An Update on Guinea Bissau and the Mennonite Mission

An Update on the Situation in Guinea Bissau and the

Mennonite Mission in Catel

April 28, 2012

Dear Friends of Guinea Bissau,

After two weeks of uncertainty, this morning we have some good news off the news circuits about the coup in our country- Guinea Bissau:

 

Guinea-Bissau's coup leaders released the country's ousted prime minister and interim president after more than two weeks of captivity, allowing the former leaders to travel to Ivory Coast.

The generals now in charge of the small, unstable West African country also pledged a one-year transition back to democracy, a day after regional bloc ECOWAS decided to send hundreds of troops to the country.

Guinea-Bissau, a former Portuguese colony, has a history of coups and other political violence and has in recent years become a major cocaine trafficking hub between South America and Europe.

The military launched the latest coup on April 12, in the middle of a two-round presidential election in which outgoing Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior was the frontrunner.

Troops then attacked Gomes' residence with rocket-propelled grenades and detained him, along with interim president Raimundo Pereira, in a power grab that sparked regional and international condemnation.

 The presidential front-runner, Mr. Gomes probably came under attack because he was on track to curb the power of the army, the chief source of G.B.’s instability.  The G.B. army is extremely large and half of the guys are ‘officers’.  The army is the primary protégé and beneficiary of the South America to Europe cocaine trade.

There are also hints of ethnic conflict in all this. Both Mr. Gomes and Mr. Pereira are of the Mandiago tribe. The man who came in a distant second in the first round of voting is Balanta, the majority tribe in G.B.

The Mandiagos are generally far ahead of the other ethnic groups in terms of education, economic development and business savvy and they have readily adapted Western democratic, cultural and economic values. (However, they are one of the most difficult tribes to evangelize because of their entrenched Catholic-animistic syncretism. But we are working on that!).

In Catel and other villages distant from all the disarray in the capital, the coup has made almost no difference. The survival lifestyle just goes on as it always has. The reaction to the coup in the village was dismay, hopelessness and despair for their country. Many people regard their country is a failed state, beyond redemption.

Pray: That constitutional government will be quickly restored without violence, that the presidential election process will be resumed and that the evils and power of the drug trade will be broken. Intercede with us that the glory of the Kingdom of God will break forth in brilliance, hope and transformation into this scene of darkness and despair.

Our mission team is all doing fine. The YES team was forced to change their vacation site to the Senegal coast, Lia & I took off for a CHE conference in Togo and Terianne and Sean held down the fort at the Catel clinic. At present the YES team has returned to Catel, Lia comes back to Catel in a few days and I continue my vacation in France.

I stay in touch with the team in Catel via Skype and email. Yesterday I had a good conversation with Andrew. He and the YES team are making good progress in their various ministry activities. Terianne reports the clinic is crazy busy, many days they are treating 30-40 patients.

Yesterday, Andrew and I had good discussion about our YES plans for this coming September. We will have a YES team again but the program format is undergoing a sea-change. The YES team will be made up mostly of local African believers who will receive the discipleship training along with a few North American YESers right here in Catel rather than Harrisburg. Once trained the cross cultural teams will go live for several months in villages where we have ministry. They will assist new and prospective believers in these villages in the establishment of viable communities of faith in the villages. We are hoping to organize two such teams.

Other good news is that we have in the pipeline prospective long-term missionaries who will be joining us over the next 12 months. They include 3 GO! one-year assignments and two couples for multi-year assignments.

Pray-

·      That the team in Catel will have courage and joy as they carry on their ministries despite the instability. Pray for their protection from any evil.

·       For the coming together of the cross-cultural YES teams. Pray that God will use them mightily in the establishment and organization of village congregations.

·      For the long term candidates and their MST’s that their support packages will be quickly realized.

·      For Lia and the leadership she is giving to the CHE program, women’s ministries and the pre-school.

·      For Sean & Terianne in their clinic responsibilities. Pray that our negotiations for clinic certification will go smoothly.

As for me…

The dateline for this news update is Muntzenheim, a small village in the Alsace region of northeast France. This year I am taking my vacation in France rather than returning to North America. I will be visiting many friends in France whom I have met in the past years. I love being here to enjoy their hospitality and relish the European ambience. Not to mention that it is a welcomed interlude and reprieve from the daily grind of Catel.

This area is a kind of roots-homecoming event for me; culturally, spiritually and genetically this is where I derive most of my identity. So it is good to be here again and share life with this part of God’s family. I return to West Africa on June 1^st.

 Blessings & Peace

Beryl J. Forrester