Jehovah's bear Witness in Bendigo

http://www.bendigoadvertiser.com.au/story/1774900/jehovahs-bear-witness-in-bendigo/?cs=80

ABOUT 3000 Jehovah’s Witness delegates descended on Bendigo on Friday for their annual convention.

People have travelled from Albury-Wodonga, Portland and Swan Hill for the three-day district convention.

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Organising committee member Peter Verrion said the Bendigo convention was one of 23 to be held across Australia.

He said this year’s theme was, “God’s Word is Truth”.

“It is about reminding us all, that god’s word is the bible and that is the truth,” Mr Verrion said.

“If we base our lives on the bible then we have some good guidance of what we need to do in these times.”

The event is held at the Bendigo Stadium with several talks, interviews, demonstrations and plays held across the weekend.

Mr Verrion said community members were invited to the event.

“Most people that come along to the convention are baptised Jehovah’s Witness’ but there will be a few people here that have never come before,” he said. “It is all about Jehovah’s Witnesses and what we believe.”

 

 

 

 

 

He becomes a murderer that Jehovah's Witness was also sentenced to death and executed

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2417902/Anthony-Rozelle-Banks-Oklahoma-executes-Jehovahs-Witness-rape-murder.html

 

 

Oklahoma executes Jehovah's Witness (converted) for rape and murder after he eats three apple filled bear claws for his last meal

 

Anthony Rozelle Banks was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for killing Sun 'Kim' Travis in 1979

Travis was abducted from a Tulsa apartment complex parking lot, raped and shot in the head

Banks put to death by lethal injection - the fourth execution in Oklahoma this year

 

An Oklahoma death row inmate convicted of first-degree murder in the 1979 shooting death of a 25-year-old Korean national has been executed.

 

Sixty-one-year-old Anthony Rozelle Banks was pronounced dead Tuesday after he received a lethal injection of drugs at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester.

 

Banks is the fourth Oklahoma death row inmate to be executed this year.

 

Banks had a final meal of three apple-filled bear claw pastries and two 16-ounce bottles of water, according to a spokesman for the Oklahoma Department of Corrections.

 

 

Banks was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death by a Tulsa County jury for the June 6, 1979, killing of Sun 'Kim' Travis.

 

Travis was abducted from a Tulsa apartment complex parking lot, raped and shot in the head. Her body was found in a roadside ditch.

 

'I can't express the terrible things I've done. I'm sorry,' Banks said.

 

'To know that I took lives hurts me,' he said. He said he knew he had also hurt the victims' family members.

 

'This is justified,' Banks said. 'I've done one good thing in my life and that is to become a Jehovah's Witness. For that, I'm eternally grateful.'

 

Banks, strapped to a gurney with IV lines attached to his arms, acknowledged witnesses to his execution, including his attorney, Tom Hird of the Federal Public Defender's Office in Oklahoma City, and an unidentified spiritual adviser.

 

'I'm thankful everybody's here. I appreciate that,' he said.

 

Banks singled out Tulsa County Sheriff Stanley Glanz, who also witnessed his execution.

 

'I haven't seen you in years, decades,' Banks said with a smile.

 

Banks closed his eyes and took several deep breaths as the lethal drugs were injected into his body. He appeared to grimace briefly before he stopped breathing and his body went limp.

 

No one from the victim's family witnessed Banks' execution. Attorney General Scott Pruitt issued a statement beforehand that said his thoughts were with the victim's family.

 

 

'Anthony Banks brutally ended the life of an innocent young woman and has proven his willingness to continue committing violent crimes,' Pruitt said.

 

About five people protested the execution at the governor's mansion in Oklahoma City.

 

One of the protesters, D.W. Hearn, 68, held a rosary. He said he was praying for the man about to be executed, the man's family and the victim's family. He said he believes Oklahoma will eventually abolish the death penalty.

 

Banks has asked that his daughter and a spiritual adviser, as well as his attorney and defense investigators, be present to witness his execution.

 

Banks and a co-defendant, Allen Wayne Nelson, 54, were charged in the victim's death in August 1997, when their DNA was detected in evidence found on Travis' body and clothing.

 

A 12-member jury convicted Nelson of first-degree murder and sentenced him to life in prison.

 

Banks was already serving a life prison sentence for his conviction in the April 11, 1978, slaying of a Tulsa convenience store clerk during an armed robbery when he was linked to Travis' death by DNA evidence 18 years after her death.

 

 

BOC to Vote on Jehovah's Witnesses Permit Request

http://dacula.patch.com/groups/politics-and-elections/p/boc-scheduled-to-vote-on-jehovahs-witnesses-permit-request

The matter will go before the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, Sept. 24.

Once again, the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners will be asked to decide if the Jehovah's Witnesses will be allowed to build a church on Ace McMillian Road.

Earlier this month, the Gwinnett County Planning Commission voted 8-0 to recommend approval for a special use permit which would allow the Jehovah's Witnesses to build a 5,000-square-foot church on their property located in the 1500 block of Ace McMillian Road.

The vote to recommend approval went against the planning department recommendation to deny the request, which was based in part on the fact that Ace McMillian Road is categorized as a minor collector road and, as such, may be ill suited for the amount of traffic the church could generate. Churches are allowed on property zoned as RA-200 except when the roads are classified as a minor collector.

