2 Jul 2014

J&K: FORTHCOMING ELECTIONS AND THE PEACE PROCESS

 Ashok Bhan


A series of credible democratic exercises since 1996 have contributed positively to the peace process in Jammu and Kashmir. It may be recalled that the present conflict was triggered by what is often alleged to be the denial of political space to the Muslim United Front in the assembly elections in 1987. Therefore, it is not surprising that credible elections have helped in turning the clock backwards though with a caveat. Elections alone may not resolve the conflict, which has political connotations particularly related to Centre-State relations and involvement of an external player. But they have throw up alternatives and opportunities for conflict resolution.

Strengthening of democratic institutions in Jammu and Kashmir has been the most important positive political intervention post Pakistan-sponsored terrorism began in Jammu and Kashmir in the late 1980s. As soon as the security forces brought the situation under some control and the Jammu and Kashmir Police was strengthened to carry out anti-militancy operations, the Central Government and Gen KV Krishna Rao, who took over as Governor of Jammu and Kashmir in March 1993, began focusing on the resumption of the political process. Initially, it took a great deal of persuasion to rope in even the mainstream parties as terrorist violence had not abated and it was taking a heavy toll on political leaders and workers. Yet, despite the loss of precious lives, this was a decision with far-reaching consequences as the subsequent events have shown. The state had to be brought out of the vicious circle and governance restored to the elected representatives.

State Assembly elections were held in 1996 (with a voter turnout of 53.9 per cent) after a prolonged period of Governor/ President’s rule in the state. This, and following elections in 2002 and 2008 (43.1 and 61.5 per cent turnout respectively), have thrown up different possibilities, alternatives and opportunities. There is political stability in the state. The democratic institutions have provided enough opportunity to the people to raise their grievances before their elected representatives. The voter turnout in elections has seen a healthy improvement. A few separatists have joined the electoral politics and others have put up proxy candidates. The response to boycott the call to elections and routine the ‘hartal’ calls of separatists is weakening. The manifestos of regional parties for the forthcoming Assembly elections will prominently carry their prescriptions for the resolution of the ‘K’ issue. This will add to the churning process aimed at reaching a consensus.

Simultaneously, elections to the Lok Sabha were held in 1996, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2009, and more recently, in 2014. A historic election to Panchayats as part of strengthening grassroots democracy with 80 per cent voter turnout was held in 2011 after a gap of nearly 30 years.

The performance of successive Governments, their achievements and empowering of Panchayats can be the subject matter of debate but that democracy has taken roots cannot be disputed. This is a positive development in the peace process.

It may be recalled that the 1987 Assembly elections had witnessed a high voter turnout of about 75 per cent but the credibility of the polls has been widely questioned. The response of the electorate to the November 1989 Lok Sabha election held just before the conflict took a dangerous turn was a clear indicator of the events to come. Baramulla and Anantnag PCs in Kashmir valley polled a mere 5.48 and 5.07 per cent votes respectively and the Srinagar PC returned the NC candidate unopposed as no one showed a willingness to test the waters. The impact of discontent was felt even in the Udhampur PC of Jammu region by recording an unusually low poll percentage of about 40. This constituency, geographically close to south Kashmir, included areas of erstwhile Doda district which saw terrorist violence at a high pitch in later years. The National Conference won all the 3 seats from the valley getting a mere 6.8 per cent of votes polled in the state. The voters, particularly in the valley and Doda district, had shown their disenchantment with electoral politics and alienation was there for everyone to see. No elections could be held in Jammu and Kashmir due to the disturbed conditions during the May-June 1991 Lok Sabha polls.

Comparing the 1989 Lok Sabha elections with the recently concluded 2014 General Elections makes an interesting reading. The pattern of turnout is indicative of the change on the ground. The voter response in Baramulla, Srinagar and Anantnag constituencies in the valley has been 39, 26 and 29 per cent respectively. The poll percentage in the state increased from 25.6 in 1989 to 49.5 in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. There have been fluctuations in voter turnout in the valley in the intervening Lok Sabha and Assembly polls but it is gradually stabilising. People have shown faith in democratic institutions. Healthy poll percentages may not mean the end of the conflict but they do reflect the popular mood and increasing faith in democracy.

Separatists continue to hold sway in downtown Srinagar when it comes to election times. The low voter response in some areas in North and South Kashmir is due to the presence of terrorists as well as influence of separatists. There were terror-related incidents and some major operations by security forces in these low voter turnout areas in Sopore, Pulwama and Shopian districts before and after the recent Lok Sabha elections. Terrorists shot at and killed Mohd Anwar Sheikh, a village headman, in village Amlar Tral in Pulwama district on 01 April. In another incident, militants shot dead Sarpanch Ghulam Nabi Mir affiliated to Congress party and his son Firdous Ahmed Mir in the Tral area. A Sarpanch affiliated to the PDP Mohd Amin Pandit was killed in Awantipur area by terrorists on 17 April. A poll party was attacked on 24 April by militants in Pulwama district, killing a poll staff. A two-day encounter with terrorists ended in Shopian with the killing of 3 HM terrorists on 26 April. An Army Major and sepoy laid down their lives. A grenade exploded in Magam hours before the election rally of Dr Farooq Abdullah, injuring 17 persons on 27 April. These all were aimed at terrorising the voters.

The response of voters in the elections leaves telltale marks about the situation on the ground in different areas. The low voter turnout though confined to a limited area is a reminder of alienation, threat of terrorists and influence of separatists. In this election too low voter turnout in Sopore and parts of Baramulla town in Baramulla PC; certain assembly segments of downtown Srinagar in Srinagar PC and Pulwama- Shopian belt in Anantnag PC clearly delineate areas needing attention of the Government and its agencies. These areas will have to be ‘liberated’ from the influence of terrorists and separatists to allow people to exercise their democratic right to vote. The election authorities, state administration and security forces will have to create the right conditions particularly in these areas so that willing voters are able to exercise their franchise freely and fairly without harassment or intimidation during the forthcoming Assembly elections due towards the end of the year 2014.
The district wise breakup of poll percent in Baramulla PC brings home some interesting facts. Kupwara district which has witnessed the participation of separatists or their proxy candidates over the last few years has polled 63 percent votes, Bandipora district over 35 per cent and Baramulla district which includes the Sopore belt a mere 25 per cent. Mainstreaming of separatists by encouraging them to participate in the electoral process will be a positive step forward for the peace process. Having failed to capture power by the gun, some separatists are not averse to this idea. Jamaat-e-Islami is known to have allowed its supporters to vote in favor of select candidates and not to press for poll boycott in earlier elections. Can the ‘Kupwara model’ work in other areas to neutralise the effect of boycott calls, threats and violence?

Separatists, and terrorists at their behest, opposed the Panchayat elections. The elected members were threatened and killed. They were labeled as Government agents and often criticised by the separatists. The threat increased to such an extent that many Panchayat members decided to resign. It is another matter that the Government’s failure to empower Panchayats made the elections to these bodies much less meaningful. Terrorists and separatists were thus relieved of the fear of losing support at the grassroots to elected Panchayats. There is a need for a fresh look at empowering Panchayati Raj institutions including adopting the 73rd and 74th amendments of the Constitution of India and elections to local bodies.

Pakistan and their separatist supporters are averse to the strengthening of democratic institutions in the state. It is amply proved by the increase in infiltration, escalation of violence and killing of political activists during earlier elections. This time there is the additional threat that may be triggered by the drawdown of US troops from Afghanistan and apprehension in some circles of the threat posed by Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan. The challenges that the Government is likely to face in the run-up to the assembly elections include keeping in check any attempts by Pakistan to send terrorists to escalate violence, dealing imaginatively with protests sponsored by separatists, and providing security to candidates, political activists and public meetings. It would be naïve to think that the role of the security grid has in any way lessened for the forthcoming Assembly election than in the last three held since 1996. An environment will have to be created particularly in low turnout areas by maintaining peace and keeping terrorists at bay so that voters can fearlessly exercise their franchise in the Assembly elections. Success in this will be another step forward in the peace process in Jammu and Kashmir.

1 Jul 2014

SUITING UP

Rich Tucker


Brazil is known for many things. Soccer, of course, and its team is keeping its end up, having advanced to the final 8 in the World Cup. Another famed thing is its casual dress code.

Visitors to beaches often find that virtually every woman is wearing a bikini, for example. “Body type seemingly had no influence on a woman’s choice of swimwear -- indeed, there were plenty of bikini-clad woman of all ages happily and unselfconsciously sporting bellies, flab, and cellulite,” traveler Michael Sommers wrote a few years ago. “Unlike North Americans, in general, Brazilians tend to be much more at ease about exposing their bodies.”

The lack of a dress code extends to the World Cup soccer stadia, as well. Fans come wearing crazy costumes, flag-themed pants and, for the less adventurous, replica team jerseys. Which just makes it all the more surprising that, when the camera pans to the team managers (which Americans would call coaches) they seem always to be clad in a shirt and tie.

This isn’t especially unusual to American sports fans, though. Coaches on the sidelines are among the final people in any arena to be spotted wearing suits. Consider college basketball, the sport in which the players earn nothing but the coaches become millionaires.

As the coach at Iowa in the mid-1980s, George Raveling was known for wearing sweat suits to games, so he could actually go out on court and shoot with his players. But his approach didn’t catch on. Raveling was replaced with a more conventionally dressed coach in 1987, and Tom Davis immediately went 30-5. Wearing a suit and tie all the way.

This past year Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim became famous for his sport coat. Or at least the fact he couldn’t seem to get out of it. He flipped out while protesting a foul call at Duke and was thrown out of the game. At the end of the year, he auctioned off the blazer for $14,000 to benefit cancer research. Rest assured the fan who bought it won’t be wearing it to any games next winter.

