austraLasia 1358
Mongolia - some good and some not so good news
ULAAN BAATOR: 15th December 2005 -- This Christmas, the Salesians and the youngsters and families they work with, will be able to use the Cathedral in the Capital, Ulaan Baator, for the ceremonies. This is good news, for the cathedral is new and spacious and uplifting, and Catholics are so few in number in Mongolia that a coming together in the Cathedral is a wonderful event in itself. The not so good news is the developing situation, not unknown in countries where foreigners have until recently been a rare sight and where Christian and especially Catholic missionaries were banned entry, of some reaction against both foreign and Catholic. Demonstrations against foreign presence and foreign ownership of land are planned in the next few days. Some of these reactions, and they include violent reactions, have been directed towards businesses run by Chinese, but the Church too, is implicated in ownership issues. Of course, Mongolia is highly dependent on foreign aid and assistance, and many foreigners, including Religious, are in Mongolia at the invitation of the Government. Since 1990, elections have seen a generally peaceful transfer of power. Elections in 2005 saw a return of the Mongolian Peoples Revolutionary Party with Nambariin Enkhbayar elected President. He was president also 1990-1994 as Mongolia slowly moved from Soviet domination. Perhaps that says it all.
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AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For RSS feeds, subscribe to www.bosconet.aust.com/rssala.xml
Mongolia - some good and some not so good news
ULAAN BAATOR: 15th December 2005 -- This Christmas, the Salesians and the youngsters and families they work with, will be able to use the Cathedral in the Capital, Ulaan Baator, for the ceremonies. This is good news, for the cathedral is new and spacious and uplifting, and Catholics are so few in number in Mongolia that a coming together in the Cathedral is a wonderful event in itself. The not so good news is the developing situation, not unknown in countries where foreigners have until recently been a rare sight and where Christian and especially Catholic missionaries were banned entry, of some reaction against both foreign and Catholic. Demonstrations against foreign presence and foreign ownership of land are planned in the next few days. Some of these reactions, and they include violent reactions, have been directed towards businesses run by Chinese, but the Church too, is implicated in ownership issues. Of course, Mongolia is highly dependent on foreign aid and assistance, and many foreigners, including Religious, are in Mongolia at the invitation of the Government. Since 1990, elections have seen a generally peaceful transfer of power. Elections in 2005 saw a return of the Mongolian Peoples Revolutionary Party with Nambariin Enkhbayar elected President. He was president also 1990-1994 as Mongolia slowly moved from Soviet domination. Perhaps that says it all.
_________________________
AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For RSS feeds, subscribe to www.bosconet.aust.com/rssala.xml
