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[1] From: WebXpurt <webxpurt@yahoo.com Date: Thu Mar 20, 2008 8:39 pm Subject: Sarabjit's wife: We do not want Sarabjit in exchange for terrorists We do not want Sarabjit in exchange for terrorists: wife http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/20/stories/2008032060470100.htm Amritsar: In a bold statement on Wednesday, the wife of Sarabjit Singh said the family did not want him repatriated from Pakistan if it meant India releasing some terrorists in exchange. "Myself and my daughters would never like Sarabjit freed in exchange for any hardcore Pakistani terrorist lodged in Indian jails," Sarabjit's wife, Sukhpreet Kaur, told PTI. Ms. Kaur said that for the family, "nothing is above the nation and we can't go against the interests of our motherland." Sister's visit She said the family was informed by journalists that Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur would be going to Pakistan and the government had assured her a passport and visa. "I would urge the government to give me and my daughters travel documents for visiting Sarabjit in the Kot Lakhpat Jail," she added. - PTI -------- [2] From: "Sukla Sen" <sukla.sen@gmail.com Date: Thu Mar 20, 2008 10:54 am Subject: Intolerant India! http://www.asianage.com/presentation/leftnavigation/news/india/%E2%80%98india-to\ lerance-level-is-sinking%E2%80%99. aspx *'India tolerance level is sinking'** * *By Our Special Correspondent* New Delhi, March 19: As a country our tolerance levels are going lower and lower, look at what happened in Godhra and its aftermath, what is happening to Taslima Nasreen and M. F. Husain, said English poet Keki Daruwalla, here on Wednesday. He said, "India has a great tradition of giving sanctuary to those who have asked for it. We gave sanctuary to the Parsis 1,300 years ago, we gave sanctuary to the King of Nepal and to Sheikh Hasina who lived in India for years after the death of her father Mujibur Rehman." Mr Daruwalla was speaking at a panel discussion on "Beyond isms: The Right to Individual Freedom" at the Indian Women's Press Corps. He pointed out that though India takes a high moral ground on these things but we don't say a word in support of Aung San Sui Kyi, or we might anger the Junta or about the human rights violations in Tibet or we might anger the Chinese government and in the country we just sit back and not say anything when Biharis and North Indians are attacked by Raj Thackeray's Maharastra Navnirman Sena or the Shiv Sena. Similarly, other panellists also expressed their anger about the way Taslima Nasreen has been treated in India. and how she was forced to leave the country after her months of being in virtual house arrest. Hindi author and poetess Krishna Sobti expressed her anguish to this and said that if a writer is seen as a terrorist it is an atrocity to the community of writers. Using strong words, she said, "In a democracy if this is the meaning of freedom then our freedom is fake." Many of the panellists felt that we are living in worse times than during the emergency. Hindi poet Giridhar Rathi said, "People feel that the situation is worse than in the time of the emergency. During the emergency only the state was bend upon suppression. But now any mafia group who call themselves Bajrang Dal or any other group be it Muslim or Christian or Buddhists can object to what you write or portray and attack you." ---------------------- [3] From: Dolphy D'Souza Sent: Thursday, March 20, 2008 5:16 PM Subject: URGENT PRESS STATEMENT PRESS STATEMENT RE: THE BOMBAY CATHOLIC SABHA CONDEMNS THE ATTEMPT MADE BY THE ALIBAUG POLICE IN TRYING TO SLAP CHARGES AGAINST MS VAISHALI PATIL, A SOCIAL ACTIVIST WHO INTERVENED IN THE ATTACK ON SISTERS PHILOMENA D'MELLO / MERCY TUSCANO AND THE TRIBALS ON MARCH 15 UNDER THE ATROCITIES ACT. It is unfortunate, that the Guardian Angel in the form of Ms Vaishali Patil, a social activist who intervened in the attack on the above mentioned Sisters and some of the Tribal women should become a victim of police excesses as we believe they have slapped charges against her under the Atrocities Act by the Alibaug Police. Only 13 of the over 50 goonda elements who were instrumental in attacking these women were charged under lighter sections and let off on bail. What a shame. Ms Vaishali was insisting with the Police that the assailants should have been charged under the Atrocities Act since they had also physically attacked the Tribal women. We demand from the Deputy Chief Minister Shri R. R. Patil to immediately intervene and stop this police excesses, withdraw these charges against Ms Vaishali Patil and ensure that the guilty are punished severely. Best Regards, Dolphy D'souza President THE BOMBAY CATHOLIC SABHA St Michael's Annexe, Mahim Mumbai 400 016. ------------ [4] For immediate release UN Sees Major Challenges to Religious Freedom in India The aicc coordinated six meetings with NGOs for Special Rapporteur New Delhi, March 20, 2008 Ms. Asma Jahangir, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, announced her initial findings on religious freedom in India at a press conference in New Delhi on Thursday morning, March 20, 2008. The All India Christian Council (aicc) coordinated six meetings between the UN Special Rapporteur and non-governmental groups (NGOs) during her three week visit. Aicc leaders presented an analysis of increasing religious discrimination and violent attacks. Jahangir said in her press conference that communalism seems to be increasing across India in the last decade. She warned that divisions based on religion must be halted now or certain groups may experience oppression. She was hopeful