Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Camp and Culpability

Camp and Culpability

“These are concentration camps, not refugee camps” -- an inmate of a camp run by the Orissa Government in Kandhamal for the victims of the anti Christian violence in August-October 2008

By John Dayal

It was almost a year ago. In Barakhama’s village-town in Kandhamal district on March 19, 2008, the death of an old Catholic woman in the local refugee camp for want of adequate medicare, and prohibitory orders banning outsiders from meeting the Christian refugees because of a buffalo sacrifice festival in the grounds close by, marked a tense and troubled Holy Week in Orissa. Despite the elections, more than 3,000 Central Reserve police Force and state apparatus with a suddenly awakened conscience --  after Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik severed his ruling Biju Janata Dal’s political umbilicus with long term partners Bharatiya Janata party – the situation remains equally tense. More than 3,000 Christians are still in government run refugee camps, possibly as many as 30,000 are internally displaced, perhaps more than ten thousand of the originally 50,000 displaced having the left the State for jobs and security in New Delhi, Kerala, Mumbai, even Chennai and Andhra Pradesh.

But to get back to the Barakhama’s refugee camp a year ago – remember violence broke out in Orissa on 24th December 2007, and the tension continued till Kandhamal exploded once again on 24th August 2008, a day after the body of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad vice president Lakhmanananda Saraswati was paraded through 200 kilometres of the main roads in the large and forested district. Visiting Christian Priests and nuns, and I despite my credentials as a Member of the National Integration Council of the Indian Government which has the Prime Minister as its Chair, who had come to meet the bereaved family, were unceremoniously ejected by the Assistant Tehsildar, a special magistrate, on orders of the sub collector. He said there was tension in the village and he had strict orders not to allow anyone inside the camp. The posse of the Central Reserve Police had erected a barricade on the road to the camp. There was however no ban on the movements of others, the hostile gangs, in the village.

The old woman, Mrs. Borili Digal, had suddenly fallen ill with fever two days ago, her son Pero Digal told me and Supreme Court advocate, Sister Mary Scaria who came to the camp. The family took the women to the local government hospital where she was prescribed some medicines. “We could not purchase the medicines,” Pero Digal said. His mother died early the next morning. She was buried in a hastily made coffin by the youth in the refugee camp, and then buried in the Christian hillside cemetery about half a kilometre behind the camp. The camp was, and till recently was still located in a government school. Borili Digal’s husband Doya Digal had died ten years ago.

The Barakhama camp then had 345 Christian families whose houses were burnt on Christmas Day 2007 by a mob allegedly led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad activists under orders of Lakhmanananda Saraswati, listed in police records for fomenting anti Christian violence even before the Christmas 2008, and who had famously asked his followers “No use burning tyres. Tell me how many Christian houses you have burnt.” Seven churches were also destroyed in the violence in Barakhama, part of the total of more than 100 Christian churches torched by marauding mobs between 24 and 27 December last year.

I had been vesting this camp from 2 January 2008, and had seen the living conditions for myself – three families to the tent, one sari given to a family even if it had three grown up women in it – mother and two daughters.

The full force of what it meant to live in a refugee camp would sink in later as the women recounted their tales, and I and Father Nicky Barla, who is also an advocate, tasted the food for ourselves. It stank of grit and large scale corruption The real plight of the women would unfold over the coming months as I visited with women companions. What the male eye had missed, the women activists discerned at a glance. Sanitation and personal hygiene. The government had no provision for privacy in the daily toilet routine, and had not even thought of a woman’s personal needs for hygiene. It would take a former Secretary to the Prime Minister of India to put the plight in words, as I recount later in this article. But both Sister Mary, and Teesta Setalvad, a lawyer-activist, also discovered abortions, incomplete ones, which could lead to blood poisoning. The absolute dearth of women doctors or counsellors from the side of the government had put the entire female population in the government camps, and outside it, at risk of death if not from violence, then from disease. It had also left the women open to sexual abuse and perhaps what in their eyes was even worse, a loss of dignity. As they had to leave the camp to go out to defecate and even to urinate, they would be chased by aggressive mobs, saying they had no place on land owned by tribals! And when we took a young girl with an incomplete abortion to the hospital in Balliguda, the government doctors demanded money for everything from anaesthesia to a test for malaria.

-         - -

I have some experience with refugee camps, run by international organisations including the United Nations, by national and state governments, even by the Military, during my four decades as a diplomatic and political correspondent. Not just the permanent camps in Palestine in the 1980s, or those set up in 1971 for the influx from East Pakistan, but more recent ones for refugees from Sri Lanka in Tamil Nadu, Kashmir Muslim and Pandit refugees in Delhi and near Jammu, and of course, the major camps set up in 1984 for the Sikhs who survived the three day pogrom following the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the camps in Gujarat set up by the Government and by Muslim organisations for the survivors of the 2002 genocidal violence against Muslims following the Godra. I even saw, and recorded the living conditions in the temporary colonies, which could really be called camps, for people which were set up after they had been displaced from their homes which were eradicated by the government bulldozers in Delhi under orders the late Sanjay Gandhi, the younger son of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the Extra-Constitutional centre of authority under the State of Emergency.

A refugee camp is a terrible place, and indeed robs its inmates of their innate dignity. It also stresses family structures. It means a loss of privacy with the implied direct and indirect gender violence. And no one expects Five Star cuisine in a refugee camp or deluxe apartments. Often community toilets are filthy, and tarpaulin and plastic canvas tents can be hot in summer and hyper cold in winter -- and winter is sever in the high plateau of Kandhamal.. Such is in the nature of these camps.

But they differed from those in Kandhamal in several major aspects. These were issues of security, issues of the government acknowledging its role as caretaker and seeking collaboration, the government culpability for the health, welfare and quality of life of the people living in the camps. The authorities of course had also taken care, by and large, to incorporate almost all refugees in its safety and security blanket.

Security of course is the paramount issue. Most of the camps I have earlier mentioned had the Army and the Central government police forces guarding them at all times. But what was important then was that the security was in force even though the violence, and to an extent the threat of violence, had long ceased. In Gujarat and Delhi for instance, the violence lasted less than a week, but the camps remained largely secure long afterwards too. In fact, outside agencies and NGOs were able to reach and work in the camps from Day Two, so to speak.

The situation in the Orissa refugee camps was very different, and indeed the situation in Kandhamal was unique in the history of anti minority riots in the country. The spat in the meeting of the National Integration Council between chief minister Naveen Patnaik and the then Union Home Minister, the unlamented Shivraj Patil, made quite clear the absolute disjunct and helplessness of both governments in tackling the mobs of the Sangh Parivar. The Centre sent trainee forces, the State failed to deploy even those. For over a month, the writ of the Constitution and the rule of law did not run in the entire district of Kandhamal. Certainly refugee camps set up in those circumstances could expect little security.