Few fans do, of course. Scan the bench at an NCAA game and it’s suits as far as the eye can see. Every team seems to have eight coaches. But scan the stands behind them and almost nobody is dressed to impress.
But sporting events aren’t the only place where men still sport suits. It seems male meteorologists won’t make any predictions unless they’re wearing a tie.

From the National Hurricane Center to the weather wall at your local affiliate, meteorologists deliver their (usually bad) news in full dress-up mode. Even when called in on weekends to track storms, they bring the full wardrobe with them. It just wouldn’t be right, apparently, to call for three inches of snow without donning a business suit.

It was a generation ago that casual Friday swept American offices. Over time, that evolved into casual every day, with business casual on the agenda in most companies. It’s ironic that sports remains a holdout against this casual trend; coaches would no doubt be more comfortable without the ties and loafers.

Maybe some manager will doff his tie this month in Brazil and set a new fashion trend. Let’s just hope he doesn’t completely go native and show up wearing a bikini.

VICTIM'S MENTALITY

Armstrong Williams 


Has anybody ever become a success story because they felt like a victim? Has anybody ever done anything good, or become a better person, because they feel sorry for themselves? It is a pernicious temptation to pity yourself. Each one of us has innumerable gifts from Almighty God for which we should be grateful. Even the lowliest pauper in the most unenlightened of backwaters has the gift of life, of free will, and of his God-given dignity. The Left's insistence on a victim mentality is nothing less than a direct attack on the dignity of the human person; it is the cousin of the sin of despair (which the Bible declares "the sickness unto death"). The next time you feel tempted to pity yourself, bend it back: stop and count your blessings and thank God.

Victim mentality only creates helplessness. Helplessness is the most maddening, the most miserable, the most upsetting of mental states. In fact, it is commonly reported anecdotally that nothing triggers madness like a sense of helplessness. It is a cousin of paranoia, a sense that the world is out to get you, that there is some opposition between you and the world, some rivalry. This is a warped, twisted mentality that offers no benefits, and, more importantly, is manifestly false: the world is the world, and you, O man, are a speck of dust.
The Bible tells us unequivocally that there is no conflict between circumstances and any of us. God made the world and it was good. Moreover, all things work to the good for those who love God (Rom8:28). If you have faith in your heart, there are no obstacles anymore: obstacles become blessings. God is speaking to you all the time through the people and events He sends your way. He is a lover Who cannot take His eyes off of you. Even when things seem hard, He is there, and every moment He is loving you.
The victim mentality, by contrast to this supernatural outlook of the Bible, creates a very shortsighted outlook on life and circumstances. No surprise then that the "victims" look to the most convenient authority figure or big brother to rescue them. They do not look to themselves to solve their own problems, but to Authority, to totalitarian power.
Power is always the interpretive key by which to understand liberalism. The Left promotes the victim mentality because it sends them sheep they can shepherd, sends them lemmings they can lead. The more they can make people feel helpless, the more people will give them power. If we all started really believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, and in His promises, if we really started believing that God is our Father, then we wouldn't need Government to be our daddy.
Perhaps you have no faith. Then I will put it to you this way: if you don't like your circumstances, will you let them win? Will you give in to them? Wayne Gretzky famously said that you miss all the shots that you don't take. Will you miss all your shots, or at least try to make a few? Will you settle for blaming other people for your problems, or will you own your pain, own your struggles, own your weaknesses? Only if you own them will the victory be yours, the reward be yours. How can you feel successful if you think you just got lucky?
I am against welfare, against handouts, whether for those who won't work or for big corporations like Solyndra. The Bible says that he who will not work ought not to be fed (2 Thess 3:10), and that the man who will not provide for his family is worse than a heathen (1 Tim 5:8). We must not be encouraging, or creating a victim mentality. We do no one any favors, and we ignore the Bible, which is the Word of God. Instead, we need a supernatural outlook: faith, hope, and love (1 Cor 12). We need real hope, the kind of hope that drives away the victim mentality. And hope comes from faith.
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wisely said that "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."
Take the first step.


AMERICA'S BIRTHDAY

Thomas Sowell


Birthdays are supposed to be times for celebration and gift-giving. But America's upcoming birthday on the Fourth of July is a time when the gift most needed is an urgent warning about the dangers of losing the things that have made this country America -- and have long made "America" a ringing word of freedom, not only in this country but to people around the world.
All is not lost. But all could be lost -- especially if too many of us take freedom for granted and focus our attention on other things, like electronic gadgets and the antics of celebrities, while ignoring such dangers as nuclear weapons in the hands of suicidal fanatics, with a track record of savagery, whom we are too squeamish to call anything stronger than "militants."

Nor are all the dangers abroad. Birthdays are supposed to be times for celebration and gift-giving. But America's upcoming birthday on the Fourth of July is a time when the gift most needed is an urgent warning about the dangers of losing the things that have made this country America -- and have long made "America" a ringing word of freedom, not only in this country but to people around the world.

When a former Speaker of the House of Representatives announces that she is going down to our border to greet and welcome masses of people crossing that border illegally, you know that something is fundamentally wrong.

No one knows, or apparently cares, how many of these "children" include teenage criminal gangs to whom murder is no big deal. Worst of all, no one knows, or apparently cares, that the elected representatives of the American people were cut out of the loop when it came to making these decisions.
All that matters to people like Nancy Pelosi is the symbolism of welcoming the oppressed, especially if they represent more votes for Democrats, who will shower the taxpayers' money on them.

As if to make clear the elite's contempt for ordinary Americans' intelligence, President Obama tells us that the people crossing the border "love" America. How could he possibly know that, any more than he could know how to "invest" the taxpayers' money in "the industries of the future," which have in fact gone bankrupt?

What is involved are not just bad policy choices. What is involved are policies imposed unilaterally by the president, in defiance of Congress' authority to legislate and in contempt of the Constitution's separation of powers -- on which all our freedoms ultimately depend.

The people who wrote the Constitution of the United States understood what dangers there are to the freedom of the people -- and that freedom can be quietly eroded by degrees, rather than taken all at once.

Too many people today seem oblivious to such dangers. So what if the government used the muscle of the Internal Revenue Service to keep groups opposed to the Obama administration tied up in red tape or litigation in an election year? Enough games like that can make our elections meaningless.

This arrogant abuse of power does not end with the federal government. In Massachusetts, teenager Justina Pelletier was taken from her parents' custody and held virtually incommunicado for over a year, because her parents preferred to continue to have her treated as the physicians at a medical facility associated with Tufts University had treated her, even though shrinks at Children's Hospital in Boston said her problems were in her head, and took her off some of her medications.

This difference of opinion as to the best medical treatment for Justina Pelletier was enough to get a judge to side with headstrong bureaucrats and override her parents' rights. So a girl who was ice skating before ended up in a wheelchair under the "care" of shrinks.

Fortunately, enough media attention, especially by former governor Mike Huckabee on Fox News Channel, finally got this child freed. Perhaps we can hope that all is not lost -- yet. But if this case is a symbol of Americans fighting back, it is also a symbol of why it is desperately important to fight back.

That spirit is the best birthday present for America.

10 RICHEST AMERICANS EVER

Today you hear all about the millennial tech billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg and Dustin Moskovitz, but long before 20-somethings ruled the U.S. economy there were the Rockefellers and Vanderbilts and other old-money families. They were the American version of royalty and their wealth makes Zuckerberg look poor. In fact Bill Gates, considered the world’s wealthiest man, doesn’t even make the list of top 10 richest Americans anymore (although just five years ago he did, but he’s been giving away a lot of his fortune). With net worth adjusted to today’s, , here are the 10 richest Americans ever.
10. Jay Gould
If railroad executive, financier and speculator Jay Gould were alive today his adjusted wealth would be about $78.3 billion. By comparison, Mark Zuckerberg is worth an estimated $9.4 billion. Gould is considered one of U.S.’s most unscrupulous businessmen ever, accused of stealing land, issuing false stocks and bribing regulators in the mid-19th century. He had very few friends and was largely shunned by New York society for his actions, CNN Money reports. But By died very wealthy.

9. Frederick Weyerhauser
With an adjusted wealth totaling $91.2 billion, Frederick Weyerhauser made his fortune in lumber, wood and paper. Born in 1834, Weyerhauser died in 1914 and during his lifetime it was rumored that his family controlled an area of land the size of Wisconsin.

8. Alexander Turney Stewart
Born in Ireland, the textile merchant Alexander Turney Stewart would be worth $100 billion today. He lived between 1803 and 1876 and during that time built up the largest wholesale and retail dry goods businesses in the U.S. He also supplied uniforms to the Union Army during the Civil War.

7. Stephan Van Rensselaer
The last of a line of Dutch aristocrats granted vast amounts of land in New York State under Dutch colonial rule, Stephan Van Rensselaer at one time controlled more than a million acres in New York. He lived between 1764 and 1839 and is the only person on this list to inherit his entire fortune. His adjusted wealth was worth $101 billion.

6. Andrew Carnegie
Tied with Stephan Van Rennselaer, Andrew Carnegie was also worth an adjusted $101 billion when he died in 1919. He was the founder of the Carnegie Steel Company but is most famous for giving his fortune away. He established a number of philanthropic and nonprofit organizations including the Carnegie Corporation, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and nearly 3,000 public libraries.

5. Richard B. Mellon
Coming in at No. 5 with an adjusted wealth of $103 billion is the other half of the endowment that made Carnegie Mellon University possible. Richard is the richer half of a brother banking team (Andrew Mellon is the 15th richest person in America) that also dabbled in oil, steel, coal and railroads during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

4. Stephan Girard
With an adjusted wealth of $120 billion by today’s standards, the French-born Stephan Girard got his start working as a cabin boy on the Caribbean-Europe trade route in the last quarter of the 18th century. He went on to purchase a fleet of trading ships and eventually became a financier, wealthy enough to buy banks and lend money to the U.S. government during the war of 1812. When he died he left almost his entire fortune to charity. He was the fourth-richest American ever.


