REPORT ON GLOBAL FIELD

LIST OF PEOPLE GROUPS LESS EVANGELISED IN ASIA

1. AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan is one of the least reached countries in the world. There are 48,000 mosques but not a single church building. Pray for the 70 unreached peoples of this land, especially: Pashtun (approximately half the Afghan population, and politically dominant); Uzbek and Turkmen of the north; Tajik in the north-east; The Hazara (Shi'a Muslims of Mongol descent); The Kuchi nomads in central and western regions (most are Pashto- or Persian-speaking); The Aimaq of the west and the Baluch and Brahui of the south; The Nuristani tribes in the mountains north and east of Kabul (Waigeli 40,000; Kati 100,000; Ashkun 10,000. Some parts of Nuristan were much influenced in the 1990s by Wahhabism, a strict Islamic sect, very hostile to anything Christian); The Sikh, Hindu and Parsee minorities who are mainly traders.

2. ARMENIA
The non-Christians (Muslims, Baha'I, Jewish, non-religious/other).

3. AZERBAIJAN
Most of the Azerbaijani towns and villages have never been evangelized. Homeless and largely unemployed refugees from Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh; The Caucasus peoples (almost all Muslim and unevangelized) Lezgi, Avar and Tsakhur peoples; The Indo-Iranian speaking minorities of Tat, Talysh and Kurds are unreached.

4. BAHRAIN
Muslims indigene; expatriate communities (Iranians, Hindus and Muslims from India and Pakistan , Indian).

5. BANGLADESH
Bengali people (by far the largest unreached people in the world with a global total of over 230 million; the majority live in Bangladesh and India, but large communities live in Britain, USA, etc): Muslims, (The majority follow 'folk' Islam - a blend of indigenous culture and Hinduism, overlaid by a thin blanket of Islam): the Hindus (who feel vulnerable as a religious minority).

The tribal peoples; Non-Christian tribal groups: the animist Mru, the Buddhist Chakma, Mogh and Khyang (several thousand Christians): The Bihari Muslims (who, while being refused Bangladeshi citizenship, are also denied entry to India and Pakistan ): Rohingya Muslims; Young people are strategic the campuses.

6. BHUTAN
The strongly isolationist policies of the government further reinforce the hold of Tantric Buddhism with much that is demonic and occultic. Pray for true spiritual liberation for this land of the Dragon (Druk Yul). Pray for King Wangchuk and his salvation. The Drukpa majority (strongly Buddhist); Nepali (Bhutanese Nepalis).

7. BRUNEI
The Malay majority (Muslim with no known Christians; Witchcraft and materialism are strong); The Chinese (traditional religions of China or secular); Tribal peoples (either converted to Islam and absorbed into the mainstream of national life, or have remained isolated in jungle villages): Iban, Kelabit, Murut, etc.; The expatriate workforce (the Muslim Bangladeshis, the Hindu Indians and Nepalis [the latter making up much of the Brunei army] and the Buddhist Thai are the largest and most needy spiritually).

8. CAMBODIA
The Buddhist majority; The Cham (almost entirely Muslim); the tribal peoples (Mnong, Tampuan, Krung, Kravet and Jarai).

9. CHINA , PEOPLE REPUBLIC OF CHINA
The nearly 60 million Communist Party members (are, by definition, atheists, but ideology is a facade to cover self-seeking opportunism). The armed forces (the protectors of the Marxist state).

The 'lost generation' (young people mobilized as the Cultural Revolution Red Guards). Those still bound by the idolatrous superstitions of Daoism, Buddhism and the legalism of Confucianism. A new religion, Falun Gong, gained world publicity and shocked the authorities in 1999 with a quiet protest in Beijing - they claim 70m followers in China . Children and young people under 18 number over 500m (It is illegal to teach them religious 'superstitions').

Muslims (almost entirely linked to specific ethnic groups): the indigenous Uygur, Kazak, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Tatar of Xinjiang, the Salar of Qinghai, Dongxiang of Gansu and the Chinese Hui of Ningxia and scattered all over China .

Ethnic Minorities in distinct non-Han ethno-linguistic groups

FUJIAN PROVINCE: Buddhism and Daoism revived: over 20,000 temples illegally built or restored. She (Hmong people related to the Miao); Ami, Bunun and Paiwan (related to the mountain peoples of Taiwan )

GANSU PROVINCE: The Dongxian, Bonan and Enger Yugur (of mixed Mongolian background and strongly Muslim). The Muslim Hui; city of Linxia ; Tibetans (largely Buddhist); Tibetan peoples indigenous to Gansu : the Jone, Saragh Yugur, Zhugqu and Boyu.