Over 29,000 people rushed to the refugee camps, the major ones set up in G Udaygiri, Raikia, Barakhama, Balliguda, and possibly another twenty thousand took refigure in the forests as they were too far and the route to the camps too dangerous. For weeks the camps faced constant threats from armed gangs, and sometimes from gangs of women members of the Hindutva organisations. There were reported bomb attacks, and threats to poison the water wells which were the solitary supply for drinking water. Convoys of support material were stopped, and the government, in the most peculiar orders ever, prevented Christian and international charities from coming to the refugee of the displaced persons.

The conditions in the overcrowded camps worsened speedily. Lack of hygiene made the health of little babies precarious. The government has not kept a count of those babies who may have died. There are grave issues of culpability of the government in not providing medicare. In the G. Udaygiri and Mandasar, the unacceptable numbers of people living in each tent in these camps render their lives miserable in the extreme and inhuman. Wrote the former secretary to the Prime Minister Mr. Venugopal said in a letter to G.V. Venugopala Sarma, Secretary in the State government’s Revenue and Disaster Management Department “In one tent where I spent an hour at G. Udaygiri speaking to the inmates there were 48 persons of whom several were women. Its dimensions were about 25x15 feet. There was hardly space for anyone to move or stretch, what to speak of privacy for women to change. Those women live in the full view of the male inmates, including their own brothers on the one hand and strangers on the other. Their sanitary requirements at a personal level, including of women who have not attained menopause have not been factored in by those who designed or are running these camps. If the official argument is that these women would not know how to use sanitary napkins or pads even if supplied, then they should be provided with whatever they are accustomed to, in consultation with them. It is deplorable that this has not been done. Outside these tents, there are less than 10 toilets for the thousands living in the camp with hardly 5 of them in usable condition. I tried to walk towards these toilets but could not approach them for such was the intolerable mess in the toileting area strewn with human refuse all over. These conditions violate every conceivable human right and dignity of the people kept in these camps relating to residence, health, and equality and therefore to life itself, what to talk of the loss of opportunities to other rights like education of the children? The quality of food in these camps and poor supply of drinking water and water for other needs compound the hazards and woes of the inmates. The inmates are borrowing money at usurious rates of interest to meet their essential every day needs, as verified by me personally.”

There is equal culpability of the government in not carrying out autopsies of injured who died in the camps. It is as if the government did not want to link these deaths with the preceding violence. This is now coming to fore with widows denied relief saying their husbands did not die in the carnage, but later. The government keeps the death figures low, and many a suspect escaped charges of murder or even attempted murder because the death was not registered as arising out of the violence. “These are not refugee camps. These are concentration camps. We can neither leave them, nor live in them as human beings,” refugees have told me.

The government has made persistent efforts to reduce the number of refugee camps, close down as many as it can in as much of a hurry as it can. Though refugees were reluctant to return to their homes because the villagers and the Sangh Parivar wanted them to convert to Hinduism before they would be allowed in, the government regardless of the threat pushed them out. The result has been a series of small shanty slums outside major villages where the Christians huddle together. The government has washed its hands of all of it. an independent fact-finding team, comprising prominent social activists, has urged the State government to keep the relief camps open till normality was restored in the affected villages. Observing that the victims should be able to return to their homes with dignity, peace and security,  Mr. Venugopal told the State government that “there can never be any dignity if people practising a particular religion – here Christianity – are told that they can return to their homes only as Hindus. Such threats are unconstitutional and the State has a duty to intervene proactively to put a stop to that and guarantee peaceful residence to the citizens with a right to their religious conviction,”

The government of course does not provide any employment to the people in the camp, nor does it gave any sustenance allowance other than the food. The result has been that the first tranche of the money given for rehabilitation has been consumed for additional food, clothing and medicines, things which should have been the state’s responsibilities. How will they ever begin constructing the houses are a matter left for the future? I may remind readers that houses demolished in December 2007 are yet to be fully constructed. Most remain roofless as the government dole was just not sufficient.

Experts feel the camps must continue so long as complete conditions of peace, safety and security have not been restored in the affected villages of the District to the satisfaction of the victims. “In addition, a basic requirement for the victims to return to their homes is the dignity that is associated with security and peace. Dignity comes from assurance and self assurance that they may lead the kind of cultural and spiritual life they wish to live as guaranteed in the Constitution so long as those practices are peaceful and do not affect public order and the rights of others. These are well established principles in the constitutional law and life of our country. However, in Kandhamal these conditions do not obtain in large tracts as evidenced by the numbers still present in the camps and the prevailing sense of insecurity. There can never be any dignity if people practising a particular religion – here Christianity – are told that they can return to their homes only as Hindus. Such threats are unconstitutional and the State has a duty to intervene proactively to put a stop to that and guarantee peaceful residence to the citizens with a right to their religious conviction. All these involve the relevant fundamental rights guaranteed to citizens under Part III of our Constitution as in articles 19, 21 and 25, not to mention the articles that guarantee the right to equality before law and equal protection of the laws and the right not to be discriminated on any account,” said a report.

The threat of violence and the tension has kept the men away from work. Work in government projects is not still open to them. They have no source of livelihood. Even those living in Christian camps in Bhubaneswar and elsewhere are no better off in this matter, and in that of the real victims – the children.

The plight of the children was brought home to the high level delegation of diplomats of the European Union who visited Orissa before Christmas 2008. They were banned from going to Kandhamal but could see the camps run outside the district, and some outside the state.

The Indian and European fact Finding teams have noted that the Union and State governments have not been able to ensure implementation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948; the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966; the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966; the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, 1967; the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, 1967; the Declaration on the Right to Development, 1986 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989. “We fully realize the administrative difficulties any Government faces in situations of this kind but we also believe that every State Government in India has the capacity to overcome these difficulties if the required political will is summoned. Failure to do this will, in our considered opinion, attract action by the National Human rights Commission under some of the provisions of Section 12 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993,” wrote Mr. Venugopal.

The European team’s specially interaction with a range of people brought out the serious implications for children and highlighted many child rights issues. There were 12 orphanages in Orissa but 7 had been since closed down Some of the newly born babies born during or after the riots had been given names such as “Danga” -- meaning  ‘communal violence’ -- reflecting the events surrounding their birth, I heard as I accompanied some of these teams. Patently, many children have witnessed acts of violence, including attacks leading to death, and had to flee to the forest often for several days. Coping with the trauma and fear, many children have also had to suffer discomfort and lack of food Even in the camps, in the relief camps the visitors could see that several were suffering from anaemia, stomach problems and in some cases malaria.

UNICEF confirmed that they are responding to the relief effort by providing assistance with shelter, water and sanitation, and education programme for children in the camps. They are conscious of the displaced families in private camps, including in the remote and distant areas, and are finding ways to access them. NGOs have told EU their concern for the future of the children and have urged the Union n to consider this in the context of international human rights conventions. The EU was told first hand that once in the relief camps the children were generally unable to go to school and there was little evidence of any tuition in the camps visited. Many will drop out of school for ever, I am sure.

