Irian still needs missionaries

JAYAPURA, Irian Jaya (JP): Foreign missionaries, especially from Protestant denominations, are still required by the government to help serve and develop the local community, a local official says.

Head of the provincial office of the Ministry of Religion, R.S. Soengkono, was quoted by Antara as saying that the missionaries are needed to build churches and serve in the hinterland.

Most villages in the province were located in isolated areas which can be reached most easily by foreign missionaries who have light planes and are able to approach locals by means of religion, he said.

He said the missionaries were crucial as they were the government's main means to develop the huge province.

Soengkono said the missionaries were needed not only to propagate religion but were agents of change and also improve the local peoples' welfare.

He said there are currently 66 families of foreign missionaries in Irian Jaya. They come from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and German. They are distributed among nine remote regencies.(pwn)