3.John Jacob Astor
 He started as a penniless German immigrant in the late 1700s, but soon began earning income as a fur trader. He married well, and was able to invest his wife’s fortune in Manhattan real estate, which is where he made his real fortune, estimated at $138 billion today.

2. Cornelius Vanderbilt
Coming in at No. 2 on the list, Cornelius Vanderbilt accumulated a fortune worth $205 billion by today’s standards, first by sailing barges across New York Harbor and then expanding into steamships and railroads. He was born in 1794 and died in 1877.

1. John D. Rockefeller
Adjusted for inflation, John D. Rockefeller’s wealth totaled $253 billion, making him the richest American ever. He lived from 1839 to 1937 and made his fortune revolutionizing the oil industry.

TAKING A TUMBLE AGAIN?

Jay Cost


President Barack Obama’s job approval seems to be slipping again. After a brutal couple of months following the failed launch of HealthCare.gov, the Real Clear Politics average of opinion polls found his approval at 40 percent in December. But the government claimed to have fixed HealthCare.gov, never mind the continuing problems, and the “surge” in enrollments gave him a further boost. By mid-April, he was back up to nearly 45 percent approval in the RCP average. Recently, though, his numbers have tumbled again, and today his job approval is just 42 percent.
The likely driver of this decline is the onslaught of bad news: the crisis in Ukraine, the scandal at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Bowe Bergdahl prisoner exchange, the flood of illegal crossings of the Texas border, and most recently the deteriorating situation in Iraq; the capture of Abu Khattala, a suspect in the Benghazi attacks, is a rare bright spot whose effect on the polls, if any, remains to be determined. So far, the cumulative effect of week after week of bad headlines for the administration has been rising disapproval of the president across a host of metrics. Recent polling by Bloomberg and ABC News/Washington Post has shown the president taking a slide not just in his overall job approval, but in his handling of the economy, international affairs, health care, the deficit, and immigration.
A 42 percent approval rating is terrible for any president; Obama’s is drawing comparisons to the support George W. Bush registered at a similar point in his tenure. This must scare the wits out of professional Democrats, who remember well that Bush’s political misery was their joy.
Still, it is fair to ask: Will this slide, if it persists, affect the midterm elections in November? Probably not directly. The Democratic party has not fallen below 45 percent of the two-party vote in nationwide House contests since 1928. In several instances—1972 and 1984, for example—Democrats have garnered less than 45 percent in presidential elections, but those are less reliable measures of the core Democratic electorate because personalities often loom so large.
House results are a better measure of core party support. It is possible—perhaps likely—this year that the GOP will score its largest House victory since before the Great Depression. Republicans are on track to win as many seats as they did in 2010, and because they are the incumbent party, their margins of victory are likely to be greater than they were four years ago.
Even so, if the Democrats fall below 45 percent, they probably will not fall as far as Obama’s recent job approval. The core Democratic electorate should come out to support the party, even if some Democrats now disapprove of Obama.
We have seen this dynamic before. George W. Bush’s job approval stood at just 39 percent in the Real Clear Politics average at the time of the 2006 midterms, yet House Republicans won about 46 percent of the two-party House vote. In 2008, Bush’s job approval was an abysmal 28 percent according to Real Clear Politics, but congressional Republicans still won 44 percent of the two-party House vote.
The reason is that partisan voting habits are much harder to change than perceptions of the president. Thus, a slide in presidential approval from 50 percent to 45 percent has much more electoral relevance than a fall below 45 percent. The former indicates the loss of the all-critical bloc of independents; the latter suggests your partisans are dropping away, but they will probably come back in November. The latest Gallup poll placed Obama’s job approval at 64 percent among nonwhites, 70 percent among liberals, and 78 percent among Democrats. These are dangerous numbers for a Democratic president, no doubt; still, Democrats will likely do better with these base groups on Election Day.
That said, there may be an indirect link between Obama’s slide and his party’s electoral fortunes.
Republicans need to gain six seats to take control of the Senate, and seven of their targets are in states that Mitt Romney carried in 2012. In 2013, Obama averaged just 34 percent in the Gallup poll in these states, and his standing is probably no better today. Congressional Democrats have been pinning their hopes on the idea that a critical mass of voters will not be put off by their dislike of Obama, so that Democratic candidates can run on personal traits or local issues and win.

MYANMAR: HOW FREE IS THE CONTEMPORARY MEDIA?

Aparuba Bhattacherjee


In April 2013, for the first time in Myanmar, private newspapers were displayed in the newspaper stalls along with the state-owned newspapers that had not been censored by the Junta. In August 2012, President Thein Sein had announced the removal of the official censorship of the media in Myanmar. Further, several journalists and bloggers who were arrested during the rule of the military Junta were released through political amnesty by the President. These changes have also been evident in the Free Press Index by the Reporters Without Borders: in 2010, Myanmar was ranked 174 out of 178 countries, whereas in 2013, it was ranked 151 out of 178.

What is the state of the media in contemporary Myanmar? What are the changes that the media is looking forward to?

A Difficult Path
The removal of censorship in Myanmar has opened new avenues for several private media houses. However, there are still several hurdles that the media has to overcome. Although, according to government records, there are twelve private ‘daily’ newspapers, if the weekly papers and journals in both English and Burmese are taken into account, the number is huge. This has increased the competition in both the online and print media. Most of the newspapers are not well-equipped to cope in a competitive market. They lack in reporting capacity, distribution channels, legal protections, experienced business management and the concurrent growth of advertising revenues. The situation is worse for the daily newspapers in comparison to the weeklies.

Most of the newspapers (except for Eleven Media House and Yangon Times) do not have in-house printing. Furthermore, due to the slow internet connections, all the material is delivered to the printer by hand, which only delays the process. The media houses not only have a dearth of professional trained journalists to meet the needs of daily reporting but also lack sufficient funds to sustain the expensive daily printing. Most of the media houses in Myanmar are financially dependent on either the profit from the other business of the owner or foreign sponsors. Unlike media houses in other parts of the world, those in Myanmar lack shareholders in the business. Underdeveloped infrastructure and expensive transportation have hindered the distribution channels. The distribution per day in Myanmar ranges from 10,000 to 30,000 approximately. Due to expensive printing costs and taxes, the rates for the private daily newspapers (200-500 Kyats) are higher than the state-owned ones. Apart from the state-owned newspapers, most of the readers also prefer journals as they are thicker and are therefore considered cost effective. All these issues affect the profit margin, which is nil for most of the private newspapers.

Additionally, the fact that the new government of Myanmar (after 48 years of authoritarian rule) is not well adapted to dealing with a free media presence in the country makes the struggle more difficult. The innate governmental control over the media still persists in the country. The legitimacy of the private media houses depends on licences provided by the government. The newly drafted media bill that outlines the print and publisher registrations is contradictory to media freedom. This will be similar to the 1962 law that it will replace, and will allow the government to issue or revoke licenses for any reason and prohibit a publication that is thought to endanger national security, the rule of law or community peace and tranquility. However, the criteria on which the licenses are provided by the government are not yet transparent. Although the publications are not censored officially, all editors have to install self-censorship. The government cannot be criticised negatively. Further, although the Press Security and Registration Division (PSRD) of the Junta period was disbanded, it has been replaced with the Copyrights and Registration Division that scans through all the media output.

Although several social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and the website of the opposition political parties are allowed, the restrictions still persist. Laws such as the 2004 Electronic Transaction Law, Internet Law of 2000 and others restricting the electronic media will continue to exist until new laws are formulated.

Looking Forward
There are efforts on behalf of the government to increase transparency on the drafting of the media laws. The laws are being drafted by the Interim Council of Press comprising of many editors and journalists along with the government. There are plans to install a central banking structure in Myanmar; once installed it will incentivise more shareholders and international advertising agencies to open ventures with the private media houses, thereby increasing their revenue earning. Furthermore, the government has already reduced internet installation charges from 600,000 Kyats to 50,000 Kyats, and the monthly fees have been reduced from 30,000 Kyats to 17,000 Kyats. This will enable easier and cheaper internet access to at least for some sections of society. There are several international actors, such Australia, who are working towards improving internet services in Myanmar, which would be a big relief for the media houses. Others, such as the Norwegian Telenor company, has promised to introduce a much cheaper telephone service in Myanmar; Ooredoo, a Qatar-based firm, in collaboration with Samsung, is working towards providing cheaper internet service in Myanmar. All these promises will bring about positive changes in the country and reduce the struggle that the media houses are currently facing.

NEPAL AND ETHNIC FEDERALISM: THE INSUFFICIENCY OF THE MAOIST MODEL

Subin Nepal 


The last few years have seen a great rise in the discussion surrounding state restructuring in Nepal. At its very core has been the issue of ethnic federalism. First touted by the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) in their agenda in the 1990s and now heavily supported by several ethnic parties as well as some major political parties, ethnic federalism has become, in a way, the talk of the town. While some political parties have shown minor resistance to the UCPN-M model of federalism, the majority of them seem to agree with the need to restructure the state at the very least.

UCPN-M-introduced federalism needs critical analysis because of their close ties with ethnic groups during the civil war and the ethnic electorates they have been attracting. The recent constituent assembly (CA) election has shown that the UCPN-M’s overall public support has plummeted. However, a report that was submitted by the State Restructuring Commission in 2012 (before the second CA election) upheld the UCPN-M model which cannot be overlooked. While there is a possibility that a majority alliance between Nepali Congress and Communist Party of Nepal–Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) could be formed to overthrow previously agreed upon recommendations to the constitution, it might actually be a disastrous road to take. On top of that, singling out the unhappy faction (UCPN-M) does not seem to be the best policy to move forward with. Hence, there seems to be little to no possibility of simply overlooking the third largest party and its policies.