GUANGDONG PROVINCE: The Biao Mien and Zaomin Yao in the northern mountains.

GUANGXI ZHUANG AUTONOMOUS REGION: The Yao peoples (in the mountains of Guangxi); Iu Mien peoples: Younuo, Nunu, Changping Iu Mien, Bunuo and Biao Mien.

GUIZHOU PROVINCE: The 20 Miao peoples; 39 peoples indigenous to Guizhou; 4 Yao peoples; 13 Tai peoples (e.g. Bouyei and Cai); The Hmong; Hmu; Shui.

HAINAN PROVINCE: Li are the largest indigenous people; Lingao; Cun; Utsat ( China 's only Malay people and Muslim).

HEILONGJIANG PROVINCE: Indigenous Mongolian and Altaic peoples (shamanistic); Daur: Hezhen, Bogol, Khakas, Kyakala, Olot and Saman.

HUBEI PROVINCE: The Church grew considerably before 1949, but since then growth has not matched that of many other areas. The authorities have maintained a tight control - especially over the cities, so registered churches are relatively few.

HUNAN PROVINCE: Mao's home province (Maoism still strong). Hunan is possibly China 's spiritually hardest Han Chinese population. Changsha ; The Tujia; The Miao peoples; Ghao-Xong; Yao Iu Mien and Wunai

INNER MONGOLIA AUTONOMOUS REGION (NEI MONGOL): Mongolians (Demonic powers in the Lamaism and black magic). Nomadic Evenki and Oroqen along the Russian border.

JIANGXI PROVINCE: The Communist Long March began here. Many parts of the province.

JILIN PROVINCE: Changchun

LIAONING PROVINCE: The Manchu; The Xibe (Altaic-Tungus people).

NINGXIA HUI AUTONOMOUS REGION: The Hui ( descendants of Muslim traders, Mongolians and Chinese).

QINGHAI PROVINCE: The Tibetans (Lamaistic Buddhism); The Tu and Mongour (Lamaistic Buddhists); The Muslim Hui in Xining ; The Muslim Salar and Bonan.

SHAANXI PROVINCE: Shaanxi was the birthplace of Christianity in China . The Nestorians built their first church in Xian in 635. Terrible persecution wiped out this witness.

SHANDONG PROVINCE: Shandong was the birthplace and home of Confucius, whose philosophy and writings have deeply moulded Chinese culture to this day.

Tai'an is near one of China 's most 'holy' mountains, Taishan. This is a major spiritual stronghold on which prayer should be focused.

SHANXI PROVINCE: Datong (major Buddhist centre).

SICHUAN PROVINCE: The Qiang cluster of peoples, the Tibetan groups, Suodi, Mosuo, Enshi Miao, etc; The Nosu (known for their violence, war-making, intimidation and polytheism); Ethnic minorities in Yunnan

TIBET - XIZANG AUTONOMOUS REGION: Political sensitivity and tensions in Tibet make entry and travel difficult for both Chinese and foreign Christians who desire to share the love of Jesus there. Tibetan; Buddhist monks; Han Chinese

XINJIANG UYGUR AUTONOMOUS REGION: Almost all the indigenous peoples are Muslim and unreached. Uygur and Kazakh; Han Chinese

YUNNAN PROVINCE: Yunnan is, ethnically, China 's most complex province.205 peoples (of 208 ethno-linguistic peoples) have no witness (polytheists or Buddhists); The Han Chinese.

10. CHINA HONG KONG
Fear for the future has increased superstition and idolatry. In 1989 the world's largest outdoor image of Buddha was built to 'protect' HK. The spiritual powers behind these must be disarmed to bring release to: The blue-collar industrial workers and the wealthy financiers and businessmen; Immigrants from Mainland China : Many are housed in squalid squatter settlements, or crowded little high-rise flats.

The South Asian population - a legacy of British rule: Most are traders (Sindhi, Panjabi, Gujarati), in the security industry (Nepali Gurkhas) or in menial jobs (Pakistanis). The Muslims, who are largely Hui Chinese, Pakistanis, Malays, Indonesians and Middle Easterners

11. CHINA , MACAU
Many mainlanders working in Macau; those involved in the entertainment industry; the Chinese refugees from Myanmar ; the nominal Catholic Macanese.

