AS02544.1447 May 28, 2007 51 EM-lines (591 words) ASIA    Radio Veritas Asia Honors Listener-Turned-Volunteer BANGKOK (UCAN) -- Nelly Nicholas, the recipient of an award from Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), is coaching her daughter to follow in her footsteps. Nicholas, 35, was awarded a certificate and a free trip to the Philippines in recognition of 27 years as a listener to RVA's Myanmar language service and as a volunteer working to help other listeners. Her daughter, Gloria Diana, just two-and-a-half years old, is listed by the Asian bishops' shortwave radio station as the "youngest listener of the Myanmar Service." Nicholas received her award on May 25 at the RVA office in Quezon City, northeast of Manila, during a celebration of the Catholic Church's 44th World Communications Day. Because of her sacrifices and dedication to the Myanmar Service, Father Gabriel Htun Myint, former Myanmar Service coordinator, and Father Dominic Jo Du, present coordinator, paid for her air ticket to visit the Philippines. Father Htun Myint, speaking to UCA News in Bangkok, said he greatly appreciates Nicholas' "perseverance and attachment to RVA," a radio station "she loves, cherishes and is dedicated to." He said they had arranged for her to visit during May and June to see how the radio station works. According to the priest, Nicholas is helping make some programs alongside Marlar Thein Hto, one of the producers of the Myanmar Service, who herself celebrated 25 years of service in 2006. "Being a radio lover, Nelly finds no difficulty speaking on the programs," Father Htun Myint said. "She is a natural." Thein Hto said in an e-mail message: "I can't believe that once upon a time this little girl, who was my listener, is now sitting beside me recording some of my programs, such as Mail Box, Pen Pal, Health and Woman's Program." She told UCA News that Nicholas started listening to the Myanmar Service in Yangon archdiocese when she was only 8. Her parents, who are Telugu by birth, but residing in Myanmar, introduced her to Myanmar radio programs to help her with the language. The Telugu are largely based in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Thein Hto explained: "She not only listened to our programs, she also wrote letters to me and I was very happy and surprised to read letters from an 8-year-old girl. She was so attached to Myanmar Service programs that when she was a teenager, she volunteered to work in our Yangon office, where she has been in charge of listener relations." The producer said Nicholas sorts through letters and forwards useful articles for the service to use in programs. "She sacrifices her time and effort for us, so our listeners do not have to pay expensive postage fees in writing directly to Manila and we are able to receive more letters," Thein Hto added. Nicholas was a volunteer with the Myanmar Service for more than 10 years before she attended an RVA Radio Production Seminar in Yangon in 1995. Only in 1998 did she begin receiving a token 5,000 kyat per month, the producer said. Kyat trade at a street rate of about 1,000 to US$1. According to Thein Hto, Nicholas has planted the seed of the next generation of listeners by introducing her daughter to the Myanmar Service. RVA, run by the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences, celebrated its 38th anniversary in April. It broadcasts in 17 languages and reaches much of Asia including parts of Central and West Asia. Myanmar Service broadcasts are produced in four languages -- the national Myanmar language, Kachin, Kayin and Zomi-Chin, a tribal language spoken in China, India and Myanmar. END Related UCAN Reports MYANMAR Radio Veritas Myanmar Listeners Want More Air Time, Program Variety (February 7, 2005) MYANMAR Radio Veritas Myanmar Language Service Marks Silver Anniversary (January 26, 2004) MYANMAR Catholics Value Radio Veritas Program For Myanmar (January 19, 2000) BA02482.1447 May 28, 2007 53 EM-lines (527 words) BANGLADESH    Workshop Helps Empower 'Reluctant' Christians To Be Journalists DHAKA (UCAN) -- Christians in Bangladesh might be wary of seeking a career in the media, given they are a minority in this Muslim-majority country. But as a recent workshop for Christian writers pointed out, more and more Christians could be empowered with the right training. A total of 39 young Catholic writers, reporters and students from Bangladesh's Catholic parishes attended the May 11 workshop hosted by the Christian Cooperative Credit Union Limited, Dhaka (CCCUL-Dhaka), a Catholic organization. The workshop took place at the credit union's office auditorium near Tejgaon Catholic Church in Dhaka. The editorial board of Samabarta (balanced message), a bi-monthly magazine run by the credit union, organized the workshop. CCCUL-Dhaka began running an annual seminar for budding writers and journalists in 2005. This year's workshop focused on "justice and well-being." One of the main speakers, Bhanu Ranjan Chakroborty, news editor of ATN BANGLA, a private TV channel, said, "If this institution keeps such an initiative going, in the near future many Christian writers will be formed as professional journalists in the country. They can maintain a (Christian) presence and offer voices calling for justice." The editor, a Hindu, said he was impressed by the workshop for writers and reporters. "The media can bring about sustainable, positive change in the society, something that we are enjoying at present." The media is currently informing