An entire generation has been irreparably affected.

[Also published in Combat Law, New Delhi, April 2009]

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

THE INDIA UPDATE

Updated 11 March 2009

ORISSA POLL PROCESS LEAVES CHRISTIANS OUT IN THE COLD

 

Community may move Election Commission of India for Kandhamal review

 

Major Reports not implemented so far by State Government

 

Barring a miracle, there will be no Christian candidate chosen by any political party to contest the Parliamentary and State Legislative Assembly Elections in the troubled State of Orissa which goes to the polls mid-April 2009. This speaks amply about how the various parties -- the ruling Biju Janata Dal, its erstwhile coalition partner and otherwise minority-baiting Bharatiya Janata Party, the new allies in the Left, and the old Opposition Congress Party -- think of this hapless religious minority as someone to project and strengthen politically. Patently, Christians do not matter when it comes to elections in India.

 

But even if they had chosen a Christian candidate or two as a concession to tokenism, it remains a moot question if he or she would have won, given the acute communal polarisation in the State in the wake of the anti Christian violence of 2007-2008 that singed and scalded half of the State’s thirty districts.

 

For the Christians in the Kandhamal district which was the epicentre of the violence, in fact, the chances are quite dim that they will ever get a chance to exercise the Constitutional right of universal franchise. Three thousand of them are in government refugee camps, the rest are basically homeless, destitute, disenfranchised. Tens of thousands remain internally displaced persons, as a group of them had famously told the United Nations office in New Delhi last year.

 

My own organisation, the All India Christian Council, which has been deeply involved in the Orissa issue, is considering approaching the Election Commission of India in a legal memorandum, and the Election Commissioners individually, urging them to take a close look at the Kandhamal situation to see if free and fair elections are possible, and to take remedial action to make it possible for the people to exercise their democratic rights. We are not sure at this early stage of seeking a deferment of the elections in the Kandhamal region is the possible solution.

 

Democratic norms are not really the strength of Orissa.  The Biju Janata Dal-Bharatiya Janata party alliance which had ruled the state eleven years – in religious bigotry at other times – broke up when the partners fell out on the sharing of seats. Mr. Patnaik, the butt of jokes and attacks through the crisis of the last two years, suddenly found new friends, even in the Left, and won a voice vote in the State Assembly after the Bharatiya Janata party left him crying betrayal! Mr. Pattnaik is yet to take action against the BJP and its friends of the Hindutva Parivar for killing, maiming and raping Christians, and for monumental arson amounting to a sort of genocide. Probably he never will, even if he returns to power in May 2009.

 

The words of Archbishop Raphael Cheenath sum up the situation; Said the Archbishop today “Alliances and elections do not matter when life and security is under threat! My primary concern is the people of Kandhamal, not only the Christians but everyone there. Who is concerned about the affected people in Kandhamal? It is more than six months now and still the life and security of the people in Kandhamal is under threat. The state is trying to project peace by sending the people out from the camps. In some villages there is social boycott and the people are still living in fear. The Dalits and adivasi of Kandhamal feel that they have become victims of the narrow political interests of the political parties, whether BJD, BJP or Congress. The culprits have not been arrested and they continue to pose threat to peace. No reasonable compensation has reached the people. Every move of the political parties and opportunistic alliances are keenly being observed by the people and I am sure that they will teach an appropriate lesson to all of them.”

 

The following are some of the major recommendations I culled out from reports as diverse as the Christian Solidarity Worldwide, Prof Angana Chatterji’s deposition in Washington before the United States government, and the National Commission for Minorities report to the Indian government, the former Revenue Secretary of the Government of India’s note to the State government, and a retired high court judge whose report is yet to be published. The recommendations are basically in a random order, and remarkably, were mentioned in most, if not all, of the reports. I have edited them for brevity, but they still make for hair-raising reading.

 

1.      The attacks on Christians in 2008 were pre-planned. The guilty must be speedily identified; fast track courts set up to see that justice delivery is transparent and timely to make a difference.

 

2.      The matters and circumstances that led to the Kandhamal violence of 2007 and 2008 in Orissa continue to pose a threat to the sanctity and security of human rights in the state, particularly of religious and ethnic minorities such as Christians and Muslims, disenfranchised Adivasi, Dalit, and caste groups, and other vulnerable groups such as women. Failure to take preventative and effective action continues to jeopardize the rule of law, the right to life and livelihood, freedom of religion, of speech, movement, assembly, inquiry, and the right to information in Orissa.

 

 

3.      The atmosphere in Kandhamal District continues tense. Fresh violence is possible. Central Reserve police, of which three battalions still remain in Orissa, need to be retained to give confidence to the religious minorities.

 

 

4.      Hindutva nationalist leaders, activists, and organizations in Orissa charged with involvement in criminal acts and involvement in actions that have led, or may lead, to communal violence must be investigated and prosecuted. The impunity being enjoyed by members of the RSS, VHP and others should be cracked by proceeding legally against them. The Government of Orissa and the Central Government must make concerted efforts to identify, investigate, and eradicate paramilitary hate camps being operated in Orissa by the Hindutva groups raining cadres in arms and militancy with the express purpose of threatening and destroying minority populations through social and economic boycotts, sporadic and organized intimidation, arson, rape, murder.

 

 

5.      Police Force levels, strengthening of the Criminal Justice System and Rule of Law:  Government must take these steps by mobilising man power in the area of criminal justice system at a level that is proportionate to the multiple crisis situations that the District is facing. Such a mobilisation will send the clearest signal yet so badly required to the entire area and beyond in regard to the Government’s earnestness in outlawing forces of disruption and re-establishing the Rule of Law.

 

6.      Large numbers of Christians remain in the government refugee camps, and in other camps, because of the construing threat of forcible conversion to Hinduism; Though conditions in the camps are inhuman, and an affront to Human rights norms, the camps themselves must continue so long as complete conditions of peace, safety and security have not been restored in the affected villages. A basic requirement for the victims to return to their homes is assurance and self assurance that they may lead the kind of cultural and spiritual life they wish to live as guaranteed in the Constitution.

 

 

7.      Guilty officers continue to enjoy impunity. Even the judicial commissions give signals of their bias. The government officials should be booked for the dereliction of their duty and the wilful negligence in protecting the victims and stopping the violence.  Police, judicial, and governmental reform, including diversity training, must be addressed by relevant state institutions, and action taken against officers of the law and political servants who abuse their position by using their power to influence and support Hindutva groups.