12. CHINA, TAIWAN
The Taiwanese working class (linguistically Hoklo/Hokkien); The Hakka communities in the north-eastand south-east; The Muslim community (largely Hui, Malays); The Penghu Islanders

13. GEORGIA
Muslim Abkhazians and Ossetians; Jews; The Chechens and Kish ; Azerbaijanis (Muslim); The Muslim Mingrel and Laz

14. INDIAN
The North India Ganges plains; The great cities: Chennai and Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Varanasi; The least reached mega people groups of India: The Brahmin are the highest and priestly caste in the Hindu world, Other Forward Castes (the Rajput, Mahratta, Jat, Bhumihar, Arora, Samon, etc.); Many Backward Caste peoples (Yadava, Kurmi, Ahir, Gujar, Sonar; Dalit groups (Dhobi and Pasi); The Banjara (Lambadi) - source of world's Roma (Gypsy); Mahars (Buddhism), Banjara; Bhil; Gond; Sindhi (Hindu).

Young people; Children in crisis; Leprosy sufferers (63% of the world's total); The blind (over a quarter of the world's total).

Muslims community; The Sikh community; Buddhist Tibetans; Jains and Parsees

ANDHRA PRADESH: Hyderabad is the key centre for Islam in South India : south Indian Deccani Muslims.

ARUNACHAL PRADESH: The Buddhist peoples of the west adjoining Bhutan ; The animist peoples of the centre and west: Miri, Sulung, Tangam, Tagin, Mishmi and Wanchoo; The newcomer peoples: Deori, Chakma and Hajong.

ASSAM: The Hindu Assamese; Bengalis (Muslims); Assam tea estate workers; The Rajbongsi, Deori, Mising, Mikir and Kachari; Of Assam's 564 pincode areas

BIHAR & JHARKHAND: The forward caste Hindus; backward castes; Muslims; Dalit

DELHI :The millions of slum-dwellers; Ethnic communities: Muslim and Hindu Bengali, Nepali, Balmiki, Sindhi, Panjabi and middle class Hindi. Refugee communities: Tibetans, Iranians, Afghans.

GOA: Nominal Catholics, Hindus or Muslims.

GUJARAT: Saurashtra; Muslims (mostly in the west, north and in Ahmadabad and Baruch District in the east); Dalit groups: Bhangi, Nadia and Pasi; the Dubla; Dhanka and Rathawa. The Parsees (11,000 of India 's 150,000 are in Gujarat) - well-educated, wealthy people of Persian origin who follow the Zoroastrian religion; The Jain religion believers (an offshoot of Hinduism with a strong emphasis on moral purity and non-violence - Ahmadabad is a major Jain centre with over 100 temples).

HARYANA: Jat, Dalit, Sikhs Muslims and Jains.

HIMACHAL PRADESH: The Kullu valley; Kinnaur; Bilaspur; Hamipur; Lahul and Spiti District (largely culturally Tibetan); pincode areas.

JAMMU & KASHMIR: Kashmiri Muslims; Baltis and Gujars (Muslims); Tibetan Buddhists; The high-caste Brahmin Pandits of Kashmir.

KARNATAKA: Almost all of Karnataka's peoples are unreached: The Lingayats (predominantly in the north and staunchly Hindu); The Adi Karnataka (original inhabitants); The Devadasis (girls forced into temple prostitution); The Banjara.

KERALA: Most of the 35 small tribal groups are Hindus, animists or demon worshippers; The Malabar Muslims, or Mappila; higher castes and Dalit groups of Hindus.

MADHYA PRADESH & CHATTISGARH: The tribal peoples (Most practice a Hindu-influenced animism: Witchcraft, Saktism (worship of female energy) and Saivism (worship of Shiva) abound); Gond; Bhopal (state capital)

MAHARASHTRA: Many Hindu caste groups, Muslims and the Mahar (many of whom became Buddhist in the 20 th Century); Tribal groups such as the Gond, Bhil, Korku and Kolam, and many other smaller groups; The Jains and Parsees; the state's 2,018 pincode areas

MANIPUR: The Meitei (Hindu for three centuries and invented the game of polo); Muslims and other immigrant Drug addiction and AIDS victims

MEGHALAYA: Hajong, Rabha Koch, Mikir, Shillong (Hindu, Muslim, animist, etc.).

MIZORAM: The largely Buddhist Chakma and Reang tribal refugees from Tripura.

NAGALAND: Nominal Christians

ORISSA: The forward (high) castes, (Brahmin and Korono); 56% pincode areas; The tribals (Bhathudi, Bhuiya, Bhumiji, Gond, Kolho, Paraja, Santal, Siyal and Koya).

