Monday, July 20, 2009

Papua New Guinea will add two new provinces by 2012


Several of the provincial governments in Papua New Guinea have announced changes to the names of their provinces, with Bougainville becoming North Solomons, Western becoming Fly River, Chimbu becoming Simbu, Northern becoming Oro and West Sepik becoming Sandaun.

The changes have been accorded popular acceptance but they remain unofficial, as the provinces are creatures of the Constitution and official changes of name would require amendments to the Constitution using the prescribed amending formula.

Map of Papua New Guinea showing Southern Highlands Province (15) and Western Highlands Province (17), where Hela and Jiwaka derive from respectively will be declared provinces by 2012

By 2012, two new provinces will emerge: Hela Province will be split from Southern Highlands Province, and Jiwaka Province from Western Highlands Province. Well, congratulations to the people in these areas. They will finally have their own provinces and manage their own affairs at the provincial level.

It is imperative that all formal mechanisms are in place in order to cater for the provinces' status before 2012. Just the naming of the provinces without concrete proposals doesn't make any sense.

Again, congratulations are in order to people in these areas and make sure help in whatever capacity you can with the legislators to meet the requirements before 2012.

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Papua New Guinea will add two new provinces by 2012


Several of the provincial governments in Papua New Guinea have announced changes to the names of their provinces, with Bougainville becoming North Solomons, Western becoming Fly River, Chimbu becoming Simbu, Northern becoming Oro and West Sepik becoming Sandaun.

The changes have been accorded popular acceptance but they remain unofficial, as the provinces are creatures of the Constitution and official changes of name would require amendments to the Constitution using the prescribed amending formula.

Map of Papua New Guinea showing Southern Highlands Province (15) and Western Highlands Province (17), where Hela and Jiwaka derive from respectively will be declared provinces by 2012

By 2012, two new provinces will emerge: Hela Province will be split from Southern Highlands Province, and Jiwaka Province from Western Highlands Province. Well, congratulations to the people in these areas. They will finally have their own provinces and manage their own affairs at the provincial level.

It is imperative that all formal mechanisms are in place in order to cater for the provinces' status before 2012. Just the naming of the provinces without concrete proposals doesn't make any sense.

Again, congratulations are in order to people in these areas and make sure help in whatever capacity you can with the legislators to meet the requirements before 2012.

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Labels:

Papua New Guinea will add two new provinces by 2012


Several of the provincial governments in Papua New Guinea have announced changes to the names of their provinces, with Bougainville becoming North Solomons, Western becoming Fly River, Chimbu becoming Simbu, Northern becoming Oro and West Sepik becoming Sandaun.

The changes have been accorded popular acceptance but they remain unofficial, as the provinces are creatures of the Constitution and official changes of name would require amendments to the Constitution using the prescribed amending formula.

Map of Papua New Guinea showing Southern Highlands Province (15) and Western Highlands Province (17), where Hela and Jiwaka derive from respectively will be declared provinces by 2012

By 2012, two new provinces will emerge: Hela Province will be split from Southern Highlands Province, and Jiwaka Province from Western Highlands Province. Well, congratulations to the people in these areas. They will finally have their own provinces and manage their own affairs at the provincial level.

It is imperative that all formal mechanisms are in place in order to cater for the provinces' status before 2012. Just the naming of the provinces without concrete proposals doesn't make any sense.

Again, congratulations are in order to people in these areas and make sure help in whatever capacity you can with the legislators to meet the requirements before 2012.

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Labels:

Lutheran Churches Face Ongoing Struggle to Adapt to Post-Communist Realities

Freedom Brought New Roles, Challenges in Central and Eastern Europe

The fall of communism two decades ago gave Lutheran churches in Central and Eastern Europe - most of them smaller churches - both new freedoms and many difficult tasks, Rev. Dr Eva-Sibylle Vogel-Mfato told participants at a 26-29 June Lutheran World Federation (LWF) consultation in Budapest. These churches have moved from "being a church under oppression to a church which the state expects to take an active part in society," remarked Vogel-Mfato, LWF Europe secretary.

Lutheran churches have had to negotiate with the state for legal recognition and over church property confiscated during the communist era. Emigration is also a problem for some, Rev. Dr Annette Leis-Peters noted. "The end of the Iron Curtain meant it was much easier to migrate," said Leis-Peters, a German researcher at Uppsala University studying the impact of religion on society. Members of some minority Lutheran churches left in significant numbers for western countries.

Return of Confiscated Property in Hungary

In Hungary, the government is to return by 2011 most churches and church buildings confiscated after 1948 by the communist regime, Rev. Dr Gabor Orosz told the consultation. Compensation is to be provided for the remainder, reported Orosz, an assistant professor at the Evangelical Lutheran Theology University in Budapest.

Lutherans are to be able to assign one percent of their taxes to the church, and 20 Lutheran schools, with thousands of pupils, are to be entitled to the same subsidies as state schools. The return of confiscated property can present its own problems."We have been given back old dilapidated churches but not the supporting properties," noted Archbishop Dr Edmund Ratz of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia and Other States.