people about the current changes taking place within the government and in politics, he elaborated. Chakroborty stressed that the skills that reporters need to learn for print media are largely the same as those for online media. Participants stressed the importance of the media in bringing about a just and peaceful society. Dola Rozario, a private TV channel reporter, told UCA News: "We must go ahead with professionalism in journalism, in order to establish truth, the first step of justice." She said Christians are reluctant to get involved in the media because they are a minority and lack the nerve. "I think this is wrong," she said. "We must not be passive in working in media, in raising our voices for peace and justice." Eva Marak, program officer of Radio Veritas Bengali Service in Dhaka, told UCA News that it was a "wonderful" media gathering. "This fellowship with many other writers and reporters will help me to get connected to many opportunities in my work," said the ethnic Garo woman. The workshop included a group discussion on the characteristics of an ideal reporter and feature writer, and a question-and-answer session that included a discussion of ethics. Nirmol Rozario, the credit union's general secretary, asked participants to contribute articles to Samabarta. "If we have writing potential, we must use our talents for establishing truth and justice and for establishing an ideal society," the columnist and secretary general of the Bangladesh Christian Association said. Aldrick Biswas, reporter of a Bengali Catholic weekly Christabda (calendar year), suggested a follow-up meeting for the near future to assess the reporters' progress. Biswas said 200 to 250 regular Christian writers contribute to 10 regular Christian periodicals, and occasionally, to the national dailies. He also said several hundred Christmas and Easter magazines are published by the parishes in Bangladesh. END Related UCAN Reports BANGLADESH Christian Writers Urged To Participate In National Media (July 27, 2005) BANGLADESH Catholic Writers, Journalists Urged To Be Peace Builders (August 27, 2003) BANGLADESH Christian Writers Urged To Promote Social Justice And Peace (May 30, 2001) IJ02527.1447 May 28, 2007 60 EM-lines (610 words) INDONESIA    Government Asks Church To Establish, Maintain Rubber Plantations PONTIANAK, Indonesia (UCAN) -- A provincial government in Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of Borneo Island, has offered the Catholic Church rubber trees for parochial financial self-sufficiency. "Ideally, each parish in the Archdiocese of Pontianak should receive a prime grafted rubber plantation of at least five hectares," West Kalimantan Vice Governor Laurentius Herman Kadir told 17 Pontianak archdiocese parish priests. For the 2007 fiscal year, however, the government is providing a two-hectare parent estate each for Pontianak archdiocese and Ketapang diocese, Kadir said. The priests gathered in the West Kalimantan province capital for a May 18 presentation on rubber-plantation programs by the vice governor, a Catholic. He was accompanied by Idwar Hanis, a Muslim, who heads the provincial plantation office, and Capuchin Father Jeremias Melis, head of Pontianak archdiocese's Komisi Pengembangan Sosial Ekonomi (commission for socioeconomic development). "We ask the Church to graft prime rubber saplings and offer them to the parishioners who have land to cultivate rubber plants," Kadir said during his presentation. He added that each government-provided, one-hectare parent estate has 8,000 grafted plants, which can produce at least 2 million rubber trees each year. Under standard cultivation, a rubber plantation can have 20 productive years, he added. During these years, a plantation can be a cornerstone to help people improve their economic situation. Furthermore, "the government has prepared funds as working capital, available through easy bank loans, to revitalize rubber plantations," he said. To qualify for financing, farmers need only to set up a cooperative farmer group, prepare land and register with the district or municipal government. The government has an interest in rubber plantations, according to Kadir, because rubber has long been important in Kalimantan's economy. The governors of all four Kalimantan provinces, he added, have committed to improving rubber plantations in the 5 million hectares (50,000 square kilometers) set aside for agricultural plantation in Kalimantan. This amounts to 9 percent of the total area of 547,891 square kilometers. In the past, Kadir said, the West Kalimantan government had the impression that it did not get full cooperation from the local Catholic Church in helping people improve their livelihood. Besides Pontianak archdiocese and Ketapang diocese, West Kalimantan is also home to Sanggau and Sintang dioceses. According to the vice governor, that impression did not take into account the efforts of Capuchin missioners, who came to the area of Sejiram town in Sintang diocese in 1890. "They gave instructions on how to plant rubber trees," he said, adding that the rubber plantation they started there is still active. To improve people's welfare, he suggested, the Church must encourage people to diligently work on productive economics, especially through rubber plantations. After the vice governor's presentation, Father Melis thanked the government for the prime rubber parent estates. He promised that the parishes would gradually develop their own rubber plantations. "With a prime