PANJAB: The Panjab is the home state of the Sikhs, and the only state where they are in the majority. Their famed Golden Temple is in Amritsar . A violent guerrilla war waged by Sikh extremists seeking independence led to 25,000 deaths, including Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and much economic disruption

RAJASTHAN: The Bhil, Mina, Garasia and others are Hindu/animist and only now beginning to respond to the gospel; The Meo are Muslim; Higher-caste Hindus: the Rajputs, the Jats and Marwari; Jaipur (the capital)

SIKKIM: Northern part of Sikkim (mostly Buddhists): Bhotia, Tibetans, etc.; neighbouring, but closed, Bhutan and Tibet ; The Lepcha and Bhotia are the indigenous peoples of Sikkim and are largely Buddhist.

TAMIL NADU: Brahmin, Viswakarma, Ahir and Kaikolan; The Tamil-speaking Muslims, the Labbai; The tribals: Tamil-speaking Malayali; The snake- and rat-catching Irular; Badaga

TRIPURA: The Bengali majority; The Buddhist Chakma; Most Tripura are animists, but coercion and bribery has been used to convert them to Hinduism.

UTTAR PRADESH & UTTARANCHAL: Uttar Pradesh is the home of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, but has given no home to the gospel. Millions of pilgrims visit Varanasi , the holy city of Hinduism on the Ganges River , but few find the Living Water that only Jesus can give.

The Brahmin, Ahir, Rajput and other castes; Muslims; Students; The Garhwalis; UP has 2,067 pincode areas - 84% had no resident Christian worker in 1998.

WEST BENGAL: The Bengalis is the largest unreached ethnic group in the world. Kolkata (dedicated to Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction); Non-Bengali immigrants: Bhojpuri, Gujarati, Oriya, Panjabi and Mawari; all caste groups.

THE SIX UNION TERRITORIES: Chandigarh (capital of Panjab and Haryana 800,000); Dadra and Nagar Havali (Gujarat 170,000); Daman and Diu (Gujarat 123,000) and Pondicherry (Tamil Nadu 990,000).

Andaman and Nicobar Islands- four isolated negrito peoples; the Hindu; Muslim; Bengali; Hindi; Malayali; Telugu; Tamil immigrants; Oraon, Munda and Khama from Bihar.

Lakshadweep (Twelve coral atolls and 36 islands in the Arabian Sea ): majorly Malayali-speaking ardently Muslim, Hindu.

15. INDONESIA
The Islamists', The 65+ million nominal and syncretistic Muslims, Indonesia contains 130 people groups larger than 10,000 people which have a Christian population of under 1%. There are another 200+ unreached people groups of less than 10,000 people. Young people are a vital mission field.

Animistic areas of West Kalimantan and Papua, Sumatra, Nusa Tenggara and Sulawesi .

ISLANDS OF INDONESIA

SUMATRA: Sumatra is the largest unevangelized island on earth. Most of its peoples are staunchly Muslim. Sumatra is the home of 52 known unreached people groups consisting of 25 million people.

The Aceh (strongly Muslim) The less strongly Muslim peoples of North Sumatra : Tamiang, Gayo, Simeulue, Angkola and Mandailing Batak. The Minangkabau of West Sumatra : Rejang and Kerinci. The Minangkabau are one of the best educated and most successful groups in Indonesia . The Malay-related peoples of Eastern and Southern Sumatra : Deli, Melayu Riau, and Jambi. The Muslim peoples of Central and South Sumatra : Batin, Bengkulu, Enim, Kaur, Lematang, Lembak, Ogan and Semendo. The peoples of Lampung in the sout: Komering, Lampung Abung, Lampung Peminggir or Lampung Pubian.

JAVA: The unreached Jawa ethnic sub-groups (staunchly Muslim): Banten, Banyumasan, Osing, Pasisir Kulon and Pasisir Lor; The 35 million Sunda (profess Islam, but are highly influenced by underlying animism and traditional Sunda beliefs). The Madura: Bawean, the Madura and the Pendalunga (offspring of Jawa-Madura intermarriages since 1671); The Jawa Tengger (at slopes of Mt. Bromo in East Java ).

BALI: A unique blend of Hinduism dominates the spiritual landscape of Bali .

WEST LESSER SUNDA ISLANDS (NUSA TENGGARA BARAT): Staunchly Muslim islands (but still adhere to animistic beliefs): Sasak on Lombok; the Sumbawa and Bima on Sumbawa Island . The Hindu Bali people on Lombok

EAST LESSER SUNDA ISLANDS (NUSA TENGGARA TIMUR): Flores (90% Catholic but is steeped in pagan and idolatrous rituals sometimes involving snake worship): The Manggarai, Lamaholot-Solar, Ende-Lio, Sikka and Ngada. Muslim minorities among the Solor and Manggarai. Refugee camps holding thousands of destitute people in West Timor. Sawu people on Sawu Island and West Timor (80% animist; Black magic is widespread). The Ambenu Timor and Belu Tetun in West Timor (largely nominal Catholics).