 

8.      Orissa Minorities Commission must be established. Peace committees are bigoted, and have failed.

 

9.      Women suffer the most, even in the government camps.  In the tents, there was hardly space for anyone to move or stretch, what to speak of privacy for women to change. Those women live in the full view of the male inmates, including their own brothers on the one hand and strangers on the other. Their sanitary requirements at a personal level, including of women who have not attained menopause have not been factored in by those who designed or are running these camps.

 

10.   Restoration of Tribal Identity and simultaneous justice to the long-time weaker sections residents of the area, the Dalits. Land rights in the Scheduled areas in letter and spirit, and in the rulings of the Supreme Court of India. The Government may examine in the Tribes Advisory Council if land can be made available to the riot-hit people. The Governor has certain powers in the Scheduled Areas as well.

 

 

11.  The Collector must give importance of giving priority to programmes like the ICDS, Watershed Development, NREGS and Joint Forest Management as they are amenable to integrated approaches involving the entire community, thus providing a healing touch and togetherness.

 

12.   Relief, Rehabilitation and Compensation package: Consumption finance is a very important part of the relief package in any programme of relief and rehabilitation. Its absence leads to the victims using the compensation intended for other purposes such as building destroyed and damaged houses for consumption needs and to stave off hunger.

 

 

 

13.  Policy of zero tolerance to Discrimination: There are laws in this country that punish promotion of hatred and religious intolerance. It would serve the interests of the people of the State and act as a salve for the traumatised and therefore estranged sections of the society

 

14.  Probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI

 

15.  Extensive and proper damage assessment should be done by the government with the help of civil society organisations and full compensation ensured. The damaged and burned houses and institutions should be rebuilt by the government.

 

16.   Police desks should be set up for registering minority grievances and filing FIRs, and the Government of Orissa must appoint a team of Special Public Prosecutors to conduct proceedings as necessary. Toward this, independent monitoring bodies must be supported and protected.

 

 

17.   The Government of India and the Government of Orissa must take adequate and expeditious steps to ensure that those who convert voluntarily to Christianity, Islam, or any other faith are allowed to practice their religion

 

18.   The disparagement, demonization, and vilification of any religion should be statutorily prohibited and held punishable under the Indian Penal Code.

 

19.   The Orissa Freedom of Religion Act, 1967, and the Orissa Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1960, must be reviewed and repealed.

 

 

20.  On 29 November 1949, India became a signatory to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, approved by the United Nations General Assembly resolution 260 A (III) of 9 December 1948. On 27 August 1959, India ratified the Genocide Convention. However, India is yet to fulfil its obligatory commitment to enact legislation to implement the convention, which it must be compelled to undertake.     

 

A brief recall August- December 2008:

In Orissa, 54,000 were rendered homeless, 20,000   Children lose a year of school, some may never go back to school, 3,000 persons areas till in Government refugee camps in March 2009. As we know, 120 were murdered, including 7   Priests/ Pastors, ten more were injured, Two Rapes confirmed [One of Nun], many others are feared to have been molested,, 315 Villages were destroyed, 4,640  houses burnt [State government earlier estimates 4,215], 252 Churches destroyed [as estimated by State government], and 13 schools and colleges were destroyed.

MEANWHILE, IN KARNATAKA STATE, THE RECORD FOR 2008:

AUGUST 2008

·         10th: At Davanagere, Davanagere District, the House of Prayer church was attacked by around 200 Bajrang Dal activists. Fifteen church members received minor injuries. About 80 members normally attend the church. Six persons were arrested.

 

·         12th: A mob of about 200 people, including activists of the Hindu Jagarana Vedike and Shiv Sena youth association surrounded the house of Pastor Premkumar in Davangere Town, Davanagere District. They repeatedly pelted the house with stones between 10:30 am and 7 pm. Eleven people including four women were brought out of the house by force. The police were compelled to take the Christians into detention to protect them. The attackers demanded that Pastor Premkumar, Pastor Rajashekar and Pastor Karunakar of Divine Healing Ministries and Hosanna Ministries Eternal Life Church should be exiled from the district. An FIR was filed.

 

·         17th: The Divine Healing Ministry church in Davangere city, Davanagere District, was attacked by around 50 Bajrang Dal workers during the church service. Bibles and hymn books were burnt. A few church members were beaten and harassed.  No arrests were made.

 

·         24th: Nitya Jeeva Devalaya, an independent church in Davangere city, Davanagere District, was attacked during the Sunday worship service. Around 60 Bajrang Dal workers barged in and disrupted the service and beat a few believers. They also broke furniture. And they burnt Bibles and song books. No complaint was registered.

 

·         27th: A Christian prayer hall named Yesu Prathanalaya at Uchangidurga in Harpanahalli taluk, Davanagere District, was attacked by about 30 Ram Sena workers. Pastor Raju Gowda was roughed up. Three of the church members were hurt and treated for minor injuries in the hospital.  Eight persons were arrested. Case was registered under IPC Section 295 and 298.

 

September 2008

 

·         7th: Around 9 a.m. at Bada village, Davangere District, an independent church planted by Mission Action Fellowship called Yesu Kripalaya was attacked by a 300-strong mob that broke the asbestos (corrugated material) ceiling, furniture, windows, and set fire to a Bible and other literature. They also broke the cross and the pulpit. Hindu Jagarana Vedike claimed responsibility for the attack and said it was because villagers were forced to convert. The pastor, Lukas, vacated the village and has not returned. Ten arrests were made. Case registered under IPC Sections 295 and 298.

 

 

September 14th

 

Between 9 a.m. and 11.15 a.m., the following churches and prayer halls were attacked:

 

·         In Bannur village, Udupi District, a group of 25 to 30 attackers entered and vandalised Believers Church. They burned Bibles and damaged the furniture. Two church members were beaten. Four persons were arrested. Case was booked under IPC Sections 143, 147, 148, 427 and 149.

 

·         In Udupi city, Udupi District, the New Life Fellowship Hall was attacked by 40 to 50 slogan-shouting Bajrang Dal workers. They injured five adults and a child. Windows were smashed and furniture damaged. The pastor's name is Pastor Gopi and FIR was registered. 

 

·         In Shiroor village, Udupi District, a gang of 25 with sickles and sticks attacked the Life and Light Ministries prayer hall. The pastor was assaulted, a car torched, windows broken, and furniture damaged. Five arrests were made. Case registered under IPC Sections 143, 147, 295, 448, 324, 506, 427 and 149.

 

·         In Koteshwar village, Udupi District, the Carmel Ashram (Roman Catholic) was attacked. Icons/statues of Mother Mary and Infant Jesus were damaged by around 25 people. A few church members were physically harassed. A couple of them were slapped or hit. Two persons were arrested.

 

·         In Mudur village, Udupi District, a group attacked Mission One Million Life Centre and physically harassed one person and damaged furniture, a television set, and the telephone. Five arrests were made.

