Asian

Sri Lanka to set up religious reconciliation council

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe says he accepts the recent announcement of Buddhist prelates and will take steps to set up a council to dispel the suspicions and misconceptions among religions and build religious reconciliation. The premier told a function in Baddegama on June 08 that a religious reconciliation council will be established under the leadership […]

Modi visits blast-hit church during Lanka trip

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans visited St Anthony’s Church, venue of the first bomb blast site in Colombo, during his official visit to the island nation on June 9. The Indian premier’s Sri Lanka visit was announced by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on May 31, a day after he attended Modi’s swearing-in ceremony […]

Tight control for Chinese underground bishop’s funeral

The funeral of a Chinese underground bishop was held under strict government control and underground priests were only allowed to attend part of it. Bishop Stephen Li Side of Tianjin died at the age of 92 on June 8 after suffering a stroke in mid-May and being admitted to a hospital in Ji County. Underground […]

Tiananmen massacre 30 years on: Modern China remains Orwellian

Thirty years ago, China’s Communist Party regime revealed, yet again, its true character when it turned its guns on the people and sent in its tanks to crush peaceful pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square. The People’s Liberation Army turned out to be neither on the side of the people nor for liberation as it slaughtered […]

Christian couple to appeal death sentence in Pakistan

A Pakistani high court is to hear the appeal of a Christian couple who have been on death row since 2014 for insulting the Prophet Muhammad, their lawyers confirmed. Lawyer Saiful Malook, who successfully defended Catholic Woman Asia Bibi and had her blasphemy conviction overturned in the Supreme Court, will also contest the charges against […]

Sri Lanka readies laws to curb hate speech, false news

Sri Lanka’s government will introduce laws to curb hate speech and false news that threaten ethnic reconciliation and national security, in the aftermath of Easter bombings that killed more than 250 people. According to a government statement, the Cabinet decided to amend the penal code to include the penalty of five years in prison and […]

Lankan priests want officials prosecuted for Easter massacre

Catholic priests have filed a petition with the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka targeting the government for failing to act on warnings that could potentially have prevented the Easter Sunday bombings by Islamic extremists. The priests have accused 13 public officials, including Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, of dereliction of duty and violating fundamental human rights, […]

Vietnamese Catholic activist ‘Abducted by police’

Police in Vietnam have been accused of abducting a Catholic advocate for social and charitable activities. Nguyen Thi Tinh said her husband Nguyen Nang Tinh was seized and pushed into a truck by police officers while he and their two sons were on their way to have breakfast on May 29. She said police later […]

Indian bishops slam terror attack on tourists in India’s Kashmir

No action taken against police who assaulted Catholic priests in India