What are the flaws in the demanded model?
At a time when the rest of the world is trying to remove social divisions that hamper unity in society, Nepali Maoists seem to be embracing a rather strange policy. Their inclination towards an ethnic model of federalism is not only a backward model but also a way to create divisions in a society that has been functioning without any major ethnic clashes till date. The Maoist model proposes 13 provinces – a majority of them named after ethnic groups. The irony is that almost no ethnic group holds a population majority within the state that has been named after them. Though the idea of uplifting the minority and historically oppressed is a particularly positive agenda that the UCPN-M has stood with, there is no clear evidence that only 13 ethnicities are minorities and have been historically oppressed in Nepal. Or, that creating only 13 provinces would provide the much needed support to the rest of the minority groups as well. The Nepalese government officially recognises the existence of more than 100 ethnic groups in the country. And if Maoists were to embrace only 13 of them as their token minorities, it would create another gap within the minority movement, giving rise to several layers within the minorities. Several ignored minority groups have already threatened to raise weapons in case they do not receive equal rights as the top 13.

What could be the solution to this proposed model?
Nepal’s federalism has been discussed by several different non-profits and research organisations. However, on the ground, work seems still to be lacking. The political parties seem to be touting federalism to receive quick funding for “minority right campaigns” from human rights-based organisations. In addition, bulky research papers are being produced without a substantial geo-strategic vision. Carving out a nation is a difficult process and the Nepali political elites seem to have forgotten this reality. Before jumping into federalism based on ethnicity or even federalism itself, Nepal needs to devise an independent agency that consists of scholars from appropriate fields for state restructuring. Cheap slogans embraced for quick money and the possibility of a strong electorate should not decide how the country gets restructured. A political suggestion is acceptable but a political division based on one party’s agenda only will leave the country divided. Hence, Nepal needs to do a serious re-evaluation of its current inclination towards the UCPN-M model of federalism. And this re-evaluation needs to come from the Constituent Assembly and the same political parties who are leaning towards this model. The CA needs to create a new agency and make it independent unlike the previous one (State Restructuring Commission) which was just a wing of the CA. This agency needs to consist of scholars and needs to take at least a few years to devise strategic plans for state restructuring before Nepal makes those changes.

At the end, the question of convincing such a divided CA to create an independent agency that might make political parties sacrifice their agendas is what makes this task difficult to accomplish. And it is certain that UCPN-M would be the one to disagree with such an agency. Bipartisanship within the CA could lead to the creation of such an agency, which then could hold all the political parties accountable, including UCPN-M, and respond to their demands with real, hands-on research of possible state restructuring.

COMPREHENSIVE NUCLEAR AGREEMENT WITH IRAN: ONE MONTH ENDGAME

Ayesha Khanyari


Representatives from the P5+1 will meet their Iranian counterparts in Vienna on 2 July 2014 to continue talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme. Earlier, senior diplomats from both sides met in Brussels on 26 June 2014 for “an intense day of preparation” for the upcoming talks with Iran.

The stakes are high as the 20 July 2014 deadline approaches for the expiration of the interim agreement that was signed between the two sides. While the countdown begins, there are key issues that remain unresolved. At this point in time, there are major external impediments that are likely to affect the course of the negotiations in the days ahead.

Crisis in Iraq: Implications for Iran-P5+1 Negotiations
The deadline for the nuclear agreement looms against the backdrop of the worsening security situation in Iraq and Syria. Oddly enough, the US and Iran find themselves on the same side of the conflict. The US does not want to be drawn into a regional sectarian battleground against Iran.

The US faces a huge dilemma in dealing with the Iraq crisis, leaving the Obama administration with two policy options. The US can either pressurise the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to form a more representative government in order to heal the rifts which are exploited by the insurgents, or provide military assistance without waiting for these political changes to come about.

However, the outreach to Iran on a possible common security strategy for containing the Iraq crisis was not openly welcomed by Tehran. Iranian officials are sending mixed signals on cooperating with Washington on the Iraq crisis.

Complicating the picture further are the parallel talks between Iran and the P5+1. American officials insist that the two issues should be kept separate. However, they fear that Iran might use the situation to extract concessions in the upcoming negotiations on its nuclear programme.

Will Russia Exploit this Opportunity?
As tensions between the US and Russia mount over the crisis in Crimea, concerns have emerged about the potential fall-out on areas of cooperation between the two world powers. Russia might link the Crimean issue as part of its own diplomatic leverage with the US and the European Union, the precipitant being President Obama's announcement of new sanctions that were intended to provide broad authority for penalising key areas of the Russian economy, if and as the conflict over Crimea escalated. In his recent statement, Russia’s delegate to the Iran talks, Sergei A Ryabkov, the deputy foreign minister, was quoted as saying, “We wouldn’t like to use these talks as an element of the game of raising the stakes, taking into account the sentiments in some European capitals but if they force us into that, we will take retaliatory measures here as well.”

Any assessment of the recent history of both Russia and Iran highlights that anything is possible. Though retaliatory measures were not mentioned, it would not be surprising to see Russia reviving steps for the delayed oil-for-goods barter deal with the Iranians. The deal would enable Iran to sell more oil to Russia, undercutting the pressure exerted by Western sanctions. On the contrary, it is also possible that Russia would not seek to exploit the opportunity; it would rather comply with the other powers and preserve cooperation on the Iranian nuclear file.

Will Catherine Ashton’s Exit Hinder Diplomacy?
The end of the mandate for European Union’s foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who was the prime coordinator of the negotiations, raises doubts about the future of the nuclear talks. At the end, it will be Iran and the major powers who will determine if a deal is finalised. However, Ashton’s shepherding of the entire process since 2010 is commendable. Her upcoming departure could complicate diplomacy at a critical time exposing the talks to further risks.

Given the sensitivity of the talks, constant concerns raised, and deep fissures between the two sides, delays are possible. A further delay would mean a new EU foreign policy chief taking charge, someone with less expertise on the issue or rapport with the Iranians. While it might appear to be a small matter in an incredibly complex pool of other issues, nonetheless, personalities matter. Ashton’s departure from the scene would certainly impair the momentum of the talks.

A nuclear deal with Iran is certainly in Europe’s interest. Apart from reducing the threat of nuclear proliferation, it could enhance economic ties with Iran. The EU could also work towards engaging Tehran on regional security threats like Syria and Iraq and combating insurgent groups like al Qaeda. Therefore, in the upcoming negotiations, it is also in Europe’s interest to maintain the momentum and keep the door open to diplomacy to finalise a comprehensive deal with Iran.