 

·         At Kodical, Mangalore city, Dakshina Kannada District, a Tamil-language Protestant church which is part of the Church of South India denomination was attacked by 15 persons during a prayer service. Several church members were assaulted. Furniture was destroyed. Four persons were arrested.

 

·         At the Roman Catholic Adoration Monastery on Falnir Road, Mangalore city, Dakshina Kannada District, about 15 people vandalised the building and sacraments, and attacked nuns who were in prayer. Several of the nuns were severely injured and treated in the hospital. Seven arrests were made.

 

·         At Kavoor, Mangalore city, Dakshina Kannada District, around 20 persons vandalised and desecrated the Assembly of Prayer Fellowship. Policemen stationed there were attacked.  Bibles and Christian literature were burnt. Seven Christians received injuries. Four arrests were made.

 

·         At Shakti Nagar in Mangalore Rural taluk, Dakshina Kannada District, around 60 persons vandalised and desecrated the Jesus Christ Church. Windows were broken and furniture damaged. No arrests were made. Case registered under IPC Sections 143, 147, 148, 447, 427, and 149.

 

·         At Bilinele village, Dakshina Kannada District, at the Assembly of God Church, around 20 persons vandalised the facility. Bibles were burnt. A few Christians were assaulted. Nine persons were arrested.

 

·         At Kalanja village, Dakshina Kannada District, about 15 persons attacked believers with sickles and desecrated the Indian Pentecostal Prayer Hall. Four people received injuries and were treated in the hospital. Nine arrests were made.

 

·         At Madanthyar village, Dakshina Kannada District, a gang of 30 people assaulted the pastor of the Mahima Prayer Hall with iron rods and desecrated the church. Three people, including the pastor, were injured.  Six arrests were made. Case registered under IPC Sections 143, 147, 148, 427, 324 and 34.

 

·         A group of alleged Bajrang Dal members attacked the New Life Fellowship at Madanthyar, Dakshina Kannada District. The property was damaged and an FIR filed.

 

·         The End Time Full Gospel Church in Jayapura, Chikmagalore District, was attacked during the Sunday service by 15 people who claimed to be Bajrang Dal activists. They had sticks and sickles and injured nine Christians. No arrests were made.

·         Kingdom Hall church in Chikmagalore District was attacked by 20 Bajrang Dal workers who threw chilli powder in the eyes of the Christians. A pregnant woman was attacked and kicked. She later received treatment for her injuries in the hospital. No arrests were made.

 

·         New Apostolic Church was attacked in Singatagere village, Chikmagalore District by twelve people. They damaged the church, burnt a Bible, and one Christian, Kallesh, was stripped naked. An FIR was filed.

 

·         Ebenezer Prayer Hall in Chikmagalore town, Chikmagalore District, was vandalized by around 25 VHP workers who damaged the church furniture. An FIR was filed.

 

·         An attack took place on the St. Thomas Church, (Church of South India) in Chikballapur, Chikballapur District. Miscreants came in the night and vandalized the church.

 

September 15th

 

The following places were attacked between 1.30 a.m. and 3.30 p.m.

 

·         At Ganjimath village, Mangalore Rural taluk, Dakshina Kannada District, window panes of the Believers Church were broken by motorcycle-borne vandals. No arrests.

 

·         In Bantwal taluk, Dakshina Kannada District, vandals tried to set the door of the Believers Church on fire even though a police team was guarding the church. No arrests were made.

 

·         On Jail Road, Mangalore city, Dakshina Kannada District, motorcycle-borne vandals pelted stones at the Capuchin Church (Roman Catholic) and damaged sacred icons and statues. No arrests. Case registered under IPC sections 427 and 153a.

 

September 16th  

 

·         In Kolar town, Kolar District, vandals damaged a century-old statue of the Mother Mary at the St. Mary’s church (Roman Catholic). No arrests were made.

 

·         At Adyar, Mangalore Rural taluk, Dakshina Kannada District, over 20 vandals desecrated the Rima Worship Centre and destroyed property. No arrests were made.

 

·         At Ernody village, Dakshina Kannada District, vandals broke into the St. George Church (Roman Catholic) desecrated the place, and attempted to set it on fire. Two arrests were made. Case registered under IPC sections 457, 295, and 448.

 

September 18th  

 

·         On B.C. Road in Bantwal taluk, Dakshina Kannada District, vandals pelted stones at the Believers Church. Windows were broken. No arrests.

 

September 19th  

·         In Sagar town, Shimoga District, a group hung a garland of chappals (flip flop sandals) on the Jesus statue at St. Mary’s Church (Roman Catholic). This is a serious insult in the culture. Three arrests were made. Case registered under IPC section 153 and 153(a).

 

·         At Padu Kody village, Dakshina Kannada District, motorcycle-borne vandals pelted stones at the St. Xavier’s (Roman Catholic) church and damaged icons. Cases registered under IPC sections 143, 144, 295, 427 and 149.

 

September 21st   

·         A group of unknown assailants broke windows of a prayer hall called “Brethren Christa Aaradhanalaya” near Nellihudikeri town, Kodagu District. No arrests made.

 

·         In Bangalore District, at the St. James Church (Roman Catholic) in Mariyannapalya, two gold plated crowns and cash from the offering box were stolen, and the sacred sacrament damaged. Seven persons were arrested. A case was registered under IPC sections 144, 149, 333 and 448.

 

·         At the Holy Name of Jesus Church (Roman Catholic) at Rajarajeshwarinagar in Bangalore District, the glass casing around the statue of the Infant Jesus was stoned and the statue damaged. No arrests have been made. A case was registered under IPC sections 144, 149, 333 and 448.

 

September 26th 

 

·         Peace Prayer Hall in Yelahanka, Bangalore District, was vandalized. Pastor Gideon said about 20 members of the Bajrang Dal came as the prayer meeting was in progress and broke the musical instruments and burnt the Bible. An FIR was lodged.

 

·         At Shamboor village in Bantwal taluk, Dakshina Kannada District, attackers vandalized Sacred Heart Church.  They burnt the Bible and two song books. They also damaged the pulpit, a lamp, a clock and two tube lights. An FIR was filed.

 

September 29th

 

·         Money (Rs. 10,000) and electronic items were stolen from St. Anthony’s church (Roman Catholic) Church in Anagalpura, Bangalore District. Unknown criminals ransacked the store room & stole musical instruments, microphones, and a loudspeaker.

 

October 2008

 

·         5th: Immanuel Prayer Hall in Chamraj Nagar near Mysore, Mysore District, was burnt down. According to Pastor Patrick, Bajrang Dal workers came and threatened him couple of weeks ago and he believes they were involved in arson. Police declared that it was just an accident. An FIR was filed.

