding
Djibouti in recent years – from Ethiopia, Madagascar, Congo-DRC, the
Philippines, Eritrea and other places. Many of these congregations share
a strong spiritual burden to reach the Somali and Afar peoples. Pray
that they may be relevant and effective in their witness. Pray that
their own reconciliation and unity made possible in Christ might be a
witness to the divided and hostile peoples of Djibouti.
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Explore Africa (Djibouti and drug problem first 10 minutes/last 5 minutes Ethiopia)
Inside Djibouti- The khat trade
Inside Djibouti-Immigration Laws
Duty in Djibouti
Saturday, September 7, 2013
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