rubber plantation under standard cultivation, each parish can attain a set income. It will be a good example of relying on productive economics instead of the generosity of nature," the Netherlands-born priest said. With a coordinated, integrated effort, Indonesia can be a major producer of natural rubber by 2015, Suharto Honggokusumo, executive director of the central board of the Rubber Association of Indonesia, told UCA News on May 19. Annual global demand is 11 million tons of natural rubber, he said. But in 2006 only 9.2 million tons were produced. Of that, 49.7 percent came from Thailand, 21.8 percent came from Indonesia, 18.1 percent came from Malaysia and the rest came from other countries. He believes that by 2020, Indonesia will be able to supply 3.5 million tons, which will boost the country's foreign exchange and farmers' incomes. END Related UCAN Reports INDONESIA Tribal Order Against Stupidity, Backwardness And Poverty Welcomed (December 16, 2004) INDONESIA UCAN Feature - Catholic Villagers Fought Fires To Save Rubber Trees (November 5, 1997) INDONESIA UCAN Feature - Drought And Fire A Blessing For Farmers In Sumatra (October 14, 1997) INDONESIA UCAN Feature - Church Helps Migrants With More Resilient Farming (December 5, 1996) INDONESIA Bishop Blames Commercial Plantations For Impoverishing Local People (November 25, 1994) INDONESIA Ursuline Sisters Help Improve Dayak People's Standard of Living (June 28, 1993) INDONESIA Church Will Help Dayaks Obtain Decent Wage And Humane Treatment (May 15, 1991) IS02539.1447 May 28, 2007 55 EM-lines (544 words) INDONESIA    Church Must Promote Gender Equality Through Basic Ecclesial Communities MAUMERE, Indonesia (UCAN) -- Diocesan workers in the Nusa Tenggara region agreed that in order to promote gender equality, the Church itself needs to take action. "It is important that the Church provide its people and Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs) with information on gender equality, through prayer meetings and catechesis, so people may change their behavior and actions," they resolved at the end of their seminar on gender equality. Thirty women and 22 men of the dioceses in the region -- Ende and Kupang archdioceses and Denpasar, Ruteng, Larantuka, Weetebula, Maumere and Atambua dioceses -- attended the May 10-12 seminar organized by the bishops' Secretariat of Gender and Women Empowerment. The seminar was held at the Holy Spirit Church of Nele, just south of Maumere. Maumere, the capital of Sikka district on predominantly Catholic Flores Island, is 1,685 kilometers east of Jakarta. The BEC is a community for brothers and sisters, "where each man and woman should be respected," said Imakulata Toja, chairwoman of the organizing committee, reading out the resolution at the end of the seminar. BECs, she added, should be communities that guide and protect their children, both boys and girls. The resolution, which cites how God created men and women as written in Genesis 1:26-27, also says that the Church believes that men and women have equal rights and obligations to actively participate in making decisions regarding Church, social, national and state matters. "That is why we should avoid misinterpreting some biblical verses, especially those used to humiliate others and to exclude women from social life," it says. According to the Church, it adds, reflections on social concern and faith should make all people aware that "they are part of social and Church traditions that deny equality and cause women's sufferings." It also states that both men and women can be unaware of the inequalities in their relations. "Sometimes we unintentionally promote paternalistic behavior, giving undue weight to men's contributions, or the tendency of some women to discount the importance of men," it states. At the closing Mass, Bishop Fransiskus Kopong Kung of Larantuka, moderator of the bishops' Secretariat of Gender and Women Empowerment, said that many injustices against women occur in the fields of educational, health and economics in the region. "Many people still humiliate others," he told the gathering of 1,500 Catholics during his homily. The Mass was celebrated at Saint Thomas Morus Church of Maumere. According to Bishop Kung, the Church recognizes women's importance in organizing family life, social life and Church life through interpersonal relations, attention to detail, nurturing behavior and concern for the common good. Unfortunately, the prelate added, many women have few other opportunities to utilize their abilities. "This is due to social structure and practical attitude that cause abuse, oppression and discrimination against women," he said. Violence, in the form of forced marriages, torture, rape, abortion, women and child trafficking, and in forcing women to become sex workers, beggars and distributors of narkoba (Indonesian acronym for narcotics, psychotropic and addictive substances), humiliate human dignity, he observed. "These types of violence make women more vulnerable to sexual diseases that could destroy women's lives," Bishop Kung continued, adding that the current economic system itself treats women as objects that can be obtained through consumption of goods. END Related UCAN Reports INDONESIA Government Minister Applauds Flores Church For Its Service To Women (April 24, 2007) INDONESIA Catholics Learn About Causes, Consequences Of Gender Inequality (July 6, 2006) INDONESIA Bishops' Office Takes Campaign For Gender Equality To Dioceses (May 4, 2006) INDONESIA