 

·         13th: Some miscreants set fire to St. Anthony’s church (Roman Catholic) at Yadavanahalli, Bangalore Urban District. The church suffered extensive damage and the loss is estimated around Rs. 1 million (10 lakh). Police said the fire was due to an electrical short circuit. Two experts’ teams, comprising electrical engineers and technicians, said there was no trace of any electrical short circuit. A case has been lodged in Attibele Police station and no arrests were made.

 

·         26th: Belgaum: Teluga Brethren Christian Assemblies Church vandalised and damaged, complaint given to police, but no FIR was filed by police.

 

November 2008

 

·         2nd: Thimannakatte village, Haveri: police disrupted Dheiwah Ministry meeting following false reports of ‘forcible conversions’, pastor told by police to request permission before meeting in future.

 

·         2nd: Bagalkot: Shalom Full Gospel Church told by police to request permission before conducting meetings in future.

 

·         20th: Bajpe Antonikatte, Mangalore: St Antony Chapel vandalised when stones thrown by Hindu extremists.

 

December 2008

 

·         14th: Bangarapet, Kolar: RSS members attacked a Christian function and falsely accused Christians of ‘forcible conversion’. The Christians were dragged to the police station and detained and the police are investigating the allegations. Aicc was involved in securing the release of the Christians.

 

Other States impacted include Tamil Nadu Bihar, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, and Andhra

[Data courtesy aicc, Hyderabad and Bangalore officex.]

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Orissa Update: Thousands of Christians still in regugee camps on eve of Indian General Elections


Date:08/03/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/03/08/stories/2009030855571000.htm

----------------------------
Over 3,000 still in Orissa camps

Told by communal forces that they can return to their homes only as Hindus

People in six camps not willing to leave

Not forcing anyone to return: Collector
------------------------------------------

By Prafulla Das, Correspondent, The Hindu, Delhi Eiditoon 8 March 2009

BHUBANESWAR: More than seven months after Orissa’s tribal-dominated Kandhamal district experienced widespread anti-Christian violence, 3,100 people belonging to the minority community are still living in relief camps being run by the administration.

About 25,000 people took shelter in 19 relief camps when communal violence was at its peak in the district in the aftermath of the killing of Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Lakshmanananda Saraswati and four others on August 23 last.

The number of people living in the camps has decreased slowly but the 3,100 people in six camps are not willing to leave as they are being told by the communal forces that they can return to their homes only as Hindus.

The camps are at Raikia, Tikabali, K. Naugaon, Mandasar, Mandakia and Tiangia, according to Kandhamal District Collector Krishan Kumar. “We are not forcing anyone to return to their villages. People are returning to their homes following the process of peace building and reconciliation,” Mr. Kumar told The Hindu over phone on Saturday.

Apart from the State police, 19 companies of the Central Reserve Police Force are on duty to maintain law and order in the district.

The district administration has sought additional forces for the smooth conduct of the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections to be held simultaneously next month.

“We are hopeful that the district will witness a free and fair poll,” Mr. Kumar said.

Meanwhile, an independent fact-finding team, comprising prominent social activists, has urged the State government to keep the relief camps open till normality was restored in the affected villages.

Observing that the victims should be able to return to their homes with dignity, peace and security, the former Special Rapporteur to the National Human Rights Commission and one of the members of the team, K.R. Venugopal, has written to the State government that “there can never be any dignity if people practising a particular religion – here Christianity – are told that they can return to their homes only as Hindus.”

“Such threats are unconstitutional and the State has a duty to intervene proactively to put a stop to that and guarantee peaceful residence to the citizens with a right to their religious conviction,” Mr. Venugopal said in a letter to G.V. Venugopala Sarma, Secretary in the State government’s Revenue and Disaster Management Department.

© Copyright 2000 - 2008 The Hindu

Sunday, March 1, 2009

NATIONAL CONSULTATIONS ON CHRISTIAN APPROACH TO GENERAL ELECTIONS 2009

PRESS NOTE

Security of Minorities tops Christian demands from Political parties in General Elections 2009-03-02

Community seeks Economic uplift, rehabilitation of the victims of Orissa violence, judicial commission assess deprivation, restoration of Dalit Christian Rights

New Delhi 2nd march 2009

The Church in India has called upon all people, and specially Christians, to fully take part in the political democratic process, including exercising their voting rights in the coming General Elections.

The Community leadership which met in National Consultations in New Delhi last week reaffirmed its faith in democracy. It wants India to be strong and condemns terrorism, communalism, and casteism. It is deeply concerned at the rural crisis, urban poverty, and rise in unemployment, displacement in the SEZs and the plight of women and the girl child.

The Church and the Christian Community also feels that democracy is strengthened if political parties speak out against corruption and communalism, human exploitation and assault on the dignity of women, Dalits, labour, children and minorities.

The Christian community puts its own interests subservient to the interests of the Nation. But it feels that there are certain issues which are paramount – security of Religious Minorities, ending persecution of Christians in Orissa and other places, and punishment of those found guilty, rehabilitation of the displaced, compensation to the victims at par with that given in other states, proportionate share to Christians in funds and projects earmarked for all minorities, as also in government jobs, civil services, police and other services.

The community has also demanded a National Commission on the lines of the Justice Rajender Sachhar for Muslims set up by the Union government to assess the economic deprivation of Dalit Christians, landless labour and tribals Christians, in particular.

The consultations were presided over by Archbishop Vincent Concessao. Participants included representatives from the Catholic Church, the National Council of Churches in India, the All India Christian Council, the All India Catholic Union, the Believers Church, Truthseekers International, Evangelical Fellowship of India, United Christian Action, and Independent and Pentecost Churches. Prominent signatories included Bishop Mar Barnabas of the Syro Malankara Catholic Church, Bishop Simon John of the Believers Church and Dr. John Dayal, Member, National Integration Council, Government of India, and Secretary General, All India Christian Council, Council national secretary Sam Paul, Rev Sunil Sardar, Mr Vijayesh Lal and Advocate Lalsinglau.

The full text of the memorandum which will be presented to all political parties is attached.

 

Christian community’s expectations from Political Parties in the General Elections 2009: Memorandum to Political parties and candidates

2nd March 2009

Preamble:

The Church reaffirms its strong commitment to Secularism and Democracy in India. The Christian Community thanks God for the renewal of the Republic  through regular General Elections since the Constitution was adopted on 26 January 1950, bringing to fruition the full promise of the political Independence won on 15 August 1947 after a determined  Freedom struggle led by Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Babasaheb Ambedkar.

 

Our sturdy Republic has survived four wars and numerous internal crises, natural disasters and the ups and downs of the passing years. It has been buffeted by communal fires, and shaken by the impact of globalisation and the economic meltdown. The frightening rise in unemployment and  the gloom in the economic sector  impact on all citizens, irrespective of their religion, caste or gender, though as always, it is the weaker and the marginalised who bear the maximum brunt of the ravages of an economic downtrend. The crisis in Rural India is monumental and demands urgent action. So does urban poverty. We pray our country will recover quickly from the current travails and the people will be able to once again look to a brighter future.

