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Pastors ‘falsely charged’ granted bail in northern India

Six pastors were released on bail by a court in the north Indian State of Uttar Pradesh after the prosecution failed to prove, charges of attempting to incite a riot and hostility between religions. The pastors who belong to the Seva Bharat (serve India) Church were released on a surety of 20,000 rupees (US$298) on […]

Kerala pilgrim centre renounces fireworks for poor

The debate on whether to renounce fireworks and crackers for festivals has been raging in Kerala since the Puttingal temple tragedy a year ago killing 111 people and injuring over 350 others. Many churches and temples are setting an example by shunning opulent festivities and spending the money saved on charitable causes. The Edathua Perunnal, […]

Gunmen take Catholic hostages; Philippines’ Duterte imposes martial law

Gunmen claiming to have links with the Islamic State group threatened to kill hostages, including a Catholic priest, who were taken from the southern Philippine city of Marawi May 23. President Rodrigo Duterte imposed martial law across the entire Muslim-majority region of Mindanao late May 23, but ucanews.com reported that many, including church leaders, characterized the imposition […]

CSI concerned over govt backing for GM food product

The Church of South India (CSI) expressed significant concern over a government recommendation that genetically modified mustard be made commercially available. The Department of Ecological Concerns of the CSI Synod said it was “anguished” to learn from the media that the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (through its Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committ-ee) had […]

Pakistani official: ‘We have failed minorities’

An official from Pakistan’s most populous Punjab province has admitted that authorities have failed to protect religious minori-ties from hard-line Islamists. “The intolerance, anger on religious matters and culture of lynching disturbs us,” said Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan chief spokesman of the Punjab government speaking at the May 12 event titled “Securing Punjab’s Diversity” in […]

Four religions in Korea unite for migrants

An inter-religious group in Korea has asked the new government to ensure the protection of migrants and ban racial discrimination. Solidarity of Four Religions for the Human Rights of Migrants held a press conference on May 17 in front of Jogye-sa Buddhist temple in Seoul. Composed of Buddhists, Catholics, Protestants and Won Buddhists, they have […]

Catholic students press for radical cleric’s prosecution

The Indonesian Catholic Students Association has called on police to process their blasphemy complaint against prominent Islamic cleric Muhammad Rizieq Syihab after Christian governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama was jailed for the same crime. Angelo Wake Kako, the student’s chairman, said the government must ensure that the law is equally implemented. “Ahok has been imprisoned […]

Catholics in Laos welcome first cardinal appointment

Catholics in Laos have welcomed their first cardinal appointment in anticipation of improved religious activities within the communist-run country. “We are extremely happy to hear that our Bishop Louis-Marie Ling Mangkhanekhoun has been named as the first ever cardinal in Laos,” Martha Le Thi Thuy Hanh from Sacred Heart Parish, in the southern province of […]