Voice of the Martyrs, 28th November 2023
On Feb. 13, 2017, a group of men on motorbikes and in SUVs abducted Pastor Raymond Koh. His wife, Susanna, and their children have not heard from him since, though Susanna has continued to seek information from the police and Malaysia’s justice system. Susanna filed a legal case requesting new inquiries into her husband’s disappearance, which she believes was connected to a 2011 confrontation with the Islamic religious police.
The judge hearing the case visited the scene of the abduction on Nov. 6 and 7 to learn more about the situation. Pray this investigation will reveal the truth of what happened, that justice will be done for Pastor Raymond Koh, and that developments will bring fresh encouragement to Susanna and the Koh family.
Malaysia has three major ethnicities: Malay (60 percent), Chinese (30 percent) and native tribes. The Malays are the most powerful group in the country, and being Muslim is considered an important part of their identity. Most Christians are from the tribal and Chinese people groups, and most churches experience relative freedom if they do not evangelize the Malays.
The government punishes Christian converts and strictly opposes outreach and evangelism among the Malay people. Christians have difficulty acquiring building permits for new churches. Many churches work in other languages but not in Malay. No Malay churches meet openly. Christian converts who are caught are confined to so-called re-education camps using torture and propaganda to force them to return to Islam. Many indigenous people have come to Christ in eastern Malaysia.