30 Jun 2014

DELIVERANCE FROM THE POWER OF DARKNESS: THE ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS CHRIST

Emmanuel Eni


Chapter 5: My Encounter with Jesus Christ

 In the month of February 1985, we had our normal meeting in the sea, after which I decided to travel to Port Harcourt in Rivers State, to visit my late uncle's wife. I met a man called Anthony. He has a workshop at Nwaja Junction, along Trans-Amadi Road, Port Harcourt, Rivers State. He sent for me and since in our society we have a law never to refuse calls, I decided to answer his call. I went to him in the afternoon on a Thursday of that week. He started by saying God has given him a message for me. He brought out his Bible and started preaching. There were three other Christians seated (a male and two females). He continued his preaching for a long time and I wasn't sure I heard all he said. He asked me to kneel down for prayers. I obeyed and quietly knelt down.  Immediately he started his prayers. I was knocked down by the spirit of God and I fell flat. I struggled up and stood like an iron. I destroyed the iron chairs inside the workshop. I looked outside and saw three of our secret society members, a man and two girls. They came in human form and moved towards the door but because of the power of God they could not enter.  I am sure the alarm in the sea alerted them of the trouble and with the T.V. they knew where the problem was and had sent the 'powerless' rescue team. This always happens when any member runs into trouble. While the two Christian men pulled me down on my knees, the girls continued praying and binding the demons, but they were not specific. They asked me if I believed in Jesus Christ, I said nothing. They asked me to call the name of Jesus, I refused. They asked me my own name and I told them. They struggled for hours and released me to go. No spirit was removed from me, so I went out the same way as when I came in.
The Church Events 
The following day being Friday, I was invited by the same Anthony to attend their night vigil at the Assemblies of God church, Silver Valley, Port Harcourt. I accepted this invitation because attending church services to cause slumber and confusion was part of our assignments. The program started with choruses. We sang until one of the members raised a popular chorus by a particular Christian Band, of the powerlessness of other powers except Jesus' power.  Then I started laughing. I laughed because when in the spirit I looked into their lives almost three quarters of the people singing this chorus were living in sin. I knew that because of the sins in their lives, they were exposed and could be harmed seriously by these powers. It is important that Christians obey the word of God and not allow besetting sins to remain in their lives. In that service we were four from the sea and were singing and clapping with them. Again I want to stress here that when a service is started, members should be advised first to confess their sins, then go into a period of real praises to God. This will make an agent of Satan present very uncomfortable and in fact escape for his/her life.  In this particular service we were very comfortable and even went into operation. Many started sleeping, choruses were sung weakly and things went zig-zag. Brother Anthony had already told them about me so at about 2.00 a.m. they called me out to pray for me. As soon as I came out to the front they started pleading the blood of Jesus. I stopped them and said: “It is not pleading the blood that is the solution. I am a deep secret society member. If you agree that you can deliver me, then will I kneel down.” These words I spoke were not premeditated. The blood of Jesus scares the demons and protects the believer, but does not bind demons. Binding of demons only takes place when the Christian uses his authority and gives the command.  They agreed and I knelt down. At that point a sister led by the Sprit of God shouted and said: “If you are not worthy, do not come near!” I am sure many did not understand what she meant. It is dangerous for a Christian living in sin to cast out demons. Many withdrew and a few came out to pray for me. As they started with “In Jesus name,” I heard a big bang inside me and fell on the floor. Immediately the flying demon in me went into action. I started running with my chest. Anybody possessed with this flying demon is always very wicked and dangerous. The brethren never saw what was happening spiritually. I was running because of the stronger power in the room.  Two opposing forces went into action and the atmosphere changed. I suddenly stood up and became very violent etc. A demon went out of me and possessed a boy in their midst and he started fighting them, trying to rescue me. The brethren never wasted time with him rather they took him and others who were afraid to the church vestry and locked them inside. This continued till 7.00 a.m. I was physically exhausted and became quiet, so the brethren gathered around me again and started shouting: “Name them!” “Who are they?” etc. I kept quiet. After waiting for a long time and I said nothing, they were deceived to believe that I was delivered. They prayed and we dismissed. I was so physically weak that I found it difficult to walk out of the church. But something happened, for as soon as I walked out of the church and crossed the road, I became very strong physically. Perhaps some of the demons that left came back. I became very angry and decided to take vengeance on the church. “This people had insulted me” I said to myself, and for this insult I was going back to Lagos and get more powers with others as wicked as myself, and then come back to Port Harcourt to take vengeance on ALL the members of the Assembly of God, Silver Valley.  En Route to Lagos 
On getting to my uncle's wife house, I told them I was leaving for Lagos immediately. I refused to be persuaded to stay and I took a taxi to Mile 3 motor park where I took a taxi for Onitsha. My intention was to stop at Onitsha, see a friend and then proceed to Lagos. At Mile 3 we took off and on getting to Omagwe, at the International Airport Junction, I heard a voice calling me by my native name “NKEM.” I turned around to see if there was a known face in the taxi but there was none. Who could this be? Only my late mother calls me by that name, all others including the spirit world knew me as Emmanuel. While I was still wondering, the voice came again: “NKEM, are you going to betray me again?” I did not recognize the voice but the voice continued asking me: “Are you going to betray me again?” Suddenly I had severe fever. The heat that came out of my body was so high that the other passengers felt it. One of them asked me: “Mr., were you well at-all before traveling?” I told them I was well and that I never had even a headache before leaving Port Harcourt.  At Umuakpa in Owerri, I collapsed inside the taxi. The next I knew was that two men, tall and huge, came to take me, one on my left and the other on my right, and they never spoke a word to me. They led me through a very rough road with bottles and metals. As we moved along, these bottles and metals gave cuts and I started crying but these men still did not say a word. We moved on and came out to an express road. It was here one of them spoke and said: “You are a wanted man!” and we continued. We moved on to a very large and long building that looked like a Conference Hall. As soon as we climbed the pavement a voice from inside said: “Take him in!” They took me in and disappeared, leaving me alone.  What I saw inside this hall is difficult to explain, but I will try to explain as much as I can. The hall was well decorated and so large and long that one finds it difficult to see the end of it. I walked to the middle and then was able to see the end. At the end was an altar. I saw a moon and stars surrounding the sun. Then I saw a throne and seated on it was a very handsome man with a garment shining like the sun. He said: “Come!” But because of His brightness I could not go. Whenever I tried to move a leg I would fall.  I stood up, tried again and fell. Suddenly a moon came out of the throne where He was sitting and moved on the ceiling right up where I stood. Then two hands came out of the moon, held my head, shook me and my physical body pulled off, like pulling off a dress. And the real me stood. The hands folded it as if folding a cloth and dropped it at the corner. The moon then moved back to the throne and then He that sat on it said again: “Come!”
 The Spiritual Cleansing
 I walked to a point and He stepped out of the throne to me, removed my legs one after another and poured out what was inside them and fixed them back. He did the same with my hands and put them back, in fact all the places the Queen of the Coast kept powers. I wondered in my mind, who can this be and how did He know the spots these things were kept. After this He went back to His throne and asked me to come. As I started walking, certain objects started falling from my body, scales fell from my eyes, etc., but before I got to the altar it stopped. “WHERE ARE YOU GOING?” He asked.  I answered and said: “I am going to Onitsha to see a friend.” He said: “Yes, but I will show you what you have in your mind.” Up till this moment I did not know who He was, but one thing was certain and that was He was more powerful than all the powers I had come across. He beckoned on a man and asked him to show me what I had conceived in my heart. This man took me to a room and opened something like a blackboard. In fact, if there was a way to escape I could have escaped, for before me was written all that I had planned against Christians and my plan against the Assemblies of God church, Silver Valley. The man brought me back to the altar and left.  He came out of the throne and took me by His hands and said He was going to show me certain things. On our way He said: “I do not want you to perish but to save you and this is your last chance. If you do not repent and come and serve me, you will die. I will show you the abode of the saved and the disobedient.” When He said this, I then knew He was Jesus Christ.
The Divine Revelations
We entered a room and He opened something like a curtain. I saw the whole world, the people and all the activities going on. I saw both Christians and unbelievers all doing one thing or the other. We went into a second room. He opened a curtain again and what I saw was a sorry sight. People chained! He called these people “the hypocrites.” These people looked very sorrowful and He said: “They will remain this way until the judgment day.”  We went into a third room. He opened a curtain and I saw many people rejoicing and wearing white garments. This time I asked him: “Who are these?” He said: “These are the redeemed awaiting their rewards.” We went into a fourth room and what I saw was very frightening.  Dear reader, it is difficult to describe. It looked like a whole city on fire. Hell is real and terrible. If you had been made to believe that Heaven and Hell are here on earth and that man has no hereafter but total annihilation after death, you better be well advised here and now that there is a real hell and there is a real heaven! No wonder when Jesus Christ was on earth He warned man about hell. I say it again, hell is real. I saw it and it is a terrible place. I asked Him: “What it is?” His answer was: “This is prepared for satan and his angels and for the disobedient.” He named them as recorded in Rev. 21: 8: “But the fearful and unbelieving and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”  We went into a fifth room and when He opened a curtain, what I saw can only be described as GLORIOUS. It was as if we were looking at it from mountain top. I saw a new city. The city was so large and beautiful! The streets are made of gold. The buildings could not be compared with anything in this world. He said: “this is the hope of the saints. Will you be there?” Immediately I answered “Yes!” After this we went back to the throne and He said: “Go and testify what I have done for you.”  Again, He took me to another room and when He opened a curtain I saw all that I was going to encounter on my journey to Onitsha and Lagos and how He would finally deliver me. After this He said to me: “Do not be afraid, go, I will be with you.” He led me out of the hall and vanished, and I woke up on a bed in another man's house. I shouted, so the man and his wife ran out from their room. They first peeped and then came in. “Why am I here?” I asked. The man then narrated how I collapsed in a taxi and how they carried me to the Catholic Cathedral there in Owerri. How they sent for a Doctor, who came and after examining me said my pulse was normal and that they should wait and see what would happen. The Doctor gave them the assurance that I would revive. The man then took me in his car to his house and had been waiting. He also confessed he never knew why he believed the Doctor and why he took responsibility of taking me to his house.  They asked me my name and address which I gave them and after that I kept quiet and never told them my experience. I stayed calmly with this kind family for two days and then the man and his wife drove me to the Owerri motor park, where I took a taxi to Onitsha. All that the Lord showed me about my journey happened one after the other. I took another taxi to Lagos first thing the following morning. I obeyed and left Lagos for Port Harcourt the following morning. I often ask myself, why would the Lord save a man like me. A man so wicked and destructive, an agent of Satan! I found the answer in these three words: God is love. Indeed, God is Love! (1 John 4:8, 4:16).

