Dear friends,
These last weeks, we have seen and heard yet again of the destruction and devastation caused by natural disasters. Typhoon Maysak at the end of March caused severe damage throughout Micronesia, displacing thousands, ruining livelihoods and food supplies, and damaging infrastructure. And just days ago, on April 25, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake has caused widespread destruction in Nepal.
A new Jesuit initiative was recently launched to foster collaboration in making the right to quality education for all a reality across the world. In our world today, 62 million children do not go to school, 250 million children finish primary school without knowing how to read or write due to the poor quality of education and 751 million of people aged 15 and above cannot read or write, and two thirds of them are women.
What do Pope Francis’ visit to Korea, interreligious dialogue, social justice, Jesuit formation, and religious life have in common? They are some of the significant moments for the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific in 2014 and the ones we have chosen to highlight in our 2015 annual report. As is our practice, we also have a reflection from our President Fr Mark Raper SJ on the year that has passed.
In response to the dramatic increase in the number of unaccompanied children arriving in the United States from Central America over the past few years, Jesuit Refugee Service is collaborating with 13 Jesuit law schools in the US to address the issues faced by these child migrants.
Weeks after Typhoon Maysak hit Micronesia at the end of March, the people are still struggling to pick up the pieces and recover from the destruction.
With sustained winds of 160 mph, Super Typhoon Maysak struck the Pacific region just before Easter, causing severe damage throughout Micronesia. Maysak struck the island of Chuuk on March 29, bringing down communications system from the island, and hit the island of Yap on March 31. Jesuits from the USA Northeast Province, the Province of Indonesia, members of the Jesuit Volunteer Corp and residents of Micronesia staff the two schools that suffered losses.
The Centre for Child Protection, based at the Jesuit-run Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, is at the forefront of the Catholic Church’s global response to prevent the sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable persons.
The Bangkok Immigration Detention Centre is neither a prison nor a jail. It is the last barrier for non-Thais awaiting deportation back to their home countries, after finishing their prison sentences or paying court-imposed fines.
These detainees have, for the most part, entered Thailand illegally. How long they will be in the detention centre depends on many factors – the regulations of their country’s embassy/consulate, their travel documents, a plane ticket, and whether they are physically fit for the flight home.
The Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP) is developing a protocol that outlines steps for Jesuits in responding to disasters in this part of the world. Responses to catastrophic events are collaborative in nature, joining local efforts and guiding important international support. This is an ongoing process with other organisations and there is much learning from the experiences of Jesuits on the ground. The effort is also to find ways to collaborate across different phases in disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) that demand a wider range of coordination beyond disaster.
Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan (SLB), the social justice arm of the Philippine Jesuit Province marked 29 years of service to the Church and the Filipino nation recently with a week-long celebration themed “Renewing a Faith that does Justice”.
Over the years, SLB has evolved and developed programs in response to the needs of Philippine society, and the celebration from February 21 to March 1 was an opportunity to showcase current programs and introduce new ones.