2024 in review
2024 began with picking up the pieces from the ethnic conflict — 46,000 displaced, more than 200 dead, and 350+ churches burned. Commerce and travel restrictions drove the price of goods coming into Manipur sharply upward. Anti-Christian sentiment spread into neighboring Assam, where many of the displaced had fled.
The bright spot was the school
Despite the disruption, students pushed harder rather than less. Classes X and XII both scored 100% passing — 60% finishing in First Division and 40% in Second. Our teachers are paid the minimum and expected to give the maximum, and they do it without complaint.
Enrollment was expected to fall. Instead it surged — enough that dormitory space became urgent for the Class X and XII exam students. Supporters gave $20,000 toward repairing buildings and constructing a combined dining and study hall. Former refugees skilled in construction did the labor for far less than the usual contractors, as a way of thanking the school for sheltering them.
Reports from the pastors
- Two work the border towns between Myanmar and India, with congregations in both countries, meeting whenever there are peaceful moments.
- Ten remain in Manipur, holding regular services in the hill areas. In Imphal, services are held in houses rather than church buildings.
- Three Meitei pastors had their church buildings burned and were forced to sign letters agreeing not to rebuild. They meet in homes, carefully. The numbers are small, but people are coming to the Lord.
- Four work among Nepali Hindus in Nepal and India. In December, two men and one woman were saved out of Hindu backgrounds, and two members of the Khani church were restored to fellowship.
The trials are twofold: opposition and conflict, and the economic damage that followed it. Basic necessities in the hill areas now cost roughly three times what they did before the conflict, and pastors cannot travel freely to reach stores or bank accounts.
The family of Chong Singsit relocated to Cary, Illinois, near Chicago, in January.