Diaconal Work in the Czech Republic

The Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren plays a significant role in providing social services through its Diakonie organization, which runs 33 centers and eight special schools. Diakonie's ministries include hospices, residential centers for older people and day care centers for children with learning difficulties, who otherwise would be placed in institutions. "We had to develop facilities that were completely missing in our societies," said Eva Grollova, Diakonie's deputy director."After the fall of communism, without partners in sister churches abroad, we wouldn’t have been able to start our activities."

Emphasis on Protestantism in Slovenia

In Slovenia, Protestants comprise less than one percent of the country’s population. A marginal community like the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovenia with its 20,000members "cannot compete with the still big and influential Roman Catholic Church with its many institutions," said Rev. Simon Sever, a Lutheran pastor in Bodonci. But it does want to emphasize its "Protestantism" through preaching and diaconal work, as well as by being "productively critical" in promoting a more human society.

Struggle for Recognition in Croatia

In Croatia, where the collapse of the former Yugoslavia led to war, the minority Protestant churches still struggle to contribute to the public arena, said Enoh Seba, a Baptist from the Matthias Flacius Illyricus faculty of theology in Zagreb. They lack human resources and in the post-war period have been preoccupied with the legal regulation of their status.

Attracting Members in the former East Germany

In the former German Democratic Republic, Protestant churches,which historically gathered a majority of the population, became a marginalized minority, reported Rev. Dr Marianne Subklew. After German reunification in 1990, the churches in the East took over the church-state model of the West, where the Protestant and Roman Catholic churches accounted for a majority of the population. They adopted the western church tax system and took on religious education in schools as well as vast areas of diaconal and social work, often in competition with other welfare organizations.

"While some people had hoped that, after the political changes, people would again flock to join the churches, this hope was disappointed," said Subklew, herself from eastern Germany but now working in Hamburg for the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church. The future of the church in eastern Germany depends on whether congregations are able to develop structures and patterns to attract new members. "People have left the church in droves, but can be won only as individuals," Subklew said.

Common Issues Across Europe

The consultation was the final meeting in a European study on"Church and State in Societies of Transformation." The study began in 2006 as an opportunity for LWF member churches in Central and Eastern Europe to explore together their relationship with the state after communism. It was later expanded to include churches elsewhere in the continent, Vogel-Mfato explained, "as we discerned more and more how many issues we have in common allover Europe."

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Lutheran Churches Face Ongoing Struggle to Adapt to Post-Communist Realities

Freedom Brought New Roles, Challenges in Central and Eastern Europe

The fall of communism two decades ago gave Lutheran churches in Central and Eastern Europe - most of them smaller churches - both new freedoms and many difficult tasks, Rev. Dr Eva-Sibylle Vogel-Mfato told participants at a 26-29 June Lutheran World Federation (LWF) consultation in Budapest. These churches have moved from "being a church under oppression to a church which the state expects to take an active part in society," remarked Vogel-Mfato, LWF Europe secretary.

Lutheran churches have had to negotiate with the state for legal recognition and over church property confiscated during the communist era. Emigration is also a problem for some, Rev. Dr Annette Leis-Peters noted. "The end of the Iron Curtain meant it was much easier to migrate," said Leis-Peters, a German researcher at Uppsala University studying the impact of religion on society. Members of some minority Lutheran churches left in significant numbers for western countries.

Return of Confiscated Property in Hungary

In Hungary, the government is to return by 2011 most churches and church buildings confiscated after 1948 by the communist regime, Rev. Dr Gabor Orosz told the consultation. Compensation is to be provided for the remainder, reported Orosz, an assistant professor at the Evangelical Lutheran Theology University in Budapest.

Lutherans are to be able to assign one percent of their taxes to the church, and 20 Lutheran schools, with thousands of pupils, are to be entitled to the same subsidies as state schools. The return of confiscated property can present its own problems."We have been given back old dilapidated churches but not the supporting properties," noted Archbishop Dr Edmund Ratz of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia and Other States.

Diaconal Work in the Czech Republic

The Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren plays a significant role in providing social services through its Diakonie organization, which runs 33 centers and eight special schools. Diakonie's ministries include hospices, residential centers for older people and day care centers for children with learning difficulties, who otherwise would be placed in institutions. "We had to develop facilities that were completely missing in our societies," said Eva Grollova, Diakonie's deputy director."After the fall of communism, without partners in sister churches abroad, we wouldn’t have been able to start our activities."

Emphasis on Protestantism in Slovenia

In Slovenia, Protestants comprise less than one percent of the country’s population. A marginal community like the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovenia with its 20,000members "cannot compete with the still big and influential Roman Catholic Church with its many institutions," said Rev. Simon Sever, a Lutheran pastor in Bodonci. But it does want to emphasize its "Protestantism" through preaching and diaconal work, as well as by being "productively critical" in promoting a more human society.

Struggle for Recognition in Croatia

In Croatia, where the collapse of the former Yugoslavia led to war, the minority Protestant churches still struggle to contribute to the public arena, said Enoh Seba, a Baptist from the Matthias Flacius Illyricus faculty of theology in Zagreb. They lack human resources and in the post-war period have been preoccupied with the legal regulation of their status.

