Church Mission Society (CMS)

Mendacity

Tennessee Williams wrote in his play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof: “There ain’t nothin’ more powerful than the odor of mendacity...You can smell it.  It smells like death.”

Certainly, some apparent mendacity is contributing to the smell of death in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Rwanda has denied its support for the rebel general Laurent Nkunda, yet Jendayi Frazer, the US assistant secretary of state for African affairs, said on 29 October, according to Human Rights Watch, that "Rwanda allowed its territory to be used as a base for Nkunda".

"High-ranking Rwandan authorities deny that they are giving any assistance to Nkunda, but Human Rights Watch has evidence that Nkunda recruits hundreds of his most experienced troops within Rwanda, many of them demobilised soldiers from the battle-hardened Rwandan army."

To read the whole of the Human Rights Watch News release on this, go to www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/10/30/congo20107.htm

Congolese civilians seem to be paying a mortal price for mendacity in "high places".

Congo's travail

Is there anyone out there who like me, on having listened to BBC news, is wondering why Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand are deemed worthy of greater prominence than Congo's travail? I suggest that a sign that the BBC has learnt lessons from this episode would - surely - show up in its news values. 

In-depth news on Congo crisis

The latest news and in-depth background from eastern DRC is now on the CMS site.

Terrible fighting has featured on our TV screens in the last couple of days. Tens of thousands are displaced. CMS regional manager Stephen Burgess has been on the phone to Goma today and we'll be doing our best to keep you informed on how to pray and support local people in this complex and horrifying situation.

Get the full story here

Donations now accepted for Pakistan earthquake relief

CMS is sending £10,000 to aid the relief efforts of Quetta Christian hospital in the wake of yesterday's earthquake in Pakistan.

Joan and Nigel Bull, CMS people in mission, are based at the hospital and Nigel has experience in emergency response planning.

Please pray for mission partner Nigel Bull and Mr Sameer (hospital administrators), Dr Sadrak Jalal (medical director) and the staff going into the devastated area.

You can read our initial report here or donate through the link below or by visiting our Give web page.

  Donate towards relief efforts for the Balochistan earthquake

Pakistan earthquake kills 160

A 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit rural Balochistan in Pakistan just after 5am local time this morning (Wednesday).

Local officials have put the death toll at 160.

Hundreds more are injured and some 15,000 left homeless.

The epicentre was about 70km north of Quetta, the provincial capital, where CMS mission partners Joan and Nigel Bull are working at Quetta Christian Hospital.

They report being woken by two bouts of tremors but say life is going on as normal in Quetta.

Joan and Nigel say the hospital is sending a team to assess needs in the affected area.

Relief work is expected to be difficult. "The whole area affected is sparsely populated and communications tenuous," says John Hayward, CMS regional manager for Pakistan.

CMS has already committed some funds to support the hospital's efforts.

John recommends Dawn.com as a news source. The BBC also has maps and pictures.

The quake hit on the same faultline as the 1935 Balochistan earthquake, which devastated Quetta.

There's a UN map of the earthquake area here.

Welcome...

...to the CMS Blog, where we'll be trying to provide you with the lates news and updates from the world of mission as they happen.