Kiwis accused of teaching Christianity to Muslims

Relevant offers

Africa

World's tiniest chameleons discovered Lioness kills zoo worker in South Africa A year since Mubarak ousted, strike call shows divisions Gaddafi's son warns of uprising Bungled conservation effort kills Sth African rhino Libyan refugees killed in camp Egypt to try 19 Americans in case straining ties Catching malaria comes with the job Four more dead in ongoing Egypt violence Police shoot protesters in Suez - report

A Kiwi family accused of teaching Christianity to Muslim children was given 90 minutes to pack before armed police escorted them to the Moroccan border.

Aucklanders Chris and Tina Broadbent and their children William, 2, and Samuel, 1, were told at 5pm Monday (Moroccan time) that they had to leave the orphanage they worked in, because Christian materials had been found in the foster homes where 33 children live.

The pair had been working in the Village of Hope, a children's home in the Middle Atlas mountains of Morocco, for 18 months.

In 2002, the Village of Hope registered with the Moroccan government as an official Christian organisation and received permission to talk about Christianity to the children in their care.

The Broadbents were among 20 foreigners kicked out of the village. The others were taken to the airport at Casablanca, where they were waiting for flights.

Speaking from the Moroccan border yesterday, Mr Broadbent said the family was stunned by how quickly events had unfolded.

After being allowed only 90 minutes to pack their car, the family drove all night. They were given a brief respite at a hotel before pushing on to Tangier, where they were allowed to stop and feed their children before crossing the Mediterranean to Spain. "We haven't slept for 24 hours, or more."

It is illegal to try to convert Muslims to Christianity in Morocco, but Mr Broadbent said the Village of Hope had always been up-front that it was a Christian organisation.

The police had reportedly found Christian materials in foster homes, but they were really children's stories, he said.

- © Fairfax NZ News