Posts
Holy war in Orissa, India
by Scott Gilbreath ~ October 9th, 2008
Widespread violent attacks by Hindus against Christians in Orissa state, India, are getting worse. Churches have been vandalised and desecrated, thousands of Christians have been driven from their homes and many killed, and the bloodshed and persecution continue.
Holy war strikes in India: 35 Christians killed and 50,000 forced from their homes
For a country that boasts of its mutual religious tolerance, the long-simmering tension that has erupted in the Kandhamal district of the state of Orissa – a nun being raped, churches being burned, at least 35 people killed and thousands forced from their villages – is both a belated wake-up call and a mounting embarrassment.
The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, called it a “national disgrace”.
[. . .]
The journey to the heart of the violence follows a bone-shaking road east from Bhubaneswar to the district capital, Phulbani. It was here in late August that thousands of Hindus armed with swords, sticks and primitive guns began taking matters into their own hands after the murder of an elderly religious leader, Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati.The swami, a senior member of a right-wing Hindu organisation known as the Vishswa Hindu Parishad (VHP), had reportedly been working to prevent low-caste Hindus converting to Christianity.
Earlier this week, a Maoist leader claimed credit for the Hindu swami’s murder. He also said the government knew who was responsible for the killing but concealed that information in hopes that Christians would be blamed and attacked.
Some see the roots of the conflict in the legal and historical relationship between two groups at the bottom of India’s socio-economic ladder.
Many activists believe the fight is an economic dispute between two of India’s poorest groups, complicated by the issue of caste and ethnicity.
For decades there has been conflict over land and resources between the two groups at the bottom of India’s complex social system – the indigenous people of the region officially listed as scheduled tribes (ST) and non-indigenous poor known as scheduled castes (SC).
SC people are also known as Dalits.
While the ST are Hindu, increasing numbers of SC have converted to Christianity to escape the misery of the caste system, for perceived economic benefit and because of the efforts of missionaries. Many politicians have accused right-wing Hindu groups of agitating tension for political reasons.
Persecution Update India reports that the Indian government has proposed that children of inter-caste marriages may be granted SC status only if the non-Dalit parent is Hindu, Buddhist, or Sikh. This would enact legal discrimination against children of Christians and Muslims.
Print This Post
October 10th, 2008 at 05:58 PM
[...] attack and rape one nun, burn another; Mistaken for a Christian, Hindu girl burnt alive; Holy war in Orissa, India …. [...]
October 11th, 2008 at 09:01 AM
[...] Holy War in Orissa, India. Earlier this week, a Maoist leader claimed credit for the Hindu swami’s murder. He also said the government knew who was responsible for the killing but concealed that information in hopes that Christians would be blamed and attacked. If that’s true, it’s truly worrying. I mean: truly worrying. [...]