 

Unfortunately, the economic crisis has been aggravated by a social crisis no less grave. Religious, caste and gender intolerance are manifestations of this. The sharp rise of Communal forces and the macabre nature of the violence unleashed by them are cause for deep concern.

 

The General Elections, 2009, is an opportunity to halt the trend, and to reverse the negativity.

 

It is in this context that Christian leaders, intellectuals and thinkers met in New Delhi on 23rd February 2009 to consider the issues affecting the people and the nation. While we remain concerned for all our countrymen, there are a few issues that impact specifically on the Christian community. We are small in numbers, but we make an impact on the nation through services in Education, social work and Health, and as the voice of the marginalised and oppressed. We have hope in the democratic process, and in the goodwill of the political parties, their leaders, and their prospective candidates.

 

Call to Political parties and Candidates:

We call upon the Christian community to play its full part in the Election process. We must come out and cast our vote to strengthen democracy and secularism in the country. Christian activists and NGOs must ensure that our names are listed in the electoral rolls, and if not, make the necessary effort to enrol all eligible Christians as voters. We also urge all Political Parties to give adequate representation to our community in their selection of Candidates.

 

Political parties must also include the following issues, and address our concerns, in their Election Manifestos and campaigns, and to also keep these in mind in the selection of their nominees for the various constituencies.

 

1.     Security of Religious Minorities:

 

The Christian community had felt itself very safe in India since Independence, and the formative years of the democracy under Jawaharlal Nehru, and then under the premiership of Lal Bahadur Shashtri, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. But after a spurt of violence in 1998-1999, hate crimes against the Church and the Christian community have been increasing alarmingly since 1997, averaging about 250 incidents a year. But 2007 and 2008 have seen such violence reach an unprecedented level. The violence has not been confined to Orissa. Fourteen other States have been affected, seven seriously. Karnataka is now second only to Orissa in crimes against Christians. Orissa in 2008 saw 120 deaths, 4,600 houses burnt, over 300 villages purged of Christians, and women, including religious women, raped. Six thousand men, women and children are still in government refugee camps, from the peak of 26,000. Battalions of Central forces are needed to maintain peace, and yet a sense of deep insecurity permeates the community in Orissa. All political parties must put the security of all Religious Minorities, and especially of the Christian community, at the top of their electoral agenda. Parties must assure they will bring the culprits of crimes in Orissa and Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh, to book, and ensure that the unceasing hate and disinformation campaign, through media and political activities, is brought to an end.

 

  1. Enforcing rule of law, ending Impunity of state, Police and criminal justice dispensation system in assuring Freedom of Faith: In State after State, the community has watched in utter helplessness uniformed Policemen accompany assailants attacking institutions, churches and house churches.  In States such as Manipur, even villages have dared pass laws against Christians, banning conversions and excommunicating people. Pastors and Priests have been arrested on false charges, denied bail, and harassed. Often, the police have stood by while Priests, pastors and Lay persons were beaten up, often in the glare of Television Cameras. The Subordinate magistracy and judiciary have often been partisan in their conduct. This impunity must end.  The proposed Prevention of Communal Violence Bill must take cognisance of Christian concerns and apprehensions. Government must take responsibility, punish the guilty, reconstruct damaged and destroyed homes, institutions and churches, and provide adequate and commensurate compensation to the victims. These would be deterrent, in fact, to violence against the community.

 

3.      Redress Economic deprivation and reversal of Unemployment and under-employment amongst Christian youth—Need for a National Commission on the lines of the Justice Rajender Sachhar Commission set up for Muslims: There is over  8 [Eight] per cent joblessness amongst Christian youth, the highest among minorities. Tribal Christian girls are amongst the most deprived in terms of education and nourishment. Rural employment generation schemes and central special components for marginalised groups do not reach their Christian counterparts in Tribal and Rural India There is no real assessment as to what extent institutions such as the National Minorities Financial Development Corporation, or sundry scholarship schemes have benefitted the Christian community even if they may have benefited some other Minorities. Political parties must assure that Government will urgently set up a Commission to survey and assess the quantum of deprivation, marginalisation and lack of devolution of developmental initiatives, to the Christian community. Government must ensure fair spending on a pro rata basis on the Christian community from schemed meant to benefit the minority communities. They must assure the setting up of a National Commission under a retired Judge to evaluate the economic and development issues of the Christian religious minority, especially amongst sections amongst Dalits, Tribals, Landless labour and marginal farmers, coastal and fishery workers and urban youth.

 

 

4.      Dalit Christian rights: Successive governments have betrayed Christians of Dalit origin. The Constitution of 1950 provided for affirmative action for Scheduled Castes without reference to religion. The Presidential Order of 1950, subsequently made into law, communalised the affirmative action by penalising those who converted to other faiths. Subsequently, government extended the privileges once again to Sikhs and Buddhists of Dalit origin. Christians remain deprived of these rights, though several Study Groups and National Commissions have strongly recommended that these rights be given to Dalit Christians. This in effect communalises the secular Indian Constitution. Political parties must reassure Dalit Christians that Government will immediately  restore the Constitution to its 26 January 1950 position on this issue so that Dalit Christians get all privileges and safeguards that are given to their brothers and sisters professing other faiths. The recommendations of the Justice Rang Nath Misra Commission should be implemented.

 

 

5.      Assault on right of Tribal Christians: Strident and frightening statements have been made in political quarters in Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, among others, threatening to deny Christian Tribals their statutory rights in Education, land and employment, and to restrict Tribal rights to only those who convert to Hinduism. This violates Constitutional guarantees, and divided the Tribal people. Political parties must guarantee that they will not dilute any Tribal right, but in fact will work to ensure steps that strengthen the rights of the Tribal communities across the country.

 

 

6.      Irrational and Bigoted implementation of Forest Act and its implications for Dalit Christians:  Recent experience in Orissa’s Kandhamal and other districts have shown how Supreme Court guidelines are being ignored in the implementation of the Forest Act, and traditional forest dwellers, many of them Dalits, are being deprived of their land, livelihood and even liberty as false cases are being brought against them. This, of course, must cease forthwith. Political parties must assure that the right of all indigenous dwellers will be protected according to the guidelines of the Supreme Court and witch-hunt and harassment will end.

 

 

7.      Erosion of Minority rights under Article 30: Various State governments and political parties have tried to infringe upon Article 30, and have made persistent efforts to erode the rights of Minorities to run and administer educational institutions. Christian educational institutions have frequently had to approach the Supreme Court of India to try to protect these fundamental rights. The ironically titled Freedom of Religion Bills actually erodes the Constitutional right to Freedom to profess, practice and propagate faith.  They have become instruments of persecution, and in fact, provide an excuse for criminal and communal elements to target the Church and Christian workers in particular when they exercise their right to propagate their faith. Political parties must assure there will be no effort in the future to infringe upon, erode, or nibble at Minority educational and other Constitutional rights under any pretext.