Women's Groups Reject Morality Regulations As Biased Against Women (March 15, 2006) INDONESIA Bishop-elect Wants To Set Up Commission For HIV/AIDS In New Diocese (January 3, 2006) INDONESIA Religious Leaders Urged To Help Victims Of Domestic Violence Avail Of Legal Protection (November 29, 2005) INDONESIA Women Say Change In Perspective Needed To Bring Gender Equality (June 22, 2005) INDONESIA Church Leader, Others Say Government Must Stop Trade In Women And Babies (April 22, 2003) INDONESIA UCAN Commentary - Catholics Expected To Make Mark In 2004 Elections (March 7, 2003) NDONESIA UCAN Interview - Flores Women Need To Be Liberated From Oppression, Nun Says (June 4, 2002) INDONESIA Church Needs To Promote Gender Equality, Woman Lawyer Says (November 15, 2001) INDONESIA Flores Diocese Plans To Send Pastoral Team To Serve Migrants (December 27, 1999) KO02529.1447 May 28, 2007 61 EM-lines (690 word) KOREA    First Native Secular Institute Celebrates 50 Years SEOUL (UCAN) -- South Korea's first native secular institute, which has punctuality as its underlying spirituality, is celebrating its 50th anniversary. "There was nothing for me to be grateful to in the world until I learned the Jeomseong (punctuality) spirit. Now I live full of happiness," said Elizabeth Kim Pan-sook during May 21-22 celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the Secular Institute of the Sisters of the Blessed Korean Martyrs in Seoul. The 72-year-old mother of five, who entered the secular institute in 1989, told UCA News that since imbibing the institute's spirituality, she has not discriminated against anyone and remains totally committed to peacefully doing what she does -- even everyday things such as cooking or cleaning. "I think I can say I live in heaven now," she added. Canon Law describes a secular institute as "an institute of consecrated life in which the Christian faithful living in the world strive for the perfection of charity and work for the sanctification of the world especially from within." Laypeople who are members of secular institutes are not Religious and do not use religious titles. The late Father Leo Andrew Bang Yoo-ryong founded the Korean secular institute March 6, 1957. Although it has "sisters" in its name, it has members who are men. The institute also has members in the United States. Father Bang, a Seoul archdiocesan priest who died in 1986, also founded two congregations of nuns and a congregation of priests. All are dedicated to the Korean martyr saints. He founded South Korea's first native secular institute and first native male Religious congregation. Jeomseong is one of the founder's basic ideas, which implies the sanctification of every moment or action, no matter how small, in daily life. Father Bang was nicknamed "Mu-a," meaning "total surrender of oneself," because he fostered that kind of commitment, which leads to a union with God, as his congregations' basic spirituality. Thomas Park Sang-kyu, 69, a member of the secular institute's Los Angeles chapter in the United States, told UCA News that he entered the secular institute two years ago. He said he was visiting here with seven other members from the U.S. to learn about the spirit of the Korean martyrs. "Since becoming a member, I came to learn how to love even a small thing from my heart. If I visit a patient, for example, I hold his hands with a sincere heart." He said such a way of life was different from his past. According to Sister Clara Maeng Min-young, superior general of the Sisters of the Blessed Korean Martyrs congregation, the institute is the largest among the family of four. Speaking during the anniversary celebrations that brought together about 500 members of the institute, nuns and priests, she said the institute has 1,500 members, including members in the American cities of Los Angeles and Dallas. Mary Lee Kyung-in, head of the Seoul chapter of the secular institute, told UCA News on May 21 that about 600 members are undergoing training before they take their vows and join the "Agnes" group. The remaining 900 belong to the "Columba" group, whose members have already made their vows. Saints Columba and Agnes were sisters. "Many Columba group members are in their late 70s and early 80s. Agnes group members are mostly younger than 55 years," she said. It takes four years for Agnes group members to take their vows and graduate to the Columba group, she added. Lee explained that all members have two meetings a month: one to learn about the martyrs' and the founder's spirituality, and the other for sharing. According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Father Bang was so inspired by the Korean martyrs that he established the congregation as a way to spread their spirit. The martyrs, who were mostly laypeople, were killed during 19th-century religious persecutions in Korea. Pope John Paul II canonized 103 Korean martyrs in 1984 in Seoul, the 200th anniversary of the arrival of Catholicism in Korea. Among them, 79 died during the persecutions of 1839 and 1846, and were beatified in 1925. The other 24 martyrs were killed in 1866 and beatified in 1968. END (Accompanying photos available with the UCAN Photo Service. Use story code KO02529.1447 or a person's name to search for related photos.) Related UCAN Reports KOREA Nuns Turn Over 50-Year-Old Hospital To Incheon Diocese (October 18, 2005) KOREA First Native Male Congregation Marks Jubilee With Scholarship Program (February 14, 2003) KO02546.1447 May 28, 2007 45 EM-lines (457 words) KOREA    New Cor Unum Member Stresses Special Concern For Poor Countries SEOUL (UCAN) -- A Korean bishop sees his appointment to the pontifical council for relief work as recognition of the local Church and its responsibility to help poor countries. Bishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik of Daejeon, president of Caritas Corea, the Korean Church's social-service agency, has been appointed a member of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum (one heart), the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea announced in a May 23 press release. It said Pope Benedict XIV made the appointment on April 24. Bishop You told UCA News on May 25 that he interpreted his appointment as a recognition of the growth of the Korean Church, which he hopes will be more generous in helping poor countries. "Charity is a part of the Church's nature, an indispensable expression of her very being," he said, citing the pope's encyclical Deus Caritas Est (God is love). Therefore, "the Church should take special care of the poor and marginalized in every society," he added. Welcoming the nomination, Joseph Suh Chang-won, Caritas Corea's chief of general affairs, told UCA News that he is happy the local Church can share in the universal Church's responsibility to support and coordinate Catholic charity organizations worldwide. Suh expressed hope that Bishop Sou's appointment will open opportunities for the Korean Church to participate more actively in overseas aid. He pointed out that, over time, it has gradually focused support on Asian countries, especially Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. According to him, the Korean Church increased its overseas aid from 1 billion won (then about US$1.4 million) for 39 projects in 1993 to 1.8 billion won (US$1.9 million) for 30 projects in 2006. According to figures provided by Caritas Corea, it donated 17 billion won for 442 projects since 1993, a year after the Korean bishops decided to begin sending aid abroad. Of this amount, 65 percent was spent for 183 projects in Asia. Theresa You Song-ja, director of Jeonjinsang Medical Social Welfare Center, run by the lay missionary institute Association Fraternelle Internationale (international fraternal association), told UCA News that Bishop You's appointment in itself is not so important. What is "more important," she said, is how the local Church develops its social welfare policy in the future. Nonetheless, she acknowledged it is good to see its efforts being acknowledged by the universal Church. According to her, most heads of Church welfare institutes lack expertise in the field of social work. She called for the Church to do more to improve this situation. Bishop You, 55, has been president of Caritas Corea since 2004 and is a member of the Korean bishops' Episcopal Commission for Social Affairs. Members and consultors of Cor Unum, selected worldwide, serve a five-year-term as advisers to the pontifical council's president, currently Archbishop Paul Josef Cordes. END Related UCAN Reports KOREA Caritas Corea Head Pleads For More Generosity From Koreans (January 18, 2007) VATICAN Pope Explains Why His Encyclical 'Deus Caritas Est' Focuses On Love (January 24, 2006) KOREA Coadjutor Bishop Appointed For Taejon, Auxiliary For Kwangju (July 11, 2003) KOREA UCAN Interview - Church Works Hard At Dialogue In Asia Despite Religious Conflicts (November 19, 2002) PA02540.1447 May 28, 2007 67 EM-lines (761 words) PAKISTAN    HIV/AIDS Patients Share Stories At Mass To Increase AIDS Awareness LAHORE, Pakistan (UCAN) -- Nazir Masih returned to Pakistan in 1990 from his job as a shopkeeper in Dubai after testing positive for HIV. The 52-year-old Catholic was unprepared for how his countrymen would treat him. "I was ordered (by government officials) not to go out to look for a job or even meet people outside my home," he told 800 Catholics on May 22 at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Lahore. They had gathered for a Mass marking the 24th International AIDS Candlelight Memorial. The first memorial, held in 1983 in the United States, commemorated the first deaths identified as due to AIDS. Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore led the Mass, which had the theme Leading the Way to a World without AIDS, with Vicar General Father Andrew Nisari concelebrating. Caritas Pakistan Lahore organized the liturgy here, 270 kilometers southeast of Islamabad, as part of the Global AIDS Week of Action, observed May 20-26. "Pray for those who died of AIDS" and "Care for those who are HIV-positive" urged banners and posters hung around the cathedral compound. Nazir, regarded as the first Pakistani to have tested positive for HIV, revealed that his children were not allowed to sit on the seats of the government vehicle which took them to the National Institute of Health Laboratory for HIV testing. "Wooden planks were our seats," he recalled. To pay for his medical treatment, Nazir recounted, "I had to stop the education of my children and even sell my house." He added that stigmatization increased after a local newspaper published photos of his family and stated that he was the first person in the country to contract AIDS. Infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) leads to AIDS, a usually fatal condition in which the damaged immune system cannot fight off disease. Nazir told UCA News he suffered no major AIDS-related illness until he got sick in 2003 and his weight dropped from 90 