The planning department analysis also stated, "Potentially adverse impacts from traffic, noise and light intrusion could be anticipated from this request."

During the Sept. 3 planning commission meeting, District 3 planning commission member Chuck Warbington said discussions with DOT officials have convinced him Ace McMillian is improperly designated as a minor collector road.

"The only reason this is coming in is because of classification of a road -- not because it's agricultural, not because it's residential -- but because of classification of that road," Warbington said.

Warbington subsequently motioned to recommend approval for the request with conditions including a 30-foot landscape buffer external to all property lines and the requirement the church building be limited to 5,000 square feet.

Warbington also voted in favor of the request in 2011. That permit request did not garner enough support at the commission level, however, and failed in a 3-1 vote. Then-District 3 Commissioner Mike Beaudreau motioned for denial.

“This community, as depicted in the planning department report, is very rural in nature,” Beaudreau said at the time. “You’re talking about a fairly sizeable congregation with multiple services that will change a rural area forever.”

Residents in the area remain concerned about the potential impact of the church and several spoke in opposition of the request at the Sept. 3, 2013, planning commission meeting.

The case will now go before the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, Sept. 24. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center, 75 Langley Drive, Lawrenceville.

Australian Jehovah's Witness loses bid to refuse blood

http://www.france24.com/en/20130927-australian-jehovahs-witness-loses-bid-refuse-blood

AFP - An Australian teenager Friday lost his court battle to refuse life-saving medical treatment because he is a Jehovah's Witness, with a court upholding an earlier judgement permitting a blood transfusion.

The 17-year-old, who suffers from an aggressive cancer, lost his case against Sydney Children's Hospital in March in which he had argued that treating him with blood products or a transfusion would breach his relationship with God.

His appeal in the New South Wales Supreme Court against that judgement failed Friday after no basis was found to legally set aside the earlier order.

Justice John Basten said there was no reason why a different result should be achieved just because the applicant was now closer to his 18th birthday, which is in January, and at which point he can exercise his right to refuse treatment.

"The interest of the state is in keeping him alive until that time, after which he will be free to make his own decisions as to medical treatment," he wrote.

The teenager, who suffers from Hodgkin's disease, initially had several bouts of chemotherapy which achieved only a limited reduction in the size of many tumours, and no enduring remission of the disease.

His doctors recommended higher doses of different chemotherapy agents, ones which carried the inevitable side effect of anaemia and by February this year severe anaemia had set in, requiring either a blood transfusion or a cessation of treatment.

Advice was that he had an 80 percent chance of dying from anaemia without receiving a blood transfusion -- a treatment which goes against the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses.

The appeal judgement noted that while the boy's parents had also refused to consent to any treatment involving a blood or platelet transfusion, he was a "mature minor" with an understanding of his own condition.

However, it ultimately supported the decision of the first judge to allow treatment.

"There is no doubting (the applicant's) devotion to his faith, but his life has been cocooned in that faith," Justice Ian Gzell said at the time.

"The sanctity of life in the end is a more powerful reason for me to make the orders than is respect for the dignity of the individual."

The appeal judgement noted that the case had raised important issues and did not force the applicant to pay the costs of the case.

Jehovah’s Witnesses gathering to build Kingdom Hall in Greenfield

http://www.masslive.com/living/index.ssf/2013/09/jehovahs_witnesses_gathering_to_build_kingdom_hall_in_greenfield.html

GREENFIELD –Hundreds of Jehovah's Witnesses volunteers from throughout the region were in Greenfield the weekend of Sept. 21 to build a new Kingdom Hall, a place of worship for the Greenfield and Shelburne Falls congregations.

"It's a privilege to be here," said Charlie C. Kenyon of Montgomery. "It's part of our worship to our God for his kindness to us and (a way) to provide for the needs of our brothers and sisters."

During the weekend exterior walls were raised and much of the exterior plywood sheathing was installed. Work also included the roof truss system installation and framing of interior walls and exterior insulation and finish. Volunteers also closed in the building, affixed the roof deck, waterproofed and shingled.

Work is scheduled for the next several weekends with the entire project completed, carpeted, decorated, landscaped and ready for an occupancy inspection by Sunday evening, Oct 13.

More than 1,200 volunteers—many of them skilled in the building trades—had registered to work on the project. They served in about 50 departments from food preparation to first aid to plumbing.

The Shelburne Falls and Greenfield congregations will share the 4,058 square-foot Kingdom Hall, situated on a 2 ½-acre site at 290 Shelburne Road. The facility will include a main auditorium, a library, a meeting room, a kitchen, bathrooms and a coatroom.

According to Robert P. Nicoll of Worthington, news service coordinator for the project, the project is valued at about $1 million but about half that is volunteer labor, thus keeping the cost down.

Kingdom Halls are education centers, he explained, with no stained glass or religious imagery. "They are well-light, comfortable places where we can come to learn about the Bible and how to apply it as individuals and families and deal with a very complex world," he said.