KALIMANTAN: The large Banjar Malay population along the eastern and southern coasts, and up the rivers (strongly Muslim). Transmigrants: Jawa (nominally Muslim), Bali (Hindu), Bugis and Madura (strongly Muslim). The animist peoples of the interior. The Chinese-descent Indonesians (25% of the population in West Kalimantan ).

SULAWESI: The Bugis and Makassar of South Sulawesi; The Muslim Gorontalo, Muslim-animist peoples (north), and the Bungku-Mori Toraja (southeast: animistic practices more prevalent).

MALUKU: Muslim peoples- Ambon Melayu, Temate, Tidore, the seafaring Bajau, the Makian of Halmahera Island, and numerous other smaller peoples. Many island communities in South Maluku ( nominally Christian)

[WEST] PAPUA (IRIAN JAYA): Small peoples east of Cenderawasih Bay on New Guinea's 'shoulder'; Peoples in the northern foothills of the Eastern Highlands; Peoples in the southern foothills of the main range of mountains bisecting the island; The Baliem Dani of the Highlands; The transmigrants: The Muslim Minangkabau and Makassar in the coastal urban areas; Many ethnic enclaves scattered over Papua, Recent arrivals are Ambonese refugees.

16. IRAN
All the peoples are unreached. The partly nomadic Iranic Luri and Bakhtiari and the Turkic Qashqai who live in the Zagros Mountains; The various Kurdish peoples of NW and NE Iran; The Turkic Azeri, Khorasani Turks and Turkmen in the north; The peoples of the southeast - the Baluch and Brahui; The Gypsy communities.

17. IRAQ
All peoples are unreached apart from Assyrian and Armenian minority groups. The Shi'a Arabs of Basra and the south; The Sunni Arabs; The Madan or Marsh Arabs; The Bedouin, Persians and Gypsies.

18. ISRAEL
The ultra-Orthodox Haredi; The Russian and Ukrainian Jews; The Ethiopian Jews (Falasha); The Arabs (Muslim); The Druze community (in Israel, the West Bank and the Golan Heights); Guest workers. There are a total of about 1,500 evangelical Christians among them. There is outreach to Mainland Chinese with hundreds of baptisms, and several evangelical churches among Romanians.

19. JAPAN
Of the 672 cities, there are still 9 without a church, unchanged in 10 years. A further 77 have but one. Of the 2,568 towns of 15,000-30,000 people, 1,733 are without churches. Numerous rural areas are scarcely touched with the gospel.

The ruling elite; Koreans (descendants of those forcibly brought to Japan between 1903 and 1945); Chinese (non-religious or follow the Chinese traditional religions); The Ainu; Extremist groups; Cults (e.g. Aum Shinrikyo); leftist groups (i.e. Japanese Red Army); right wing extremist groups; Exploited women: The yakuza criminal network has an active role in importing 200,000 foreign women (e.g. Thai and Filipina women) who become sex-slaves. Muslims Japanese through marriage, immigrant Bangladeshis, Iranians, Pakistanis and others).

20. JORDAN
The Muslim majority; Palestinians who are now a majority in Jordan ; Iraqi refugees; Bedouin (mostly nomadic and military); People of many nationalities (Saudi and Gulf Arabs, Sri Lankans, Filipinos and Egyptians); Agygei and Chechens form proud minorities.

21. KAZAKHSTAN
Turkic/Altaic; Kazakh (Sunni Muslims); Uzbek; Tatar; Uighur; Turkish; Azeri; Indo-European; Slav; Russian; Ukrainian; Belarusian; Polish; Kurdish; Chechen; Tajik; Korean; Dungan.

22. NORTH KOREA
The majority have never heard the name of Jesus. North Korea is currently the 1st on world watch list of country persecuting Christians (even before Saudi Arabia which is the second on the list). North Koreans (non-religious, traditional ethnic, chondogyo, Buddhist).

23. SOUTH KOREA
Shamanism; Buddhists (above 25% of entire population); Chondokyo; pseudo-Christian sects with Buddhist/shamanist ideas; Korean Muslims; The Chinese; illegal migrants.

24. KUWAIT
Arab: Kuwaiti; Foreign Arab; (Egyptian, Syrian, Lebanese, Palestinian); Bidoun; Stateless Arab refugees; Non-Arab: Filipino, Pakistani, Indian, Iranian, Western, several others. Majority Muslims; Hindus; Buddhists; Baha'is; non-Religious.

