A weeklong conference of Asian Church leaders has ex-pressed concern over shrinking democratic spaces in several countries in the region.
The June 5-10 conference at Marian Pilgrim Centre Bai Dau in the Vang Tau City of Vietnam regretted that the rulers in those countries have become totalitarian, violating their citizens’ basic rights and instilling fear among civil society groups that take up people’s cause.
“Wider surveillance and threatening national security laws are employed to silence the voice of the voiceless and the media who are standing for the cause of the poor and the marginalized,” the meeting noted.
The conference addressed the FABC 50, a document issued by the Federation of the Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) on its golden jubilee, and its implication for the region.
Another common concern in the region is migration that forces people to leave their counties out of economic compulsions and look for better opportunities in life. “The local Church fails to protect and safeguard the people on the move. The left behind families and abandoned children of the migrants become burning issues to be addressed with utmost urgencies,” the conference said.
The participants also observed a widening rich-poor gap in most Asian countries. The number of the poor and child labour have increased in the post Covid-19 period because of the government’s pro-rich policies. The conference attributed low minimum wages and informalization of the workforce as the reasons for unequal distribution of the wealth among people.
Another burning issue is the rise of religious fanaticism as many countries now witness in-tolerance among different religious groups, attack against the minorities especially the Christians who are minorities in many Asian countries.
The ‘My religion is better attitude’ limits the space for dialogue, encounter and learning between the religions and the cultures, the conference regret-ted.
The meeting also addressed ecological concerns and made a call to ‘Save mother Earth.’ “Modern life and its luxuries are built upon the cry of nature. Globalization and urbanization induced heartless development at the expense of the environment. The Digital technology also has caused enough havoc in the lives of families, especially among the youth and the children,” lamented the participants.