The local congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses provides volunteer support from its members providing general labor, cleaning, well-prepared hot meals, shuttle-bus service to and from prearranged off-site parking lots, and when needed, housing, he said. "The surprise is that all of these qualified tradesmen and other workers volunteer their time and equipment. They pay for their own travel and expenses just to come and work together in a spirit of cooperation and friendliness. This allows the local congregation to afford a beautiful structure without placing an expensive burden on its members."

Many of these volunteer workers are licensed professionals in their respective fields. Others have labored in the building trades for years. The remainder of the volunteers—men and women of all ages--have undergone extensive training and work under the careful oversight of these experienced tradesmen.

Ever since the first quickly built Kingdom Hall was erected in New England in 1982, Jehovah's Witnesses across the region, the country and now the world, construct their places of worship in the same highly efficient manner. They accomplish in a few weekends what would take most commercial construction companies many months to complete.

The new Greenfield Kingdom Hall will be "extremely energy efficient," said Nicoll, who has worked on 15-20 of these "quick build" projects in Massachusetts since 1989. "This Kingdom Hall project is the first here in Massachusetts where we are installing a geothermal heating/cooling system under what is now the parking lot. We will also be installing photovoltaic solar panels on the roof of the Kingdom Hall, another first for us."

The geothermal portion of the project was completed in August so the parking lot could be installed over it.

Alec J. Demos, of Lee, project development overseer, said volunteers often learn new skills on the building projects. They are trained, and "that's how you continually build your crews even stronger."

Michael Shiel, of Leominster, construction support overseer, commented on the "wonderful spirit" at the building site. "They are doing this for God," he said of the volunteers. "They want to have a place of worship here in Greenfield to come and worship Jehovah."

According to the Jehovah's Witnesses website, Jehovah is a rendering of God's name in English that has been used for centuries. While many scholars prefer the spelling "Yahweh," Jehovah is the form of the name that is most widely recognized.

Emily M. Russo, 18, of Brimfield, volunteered to help fabricate ductwork for the Kingdom Hall. A member of a Worcester congregation, she said she learned about HVAC work on this build. But it was serving God that was most important to her.

"Because of my beliefs, it's important to put God first," she said.

"Jehovah's Witnesses are a very tight-knit, family-oriented community that bases its beliefs and the way we live our lives on the Bible to help live in a very difficult world," Nicoll said, noting that love of God, gained in an accurate understanding of what the Bible teaches, draws people together.

There are 63 active members in the Shelburne Falls congregation and 99 in Greenfield. The new Kingdom Hall will have seating capacity for 120 with a maximum occupancy of 150.

The project is being overseen by the Witnesses' Massachusetts Regional Building Committee #2, one of three such groups in the commonwealth that coordinate the construction and renovation of Kingdom Halls throughout Massachusetts. Currently there are more than 135 such regional work committees nationwide with an average of 1,300 volunteers each.

Stanley W. Rose of Spencer has participated in more than 100 Kingdom Hall quick-build and remodeling projects since 1983. A professional carpenter who served as construction overseer in Greenfield, he said he is involved because: "It's the right thing to do. I love it because of who we're doing it for—Jehovah and our brothers and sisters."

Robert P. Nicoll of Worthington stands in front of the construction site of the new Kingdom Hall for the Greenfield and Shelburne Falls congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses in Greenfield. Work was done by volunteers to construct the 4,058 square-foot Kingdom Hall.

Charlie C. Kenyon of Montgomery wears a hard hat on the construction site of the new Kingdom Hall for the Greenfield and Shelburne Falls congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses in Greenfield.

Work continues on the interior of the 4,058 square foot Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses in Greenfield.

Photo by Cori Urban

Construction gets underway on a new Kingdom Hall in Greenfield.

Photo by David Ryan

Jehovah’s Witnesses quick to break ground

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/News/Local/2013-09-20/article-3398906/Jehovah%26rsquo%3Bs-Witnesses-quick-to-break-ground/1

September 20, 2013

Within a day of council approving their new building development permit, Prince Albert Jehovah's Witnesses broke ground on their new Kingdom Hall worship centre.

It's been a long time coming, elders Simon Squire and Dale Zimmerman explained, noting that the congregation of more than 200 decided about eight years ago that they would move out of their current Kingdom Hall, at 683 Seventh St. E.

The new building, at 4350 Second Ave. W., will be more modern than their current building, built in 1976, and will have more parking -- "something we sorely lack right now," Zimmerman said.

The new building's 5,000 square feet will be an upgrade from their current building's 4,000 -- an increase that will accommodate their growing membership.

The original floor plan put forward last year didn't accommodate for the worship centre's Cree language programming, Squire said, adding that he's thankful the building committee faced delays, allowing time for a new plan to go through.

The new floor plan, which includes a 45-seat room to accommodate a Cree language service in a separate room from the main 148-seat worship space, "is a much better solution to our needs than what we were going to build," he said.

Jehovah's Witnesses have a long history in the Prince Albert area, dating back to the 1950s, when the first Kingdom Hall was built in the city's west flat area.

Their current east hill area building was constructed in 1976, which now accommodates both the east and west congregations, with their original building sold in 2009.

About eight years ago, the regional building committee came to a crossroads with their east hill area building. They would either conduct extensive renovations or rebuild elsewhere.

After deciding on the new building option, years passed and plans changed, with the committee purchasing the long-vacant lot at 4350 Second Ave. W. about three years ago.