25. KYRGYZSTAN
The rural and semi-nomadic pastoralist Kyrgyz living in mountain villages; The Fergana Valley in the south (shared with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan ). The Tajik and large Uzbek (scene of seasonal Islamist terrorist activity): Batken region; The Dungan (descendants of Chinese Muslim refugees).

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26. LAOS
The government of Lao is anti-Christian and the country is rated 9 th in the world watch list of country persecuting Christians.

The Tai tribes (speaking 15 languages); The mountain dwelling Hmong; The northern peoples; The small southern tribes (deeply enmeshed in the fear of spirits); The Vietnamese and Chinese have only been marginally evangelized.

27. LEBANON
The Shi'a Muslims (in the south on the Israel border, in the Bekaa Valley and in West Beirut); The Hezbollah faction (in South Lebanon is supported by Iran); The Sunni (mainly in the northeast, and the cities of Beirut, Tripoli and Sidon); The Druze (heartland is the mountain area east of Beirut); The Palestinians (Muslim); The poor and disadvantaged (majority are Muslim Lebanese and Palestinian).

28. MALAYSIA
The Malays, now socially and legally isolated from the Truth. It is illegal to witness to a Muslim. Islamization has brought concern to those of other faiths who comprise nearly half the population.

PENINSULAR MALAYSIA: The Malays; The Chinese: Hainanese, Hakka, Teochew and Kwongsai; The Orang Asli (considered by the Malays to be Muslim even though they dislike Islam and its restrictions and remain committed to their traditional ways); Indians: Panjabis (mostly Sikh), the Telugus and Indian Muslims; The socially marginalized: the Drug addicted; Minangkabau, Acehnese, Malays, etc., from Sumatra, Indonesia.

SABAH (FORMERLY NORTH BORNEO): The Muslim peoples: The Filipino-related peoples, many being refugees from the Muslim uprising in Mindanao, Philippines; The Indonesians, most being illegal immigrants from Sulawesi and Java; The local Malay and Muslim tribal peoples (notably the Bisaya and Bajau). Tribal groups,

SARAWAK: The Muslim, Traditional ethnic.

29. MALDIVES
The Maldivians are still among the least evangelized on earth. Official state religion is Islam. No Christian mission work has ever been permitted nor Christian literature allowed. The country is on 5 th position on World Watch list of nations persecuting Christians.

The 99% Muslims; Minicoy (part of the Indian-ruled Lakshadweep Islands to the north of the Maldives , but its population is Maldivian).

30. MONGOLIA
The Constitution honours Buddhism, Shamanism and Islam as Mongolia 's main religions but grants certain religious freedoms to all people. Restrictions apply to Nomads and some of the sparsely inhabited provinces.

The Kazakh (majority in the far-western province of Bayan-Olgiy , Muslims); Ethnic minorities: Uriankhai or Evenki; Students.

31. MYARNMA
The Bama (Burmese) peoples. (staunchly Buddhist); The Shan (Buddhist); Other Buddhist minorities (the Palaung, Mon; Taungyo; Lu and numerous other smaller groups. The more animistic peoples: Southern Chin, Naga, Mru, Rawang, Mahei , Wa and Akha. Pray for the emergence of vital church-planting movements among each of them. Poverty, opium-growing, lack of Christian literature - especially the Scriptures - and inadequate teaching are negatives; The Chinese; Chettiyars, an Indian minority; The Rohingya of Arakan; Muslim descendants of Arabs, Moors, Moghuls and Bengalis who settled in Arakan; The Hindus and Nepalis; AIDS victims.

32. NEPAL
The influential high-caste Brahmin and Chhetri (Rajput); The Awadhi and Maithili of the Terai lowlands on the Indian border; The Mountain peoples: almost entirely Tibetan-related (Most are lamaistic Buddhists); Tibetan refugees; Muslims: Bengali, Kashmiri or Urdu-speaking traders. University students; the Hindus; non-religious people.

33. OMAN
Ibadi Islam is the state religion.

The entire Muslim majority; handful indigenous believers; Mahra of Dhofar; the Baluch of the eastern coasts; the rural population or the Swahili speakers.

