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“When the Pakistan tragedy happened we were able to encourage Cecil and the others and discuss the issue.” In the aftermath of terror attacks on Pakistani churches, Godfrey from Sri Lanka told us about his friendships with people he met through a project we’ve been working on in the past few years. This project brought together human rights defenders working for freedom of religion or belief across the South and Central Asia region for a series of skills sharing and training workshops. Most recently, the group received training in how they can keep themselves safe while they work for the safety and freedom of others. Godfrey’s comment shows us that with this network, the whole really is greater than the sum of the parts.

Thank God for the success of the project, and for all the people who took part – lawyers, journalists and activists, from diverse religious backgrounds; from countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Kyrgzystan.

As we go to print, we’ve just heard that the Nepali parliament has passed legislation criminalising religious conversion. This is very concerning: we’ve seen in India that anti-conversion laws not only restrict the rights of individuals, but also put religious minorities at risk of violence. Please pray that this new legislation will be repealed or amended very soon.

You may remember the Charikot case we asked you to pray about last year, where eight Nepali Christians were accused of illegally converting others after handing out comics about the story of Jesus. Although they were later acquitted, we’re concerned that the new legislation could lead to more cases like this. Ask God to protect those who change their religion.

India has criminalised religious conversion in several states, and another state, Jharkhand State, is currently debating its own anti-conversion bill. These similarities show how valuable it is to have the regional network we set up, as activists in India and Nepal can share tactics and experiences with lobbying against problematic legislation. Pray for increased collaboration between human rights defenders.

Lakshan Dias is a Sri Lankan human rights lawyer who was threatened with disbarment from his profession after publicly commenting on religious intolerance against Christians and Muslims. He made the remarks on a TV talk show in June, and was subsequently criticised by government officials. Pray that Mr Dias will be able to return to his legal practice without fear.

The ‘unpardonable offence’: that’s how Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, has described blasphemy. In June Taimoor Raza, a Shi’a Muslim, was sentenced to death for allegedly committing blasphemy on Facebook. Please pray that Mr Raza will be acquitted and released.

Heavenly Father, we lift to you Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, India and Pakistan. We ask you to pour out your Holy Spirit of peace wherever there is unrest, to stop tension leading to violence. Thank you for each participant in the regional network; in your great mercy, please protect them in their valuable and courageous work for human rights. Amen.