Introduction / History

Kyrgyzstan and China share a common border, and people have moved from one side to the other for hundreds of years. During the 1200s when the Mongol Empire was at it's peak, Chinese artisans moved to what is now Kyrgyzstan. In the early 20th century Chinese and other ethnic groups moved to Kyrgyzstan's Ferghana Valley to work in coal mines and cotton mills. Other Chinese went there in the 1950s to escape the excesses of the Great Leap Forward until the USSR stopped them a couple of years later. In the late 1980s as the USSR was becoming weaker, more Chinese businessmen began to arrive in this Soviet Socialist Republic.

Where Are they Located?

There are Han Chinese people all over the world. They are famous for owning businesses and working hard.

What Are Their Lives Like?

There are both Chinese businessmen and common laborers in Kyrgyzstan. Common Kyrgyz workers have trouble competing with cheap Chinese labor, so they often have to move elsewhere to find employment. Chinese businessmen have been accused by the Kyrgyz of giving priority to other Chinese for higher-paying positions. For these reasons, there is a lot of resentment against the Chinese in Kyrgyzstan. Chinese businesses are currently building roads through Kyrgyzstan in hopes of producing a new "Silk Road" for foreign trade. Most likely, there will be more Chinese in Kyrgyzstan in the years to come.

In the last couple of decades, thousands of construction workers, engineers, doctors, cooks and petroleum engineers have migrated from China to Angola.

What Are Their Beliefs?

The Chinese are notoriously pragmatic when it comes to spiritual matters. They worship ancestral spirits in hopes of being blessed economically and to have good luck. These beliefs mix with a complex blend of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. There are some believers among the Chinese in Kyrgyzstan who might be able to share Jesus with them.

What Are Their Needs?

The Chinese in Kyrgyzstan need acceptance. They are faced with a hostile majority population.

Prayer Points

Pray for spiritual hunger and discernment among the Chinese people who often view the spiritual realm as merely a means to an end.
Pray that Chinese believers will spend as many years as it takes to establish a church planting movement among the Chinese in Kyrgyzstan.
Pray for the Chinese in Kyrgyzstan to begin a disciple making movement that will affect the Muslim Kyrgyz majority.

Scripture Prayers for the Chinese, general in Kyrgyzstan.

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_people_in_Kyrgyzstan
http://www.atimes.com/article/hopes-fears-peoples-silk-road-krygyzstan/
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-kyrgyzstan-blast-china-idUSKCN1150AO