34. PAKISTAN
The Baluch and the Brahui; The Pathan of the North West Frontier with Afghanistan; people groups living in the mountain valleys of Kashmir, Kohistan, Swat, Dir, Chitral, Gilgit and the Hunza; The Kalash (largely animist); Muslims (Sunni, Shi'a and Ismaili); Burusha of the Hunza; Tibetan-related Balti; Khowari of Chitral, Shina; The Panjabi majority on the Indus plain; The Sindhi. Karachi : Urdu-speaking Mohajirs, Ismaili Muslims, wealthy Parsees and numerous Afghan refugees (Most are Dari- and Pushtu-speaking, but there are also many Uzbek, Tajik and other groups); Afghan Islamabad; The Ahmaddiya.

35. PALESTINE AUTHORITY
Jewish Israeli; Palestinian Arab; The squalor and hopelessness of Gaza 's teeming multitudes; The Islamists with their bitterness and rage.

36. PHILIPPINES
Mindanao: Magindanao and Maranao; The Sulu Islands: Muslim Tausug, Samal, and Yakan peoples; Palawan: Tagalog and Muslim immigrants, Tagbanwa, Cuyunon, Muslim Molbog, Balabac, Jama Mapun on Cagayan Island; Luzon: Ifugao, Bontok, Kankanay, Kalinga and Isnag; Benguet; Bicol region (Albay Province, Camarines Norte, Catanduanes); Dumagat Negrito (semi-nomadic hunter-gatherer); Visayas (The islands of Samar, Cebu and Leyte); 26,000 barangays (neighbourhoods). Ethnic minorities: The Chinese, Panjabis (many are Sikh, others are Muslim and Hindu), Sri Lankans (Tamil and Sinhala).

37. QATAR
The strict Wahhabi form of Sunni Islam is the state religion. Proselytism of Muslims is forbidden, but expatriate Christians are allowed to practice their faith.

The entire Qatari in the learned need to be reached.

38. SAUDI ARABIA
No Christian workers are permitted and all Christian "propaganda" banned. No Christian is permitted to set foot in Islam's holiest city, Mecca. Saudi Arabia probably has the world's worst record on religious freedom and human rights.

A massive Islamic missionary effort is coordinated by the Muslim World League in Mecca . Billions of dollars are spent every year to propagate Islam around the world - aid to countries considered sympathetic, building mosques, sending missionaries, literature, radio, etc.

Although Saudi Arabia signed the U.N. Charter, which guarantees freedom of religion, Saudis who confess Christ face the death penalty if discovered.

Life is difficult for expatriates. Christian expatriates live under strict surveillance. Secret gatherings are hunted down with diligence and leaders sometimes subjected to humiliating beatings, imprisonment, expulsion, and even execution. Saudi authorities seek to replace Christian expatriates with Muslims from the same country.

Saudi Arabia is 2nd on world watch list of nations persecuting Christians.

39. SINGAPORE
The Malay population (All considered Muslim by birth); The Indian population (55% Hindu 25.6% Muslim, 5% Sikh): Gujarati, Sindhi, Hindi and Bengali-speaking communities with origins in North India . Migrant workers: Filipinos, Thai, Burmese, Japanese, Koreans and Indonesians, Bangladeshis and Sri Lankans; Drug addicts

40. SRI LANKA
Claimed by some to be the site of the Garden of Eden, Sri Lanka is now an island of tears.

Buddhist Sinhala extremists; Hindu Tamil, LTTE Tamil.

Persecution has significantly increased in the 1990s in the wake of effective evangelical outreach.

The Lanka Tamil community: Tamil Tigers (LTTE), LTTE leaders and guerrillas.

The Estate Tamils; Young people: Children in crisis, Children of war (many Tamil children have been brainwashed into becoming killing machines); The villages; The urban slums.

The Moors (generally traders, bureaucrats and farmers); The Malays (syncretistic Muslims); Other unreached social groups (the educated Buddhists, coastal-belt fishing communities, the Tamil and Sinhala refugees, villages being set up under the 'Village Re-awakening' programme, and the Tamil and Sinhala militants who continue to polarize the country); radical Marxist party, the JVP; Tribal groups: the Rodhiya, Gypsies and Veddah.

41. SYRIA
The Sunni Arab majority, very few of whom have heard the gospel.

The Alawites who are a rural community, but very influential in the army and government. The Druze (secretive offshoot of Islam); The Kurds of the north and northwest (mostly Sunni Muslim, Yezidis and Shi'a); The Bedouin, Circassian, Turkmen and Gypsy minorities who are solidly Muslim.

Missionaries are not allowed to reside in the country.

42. TAJIKISTAN
Indigenous peoples with little opportunity to hear the gospel:

Uzbeks; The mountain peoples of the Pamirs in the east (six Muslim peoples of the Ismaili sect): the Ishkashimi, Roshani, Bartangi, Shughni, Wakhi and Yazgulyam; The 133 other ethnicities in Tajikistan.

