Muslim clerics in Pakistan are voicing opposition to a draft bill that would only allow “mature people” to change their religion. The top trend on Twitter in Pakistan on Sept.15 was “#Islam mukhalif bill na manzoor [reject anti-Islam bill],” as a debate on the bill aimed at stopping forced religious conversions raged in the media.
Opponents of the bill seemed to direct their ire at Naveed Amir Jeeva, a Christian legislator who has been pushing the Prohibition of Forced Religious Conversion Bill, pending with the Standing Committee on Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, since 2019. Some even shared the Pakistani politician’s profile on social media, spewing hate and condemnation.
Human rights and minority groups have been demanding the government resurrect and pass the bill that would criminalize the kidnapping, forced religious conversion to Islam and subsequently forced marriage of underage girls in Pakistan.
A parliamentary committee to protect minorities from forced conversions recommended in February that only a “mature person” (adult) may be allowed to change religion after appearing before an additional sessions judge.
The committee suggested that the judge set a date for an inter-view within seven days of receipt of the conversion application. An additional clause empowered the judge with the option to grant the person 90 days to undertake a comparative study of the religions concerned before return to his office with a final decision.
Indian Catholics help Myanmar Christian refugees
The Catholic Church in India’s Mizoram state has joined other Christian denominations and youth associations in assisting Christian refugees fleeing unrest in Myanmar.
According to media reports, over the past six months thousands of Christians from Myanmar have sought refuge in Christian-dominated Mizoram after the military junta intensified its crackdown on rebels in Chin state bordering India.
“At present there are around 15,000 refugees from Myanmar living in Mizoram, mostly in Champhai on the Indo-Myanmar border, a strategically important location,” Bishop Stephen Rotluanga of Aizawl told.
“The Church is engaged in humanitarian work along with several other denominations, Caritas India, Catholic Relief Services, the Young Mizo Association and NGOs. Our top priorities are to give them shelter, medicines and food and we have successfully executed our program along with the help of our partners.
“There is no problem for us to help the refugees because people from Myanmar
have been coming back and forth to Mizo-ram for decades. Many have relatives on both sides of the border, hence people can understand their suffering and welcomed them with open arms.
“Many refugees are staying with their relatives and others are in relief camps managed by churches and NGOs. The Young Mizo Association is very active and helping all the agencies to fulfil the requirements.”
Bishop Rotluanga said the state government has encouraged and appreciated the relief work and Mizoram’s chief minister had even asked the prime minister to help with emergency relief funds.
“There are several issues that have to be tackled with love and care as the refugees are in shock and are in trauma leaving their country. Many have lost their near and dear ones. Most of them are Christians at our camp but there are also a few Muslims,” he said.
“We are expecting more refugees in our state after fresh conflict flared up. We already have around 11,500 refugees in our state at present,” said C. Lalrosanga, a member of the lower house of parliament.
Christians decry profiling of faith leaders in central India
Christians in Madhya Pradesh state, central India, are outraged after government agencies began profiling Christian religious leaders working among indigenous people.
A revenue department official in the tribal-dominated Jhabua district summoned Christian leaders and asked them to provide personal information such as their appointment as a priest and the document related to their conversion. The official letter also asked them to certify if they were converted through allurement or force as the government wants to initiate legal proceedings against illegal conversions.
A state law criminalizes religious con-version through allurement or force, making it an offense punishable with up to 10 years in prison. The letter issued on Sept. 13 has also directed them to present details regarding their work in person before the official on Sept. 22 at noon.
“Our 16 pastors have received similar letters,” said Auxiliary Bishop Paul Muniya of Protestant Shalom Church in the district.
Christian leaders say their people face increased hostilities from right-wing Hindu groups opposed to their work in the district in their work among tribal people.
Earlier on Aug. 26, the additional superintendent of police, in a letter to police stations under him directed to assist activists from Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a right-wing Hindu outfit in their drive to close illegal Christian prayer halls and to contain illegal religious conversion activities in the district.
Christians appeal to India’s president for protection
Christians in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh have called on India’s president to provide protection amid open threats from Hindu activists to demolish their churches.
“Hindu activists mostly from Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP—world Hindu Council] have set a deadline to demolish our churches on Sept. 26, alleging they are illegal structures,” said Auxiliary Bishop Paul Muniya of the Protestant Shalom Church based in the state’s Jhabua district, which is dominated by tribal people.
VHP has also issued threats to the indigenous Christians against practicing Christianity and are forcing them to return to Hinduism, he told on Sept. 20.
“We handed over a memorandum to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind through the district collector on Sept. 17 seeking his urgent intervention to ensure the safety and security of the indigenous Christians,” the prelate said.
Bishop Muniya further alleged that local administrators were siding with the right-wing groups and harassing Christians who make up 4 percent of the one million population in the district, leading to a rise in anti-Christian violence.
Father Maria Stephan, public relations officer of the Catholic Church in Madhya Pradesh, said both the revenue and police administration of the district were biased against Christians.
Christians face ostracism in India’s Jharkhand state
Christian families in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand have been ostracized by their village for embracing Christianity. The three families from Mangapat Sirsai village in West Singhbhum district, who became Christian a year ago, are being pressurized to return to the tribal Sarna belief system centered on the worship of nature.
