Within the BUV, 56 (16%) of our church congregations originate from different ethnic groups within Myanmar.  These churches are supporting both their local congregation members, and families and communities back in Myanmar.  

In 2023, the BUV had a focus on Myanmar and ran several initiatives including our Stand with Myanmar campaign incorporating Myanmar Sunday, our national advocacy event CONVERGE and the BWAA “We must not forget Myanmar” postcard campaign, which detailed three key asks to the Australian government.

All efforts were undergirded in prayer, in addition to our National Ecumenical Prayer for Peace in Myanmar.

The impact from our Baptist campaigns focussing on Myanmar in 2023 has been far reaching with the positive results being felt both in Australia and Myanmar.

The advocacy effort

Throughout 2023, we asked Victorian Baptists to advocate on behalf of the people of Myanmar in many ways – on several occasions we provided several templates for letters to your local member of parliament to plead for the release of certain people held captive or for Australia to do something to end Myanmar’s violence.

In exciting news, and directly because of your involvement and our combined advocacy in these initiatives, the first and most important ask from Baptist World Aid’s postcard campaign and our CONVERGE advocacy campaign has been granted by the Australian Government!  

The Foreign Minister’s office announced on 1 February 2024, that Australia will impose new and immediate sanctions on the financial institutions that Myanmar’s tyrannical military junta use to fund their operations—further squeezing the junta’s capacity to continue their illegitimate administration. Please join us in praying that this will have some effect in moving the country towards a lasting peace, and a democratically elected government.

We’re grateful for this positive step forward, however there is still more to be done for our brothers and sisters in Myanmar and the Victorian Baptists, and indeed throughout Australia, will have the opportunity to continue to advocate throughout 2024 as we continue our campaigns. 

 The fundraising effort

The BUV and Baptist Mission Australia partnered together in 2023 in the Stand with Myanmar fundraising campaign and because of the incredible generosity of Baptist congregation members has now raised over $120,000 through individual donations and church offerings.  These funds have been disbursed to three projects in different ethnic areas of Myanmar to make life changing differences.

 Thai Border and Myanmar

Appeal funds have enabled:

• Humanitarian relief to displaced Karen people – including food, medicine, clean water and temporary shelter
• Support to displaced students to access education
• Food relief for displaced students
• Wage and food support for more than 40 Karen teachers
• Leadership training and theological education for young Karen leaders

Indian Border:

Appeal funds have enabled:

• Humanitarian relief to displaced Chin and other people from Myanmar
• Purchase of medical supplies for patients who cannot afford to get dialysis medications in refugee camps and other general medical supplies for IDPs in various camps in the Indian border region.
• Construction/repairs of school buildings for internally displaced people
• Purchase and supply of textbooks, stationery and educational tools and teaching aids for IDPs
• Support to hire teachers for children in IDP camps.
• Purchase of water storage tanks to provide clean water supplies to IDPs.
• Food support
• Trauma training for pastors [December 2023] – attended by more than 45 pastors from Myanmar and Manipur, with specialist training for pastors to better support people living with trauma

Kachin State:

Appeal funds have enabled:

• Support for the development and implementation of child protection training, to ensure the safety of displaced people across IDP camps in Kachin State.

In 2024, The Stand with Myanmar campaign will be a national Baptist initiative brought to you by state associations, Baptist Mission Australia and Baptist World Aid Australia.