DELIVERANCE FROM THE POWER OF DARKNESS: BATTLE WITH CHRISTIANS

Emmanuel Eni 


Chapter 4: How satan Fights Christians

 «For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against spiritual wickedness in high places.» Eph. 6: 10-12  Fighting Christians  After the command by Lucifer to fight the Christians, we then sat and mapped out ways of fighting them as follows:
1. Causing sicknesses.
2. Causing barrenness.
3. Causing slumber in the church.
4. Causing confusion in the church.
5. Causing lukewarmness in the church.
6. Making them ignorant of the Word of God.
7. By fashion and emulation.
8. Fighting them physically.
Amongst the above I would like to explain two:  1. Fighting physically: With the T.V. given to me, I would see the born again Christians. We do not fight hypocrites because they belong to us already. We would then send our girls first to the big churches. Inside the church they would be chewing gum or make a child cry or do anything that would distract the people from hearing the word of God. They may decide to come spiritually and cause the people to sleep while the preaching is going on. The moment they see you have a sober reflection because of the preaching, they would wait on you outside the church and as soon as you come out, one of them would greet you and even present you a gift (and it's always what you love) and would appear very friendly. She would do everything and before you knew what was happening you had forgotten all you learned in the church. But for a real Christian, one of these girls, after the service, would jump out to greet you and would desire to know your house with the pretext that she was new in town and did not know many Christians around. On taking her home, she would quickly buy bananas and the Christian would take this as a gesture of love. She would continue her visits until she finally puts off the light of Christ in you and then stops coming. Major operations in the living churches and fellowships are: discouraging the Christians from reading and studying the Word of God, and thereby making them ignorant of their authority and of the promises of God. In crusade grounds these girls would be sent to cause disagreements and quarrels.  How Christians are Known? The born again Christians are not known by the Bible they carry always or the many fellowships they attend. They are known in the spirit world by the light that shines continuously like a very bright candle in the heart or a circle of light around the head or a wall of fire around them. When a Christian is walking along, we see angels walking along with him/her, one by the right, one by the left, and one behind. This makes it impossible for us to come near him/her.  The only way we succeed is by making the Christian sin, thereby giving us a loophole to come in. When a Christian is driving a car and we want to harm him/her, we find that he/she is never alone in the car. There is always an Angel by him/her. Oh if the Christian only knows all that God has for him, he will not meddle with sin or live carelessly!
2. The Making of Backslidden Christians
As a chairman appointed by Lucifer, I would send these girls to living churches and fellowships. These girls would be well dressed and after the preaching would come out for the altar call, pretend to have received Christ and would be prayed for. At the end of the fellowship or service they would hang around waiting for the preacher who naturally would be very happy for these new converts.  The converts may even follow the preacher to his house. If the preacher does not have the spirit of discernment she would lure him into the sin of fornication or adultery. This takes place the moment he admires her lustfully. She would make sure he continued in this sin until she finally quenches the Spirit of God in him and then leave him, mission accomplished.  At this juncture, I would like to give a testimony of a Minister. In the evil spirit world he is known as a man of God. When he went on his knees there would be confusion among us. We therefore sent these girls to him. This man would even feed them but would refuse to be enticed. They did all they could but never succeeded. As a result, these girls were killed for their failure.  I then changed to a woman and went to him, and by words an actions tried to entice him, but he was adamant. This was too much for me, so I decided to kill him physically. One day, this Minister went to Oduekpe Road market town. I watched him and as he bent down to price some commodities I wheeled an oncoming trailer loaded with drums of oil into the market where he was. The trailer struck the NEPA high tension pole and fell right into the market, leaving many people dead, but this Minister escaped. How he escaped was a miracle. Another day, I saw him traveling to Nkpor town on foot. I again wheeled an oncoming army lorry loaded with yams to kill him. The lorry went straight into the new cemetery road, killed many people, but this Minister again escaped. After this second attempt we gave up. He is still alive!  Because of a single Christian, the devil may decide to destroy many souls, thinking he could kill him, but he always fails. These incidents had happened to many Christians unknown to them, but their God always delivered them. The trouble is, the devil does not give up. His thoughts are always: “I may succeed.” But he never does. As long as the Christian walks with God's Love and remains in Him and does not get entangled with the affairs of this life, the devil can never succeed, no matter how hard he tries. Only the unbeliever is at his disposal.
The Oppression of the Christian 
This mostly happens in dreams. A Christian may see in his/her dreams the following:
1. A dead relation visiting him/her.
2. Masquerades pursuing him/her.
3. Mates swimming in the river.
4. Mates bringing food and asking him/her to eat.
5. A single female having sexual intercourse or even a married one having sex with a man.
This, if not dealt with, sometimes leads to barrenness. Or a pregnant woman sees herself having sexual intercourse with a man. This, if not immediately dealt with, could lead to a miscarriage.  If a Christian experiences the above in his/ her dreams, he/she should not put it aside by the wave of the hand, but on getting out of sleep he/she should examine himself/herself and confess any known sin unto God, bind all those demons and ask God to restore whatever had been tampered with. This is very important. The person should also seek the help and counsel of a mature Spirit-filled Christian, older in the faith.
The Devil's Soul Winning
When Jesus Christ was leaving this earth; He gave His disciples a command: “Go ye into all world and make disciples of all nations.” While some Christians are still waiting for a more suitable and convenient time to obey this command, the devil has also given this command to his agents. The difference is, the devil's agents are more serious in winning souls than the Christians!  One of the areas of the devil's soul winning is the secondary schools, especially girl’s schools. Some of our girls are sent into the schools as students. We supply them with all the latest and expensive underwear. This is first priority, because in girls' hostels, they like using underwear only. Our agent would never lack anything, cosmetics, dresses, underwear, books, provisions and money. A particular bathing soap would be given to her to lend to any student who requests for soap from her. A girl desiring to be like her would be attracted and would befriend her. Gradually our agent would introduce us to her. At this point we would visit her physically and would start giving her gifts and meeting her needs. With this, she would join us willingly. She in turn would win another and so on. This is taken as a mission and it is carried out with a determination to succeed.  One thing should be made clear: satan does not force anyone. What he does is to attract and make you come to him willingly. That is why the Bible says: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4: 7). Another area of soul winning for the devil is giving lifts. We would send our girls to stand on the road, and usually they are very beautiful and attractively dressed. You will also find them in hotels and through these avenues we get men and women. Many people we see advertised in the papers as missing, got lost through giving lifts to girls they did not know.  You should therefore be careful who you lift in your car.

DELIVERANCE FROM THE POWER OF DARKNESS: THE WICKED REIGN

Emmanuel Eni


Chapter 3: The Wicked Reign

 «The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly»  John 10:10  On returning to Lagos, I continued in my business and after two weeks I went back to the sea. The Queen of the Coast gave me what she called her “first assignment”. I should go to my village and kill my uncle, a prominent powerful native doctor who was responsible, according to her, for the death of my parents.  I obeyed and went but having not killed before, I hadn’t the courage to kill him, rather I destroyed his medicines and rendered him powerless. As a result of this act he lost all his customers till this date. I came back to give a report assignment but she was wrathful with me. She said the consequence of disobeying her instructions was death, but because of her love for me she would send me back to the same village to kill two elders who she said gave a helping hand in the killing of my parents. Whether this was a punishment for disobeying her or not, I did not know.  However, I obeyed and went back to the village and ‘managed’ to kill these men and sent their blood to her. As a result of the mysterious circumstances of their death the elders in the village went to inquire from another powerful native doctor who normally sent lightning to investigate the killer. Unfortunately for these men, I met the native doctor in spirit where he was consulting with spirits and warned him not to say anything if he loved his life. He came out and told the elders to go home and beg one of their sons whom they had offended and never mentioned my name.  The lightning he sent returned and struck in their midst killing some and leaving many wounded. After this first act, the powers in me started manifesting themselves. I would deform a girl for refusing me friendship etc. Eni
 My Meeting with Satan 