In 2010, the Canadian branch of Jehovah's Witnesses invited four Prince Albert-area Cree speakers to translate the Bible into their native language, sparking discussion in the area about expanding local services.

"That got us thinking about the number of Cree speakers in our local area," Zimmerman said.

"We did some research, and in Canada, one of the largest populations of Cree-speaking people is in Saskatchewan, and in Saskatchewan one of the largest populations of Cree-speaking people is Prince Albert."

Not counting the surrounding reserves, Prince Albert houses 8,000 Cree language speakers -- a population whose religious needs will be met with the new Kingdom Hall, which should first open its doors for a service late next year.

They anticipate a positive turnout, with between 35 and 40 Cree-speaking people showing up for last year's Memorial of Christ's Death event.

"It's true that many of the people who speak Cree also speak English in our area, but what really reaches people's hearts is their own language -- their first language," Zimmerman said.

"A relationship with God is a very personal thing, so it's best built on their first language."

Now that the ground has broken for the new Kingdom Hall, things are expected to progress quickly.

Designed and built entirely by volunteers, using funds donated by Jehovah's Witnesses, about a dozen people were seen on-site this week, preparing the site for construction.

By late next summer or early autumn, hundreds of Jehovah's Witnesses from across the province will be on-site, constructing the building from the ground up within a few weeks.

An open house will accompany the building's completion, at which time local Jehovah's Witnesses will perform their most publicly visible activity in order to drum up interest -- door-knocking.

"We found that the Bible's advice is very practical and useful and adds to the quality of a person's life, and we'd like to share that with others," Zimmerman said.

Reiterating the commonly heard phrase "God is love," Squire asked, "How does he demonstrate that love? It's by giving us practical advice."

Following the principle of loving thy neighbour, he said, "If we have something that will help them, we'll share it."

http://www.recorder.com/news/8574198-95/jehovahs-witnesses-kingdom-hall-to-be-finished-by-october-12

Jehovah's Witnesses' Kingdom Hall to be finished by October 12.

·        
Jehovah's Witnesses volunteers put up the framing for a new Kingdom Hall on Shelburne Road Thursday.

Friday, September 20, 2013 
(Published in print: Saturday, September 21, 2013)

CORRECTION: The completion date for the volunteer construction of a new Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses in Greenfield was incorrectly inferred in a headline on the front page of Saturday's Recorder. The project is expected to be completed Oct. 12.

GREENFIELD — More than 100 volunteers are set to work all weekend, and by Sunday night, a new place of worship will stand where there was nothing but a concrete slab a week ago.

On Thursday morning, 110 volunteers with the Jehovah's Witnesses Regional Building Committee gathered on the former site of Annie's Auctions on Shelburne Road. They started at 8 a.m. with a concrete slab, and by the time they left for the day, after sundown, exterior walls were in place, and a pile of trusses were ready to go on top.

When it's done, it will serve as a meeting place and educational center for the Shelburne Falls and Greenfield congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses. Though the two groups will meet separately, they're coming together with Witnesses from all over New England to build the new Kingdom Hall.

The plan is to have the building up and roof in place by the time the volunteers leave Sunday. If the project stays on schedule, it will be ready for inspection Oct. 12.

Allowing just four weeks to go from that first timber to the last carpet tack may seem ambitious, but it's actually a lot of time for a Kingdom Hall project.

"We used to do the whole project in a weekend," said Rob Nicoll, spokesman for the Massachusetts 2nd Region Building Committee. "Some groups still put them up in three days."

Nicoll said as many as 1,200 volunteers will be involved in the project. Some will wield hammers and paintbrushes, others will plumb and wire the building, and several more will serve as the support crew, in the kitchen, first aid tent or supply shack.

Thursday's 11-hour work day was a flurry of activity.

"It may look like a bunch of ants on an anthill, but every one of them has a purpose," said Grant Garcia, one of five members of the committee who are overseeing construction.

"It's a really uplifting experience to work with such willing volunteers here," he continued.

30-year tradition

Some of those volunteers have been at it for more than 30 years.

"We have some guys here today that were on the first New England Kingdom Hall project, in 1982 in Enosburgh, Vt.," one of the early, one-weekend builds, said Garcia. "They built that one during a snowstorm."

Volunteer building projects aren't just a way to keep costs low.

"We see this as a worship service, too," Garcia explained.

Though they enjoy coming together for building projects, the volunteers are eager to get back to their everyday duties.

"Every one of us is a minister," said Nicoll. When they're not working on a project or coming together for Sunday talks and other services, the Witnesses are out going door to door, spreading the good word.

Though Witnesses have been coming together to put up Kingdom Halls in New England for more than 30 years, and complete about 4,000 such projects annually worldwide, some things are new to them.

The Greenfield Kingdom Hall will be the first New England project to incorporate solar electricity and a geothermal heating and cooling system.

The membership of the Witnesses represents a wide skill-set, which comes in handy on building projects. Several are licensed contractors and professional tradesmen, gladly donating their expertise and even equipment like excavators to help the project come in on-time and under-budget.

The more experienced volunteers also help show the beginners the ropes, and there is plenty of need for able bodies and helping hands.