kilograms to 60 kilograms. Another person living with HIV/AIDS also spoke during the Mass. Mohammad Asim, 27, a Muslim, shared that he changed his mind about marrying his fiancee after he discovered in 1999 that he was infected with HIV. "I used to live in fear of dying young and was ashamed of myself," he told the crowd, urging them to live a healthy life. In his concluding message, Archbishop Saldanha spoke of the serious consequences of HIV/AIDS and urged people to avoid being infected. Pamphlets containing information on AIDS were distributed to participants. Afterward, the congregation followed the clergy and officials of various organizations into the cathedral compound and placed lit candles atop a large red ribbon, symbolizing solidarity with AIDS sufferers as well as a determination to fight against the spread of HIV. Speaking with UCA News, Nazir said that by 1994, three other HIV/AIDS patients had been registered in Pakistan, all of them Christians. "Those were the most unfortunate times, since people with little knowledge about HIV/AIDS used to think it was a disease associated only with Christians." He revealed that one of the three, Kala Masih, shot himself in 1998 out of desperation. Masih is not a surname but is used to identify a male Pakistani as a Christian. Both Nazir and Asim now search for HIV-positive people and help them live as normal a life as possible, with easy access to treatment, care and support services. Asim serves as director of Life Plus, a society which currently counsels 10 HIV-infected people. Nazir is president of New Light AIDS Control Society (www.newlightaids.org), which is working with 135 patients. Kashif Sharoon, program manager of an HIV-prevention project, told UCA News the Mass was organized to create awareness about HIV/AIDS prevention and to lessen the stigma and discrimination infected people face. "People such as (Nazir) Masih and Asim were purposely invited to speak so as to encourage others like them to live honorably and give others a better understanding about their plight," he added. Sharoon is with the H-13 Project, a collaboration of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation with Caritas. It aims to prevent HIV transmission among drug users. Caritas Pakistan Lahore has been conducting HIV/AIDS awareness programs since 1992 among students, drug users and commercial sex workers. It also has set up an HIV/AIDS support office in Taxali, the red-light district of Lahore. According to the National HIV/AIDS Control Program, the country has 798 patients registered in eight HIV/AIDS Control Centers in the country. According to the May 19 edition of the local Dawn newspaper, at least 36 HIV/AIDS patients died last year in Pakistan. END (Accompanying photos available with the UCAN Photo Service. Use story code PA02540.1447 or a person's name to search for related photos.) Related UCAN Reports PAKISTAN Caritas' New Drug Rehabilitation Program Starts With AIDS Awareness (January 4, 2007) PAKISTAN NGO, Church See Need To Help Addicts (July 6, 2006) PL02547.1447 May 28, 2007 56 EM-lines (628 words) PHILIPPINES    Carabao Kneel To Honor Patron Saint Of Farmers PULILAN, Philippines (UCAN) -- With a tap, whistle and hand signal, the carabao (water buffalo) in costume and body paint "knelt" to honor Saint Isidore, patron of farmers. About 200 carabao on May 15 bent their two front legs in front of St. Isidore Church in Pulilan after they paraded around town for three kilometers dragging carts. Their masters rode on their backs or sat on the carts. Severino Francisco told UCA News the Kneeling Carabao Festival that marks the yearly feast of St. Isidore is a tradition of farmers in Pulilan town in Bulacan province, about 40 kilometers northwest of Manila. He rode on his carabao adorned with red cloth ruffles on its head and legs. The festival honors "the master of the servant's master," Francisco, 65, said, referring to Saint Isidore as master of the farmers, and the farmers who are masters of the carabao. Francisco has been taking his carabao to the parade for more than 20 years. He said the intention of making the carabao kneel in front of the church is to thank the saint for a bountiful harvest. It is also to ask for continuous blessing, said Francisco, who lives in Barangay Balatong B, one of Pulilan town's 19 villages. On May 15 every year, carabao from the villages, including some from nearby towns, participate in the festival, said James Navarro, a member of the fiesta committee. He told UCA News roads close to accommodate the festival, which draws local and foreign tourists alike. In recent years, the town has also given a 30,000-peso (US$653) prize to the farmer whose beast beats the rest in kneeling, costume and ornamentation, Navarro said. Before the parade, Bishop Jose Oliveros of Malolos celebrated Mass at the parish church. In his homily, the prelate recalled the life of Saint Isidore (1070-1130), a poor Spanish farmer-tenant who was always late for work because he attended daily Mass. He was always reprimanded by his landlord and envied by his fellow farmers for working fewer hours, Bishop Oliveros related. However, God blessed him with more earnings from the farm by sending angels to till his part of the land, the bishop said. He then challenged the Massgoers to put God and devotion to God as a priority despite their workload. "God will also give us the blessings and mercy we need to survive in our daily lives," he said. Some days before the feast, villagers place