I later went back to Lagos. One day, a girl named NINA came to me. NINA whose parents were from Anambra State was a very beautiful young girl but lives mostly in the sea, i.e. the underwater spirit world. She was an ardent agent of the Queen of the Coast and very wicked. She hated the Christians to the core and would go all length to fight Christianity. I first met her during my visit to the sea. NINA came for an errand from the Queen of the Coast.  We left immediately and reaching there I learnt of our having a conference with Lucifer. Satan, in this meeting, gave us the following instructions: To fight the believers and not the unbelievers, because the unbelievers were already his. When he said this, one of us asked: “Why?” He said the reason was that God drove him out of ‘that place” (he refused to call the word ‘Heaven’ and all throughout our meetings with him he never mentioned the word ‘Heaven’. Rather he would always use the word ‘that place’) because of pride, and therefore he does not want any Christian to get there (Heaven).  He also told us that we should not fight the hypocrites. “They are like me”, he said. He continued his speech and said: “We should only fight the real Christians.” That his time was near, therefore “we should fight as never before and make sure no one enters 'that place'.” So one of us said to him: “We heard that God has sent someone to rescue mankind back to God.” Satan then asked: “Who is that?” One member answered “Jesus” and to our greatest surprise, Lucifer fell from his seat. He shouted at the man and warned him never to mention that name in any of our meetings if he loves his life. It is true that at the name of Jesus every knee must bow (Phil. 2: 10), including Satan.
After this incident he encouraged us and told us not to mind “these Christians”, that he Lucifer would soon come to rule the world and would give us, his agents, a better place so that we would not suffer with the rest of the world and he would make us rulers. He continued that since man likes flashy and fanciful things, he would continue to manufacture these things and make sure that man has no time for his God and that he would use the following to destroy the church:
 1. Money, 2. Wealth, 3. Women.
 At the end of this speech he dismissed the meeting. This was my first meeting with Satan. Several others followed after this meeting. As we were leaving, the Queen of the Coast, who now appears in different forms, invited me to her mansion. She inserted human ashes with other things inside the bones of my two legs, a stone (not an ordinary stone) in my finger and something else inside the bone of my right hand.  Each of these things had their duties. The stone in my finger was to know the thought of anyone against me. The one in my right hand was to empower me to destroy and the ones in the legs are to make me more hardened and to become more dangerous and also to enable me change to a woman, beast, bird, cat, etc. She took me to one of the laboratories and gave me a telescope, a T.V. and a video. These were not ordinary things but were to be used in detecting the born again Christians and the church goers inside the Church.  Finally she gave me sixteen girls to work as my agents. NINA was one of them. I came back to Lagos armed with the above mentioned ‘gifts’.
Transformed into satan’s agent 
I had no human feelings nor mercy in my heart any longer. I went into operation immediately and destroyed five duplex at a go. They all sunk inside the ground with their inhabitants. This happened at Lagos in August 1982. The contractor was held responsible for not laying a good foundation and paid dearly for it. A lot of destruction happening in the world today are not man made. The devil’s duty is to steal, kill and destroy. I say it again, “satan has no free gift”.  I went into causing accidents on the roads etc. A case I would like to mention is about a young convert who went about testifying of his salvation and deliverance. He was causing a lot of harm in the spirit world for doing this, so I planned an accident for him. One day he was on a luxurious bus to Lagos. He had an appointment where he was to give his testimony. As the bus was on high speed, I wheeled it out of the road and it went and crashed onto a tree. All the passengers died except this young convert.  His escape was miraculous because he came out of the vehicle through the boot of the bus and shouted: “I am safe! I am safe!” We tried to stop him from testifying but we failed.  Through the T.V., we would know a man who repented newly and would pursue him seriously to see if we could make him backslide. If after six months we do not succeed, we would go into his business and make it go bankrupt. If he/she is a civil servant we would oppress him/her through the boss, and if possible make the boss terminate his/her appointment. If after all these he refuses to backslide then we would give him up. But if he backslides he would be killed to make sure he does not have a second chance to repent.  I destroyed lives to the extent that Lucifer became very pleased and made me chairman of the wizards. A month after my chairmanship, a meeting was called. We attended that meeting as birds, cats and snakes. These creatures are used for the following reasons;
1. Turning to birds make wizards more dangerous.
2. Turning to cats make wizards able to reach both spirits and humans.
 3. Turning to rats enable wizards to enter into a house easily, then in the night turn to shadow, and then to human being and suck the victim's blood.
 In this meeting we had only one item on the agenda: “The Christians.” We then scheduled to hold an African wizard conference in Benin city in 1983. We published it in all the dailies and all the public media. All the forces of darkness were mobilized and we were very confident that nothing was going to interrupt this meeting. In fact everything was well planned and there was no loophole.  Suddenly, the Christians in Nigeria went into prayers and praises unto their God and all our plans were shattered. Not only that our plans were shattered but also there was real confusion in the kingdom of darkness. As a result, the witches' and wizards' conference could not be held in Nigeria. Christians should note that the moment they go into real praises to God almighty, there would be trouble and confusion both in the sea and in the air, and the agents of satan would have no resting place. Prayer is like throwing a time-bomb in our midst and everyone would escape for his/her life.  If Christians would realize and use the power and authority God has given them, they would control the affairs of their nation! Only Christians can save our nation.  After the failure of this conference, which was later held in South Africa, I was called back to the sea. When I arrived, I was told from that moment I would make the sea my home and only visit the world for difficult operations. I was given a new assignment: inventing charms for native doctors, in charge of the control room and sending the gifts, i.e. opening of white garment churches (prayer houses), opening of maternities, opening stores and making them prosper, giving 'children' and money. These will be explained one after the other:
1. Opening of White "Garment Churches": When a man comes to us for an assistance to build a prayer house and help him performing healings etc., he would be given some conditions:
a) He will agree to donate to us one or two souls every year.
b) At a certain level of office in the church the person would be initiated to our society.
 c) No member would be allowed to come into the prayer house with shoes on.
When he accepts these conditions, he would be given something like a white gravel, human bones, blood and charms, all in a native pot. He would be instructed to bury this pot with all its content in front of the church and bury the cross on its top. After the burial, only the cross should be seen. He would be advised to build a pool or keep a basin where spirits would continue to supply special water. This water is what you hear them call "holy water."  Many people when disturbed by evil spirits go to these “prophets” to cast them out. The truth is, they only add more demons to them. A devil cannot cast out devil. (Luke 11:17-19) What the prophet would do is, he will pray for the member and then give him/her a red cloth to put in his/ her house, and then would advise him/her to always pray with candles and incenses. By this act the person invites us into his/her house. Sometimes the member would be advised to bring a goat etc., for sacrifice. These sacrifices are for us to come and help cure the man. The prophet has no power to cure or heal.
2. Opening of Maternities:  If a woman comes to us for assistance in opening a maternity and making it prosper, she would be given this condition: "A month would be chosen by us in which all the children born in the maternity would die, but the other months the children would live"If she accepts, she would also be given a charm which would attract people into the maternity. There are such maternities in Onitsha, Lagos, etc. shoes are not allowed into such maternities.
  3. Opening of Fancy Stores: When a man approaches us for assistance in this respect, he would be given a ring with a condition that no woman should be allowed to touch it. He also must agree to be our member. If he accepts to fulfill these conditions, his store would be stocked always with the best and latest materials by us.
4. Giving of Children: If a barren woman goes to some native doctors, after laying her complaints, she would be asked to bring the following: a white cock, a goat, native chalk and baby care. She would be advised to go and in her absence, the native doctor will come to us bringing these things. We would then mix certain things which are difficult to explain in writing, and include human ashes. He would use this charm to cook food for the woman etc. She would become pregnant and give birth, but it's not a normal human being. If the child is a female she would live and even get married but would remain barren all her life. If the child is a male he will live and even be trained only to die suddenly. They never live to bury their parents.  I would like to mention here that barrenness is mostly caused by demons. You may see a woman barren here on earth, but she would have children in the sea. I therefore advise God's children to wait on God alone because only God gives real children.
5. Giving of Money: If a man comes to us for money, he would be given these conditions to fulfill: He will be asked to give a part of his body or if he has a family he would be asked to bring his son. If single, he would be asked to bring his elder or younger brother.  Whoever he decides to bring must be from the same womb. Something worth mentioning is: during the killing of the victim, the person who brought him would be given a spear or an arrow. His relations would be made to file past in a mirror. As soon as the one he had donates passes, he would be asked to strike and as this happens the victim would die where he is.  There are other methods but one thing Satan does is that: He makes sure that in the different methods, the donor becomes responsible for the death of the victim, by making the donor strike the victim. remember, satan has no free gift.