The food services area seemed equipped to feed a small army. Several beige tents provided cover for everything from food preparation to dishwashing, and a large trailer sported all the necessary appliances in a two-sided rolling kitchen.

While work crews come and go as the need for one trade replaces another, workers need to eat.

The kitchen crew will feed framers and roofers this weekend, heating workers and electricians next week, and drywall and interior workers the following week.

That's when Nicoll will pick up his tools.

"I'm a mudder," he said. He's been a member of the drywall crew for several other Kingdom Hall projects.

Nicoll said the Kingdom Hall project has gotten a lot of attention since site preparation work began in August, so much so that he planned to return with an armload of brochures on the project to hand out.

Once the work is done, the curious are invited to take a look at the finished project, and hear more about the Jehovah's Witnesses. The lot is visible from the Mohawk Trail, though the entrance will be away from the thoroughfare, at 290 Shelburne Road.

 

 

Jehovah's Witness teen loses appeal over life-saving transfusion

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/jehovahs-witness-teen-loses-appeal-over-lifesaving-transfusion-20130927-2uib6.html

A 17 year-old Jehovah's Witness who was fighting a court order to have a life-saving blood transfusion has lost an appeal just four months shy of his 18th birthday.

The religious teenager, who is being treated for Hodgkin's Lymphoma at The Sydney Children's Hospital, had threatened to rip the IV needle from his arm and said it would be akin to rape if he was given a blood transfusion while under anaesthetic.

Preserving life is at its highest with respect to children.

A Supreme Court judge ruled in April that the boy, known as X for legal reasons, had to have the transfusion but his family appealed it, arguing that he was "highly intelligent" and his maturity and competency should be enough to override the court's power.

Justice John Basten rejected the appeal on Friday morning but said the order would be removed when X turned 18 in January, allowing him to make the potentially life-or-death decision for himself.

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is doctor, Professor Glenn Marshall, told the court earlier this year that X had an 80 per cent chance of dying from anaemia if he didn't have the transfusion.

"The interest of the state is in keeping him alive until that time, after which he will be free to make his own decisions as to medical treatment," Justice Basten said in his judgement.

"The interest of the state in preserving life is at its highest with respect to children and young persons who are inherently vulnerable, in varying degrees."

X has had three unsuccessful rounds of chemotherapy at a lower dose than Professor Marshall advised.

After some initial success, the cancer in his lymph nodes spread to his lungs and spleen in November last year.

X was advised to have more intense chemotherapy but, because that treatment was likely to lead to a blood transfusion, he and his parents refused.

On a whiteboard in his hospital room, X's father wrote a scripture reference to abstaining from blood.

Barrister David Bennett, QC, argued during the appeal that a child was entitled to a degree of decision making "reflective of their evolving maturity".

He referred to several overseas cases of younger Jehovah's Witnesses being allowed to refuse blood.

In most cases, the young person died like 15-year-old Joshua McAuley, who refused a blood transfusion following a car crash in England's West Midlands in 2010.

The Children's Hospital said the boy had a "cocooned upbringing" and his family had "little exposure to challenges of their beliefs from outsiders" so what they may have thought was best was not necessarily correct.

It was no clear to the appeal judges whether X might die before his 18th birthday but Justice Basten's judgement said that the state's interest was not satisfied "merely by keeping the applicant alive until his 18th birthday if the appropriate treatment to allow the continuation of his life thereafter should be given now".

The boy and his family were not in court for the decision.

Salgan de mi propiedad. Me mudé aquí para alejarme de la gente como ustedes/Man Accused Of Shooting At Jehovah’s Witnesses Gets Court Date

http://5newsonline.com/2013/09/29/centerton-man-fires-shots-at-jehovahs-witnesses/

 

El hombre acusado de disparar a los testigos de Jehová ya tiene fecha para juicio

 

September 29, 2013,

Centerton police arrested a man accused of firing 19 rounds at a group of Jehovah's Witnesses on Saturday (Sept. 28). John Baldwin, 35, was released the next day from the Benton County Jail on a $50,000 bond.

He is set to be arraigned Nov. 4 at 8 a.m. before Benton County Circuit Judge Robin Green. At arraignments, suspects enter a plea after hearing the formal charges that have been filed against them.

According to a probable cause affidavit, three Jehovah's Witnesses approached Baldwin in his front yard at Rainbow Farm Road, and Baldwin told them, "Get your (explicit) off my property. I moved out here to get away from people like you."

 

The report states the Jehovah's Witnesses apologized, and as they were getting in their car one of them heard, "Get me my 9."

Baldwin admitted to firing a gun at three Jehovah's Witnesses when they drove away from his house, according to the report.

Baldwin was booked into Benton County Jail and faces a felony charge of aggravated assault.

Several of Baldwin's neighbors said he moved to the neighborhood less than a month ago.

Kristi Tidwell who lives nearby said she was home when police arrived at her neighbor's home.

"My husband and I were working around the house. We had the blinds open in the back. We saw probably seven or eight cop cars pulling in there," Tidwell said. "It seems like there is no reason to do anything like that. If they left peaceably, why not leave them alone."

 

Officers recovered 13 shell casings from the sidewalk in front of Baldwin's house and a Springfield XDM-9.