 

 

8.      Shrinking Secular-Spiritual Space: State and city administrations are auctioning land for schools and hospitals in the Open Market. The result is that the Church and Voluntary sector can no longer get legal possession of low cost land for providing Educational and health facilities to the marginalised groups are affordable prices. In addition, new townships and urban spaces, most of them now in the private sector, do not provide for simple and basic Secular spaces, including plots of land for Churches and cemeteries. In many new urban conglomerates in the emerging landscape, there is, in fact, no provision for cemeteries at all. Political parties must assure their Governments will ensure adequate and commensurate Secular and Spiritual Space  – Education land, cemeteries etc

 

 

9.      Ending gender-bias and upholding the rights of women in reforms in Christian Personal Laws:  Christian Women more than a decade ago led a campaign for reforms in Christian personal laws which dated from the Nineteenth Century. Though some progress has been made, Governments have been tardy in passing reform amendments to the centuries' old Christian personal laws despite the united endorsement and support by the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, the National Council of Churches, the Joint Women’s Programme and others. Political parties must assure the community that laws will reformed in full as devised in the documents prepared by the united Christian campaign to bring them in line with contemporary demands of gender rights.

 

 

10.  The Church and the Community uphold the sanctity of life and any attempt to destroy it at any stage is unacceptable. Advances and research in science, such as stem cell research, cloning, transplants, must be in consonance with ethical and moral values. Legislation must not be passed which compromises human life in any form and which justifies meddling with the established processes in nature in the guise of scientific research.

 

 

11.  Special Memorandum on Orissa and Persecution in other States:

Recommendations on Orissa 2009

It is recommended that the State government of Orissa should:

  1. Ensure that (with reference to the ruling of the Supreme Court in Writ Petitions)[1] police unfailingly assist victims of violence to submit FIRs;

 

  1. Investigate reports of police officers failing to register cases or showing complicity in attacks, and bring prosecutions against offending officers;

 

  1. Supply a substantial number of investigating officers and public prosecutors, and implement fast-track courts in at least four locations in Kandhamal district, giving serious consideration to the need for a suitable atmosphere for victims and witnesses to testify, in order to expedite prosecutions and convictions;

 

  1. Investigate the forcible conversion of Christians to Hinduism, and prosecute perpetrators under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code;

 

  1. Request that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) carry out an investigation into the assassination of Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Lakhmanananda Saraswati and the subsequent anti-Christian violence from 24th August 2008, paying specific attention to the root causes of this violence, including the propagation of anti-Christian hatred;

 

  1. Undertake the following actions with regard to relief camps, taking into consideration the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement:[2]
    1. Provide an adequate standard of living to the inhabitants of relief camps, in accordance with the definition given in Principle 18;
    2. Provide education to displaced children in relief camps, in accordance with Principle 23;
    3. Ensure that relief camps continue until the establishment of suitable conditions and the means for the displaced persons to return voluntarily, in safety and with dignity, to their homes, or to resettle voluntarily, in accordance with Principle 28;
    4. Grant permission and security to lawyers, priests and medical teams to visit relief camps in Kandhamal;

 

  1. Provide further compensation for those who have been affected by the violence, including covering the loss of crops, livestock and employment, and assess required levels of compensation on a case-by-case basis through certified independent evaluators;

 

  1. The Government should take measures to carry out an extensive research with the view to rehabilitating the victims of violence, make the recommendations public, and implement them without loss of time.

 

  1. Undertake to follow the recommendations of the National Commission for Minorities in September 2008 on the establishment of Peace Committees, and further to take measures to ensure that all communities are adequately represented within such Peace Committees, to enable these to promote reconciliation and inter-communal understanding with integrity;

 

  1. Establish a State Commission for Minorities (in the model of its national counterpart) and ensure that members of the commission are appointed by transparent and non-partisan procedures;

 

  1. Repeal the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act, 1967.

 

It is recommended that the Union Government should:

  1. Pressurise the state government of Orissa to implement the above recommendations in full;

 

  1. Undertake to follow the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, particularly in the provision of protection and humanitarian assistance (Principle 3),

 

  1. Take measures to ensure that the Guidelines on Communal Harmony,[3] as issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, are properly implemented;

 

  1. Carry out a full investigation into the nationwide activities of extremist groups accused of the incitement and perpetration of violence against minority groups, including Hindutva, Islamist and Naxalites organisations, ban those groups which are guilty of this charge and rigorously enforce this ban;

 

 

  1. Provide further compensation for those who have been affected by the violence, including covering the loss of crops, livestock and employment, and assess required levels of compensation on a case-by-case basis through certified independent evaluators;

 

  1. Take measures towards the repeal of all state-level Freedom of Religion Acts in India;

 

 

  1. Adopt and implement the recommendations of the Justice Ranga Nath Misra National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities, specifically that the eligibility for membership of the Scheduled Castes should not be linked to religious status.

 

Signed by those present:

Archbishop Vincent Concessao, Archbishop of Delhi

Bishop Jacob Mar Barabbas, Bishop, Malankara Catholic Church

Bishop Simon John, Believers Church Delhi Diocese

 

Dr. John Dayal, Member, National Integration Council, Government of India

Secretary General, All India Christian Council

President, United Christian Action

Dr. Sam Paul, National Secretary, All India Christian Council, Hyderabad

Ms. Anjina Masih,   National Council of Churches in India

Mr S. Raju, Church of North India

Vijayesh Lal, Secretary, Evangelical Fellowship of India, New Delhi

Advocate Jenis Francis, President, Federation of Catholic Associations, Archdiocese of Delhi

[Affiliated to the All India Catholic Union]

Eugene Gonsalves, President, Catholic Association of Bengal, Kolkata

Rev Sunil Sardar, President, Truthseekers International, New Delhi

Advocate Ms. Lanshinglu Rongmei, Christian legal Association, New Delhi

Advocate Edward Arokio Doss, President, National Dalit Rights Movement, Madurai

Joseph Dias, Secretary General, Catholic Secular Forum, Mumbai,

Pr. Abraham Sahu, New Delhi, New Delhi

Rev Madhu Chandra, aicc, New Delhi

Pr H T. Mawizuala, New Delhi

Ps. Laji Paul, New Delhi

Pr. G. Johnson, New Delhi

Fr. John Vargis, New Delhi

Pr. GL George, New Delhi

Pr. Victor Das, Faridabad, Haryana

Rev. David Burder, New Delhi

Rev. M. K. Babu, Editor, Praise the Almighty, New Delhi

Pr Paul Prasad, New Delhi

Pr. Paul Prasad, New Delhi

Rev. Sanjesh Kumar, DBI