the image of Saint Isidore in a passenger jeep and take it around town in what is known as paseo. Farmers from far-flung villages who cannot join the festival tie their carabao onto a tree in front of their house and wait for the image to pass, according to Nene Bundoc-Ocampo, editor-publisher of the weekly provincial paper Pulso ng Madla (pulse of the people). Ocampo, who comes from a farming family in Barangay Paltao, told UCA News, "The blessing will similarly come when the carabao and the farmer see the image of the saint pass in front of their house or farm." A downpour usually comes in the afternoon or night after the carabao have kneeled in front of the parish church, Ocampo said. She explained that this is the time for the farmers to celebrate because the rains signal more bountiful harvests and blessings in the year to come. People are even more joyous if it rains during the parade or the kneeling of the carabao, added the member of the Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals. Municipal planning and development officer Efren Miranda told UCA News that agriculture and farming are the people's primary means of livelihood and the town's primary source of income. Pulilan is under Malolos diocese. Among the 3,120,700 people in the diocese's territory, 85 percent are Catholics. END Related UCAN Reports PHILIPPINES Thousands Show Gratitude For 'Divine Mercy' (April 19, 2007) PHILIPPINES Philippine Church Gets New Bishop For Northern Diocese (February 11, 2000) PHILIPPINES UCAN Feature - Tractors Replace Farm Animals At Village Fiesta (May 29, 1996) VT02551.1447 May 28, 2007 61 EM-lines (669 words) VIETNAM    Vinh Diocese Gives Emergency Aid To Orphaned Landslide Survivors VINH, Vietnam (UCAN) -- Church officials in a northern diocese have provided emergency and long-term assistance to children whose parents died in a recent landslide. Two days of torrential rains caused a landslide on Mount Con Lon, Father Raphael Tran Xuan Nhan, deputy of Vinh diocese's Committee for Charitable and Social Actions, told UCA News on May 12. As he related it, the slide dropped a seven-ton rock on a wooden house, home to an eight-member Catholic family, on the night of May 6. The disaster killed Pierre Nguyen Dinh Huong, his wife and their 3-year-old son. It also injured their five other children, he added. The victims are members of Loc My parish in Nghi Loc district, Nghe An province, 310 kilometers south of Ha Noi. They and other families in the area had been unable to obtain safe land to build houses. After the disaster, he and four other priests worked with local people and government authorities to collect the dead, the pastor of Nghi Loc-based Lang Anh parish said. They also took the injured children -- two with fractured legs, arms and ribs -- to a state-run hospital, and spent 5 million dong (US$ 317) on coffins and funeral services he added. Father Nhan, 54, said his committee also appealed to domestic and foreign benefactors for long-term assistance for the orphans: three girls and two boys aged 3-12. One week after the disaster, benefactors had donated 100 million dong, the Church official said. The committee plans to spend half that amount building a house for the children. It will invest the rest and use the monthly interest to cover school fees and living expenses, he added. Father Pierre Nguyen Xuan Hoan, the Loc My parish priest, told UCA News he "asked village government authorities to grant the children a plot of land far away from the mountain." The government granted the plot. Meanwhile, Church workers have bought building materials and plan to start construction soon. The children live in relatives' houses in the interim, Father Hoan said. "After our parents and brother died, we could not survive without priests and the community providing spiritual and material support for us," Marie Nguyen Thi Lan, Huong's eldest daughter, told UCA News through tears. The 12-year-old said she dropped out of school last year since her family could not afford school fees and food. They survived by fishing in the river, she added. Father Hoan, 65, said the parish has 2,500 Catholics. Most make a meager living by fishing in river waters and the sea. They live in poverty and have many children, he added. The priest noted that if the local government had been concerned and granted a safe plot of land to Huong's family for a house, they could have avoided the disaster. He recalled that four years ago village authorities asked poor, landless families to give 3.5 million dong each for a 360-square-meter plot. The authorities, however, pocketed the money and did not give the families their plots of land. The officials were dismissed, but the money was never returned, the priest noted. Father Hoan said he had appealed to Nghi Loc district authorities to deal with the problem and grant land to poor families. But the village government now assesses a 360 square-meter land plot at 15 million dong, a price poor families cannot afford, he added. "After the disaster, I have again appealed to the government to grant poor people land -- at a fair price -- so they can build houses on safe land," he said. "But I have not received any reply." It is dangerous for the 20 poor, landless Catholic families who live in shabby houses around the foot of Mount Con Lon, he noted. He estimated the mountain to be about 500 meters from the parish church. Father Nhan said Vinh diocese's social-action committee was founded in 1999, with six priests and six