The gram sabha or village council on Sept. 17 decided that the converted families will not be allowed to use common properties for free movement or grazing cattle. They will also not be invited to any social gatherings in the village and nobody will interact with them.
Gabbar Singh Hembrom, district president of the Adivasi Ho Samaj Yuva Mahasabha, a youth organization of local tribal people, warned the villagers to abide by the decision or end up paying a fine.
A meeting will be held every Sunday to check if the decision to ostracize the Christian families was being followed strictly by everyone.
Hembrom said: “The entire village follows the Sarna religion except for Raut Bankira, Rajendra Bankira and Hiralal Bankira, who converted to Christianity along with their families a year ago. We are ready to accept them if they return to our faith, but they refused.”
Mangapat Sirsai has nearly 200 households with a population of around 700 people.
Hembrom alleged that some Christian missionaries were luring the tribal people with land and money to convert them.
Goa’s Holy Family Sisters elect ninth superior general
The Goa-based Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth has elected Sister Berna Rodrigues as their ninth superior general. The election took place September 8, the last day of the congregation’s 12th ordinary general congregation held at St. Joseph Vaz Spiritual Centre, Old Goa.
India’s top court drops case against Catholic priest
India’s top court has dis-charged a Catholic priest from a religious conversion case, registered against him in central Indian Madhya Pradesh state three years ago.
Father George Mangalapilly, a professor at St. Ephrem’s Theo-logical College in Satna diocese, was charged with converting Dharmendar Dohar, a Hindu, to Christianity by offering him a bribe of 5,000 rupees (some US$70) and other benefits back in December 2017.
“Apart from the testimony of the witness, there is nothing else on record which could potentially be relied upon against the appellant,” wrote the top court in its order while discharging the priest from the case. The priest along with his 32 seminarians and another priest were taken into police custody on Dec. 14 as they were on their way to sing Christmas carols while visiting Christian homes, a tradition they followed for decades. The Hindu activists, mostly members of the Bajarang Dal, also blocked officers of the police station and demanded action against the priests and all the seminarians for attempting to convert Hindus and.They also alleged ulterior motives to carol singing.
Salesians launch international school of social communications
More than 400 Salesian priests, brothers, sisters and young people spread over 19 regions are attending online the Salesian School of Social Communication (SSSC).
The program was opened on September 24 by Father Gildasio Mendes, the general councillor for social communication. 82 members of 12 Salesian provinces of South Asia region attended the online training session.
Introducing the vision and objectives of the year-long program, Father Mendes highlighted September 24 as a historically significant day for Salesian congregation. “We are commencing an important journey keeping in mind the evangelization mission of the Church to be achieved effectively through communication.”
As emphasized by different general chapters of Salesian Congregation, he said, communication is a priority dimension for Salesians. The Salesian School of Social Communication, an initiative of the Social Communication Department of the Congregation, Rome, envisages training all those involved in the social communication ministry, keeping in mind the priorities of the Church and the congregation.
The project further aims at preparing the participants to communicate from the Salesian perspective. The topics to be covered during SSSC are Biblical Dimension of Communication, Synodal Dimension of Communication, Salesian Dimension of Communication, Institutional Dimension of Communication and Youth Pastoral Dimension of Communication.
India urged to halt harassment of rights activist
CIVICUS, the global civil society alliance, has condemned a recent raid carried out on facilities associated with human rights defender Harsh Mander, director of the Centre for Equity Studies, and called on the Indian government to stop intimidating rights activists.
On Sept. 16, the Enforcement Dire-ctorate under the Ministry of Finance conducted the raid on Mander’s residence, the Centre for Equity Studies’ office and a children’s home run by the organization under the pretext of investigating money-laundering allegations against him. The raid was carried out several hours after he departed for Germany to attend a fellowship program.
Mander has been critical of the Narendra Modi government. He has rais-ed concerns about how the government handled the pandemic, the increasing attacks on press freedom and the discri-minatory citizenship law passed in 2019 which human rights groups have called “unconstitutional and divisive.” Following the raid, more than 500 activists in India issued a joint statement in solidarity with Mander and condemned the intimi-dation tactics.
“The authorities must halt their harassment of human rights activist Harsh Mander. These actions conducted by the Enforcement Directorate are a clear tactic to intimidate and criminalize the defender. It also creates a chilling effect on govern-ment critics and is a strategy to force many to self-censorship,” said Josef Benedict, CIVICUS civic space researcher for Asia Pacific.
Similar raids were conducted by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights in October 2020 on two children’s homes associated with Mander based on accusations of financial irregu-larities and illicit activities.
Indonesian archbishop attacks ‘sinning’ anti-vaxxers
People who refuse to be vaccinated against Covid-19 are sinners for endangering other people, according to an Indonesian archbishop who has been infected with the virus.
“Let’s not say that I don’t need to be vaccinated. If you don’t want to be vaccinated, you are actually a sinner be-cause you will become a source of the disease for other peo-ple,” said Archbishop Petrus Canisius Mandagi of Merauke.
He was speaking at a Mass at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in West Olilit, Maluku, on Sept. 22.
He invited his flock to think about the impact of Covid-19, which has killed millions of people worldwide.
“If we are not careful, everyone will die from Covid-19,” said Archbishop Mandagi, who is also the apostolic administrator of Amboina Diocese. The archbishop also urged his flock to think about their health and the health of others, including telling smokers to stop so that they do not fall victim to the virus.