Jacobson converts faith into action; why Jim Jacobson of Christian Freedom International delivers the Word of God and a gospel of self-reliance to Christians persecuted in any corner of the world

0 Comments | Insight on the News, August 12, 2002 | by Hans S. Nichols

Insight: How so?

JJ: It turned into a huge program in which nonprofits and people with good intentions were buying tens of thousands of people out of slavery. Only then did we realize that this was fueling the slave-trade industry.

Insight: They were fueling the slave-trade industry?

JJ: You have these scams where people pose as slaves and scam slave redeemers put on these big shows in order to collect bounties from donors. It is a very, very popular thing to do now among desperate people of the region.

Insight: So buying slaves to free them has become counterproductive?

JJ: Yes, because it creates a perverse economic incentive and results in more slavery. People who are buying slaves are only creating a bigger market for slavery.

Insight: Land mines are another controversial topic. What is your position on the movement to ban land mines?

JJ: Look, like everyone, we think land mines are very bad. But we are opposed to the mine treaty because the very rogue nations that support it won't enforce or implement it. We believe it works against our national interest because we would abide by it but other nations would not.

Let me give you a specific example of how it would be used against people in very unfortunate situations. The Karen, a persecuted ethnic minority in Burma, use land mines as a form of self-defense. They mine the perimeter of a village with homemade land mines as a warning when the military junta is attempting to attack them. In fact, this is a Karen land mine right here on my desk--as a reminder.

Insight: Is that made out of teak?

JJ: It is. The bottom is filled with explosives and the top with two AA batteries. They'll seal it with wax and if someone steps on it--bam! This is a defensive mechanism, a kind of explosive sentry. We are not saying that mines are good, but it's a very complicated situation.

Insight: what sorts of mines do Burma's ruling junta use?

JJ: You'll find that they get most of their mines from China. Depending on how far in the ground they're set, they can kill immediately or leave you maimed for life.

Insight: Give me some raw numbers on medicines and how many people you treat in your makeshift hospitals.

JJ: We treat over 120,000 people a year through our medical initiatives in Burma alone. In Thailand we buy $17,000 worth of medicine a month, getting it very cheaply there.

You have to remember that, aside from land-mine trauma, most of the diseases we encounter are very treatable. Malaria is No. 1. Then upper-respiratory infections, tuberculosis and dengue fever, which I recently had. Believe me, I never want that one again.

Insight: Did you found Christian Freedom International?

JJ: No. Christian Freedom International has been around since the mid-eighties, when I was still at the White House. It has changed its name a couple of times as an organization. I think it was called Christian Response International and then Christian Solidarity International USA, but the basic mission has been the same: to help persecuted Christians around the world, especially refugees.