5NEWS spoke to some members of the Kingdom Hall Jehovah's Witnesses Church in Bentonville who visit Baldwin's neighborhood. They declined to go on camera and said they didn't want to make the situation worse. They said they have a no-contact list for residents who don't want to be visited.

 

 

 

 

Viola libertad de religión edil de Cuayuca a Testigos de Jehová: CDHE

http://e-consulta.com/nota/2013-08-11/sociedad/viola-libertad-de-religion-edil-de-cuayuca-testigos-de-jehova-cdhe

 

Desde abril del año pasado solicitaron al alcalde permiso para construir un templo pero se ha negado a contestar de forma oficial

 

 

 

El edil de Cuayuca de Andrade, Álvaro Cabrera Alonso, ha negado a miembros de la comunidad religiosa de los testigos de Jehová el permiso de construcción de un templo solicitado desde abril del 2012, bajo el argumento de "no convenir a sus intereses y porque la gente del pueblo no estaba de acuerdo".

Por ello, la Comisión de Derechos Humanos del Estado (CDHE) de Puebla emitió la recomendación 17/2013, bajo el expediente 18401/012-1, en el que se solicita al Congreso del estado que exhorte al presidente municipal para que se abstenga de realizar actos u omisiones en agravio de su libertad de religión.

Asimismo se inicien procesos de investigación en contra del alcalde, su director de obras y su secretario general por dilatar los procesos.

Los agraviados señalaron que el 17 de abril del año pasado pidieron un permiso para la construcción de un templo, pero nunca recibieron una contestación formal a su petición.

Mediante un oficio sin número, del 25 de abril de 2012, el director de Obras Públicas requirió́ a los quejosos el proyecto técnico de la construcción para el cual requerían el permiso o licencia, y en respuesta presentaron los documentos, aunque no hubo respuesta.

El 15 de mayo de 2012, nuevamente dirigieron una petición al presidente municipal  para que otorgara una respuesta por escrito respecto del trámite solicitado, sin que ello ocurriera.

A fin de investigar los hechos, el 31 de octubre de 2012, un visitador adjunto a la CDHE acudió a la Presidencia Municipal de Cuayuca de Andrade –en la Mixteca de Puebla- y solicitó de manera verbal un informe sin que se obtuviera respuesta.

Ante ello la Comisión envió por correo postal los oficios PVG/1498/2012, de 27 de noviembre de 2012 y PVG/3/23/2013, de 15 de enero de 2013, en los que se requirió́ al presidente municipal un informe respecto a los hechos que originaron la inconformidad, haciendo caso omiso, a pesar de indicarse que de no dar respuesta se tendrían por ciertos los señalamientos.

Aún en junio de 2013 el secretario general de ese municipio, Óscar Hernández Sánchez, informó a la CDHE que ya se había enviado por correo el informe a la ciudad de Puebla, sin embargo al solicitarle copia de los acuses de recibo no fueron proporcionados, por lo que se estima que también se condujo con falsedad ante la Comisión.

Debido a ello se acreditó una violación a la libertad de religión de los vecinos de ese municipio así como a su derecho de petición de un trámite a las autoridades municipales, del cual nunca recibieron contestación de rechazo o aceptación.

Por esto se emitió la recomendación dirigida al alcalde para que emita una contestación en tanto que la contraloría municipal inicie una investigación contra el munícipe y el director de obras, así como en contra del secretario general por falsear declaraciones ante el organismo.

Al tiempo que el expediente fue remitido por igual al Congreso de Puebla.

 

Persiste violación a libertad de culto

 

http://www.elmundodetehuacan.com/noticias/local/1139139-TLP1N2

Persiste violación a libertad de culto

 

Gerardo Reyes, miembro Amnistía Internacional en Tehuacán

 

María Rojas Tobón
El Mundo de Tehuacán

Persisten violaciones a los derechos humanos por diferencias religiosas, hace falta trabajar más en el respeto a la libertad de culto, sobre todo en comunidades y localidades, declaró Gerardo Reyes, miembro Amnistía Internacional en Tehuacán, en donde se tuvo una denuncia por parte de miembros de los Testigos de Jehová.
La queja llegó a la agrupación hace alrededor de tres años, siendo la única que han registrado, la cual fue contra una institución educativa que reprobó en Civismo a algunos estudiantes por no cantar el Himno Nacional, quienes eran integrantes de los Testigos de Jehová, por ello se giró la recomendación pertinente.
Después de esto la AI no ha recibido más casos, aunque no descartó su existencia en las localidades y comunidades de la región donde las ideologías son cerradas, mostrando intolerancia contra los miembros de religiones protestantes.
Son aquellos creyentes que andan de puerta en puerta los que se exponen más a la falta del respecto a la libertad de culto, aunque existen otras congregaciones que también son víctimas de agresiones.
En ese sentido, dijo que la ciudad ha mejorado en la aceptación de la pluralidad de creencias, pues se puede observar un incremento de éstas en Tehuacán, por lo que es necesario seguir trabajando para que las garantías de las personas que profesan una religión diferente tengan el mismo trato que el resto de la población.

