Diospi FM On-Air in Chincheros Province

08 September 2018

After another period of weeks of preparation leading up to a week of installation work on site (12+ hour days), our 4^th Diospi Suyana FM transmission was launched at 6:20pm 7 September.  This new service on FM 104.7 MHz has an estimated reach of 50,000 people in Chincheros province, Apurimac Region. 

 

Our 50m tower near the Casabamaba community overlooking Chincheros and Uripa.

Our FM site with 50 metre tower is situated at 3,527m ASL on a hill adjacent the Casabamba community, which enjoys the ideal vantage for transmission to the expanding primary townships of Chincheros and Uripa. 

A main road in Uripa passing the state school on the left.

My view of the site from the top of our 50m tower.

One of our FM antenna elements overlooking the farmer’s fields.

A successful completion of our site – our team comprising of Centro de Medios General Manager Doris (left), Cristobal and me (centre) and equipment supplier engineer Luis (right) in front of our DB 500 watt FM transmitter.

Of note, the building security frame needed modification for which we sought the services of a welder in Chincheros.  This was a small one man business where I observed his son (about 10 years old) working with him – cutting and welding steel door frames for clients.  However we were shocked to see him allowed by his father to work without any form of protection and exposed to flying sparks and looking at the welding as it was taking place!   His father had a welding mask but for the most part left it up as he welded.  I warned the young lad of the dangers to his eyes and I can only hope he heeds my advice but as his father is making the same sins in the workshop, I don’t hold much hope for the lad’s eyesight.  The photo I took speaks for itself.

 

Welding safety by this contractor is absent during this work for both the father (welding on left) and his son (right).

After the final day’s work commenced at 4:30am on the Saturday to resolve a security system problem, we were on the road by 6:00am for a 7 hour drive back to Curahuasi negotiating what seems to be endless mountain highway hairpin bends.

We arrived in Curahuasi to an organised protest against Diospi Suyana!  A few weeks prior, there was a tragic car accident involving an unlicensed drunk 80 year old and another vehicle including a local government official who was an asleep passenger.

As a result of nobody wearing seatbelts (which is common in Perú as there is almost no sensible law enforcement at all in this country), two passengers, a man and a woman were hospitalised with critical injuries, and the drunken 80 year old was also hospitalised but without life threatening injuries.  There was much prayer (24 x 7 prayer chain), many operations and much blood given by many hospital staff to try and save the critical patients.  In fact the Diospi Suyana trauma surgeon Dr Tim Boeker, after many tireless hours operation on the critical man (as a result on some days he only had a few hours sleep), then stepped into the blood bank to give his own blood to save his patient. 

In a twist to this saga, a Perú government department intervened and insisted that their public servant be immediately transferred to a government hospital in Cusco (2 ½ hours away).  But Diospi surgeons warned he would not survive the transfer due to his injuries and need for blood.  So Diospi Suyana insisted they help with blood donation.

Meanwhile the mother of the man, prayed and sang by the man’s bedside as she was a committed Christian.  She believed this accident had happened so good would result and the man would come to know Jesus Christ as his saviour.

After some two weeks the patient was transferred to the government hospital in Cusco and then later died there.  There was no doubt Diospi did all that was medically possible, and more, to save this man.

But a group of embittered locals raise a protest of several hundred locals with slogans such as “Gringo – te haremos justica!” – translation: “Missionaries – we'll do you justice!”.  Needless to say this made us missionaries upset given all our efforts to save this man including 15 of us “gringos” giving our own blood (whereas the protestors did not). 

 

The government health facility ambulance posted with anti-Diospi Suyana slogans.

The crowd of angry protesters gathers numbers carrying the coffin through the streets of Curahuasi.

It just made no sense at all.  Diospi was made to blame when the man was not wearing a seatbelt, he later died in a government hospital and the drunk 80 year old was to bear no responsibility at all.

On the Saturday morning Dr Klaus appeared on a major national television program “Exitosa” to defend the actions of Diospi Suyana.

 

Klaus appears on Peru’s “Exitosa” program to defend Diospi Suyana.

A bigger and violent protest was threatened to take place at the Diospi hospital after the wake on Saturday mid-afternoon which was when we drove into town from Chincheros.  But the government brought in a large number of riot police from nearby Abancay and they patrolled the Diospi Suyana fence lines. 

Much prayer went up and I believe as a result of addressing this as a spiritual problem and not a physical one, the protestors never assembled at the hospital.  The other good that resulted from this scary incident is that it brought all of Diospi Suyana together like no other thing had in the past.

So as you can see things aren’t always so easy for us here.  But there is always good as a result of everything that happens, just as it is said in Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.”

And as Ephesians 6:12 reminds us: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Thank you for your ongoing support of us here in Perú.  There is much work to do here and as I hope this post conveys, the need is great for the Gospel to go forth in this place.

Chris