DELIVERANCE FROM THE POWER OF DARKNESS: THE INITIATION

Emmanuel Eni 

Chapter 2: The Initiation

 « There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. » Proverbs 14:12  « But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God to the wicked. » Isaiah 57: 20-21  And life outside Jesus Christ is exactly as stated in the above Scriptures. I left my village armed with N50 and the address given to me by  Alice, escaping to freedom, liberty, enjoyment and all that go with them: but as you will see later it was far from what I had conceived in my young heart. When I arrived in Lagos, it was so beautiful in my eyes and I compared it with Heaven, whatever Heaven is like. I saw all those tall and beautiful buildings and on each face I could see happiness (so I thought). People appeared very busy each one minding his/her business. I was excited and said to myself, “Now I know I am free!  I arrived at Akintola Road, Victoria Island and was well received by Alice and her parents. The parents knew me and my background as we came from the same village but never knew of my relationship with their daughter. Alice then introduced  me to them as a man she has ‘chosen’ to marry. The parents were shocked but after some discussions with her, agreed on the condition that they would further my education. Alice rejected their offer and requested that I be allowed to live with her in her own flat. The parents could not accept this but she insisted. They had a strong argument for four days and under some unexplained influence they agreed and I moved in with Alice.  Alice, a very beautiful girl, told me that she was an accountant with the Standard Bank and that she would make me rich and give me all that I needed in this life and said: “Just settle down and enjoy yourself!” My first impression about Lagos was true after all; few months ago I was in a small hut in a small village surrounded by hatred, starvation and suffering and  here I am, living in a big city, in a well furnished flat with a beautiful ‘wife’ who had promised to give me all that life could offer. She showered me with gifts, money, clothing, ‘love’ etc. I never knew that the world was filled with these ‘good things’. The devil indeed is a deceiver! The Scripture rightly says: “The thief cometh not but for to steal, to kill and to destroy. ONLY the son of man (JESUS CHRIST) can give life and give it more abundantly3” (John 10: 10). Dear reader, the devil has no free gift! Whatever he gives you is for an exchange with your soul. This state of euphoria was short-lived, because after a period of three months strange things started happening.
The Mysterious Experiences 
One night, I woke up in the dead of the night and found a boa-constrictor beside me. I wanted to shout but could not. Some nights, I would wake up to see Alice’s body as transparent as a cellophane bag. Some nights, she would disappear and reappear. Some nights I would hear strange noises or dancing in the living room etc. I could no longer bear these fearful happenings so I decided to ask her, and the first reaction was violence and serious warning. She said: “Do not ask me this question again or else I will deal with you.”  From then I knew my life was in danger. I then preferred the sufferings in the village to what I came to discover. I became afraid of her. Two days passed and she came with smiles, gifts and hugged me. She told me how much she loved and cared for me and encouraged me not to be afraid and promised to explain things to me later. She took me to a night club and there reminded me of her promise to make me rich etc., and told me: “ONE DAY YOU WILL  KNOW ALL THAT I KNOW!” We came back and life continued as normal between us. Inwardly I knew I was in danger, but how could I escape and where would I escape to? It is important to note here that Alice’s parents did not know that their daughter, though young, was involved seriously in occultism and spiritualism and she seriously warned me never to tell them if I loved my life. Dear reader, can you imagine, a 20 year old girl doing all these things? The outside world saw her  as a very beautiful and harmless girl working with a big Bank but she was the devil’s agent. There are a lot of Alices in the world today as you will find out later in this book.
A Horrific Discovery
One day, after she had left for work, I decided to search the flat. As young as she was, the flat was well furnished. She had four refrigerators and on opening one, I saw human skulls, different parts of human body both fresh and dry. Inside the ceiling were skeletons. In another corner of one of the rooms I saw (what I later knew as a ‘chamber’) a water-pot filled with blood and a small tree in the centre of the pot, a calabash and a red cloth by it. I could  not continue. Now I knew that I was a dead man and since I had nowhere to run to. I surrendered my life to whatever comes, life or death and kept sealed lips. Alice came back from work and from the way she looked at me, I knew that right in her office she knew what I did in the house.  Encounter with the Occult World 
The following day she requested me to follow her to a meeting. I was already a captive and had no choice. We went to a very big building on the outskirts of Lagos. On arriving (the building had an underground conference hall), I was instructed by Alice to enter backwards. I obeyed and entered with my back, she also did the same. The hall was so large with about 500 young men and women seated in a circle, and seated above them was a man whose head could only  be seen and without a body, as the Leader. Some of these young people were students, undergraduates, graduates, teachers etc. Alice pressed a button on the wall and a seat came out from the ground and I sat. She did the same and another came out for her and she sat. She introduced me to the congregation as a new member and they applauded and welcomed me. Alice  was promoted as a result of this.  All that they discussed in the meeting I never understood. At the end of it and as we were about to leave, I was asked to come back alone the following day by the Leader. This was my first encounter with the occult world.  That same night, at 2.00 a.m. (and this is the usual hour of meetings and dangerous operations by all the forces of darkness and their agents), Alice woke me up and revealed certain things to me. She said: “I am not  an ordinary human being. I am half human and half spirit but mainly of the spirit. What you see in my chamber is what I use in the night so that the spirit will guide me through the day. As for the skeletons I will tell you later.”  I never said a word. She brought out some books on world mysteries for me to read, and with my inquisitive mind I decided to read them. Shortly I became interested and immediately she saw that I was now interested. Unknown to me, she sent my name to an occult society in India. As previously instructed, the following day I went back to the society alone and there met nine others and some witnesses. We were to be initiated. We were called out to the centre of the hall and the following things were administered to us: 1. A concoction that looked like putty was rubbed on our bodies. This qualifies you as a full member. 2. A glass shot of oil-like liquid was given to us to drink. This qualifies you to be an agent. 3. A gunpowder-like substance was rubbed on our heads. This qualifies you to study their mysteries. Unknown also to me, this initiation ceremony was being recorded in India and the next day I received a letter from them. In the letter I was instructed to stain the letter with my own blood and to post it back to them through a means they described, not the Post Office. I did. From this point, there was no turning back; turning back meant death as one was always reminded and I knew there was no more hope for me.
 Covenant with Alice 
Early one morning, she told me there was an important ceremony to be performed in the house. At 2.00 a.m. she brought a crawling child, a girl, alive. Before my eyes, Alice used her fingers and plucked out the child eyes. The cry of that child broke my heart. She then slaughtered the child into pieces and poured both the blood and the flesh into a tray and asked me to eat. I refused. She looked straight at me and what came out of her eyes cannot be explained in writing. Before I knew what was happening, I was not only chewing the meat but also licking the blood. While this was happening she said: “This is a covenant between us, you will never say out anything you see me do or anything about me to any human on earth. The day you break this covenant your own is gone.” Meaning that the day I break this covenant I will be killed.  After this incident I started having strange feelings inside me. I was changed and could no longer control myself. A word of warning to mothers. Do you know your house helps? What is his/her background like? Do you care to find out all about him/her before entrusting the lives of your children etc. to him/her? How did Alice get the little child she slaughtered, you may ask. Therefore parents, know the background of your house helps.  When Alice saw that she had succeeded in getting me fully involved in SPIRITISM and was fast growing in it, she was satisfied an knew her mission was accomplished. She found a flat for me, helped furnish it and thereafter severed the relationship.
Covenant in India
 The Society in Delhi, India sent me a second letter asking me to come over to India. In it also I was instructed to do the following: “Eat excreta, eat decaying smelling rats, and to have sexual intercourse with spirits in the cemetery at night.”  After fulfilling the above I was bound never to have any sexual intercourse with any women on earth. I sent a reply to their letter informing them that I had no visa neither do I know how to get to India. At this time I had started doing ‘business’. I was a serious smuggler but because of these powers behind me I had no trouble with customs etc
I started having a lot of money, food and materials were no longer scarce. One day, I locked my flat and went out; coming back, I opened the door and behold a man sitting in the parlor. I was afraid. He said: “Are you not Emmanuel Amos?” I said I am. He said: “I have been sent to come and collect you to India, so get ready.” I locked everywhere, went and sat beside him on the cushion ready for the next order. But like lightning, he touched me and we vanished.  The next place I saw myself was in a big conference hall in Delhi, India, with a large congregation already seated and waiting to welcome us. They brought out files where my name had already been written and asked me to sign beside it. I did. A tray containing human flesh, cut in pieces with a basin of blood were brought. An empty jug was given to each person, then a man without a head went round pouring the blood and flesh into the jugs. Different candles and incenses were being burnt also. The headless man made some incantations and everyone drank the blood and ate the meat and the meeting was over.
The Initiations in India
 Now the period of my testing had come. I was sent to a valley about 200 metres deep. In it were assorted dangerous reptiles and wild beasts. These were to torture me. I was not to shout, for if I did, I have failed the exam and the consequence was DEATH. After seven days of agony I was brought out and sent to a place called ‘INDIA JUNGLE’.  In this jungle, I saw different types of demonic birds; demonic because some had faces like dogs, some like cats, etc. Yet with wings. Inside this jungle was a cave, and this cave is only opened by these demonic birds. They opened the cave and I went inside. The things I saw are hard to explain. There were terrible creatures, some looked like human beings but with tails and without human faces, etc. This was another place of torture. The torture there could best be described as semi-hell. I was in that state for 7 days and was brought out.  I was then sent to a very big library that contained large volumes of mystic books to study. I later picked two books: Abbysinia, which means destruction, and Assina, which means giving life or curing. Later I was given more books. I was instructed to build a chamber as soon as I return to Nigeria with the following things in it: “A native water pot filled with human blood, a living tree inside, a human skull, vulture feathers, wild animal skins, boa skin and a big shiny laterites beside the pot.” The blood inside the water pot is to be taken every morning with an incantation. I was also instructed never to eat any food cooked by HUMANS but that I would be fed supernaturally. With all these instructions I came back to Nigeria the same way I went, and fulfilled all.  Back Home in Nigeria
 I had now become a part and parcel of the spirit world and could travel at will to any part of the world. According to the books I brought, spirit beings are living in space. Perhaps they would increase my powers, so I decided to try. I came out of my house, made some incantations and called the whirl wind and disappeared. I found myself in space and saw these spirit beings. What do you want they asked; I told them I wanted powers.  I came back to earth after two weeks having acquired powers from them. Like I said earlier, I no longer could control myself. Despite all these powers I had already received, I still needed more and more powers! I then decided to go into underworld to prove what was written in the books given to me. One day I went to a hidden place in the bush, made some incantations as stated in the books and commanded the ground to open. The ground opened and the demons created steps immediately. I stepped in and went right inside the ground. There was total darkness that can only be compared with one of the plagues that occurred in Egypt as recorded in the Bible. I saw a lot of things that are hard to explain. I saw people chained, people used for making money - their duties are to work day and night to supply money to their captors.  I saw some elite society members who came in to do some sacrifices and would go back to the world with some gifts given to them by the spirits controlling the place. I saw some church leaders who came for powers, powers to say a thing that is accepted without questioning in the church. I stayed for two weeks and came back after receiving more powers. People saw me as young and innocent but never knew I was dangerous. There are lots of such people around; only those in Christ Jesus are safe in real sense of safety.
 Covenant with The Queen of The Coast
 One evening, I decided to have a walk. Along Ebute Metta bus-stop, I saw a young beautiful lady standing. I never spoke a word to her. The next day while passing also I saw her still at the same spot. The third day I saw her still at the same spot and while passing she called me. I stopped and introduced myself to her as Emmanuel Amos but she refused introducing herself.  I asked her name and address but she only laughed. She asked me mine and I told her the street ONLY. When I was about leaving, she said she would visit me one day. In my mind I said, that was impossible, I did not give her my house number how then could she come. But true to her words, I heard a knock on my door after a week of that meeting at the bus-stop. There she was, the mysterious lady! I welcomed her in my mind. (I wondered who this beautiful lady was, and did she know she was treading on dangerous grounds?) I entertained her and she left. After this first visit, her visits became regular without any relationships.  I noticed that in her visits she kept to a particular time, and would not come a minute earlier or later! In some of her visits I would take her to the Lagos Barbeach, or to the Paramount Hotel or Ambassador Hotel etc. All these while, she still did not tell me her name. I decided not to worry since I knew the relationship would not develop more than that. I had already been instructed never to touch a woman.  Suddenly she changed the day visits to nights. During one of the visits she told me: “Now it is time for you to visit me.” We stayed together that night and at 8.00 a.m. the following day we took off. We joined a bus and she told the driver to stop at the barbeach. As we stopped, I asked her: “Where are we going?” She said: “Don’t worry, you are going to know my house.” She took me to a corner of the barbeach, used something like a belt and tied around us and immediately a force came from behind and pushed us into the sea. We started flying on the surface of the water and straight to the ocean. Dear reader, these happened in my physical form! At a point we sank into the sea bed and to my surprise I saw us walking along an express way. We moved into a city with a lot of people all very busy.
The Spirit World 
I saw laboratories, like science lab, designing lab, and a theatre. At the back of the city, I saw young beautiful girls and handsome young men. No old people. She introduced me to them and I was welcomed. She took me to places like “darkroom”, “drying room”, and “packing room”. She then took me to a main factory and warehouse and then came to her private mansion. There she sat me and told me: “I am the queen of the coast and would like very much to work with you. I promise to give you wealth and all that go with it, protection and all that go with it, life and an ‘angel’ to guide you.”  She pressed a button and a tray came out with human flesh (in pieces) in it and we ate together. She commanded a boa to appear and asked me to swallow it. I could not. She insisted but I could not, how could I swallow a live boa. She then used her powers and I swallowed it. These were three covenants: The human flesh and blood, the boa and the demonic angel were always there to make sure no secret was revealed.  But the ‘angel’ was given power to discipline me if I went astray and also to bring me food from the sea any time I was here on earth. I promised to obey her always. After this promise she took me to another part of the ocean, this time an island. There were trees and each of these trees had different duties:  - tree for poisoning, - tree for killing, - tree for invoking, and - tree for cure. She gave me powers to change to all kinds of sea animals like hippopotamus, boa constrictor and crocodile and then she vanished. I stayed in the sea for a week and through one of the means (as crocodile) mentioned above I came back to the world.
 The Underworld Laboratories
 I stayed in Lagos for a week and went back to the sea, this time for two months. I went into the scientific laboratories to see what was happening. I saw psychiatrists and scientists all working very seriously. The work of these scientists is to design beautiful things like flashy cars, etc., latest weapons and to know the mystery of this world. If it were possible to know the pillar of the world they could have, but thank God, ONLY GOD KNOWS.  I moved into the designing room and there I saw many samples of cloth, perfumes and assorted types of cosmetic. All these things according to Lucifer are to distract men’s attention from the Almighty God. I also saw different designs of electronics, computers and alarms. There was also a T.V. from where they knew those who are born again Christians in the world. There you see and differentiate those who are church goers and those who are real Christians.  I then moved from the laboratories to the ‘dark room’ and ‘drying room’. The dark room is where they kill any disobedient member. They kill by first draining the person’s blood and then send the person to the machine room where he/ she will be ground to powder and then send the dust to the ‘sack room’ where they will be bagged and kept for the native doctors to collect for their charms. There were more things which are hard to explain in writing. Despite all these powers in me, I was not yet qualified to meet with Lucifer but only qualified to be his agent. All the same I was satisfied that I now had powers and could face, challenge and destroy things at will. Could there be any other powers anywhere I mused within my mind.