 

 

 

 

Liberación de capo mexicano reabre muchas heridas

http://www.eldiariodecoahuila.com.mx/notas/2013/8/17/liberacion-capo-mexicano-reabre-muchas-heridas-381932.asp

 

Liberación de capo mexicano reabre muchas heridas

Una mañana soleada de invierno en 1984, dos jóvenes parejas estadounidenses vistiendo su mejor ropa de domingo iban de puerta en puerta en la ciudad mexicana de Guadalajara dando a conocer su fe como testigos de Jehová. Pocas horas después desaparecieron.

MEXICO (AP) —

El mes siguiente, un periodista estadounidense salió con un amigo al final de un sabático de un año que se había tomado para escribir una novela de misterio. Los dos hombres también desaparecieron.

A los 10 días, Enrique "Kiki" Camarena, agente antidrogas estadounidense, también fue secuestrado, torturado y asesinado por el cártel de las drogas más poderoso de México, lo que provocó uno de los peores episodios de tensión entre Estados Unidos y México en décadas recientes. Mientras agentes de la DEA buscaban a los asesinos de Camarena, algunos testigos les dijeron que el cártel había confundido a los otros seis estadounidenses con agentes encubiertos y los había matado, al igual que a Camarena.

Rafael Caro Quintero, líder del cártel, fue liberado de prisión este mes, 12 años antes de cumplir su sentencia luego que un tribunal de apelaciones revocó su sentencia por tres de los asesinatos. Para Estados Unidos y México, la liberación, que ocurrió sin información previa y antes del amanecer, ha desatado un gran esfuerzo por devolverlo a prisión. Para los familiares de los seis estadounidenses asesinados antes que Camarena, la decisión ha revivido amargos recuerdos de la brutalidad que en su momento fue el catalizador de la era moderna del narcotráfico en México.

"Nunca imaginé que esto sucediera, que Caro Quintero estuviera en liberad a los 60 años", dijo Eve, viuda del periodista John Clay Walker y que ahora vive en Atlanta. "Probablemente no ha habido un día en los últimos 30 años que no haya echado de menos a mi esposo y que no haya deseado que estuviera aquí para ver crecer a las niñas".

"Fue duro criarlas sola, pero tenía el consuelo de saber que el responsable estaba en prisión y de que seguiría ahí".

El asesinato sistemático de siete estadounidenses en tres meses se destaca en el largo y sangriento historial del esfuerzo respaldado por Estados Unidos para aplastar el narcotráfico en México. Decenas de miles de mexicanos han muerto y decenas de estadounidenses han sido asesinados en hechos violentos vinculados con los cárteles, con frecuencia debido a sus relaciones con personas vinculadas con el narcotráfico. Pero asesinar a agentes federales de Estados Unidos sigue siendo tabú para la mayoría del crimen organizado en México, al igual que la victimización deliberada de estadounidenses sin vínculos con la guerra contra el narcotráfico.

Walker tenía 37 años cuando, de acuerdo con testigos, él y su amigo Alberto Radelat, un dentista de Fort Worth, Texas, entraron a "The Lobster", una lujosa marisquería de Guadalajara donde Caro Quintero y su grupo celebraban una fiesta privada. Otros han dicho que Walker y Radelat fueron secuestrados en la calle por hombres del capo mientras el cártel buscaba ansiosamente a los agentes de la DEA responsables de una agresiva ofensiva contra grandes operaciones de cultivo y tráfico de marihuana.

Los cuerpos torturados de Walker y Radelat fueron encontrados poco más de cinco meses después en un parque en las afueras de Guadalajara. Eve, la esposa de Walker, ayudó a identificar los cadáveres. Sus hijas, Keely y Lannie, cursaban la escuela primaria en Minneapolis.

Bajo la fuerte presión de Estados Unidos, Caro Quintero fue arrestado junto con los otros dos jefes del cártel de Guadalajara, lo que dividió la monolítica organización criminal en varios grupos más pequeños, entre ellos el Cártel de Sinaloa, que ha llegado a dominar el narcotráfico mexicano a lo largo de la costa del Pacífico y la mayor parte del resto del país.

Caro Quintero fue sentenciado a 40 años de prisión por los asesinatos de Camarena, Walker y Radelat, entre otros delitos.

Sin embargo, el 7 de agosto, un tribunal de apelaciones de tres jueces federales en el estado occidental de Jalisco falló que Caro Quintero debió ser juzgado en un tribunal estatal, no en uno federal, y anuló la sentencia. Estados Unidos ha emitido una nueva orden de arresto contra Caro Quintero, y el tribunal federal de México afirma que está tratando de encontrarlo. Los dos gobiernos aseguran estar en desacuerdo con la decisión del tribunal y algunos funcionarios de Estados Unidos creen que la corrupción es una explicación probable para un fallo que de otra forma sería inexplicable.

"Es como echarle sal a una herida", dijo Keely Walker sobre la liberación de Caro Quintero. "Yo pensé que todo se había acabado, que estaría en prisión".

Walker fue un infante de la Marina estadounidense herido dos veces en Vietnam por minas terrestres que luego trabajó como periodista antes de trasladarse con su familia a México para escribir su libro en un lugar donde la pensión le rindiera más. Walker y su esposa se hicieron amigos de Radelat, un dentista que planeaba tomar clases en la principal universidad de Guadalajara.