43. THAILAND
Bangkok, (one of Asia's most influential cities, and known as the city of angels and city of sin); Children in crisis (Many girls are kidnapped or sold at a very young age into prostitution); AIDS victims; Phangnga, Ranong, Angtong; Students; Buddhist monks; Refugees (from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam); Muslims, 90% are Malay; The tribal peoples: Hmong, Lahu, Lisu, Akha and Karen peoples, The Buddhist Shan and Taoist/animist Yao; The Kui, Khmu and Khmer peoples.

44. TAIMOR LOROSAE
Timor 's birth as a nation was traumatic. Traumatized children and young people (many have lost all, including parents). Almost all Timor 's peoples are still unreached.

45. TURKEY
Turkey 's Ottoman Empire was for centuries the guardian of all the holy places of Islam and its chief protagonist.

Sunni Muslims 72-80%, Alevi 17-25%, mainly, but not only, among the Kurds. Shi'a among Azeri and Iranians. There are also Yezidis among the Kurds.

Kurds: The Muslim Alevi and Yezidi sects (the latter based on Zoroastrianism and the occult) many of whom are Kurds.

Turbulent eastern Anatolian provinces (largely Kurdish) and the Black Sea coast (many Laz). University students (817 universities and colleges); Children (problem of street children is growing in Istanbul and Izmir ); The ethnic Muslim minorities and Central Asian refugee communities; Iranian refugees who have fled the violence and Islamic extremism of the 1979 Revolution.

46. TURKMENISTAN

Constitutionally there is freedom of religion. In practice this is limited to Sunni Islam or Russian Orthodox - all other forms of Islam or minority religions are subject to severe repression and harassment.

The President has built up a personality cult around himself which resembles Stalin and the Muslim caliphs of past centuries. He has built palaces and memorials to himself all over the country whilst his subjects suffer in dire poverty. He calls himself the 'King of kings'.

Hostility against any evangelical Christian activity or even presence has increased since 1997. Nearly all foreign Christians have been expelled. Several national pastors have been exiled, beaten up, heavily fined and imprisoned. Congregations have been intimidated and forbidden to meet.

Turkic/Altaic: Turkmen, Uzbek, Kazakh, Azerbaijani, Tatar;

Indo-European: Slav: Russian, Ukrainian; Iranian: Baluch, Persian; Armenian; Lezhgin

47. UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Islam is the religion of state, with a Sunni majority and a small Shi'a minority. There is freedom to worship and witness within the expatriate communities, but no outreach to the indigenous population is officially permitted.

The indigenous Arab population; Many expatriate communities: The Iranian (Persian, Kurd, Baluch), Pakistani (Panjabi, Pushtun and Baluch), Somali and Sudanese communities; Women (socially isolated from much potential contact with believers).

48. UBEZKISTAN
Tashkent is the Islamic capital of Central Asia.

The Muslim majority; Karakalpaks; Tajiks: Samarkand and Bukhara ; Other Central Asian peoples: Kazakhs, Tatars, Crimean Tatars, Kyrgyz, Turkmen and Azeris.

49. VIETNAM
Actual government policy is to control all religious movements, including Buddhism. Persecution of Christians continues to be harsh, and particularly severe for unregistered and ethnic minority churches. Vietnam remains one of the worst persecutors of Christians. Persecution index 8 th in the world (world watch list). It is one of the few Communist nations in the 21 st Century. 

The northern Vietnamese; The Muslim Cham and Buddhist Khmer of the Mekong Delta; The northern minorities (Most are Buddhist or animist): Giay, Hani, San Chay, Tho and Puoc; Communist officials and government leaders; The Cao Dai and Hoa Hao religionists.

50. YEMEN
Islam is the official religion and the legal system is based on shari'a law. Sunni Islam 62% (in centre and south), Zaidi Shi'a 37% (in north-east), Ismaili 0.9%. Only freedom of religion for non-Muslims. Persecution index 6th in the world (world watch list).

Yemen is one of the world's least evangelized countries.

The Northern tribes: people of Sana'a, the capital, and the peoples of the northern mountains and north-eastern deserts (Many are semi-nomadic); The Central Yemenis: Taiz and Ibb; The Tihama Arabs of the coastal plains: Hodeida; The Southern Yemenis of the cosmopolitan city of Aden and those of the Hadhramaut area (both Arab and Mahri); The Soqotri islanders; Yemeni women; The South Asians (Most are Muslim or Hindu); Yemeni Jews; The Somalis (Yemeni residents and refugees).

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