Faith-based efforts are a sign of hope for change in Burma, according to a partner

The Burmese military government has driven another 11,000 people from their homes in eastern Burma/Myanmar in April this year in what observers believe to be the most serious attack on civilians and ethnic communities since 1997.

Half a million Burmese are internally displaced in east Burma alone. More than one million refugees have fled the country, some 140,000 of them to camps on its border with Thailand where the Thailand Burma Border Consortium responds to their humanitarian needs. Church World Service is a founding member of the Consortium.

Last week, Church World Service and over 30 non-governmental organizations from 20 countries called on the United Nations Security Council to press for an end to the attacks on ethnic minorities. Noting that the Burmese junta has ignored over 28 resolutions by the UN General Assembly and Human Rights Commission, the NGOs demanded immediate access to civilians by humanitarian relief agencies, along with a plan for national reconciliation worked out between the government of Burma and the UN Secretary General.

New Community Project director David Radcliff, a partner of the Church World Service Education and Advocacy Program, visited Burma in November last year. The organization leads learning tours to Latin America, the Arctic and Nepal, helping congregations, colleges and community groups see how consumer cultures impact the environment, indigenous people, and the world’s most vulnerable peoples.