laypeople, to improve poor people's lives and provide emergency aid to victims of floods, accidents and famine. END (Accompanying photos available with the UCAN Photo Service. Use story code VT02551.1447 or a person's name to search for related photos.) Related UCAN Reports VIETNAM Church Social Groups Provide Spiritual, Material Aid For Typhoon Victims (November 1, 2006) VIETNAM Yen Bai Residents Rethink Environmental Carelessness After Severe Flooding (July 20, 2005) VIETNAM Church Leaders Ask Catholics To Aid Tsunami Victims (January 2, 2005) VIETNAM Catholic Students Aid Flood Victims In Central Vietnam (December 7, 2004) ZY02554.1447 May 28, 2007 60 EM-lines (696 words) VATICAN    Council For Interreligious Dialogue To Resume Autonomous Status By Gerard O'Connell, Special Correspondent in Rome VATICAN CITY (UCAN) -- Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state, has announced that the pontifical office responsible for dialogue with other religions will be reestablished as a Vatican office in its own right. Cardinal Bertone broke the news on May 27 during an interview with the Italian daily La Stampa. His revelation came at the end of a roundtable discussion on interreligious dialogue that the cardinal was attending in Vercelli, a northern Italian diocese that he had served as bishop and where he was granted honorary citizenship. Dialogue, the cardinal said, "is a challenge and a crucial theme for the Church, at both the pastoral and doctrinal levels." He also noted that "after Benedict XVI's lecture at Regensburg (Germany)" last Sept. 13, which triggered negative reactions by Muslims worldwide, "the Church re-launched dialogue also with the political and religious authorities of the other religions." In this context, he said, "the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) will again be established as a 'dicastery' (Vatican office) in its own right, whereas previously it had been merged with the Pontifical Council for Culture." According to the cardinal, "the change demonstrates the importance of interreligious dialogue for the secretariat of state." On March 11, 2006, Pope Benedict merged the presidency of the PCID with that of the Pontifical Council for Culture, "to foster a more intense dialogue between men of culture and the exponents of the different religions." He also made France's Cardinal Paul Poupard, then 75, president of both councils. Three weeks earlier, the theologian-pope heralded the change by reassigning Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, the PCID president and the Vatican's top expert on Islam, as nuncio to Egypt and the Arab League, a move that provoked great controversy. Many inside and outside the Vatican still regard Archbishop Fitzgerald's reassignment and the merging of the two councils as ill-advised. Cardinal Bertone's revelation that the PCID will revert to its original status as an autonomous council effectively reverses that papal decision. The cardinal, second only to the pope in the Vatican hierarchy, also noted that the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Goods of the Church will be merged with the Pontifical Council for Culture, both to form one council. The Vatican is expected soon to make a formal announcement about these structural changes, along with the names of papal appointees to various senior posts in the Roman Curia. One such post is sostituto, the Vatican's third-highest position, now held by Argentina's Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, 63. Italian media, including the news agency ANSA, have widely reported that Archbishop Ferdinando Filoni, 61, now apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, is to succeed Archbishop Sandri, but the Vatican has not confirmed this. Cardinal Poupard will turn 77 on Aug. 30, well past the normal retirement age of 75. The appointments the Vatican will announce are expected to include the names of prelates to succeed Cardinal Poupard as president of the two pontifical councils he presently leads. Cardinal Bertone's announcement will be welcomed by many in the Vatican and others in the Church who say the March 2006 merger has not functioned. They maintain that the fusion of presidencies transmitted a wrong signal to the world about Pope Benedict's desire for dialogue with other religions. On May 27, UCA News informed two cardinals about the reversion of the merger. Both reacted very positively but asked not to be named. One said, "I think it is a very good development. It could help improve the situation." The other, describing the news as "very encouraging indeed," said, "It gives me hope that other changes may come soon." Some Vatican officials told UCA News in Rome that they now wonder if the pope will also undo the merger of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace with the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerants. That merger, also effected by Pope Benedict on March 11, 2006, similarly just merged the presidencies of two councils and has not functioned well. Sources in Rome have told UCA News that Cardinal Renato Martino, 74, currently president of both councils, considers the present merged dicastery structure unmanageable, and not only because some key posts are still vacant. END Related UCAN Reports VATICAN Pope Begins Vatican Reform By Effectively Reducing Pontifical Council Presidents From 11 To Nine (March 13, 2006) VATICAN Pope Benedict Expected To Name New Cardinals, Change Top Vatican Officials Soon (February 21, 2006)