Nepali missionary, falsely accused of murder, released after 9 years in prison
Some good news on the missionary front from Nepal: after serving 9 years in a Nepali prison, Manja Tamang, a Gospel for Asia native missionary, has been released! Manja was sent to prison in 2000 after being falsely accused of murder.
Here’s some of his story, from the Gospel for Asia website:
Manja’s saga began one day as he was out sharing the Gospel. As he walked along a river path, he saw a dead body and immediately contacted the police.
An anti-Christian extremist group who had opposed Manja’s ministry seized the opportunity to stop his work. They arranged for several false witnesses to testify against him, “framing” him for the murder. Manja was arrested, charged with the crime that he did not commit and beaten to near death.
Even though the widow of the deceased man testified to Manja’s innocence, the missionary was sentenced to 20 years in prison. His case was appealed all the way to the Nepali Supreme Court, where, citing the “evidence,” it was upheld.
According to the article, persecution of this sort was not uncommon under the Hindu government of the time. The political situation in Nepal is more open now and Christians have more freedom to worship openly, although challenges and dangers still remain.
It’s a cause for thanksgiving and rejoicing, and certainly the answer to many long years of prayer from around the world. Gospel for Asia has been tracking Manja’s case for years; to see the full story as it unfolded over the last decade, scroll to the bottom of the Gospel for Asia article and look through the list of archived stories, videos, and other information about Manja.