Attracting Members in the former East Germany

In the former German Democratic Republic, Protestant churches,which historically gathered a majority of the population, became a marginalized minority, reported Rev. Dr Marianne Subklew. After German reunification in 1990, the churches in the East took over the church-state model of the West, where the Protestant and Roman Catholic churches accounted for a majority of the population. They adopted the western church tax system and took on religious education in schools as well as vast areas of diaconal and social work, often in competition with other welfare organizations.

"While some people had hoped that, after the political changes, people would again flock to join the churches, this hope was disappointed," said Subklew, herself from eastern Germany but now working in Hamburg for the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church. The future of the church in eastern Germany depends on whether congregations are able to develop structures and patterns to attract new members. "People have left the church in droves, but can be won only as individuals," Subklew said.

Common Issues Across Europe

The consultation was the final meeting in a European study on"Church and State in Societies of Transformation." The study began in 2006 as an opportunity for LWF member churches in Central and Eastern Europe to explore together their relationship with the state after communism. It was later expanded to include churches elsewhere in the continent, Vogel-Mfato explained, "as we discerned more and more how many issues we have in common allover Europe."

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Labels:

Lutheran Churches Face Ongoing Struggle to Adapt to Post-Communist Realities

Freedom Brought New Roles, Challenges in Central and Eastern Europe

The fall of communism two decades ago gave Lutheran churches in Central and Eastern Europe - most of them smaller churches - both new freedoms and many difficult tasks, Rev. Dr Eva-Sibylle Vogel-Mfato told participants at a 26-29 June Lutheran World Federation (LWF) consultation in Budapest. These churches have moved from "being a church under oppression to a church which the state expects to take an active part in society," remarked Vogel-Mfato, LWF Europe secretary.

Lutheran churches have had to negotiate with the state for legal recognition and over church property confiscated during the communist era. Emigration is also a problem for some, Rev. Dr Annette Leis-Peters noted. "The end of the Iron Curtain meant it was much easier to migrate," said Leis-Peters, a German researcher at Uppsala University studying the impact of religion on society. Members of some minority Lutheran churches left in significant numbers for western countries.

Return of Confiscated Property in Hungary

In Hungary, the government is to return by 2011 most churches and church buildings confiscated after 1948 by the communist regime, Rev. Dr Gabor Orosz told the consultation. Compensation is to be provided for the remainder, reported Orosz, an assistant professor at the Evangelical Lutheran Theology University in Budapest.

Lutherans are to be able to assign one percent of their taxes to the church, and 20 Lutheran schools, with thousands of pupils, are to be entitled to the same subsidies as state schools. The return of confiscated property can present its own problems."We have been given back old dilapidated churches but not the supporting properties," noted Archbishop Dr Edmund Ratz of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia and Other States.

Diaconal Work in the Czech Republic

The Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren plays a significant role in providing social services through its Diakonie organization, which runs 33 centers and eight special schools. Diakonie's ministries include hospices, residential centers for older people and day care centers for children with learning difficulties, who otherwise would be placed in institutions. "We had to develop facilities that were completely missing in our societies," said Eva Grollova, Diakonie's deputy director."After the fall of communism, without partners in sister churches abroad, we wouldn’t have been able to start our activities."

Emphasis on Protestantism in Slovenia

In Slovenia, Protestants comprise less than one percent of the country’s population. A marginal community like the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovenia with its 20,000members "cannot compete with the still big and influential Roman Catholic Church with its many institutions," said Rev. Simon Sever, a Lutheran pastor in Bodonci. But it does want to emphasize its "Protestantism" through preaching and diaconal work, as well as by being "productively critical" in promoting a more human society.

Struggle for Recognition in Croatia

In Croatia, where the collapse of the former Yugoslavia led to war, the minority Protestant churches still struggle to contribute to the public arena, said Enoh Seba, a Baptist from the Matthias Flacius Illyricus faculty of theology in Zagreb. They lack human resources and in the post-war period have been preoccupied with the legal regulation of their status.

Attracting Members in the former East Germany

In the former German Democratic Republic, Protestant churches,which historically gathered a majority of the population, became a marginalized minority, reported Rev. Dr Marianne Subklew. After German reunification in 1990, the churches in the East took over the church-state model of the West, where the Protestant and Roman Catholic churches accounted for a majority of the population. They adopted the western church tax system and took on religious education in schools as well as vast areas of diaconal and social work, often in competition with other welfare organizations.

"While some people had hoped that, after the political changes, people would again flock to join the churches, this hope was disappointed," said Subklew, herself from eastern Germany but now working in Hamburg for the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church. The future of the church in eastern Germany depends on whether congregations are able to develop structures and patterns to attract new members. "People have left the church in droves, but can be won only as individuals," Subklew said.

Common Issues Across Europe

The consultation was the final meeting in a European study on"Church and State in Societies of Transformation." The study began in 2006 as an opportunity for LWF member churches in Central and Eastern Europe to explore together their relationship with the state after communism. It was later expanded to include churches elsewhere in the continent, Vogel-Mfato explained, "as we discerned more and more how many issues we have in common allover Europe."

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