Católico de nacimiento, Benjamín Mascarenas se convirtió en testigo de Jehová y conoció a su esposa Pat en una actividad de la Iglesia. Los dos trabajaron como mozos de limpieza en Reno, Nevada, antes de mudarse a Guadalajara, donde cuidaban la casa a un conocido acaudalado. Dennis y Rose Carlson se mudaron de Redding, California, para apoyar un esfuerzo evangelizador de su Iglesia en México.

Los cuerpos de las dos parejas nunca fueron hallados.

Dos oficiales de la policía estatal dijeron que habían ayudado a secuestrar y matar a las dos parejas por órdenes de Caro Quintero y del capo Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo, de acuerdo con el agente Héctor Berrellez, quien dirigió la operación con sede en Los Angeles que fue tras quienes participaron en el asesinato de Camarena.

Los testigos de Jehová tocaron sin saber a la puerta de Fonseca Carrillo mientras evangelizaban el 2 de diciembre de 1984, dijo Berrellez. Creyendo que eran agentes encubiertos, los capos hicieron que sus hombres los capturaran y los mataran, agregó Berrellez.

Algunos veteranos de la DEA se cuestionan esa teoría. James Kuykendall, quien estuvo a cargo de la oficina de la DEA en Guadalajara, le dijo a The Associated Press que nunca ha visto pruebas que apoyen esa versión.

Pero muchos familiares de las parejas creen en la versión de los policías involucrados.

"Tengo su foto aquí conmigo", dijo Mercy, de 86 años y madre de Benjamín Mascarenas. "Lo miro y pienso qué hermoso sería que estuvieran vivos. El era una persona muy dulce y se querían mucho".

Dennis Carlson era "otro buen tipo" dedicado a predicar su fe, recordó su hermano Stanley, de 58 años y banquero hipotecario semi retirado.

"Tocaron en la puerta equivocada y eso hizo que los secuestraran a los cuatro", dijo Carlson. "Me hace sentir mal que este hombre ande libre por ahí, cuando de hecho, es responsable".

Carlson dijo que él y su familia rara vez hablan de los asesinatos y que dependen de su fe para hacer frente al dolor.

"No buscamos ningún tipo de reivindicación o venganza, nada de esa naturaleza, porque no nos corresponde", afirmó. "Creemos que hay un mejor mundo que espera a la gente de fe".

 

 

Dan oportunidad a Testigos de Jehová

http://www.latarde.com.mx/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1527:2013-09-07-12-29-28&catid=44:reynosa&Itemid=114

 

* Para que cursen su educación básica en otra primaria

* Fueron rechazado en la escuela Ana Teresa Luebbert de Jarachina Norte

 

Los tres alumnos que no fueron aceptados en la primaria Ana Teresa Luebbert por ser testigos de jehová fueron reubicados a otra escuela para que continúen con sus estudios de nivel básico, así lo informó Luis Fernando Martínez Castro, delegado regional de la Comisión de Derechos Humanos del Estado de Tamaulipas (CODHET).
“Nosotros sólo recibimos el caso para brindar la asesoría y se gestionó un arreglo conciliatorio, siempre velando en un principio por el interés del menor, gestionamos ante las autoridades educativas de servicios regionales y se llegó a un acuerdo de la incorporación de los niños a otra escuela”, expresó.
Agregó que a la escuela que fueron reubicados es cercana a su domicilio  y con el horario que ellos elijieron.
El delegado regional exhorto a las autoridades educativas que cumplan con lo que marca los principios de la carta universal de los derechos humanos de ahí  parten todas las normas que se tiene que respetar sin distinción de nacionalidad, religión y sexo. (Por Dolores Cerda / dolores.cerda@latarde.com.mx)

Habrá mayor difusión a derechos humanos
La subsecretaria de Derechos Humanos de la Secretaría General de Gobierno del Estado, Mariana Rodríguez Mier y Terán, informó que entre las acciones que instruyó el gobernador del estado es dar difusión y capacitación en materia de derechos humanos no sólo a los servidores públicos sino también al público en general, sobre todo a los jóvenes.
El foro de expresión estudiantil “Jóvenes Fuertes” tiene el interés de llegar a cada uno de los municipio del estado con pláticas sobre los derechos de mayor impacto en la juventud, el foro inició en Victoria, posteriormente en Reynosa y se continuará en Tampico.
“Este foro responde al exhorto que la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos a realizado en todo el país,  para difundir y trabajar con los jóvenes en temas que tienen mayor impacto en el noviazgo como violencia familiar, redes sociales, diversidad sexual y trata de personas”, expresó.
Destacó que los foros no es una platica a los jóvenes de cómo prevenir sus derechos, si no que va más haya al instalar un comité de derechos humanos en las escuela, para dar seguimiento a cada una de las propuestas, pero sobre todo que tengan respeto hacia ellos mismos y los demás.
“Con los foros lo que tratamos es lograr hacer mejores personas y que los chavos estén más consientes de hacer un cambio cultura, que es lo que se requiere”, dijo.
La intención de la secretaria general de Gobierno del Estado es llegar a todos los planteles con los foros de expresión estudiantil. (Por Dolores Cerda / dolores.cerda@latarde.com.mx)