that vigilance by civil society, media, and government authorities will stop the potential disintegration of religious freedom. Dr. Joseph D’souza, aicc President, said, “We are proud of India. It remains the world’s largest democracy and the only officially secular country among the eight member countries of SAARC. However, there are dark clouds on the horizon because violence against Christians and other minorities is on the rise. Authorities must arrest perpetrators and protect the innocent. Tragically, often perpetrators are protected and the innocent arrested.” SAARC is the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. “The right to embrace any religion and seek the Divine is the most basic of human rights. It must not be hindered. But some radical elements, especially within hardline Hindu nationalist groups, are attacking minorities with impunity. Their spokespeople say that conversions must be stopped at any cost,” said John Dayal, aicc Secretary-General. “For example, during the attacks over this past Christmas in the eastern state of Orissa, about 100 churches and 700 Christian homes were burned. At least four Christians were killed and many injured and abused. Yet the state government banned charitable and religious institutions from giving direct aid to victims and the aggressors still roam freely today.” The aicc invited Muslims, Christians, Dalits, Buddhists, and other minority leaders to give independent testimony to the Special Rapporteur. Meetings coordinated by aicc were held in: Ahmedabad, Gujarat (March 9); Trivandrum, Kerala (March 14); Bhubaneswar, Orissa (March 15); Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (March 17); and New Delhi (March 5 and 19). In Lucknow and Bhubaneswar, Christian and Muslim victims recounted attacks. The aicc recorded an anti-Christian attack every three days, on average, in 2007. “We applaud the Indian government for graciously hosting the UN Special Rapporteur. She reportedly met the Chief Ministers of every state she visited as well as minorities and human rights bodies. We are hopeful the government will heed Ms. Jahangir’s wise recommendations on how to protect the religious freedom of all Indian citizens,” said Dr. Sam Paul, aicc National Secretary of Public Affairs. The last visit to India by a UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief was in 1996. Since then, India’s citizens experienced: riots targeting Muslims (Gujarat 2002); continued legal discrimination against Dalits if they are not Hindu, Buddhist, or Sikh; the passage of anti-conversion laws in four states and amendments in two other states; two major outbreaks of violence against Christians during Christmas celebrations (Dangs District, Gujarat, 1998, and Kandhamal District, Orissa, 2007); and increasing attacks on Christian clergy and places of worship. In most cases, attackers were Hindutva activists. Ms. Asma Jahangir and her Geneva-based assistant, Mr. Michael Wiener, visited eight states and numerous cities in India since arriving on March 2, 2008. She is a respected human rights activist from Pakistan and has held several positions with the United Nations. Jahangir was appointed as Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief in 2004. Her job is to “identify existing and emerging obstacles to the enjoyment of the right to freedom of religion or belief and present recommendations on ways and means to overcome such obstacles.” In about three months, she will present the final India country report to various UN human rights bodies and the UN General Assembly. The last India country report was released in February 1997. See: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/religion/index.htm. The All India Christian Council (www. aiccindia. org), birthed in 1998, exists to protect and serve the Christian community, minorities, and the oppressed castes. The aicc is a coalition of thousands of Indian denominations, organizations, and lay leaders. For more information, contact: Sam Paul, aicc National Secretary of Public Affairs, administrator@aiccindia.org +91-99896-97778 Released by Mr. Madhu Chandra Regional Secretary 9868184939 NOTE: The aicc submitted a short paper to the Special Rapporteur, and the aicc Secretary-General submitted a in-depth paper on behalf of aicc and two other organisations. These can be found at: http://indianchristians.in/news/images/stories/christian/UN_SR_submission_by_aicc.pdf, http://indianchristians.in/news/images/stories/christian/UN_SR_memo_by_John_Dayal_March_5_2008.pdf ---------- [5] Bin Laden: Pope Helps Anti-Islam Crusade Thursday, March 20, 2008 10:04:47 AM By PAUL SCHEMM Osama bin Laden accused Pope Benedict XVI of helping in a "new Crusade" against Islam and warned of a "severe" reaction to European publications of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad that insulted many Muslims. Bin Laden's new audiotape message raised concerns al-Qaida was plotting new attacks in Europe. Some experts said bin Laden, believed to be in hiding in the rugged Afghan-Pakistan border area, may be unable to organize an attack himself and instead is trying to fan anger and inspire his supporters to violence. The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said bin Laden's accusation that the pope has played a role in a Other Top Headlines Photos Bin Laden: Pope Helps Anti-Islam Crusade 173 worldwide campaign against Islam is "baseless." Lombardi said the pope on several occasions has criticized the cartoons, first published in several European newspapers in 2006 and republished by Danish papers in February. The pope angered many in the Muslim world in 2006, when he cited a medieval text that characterized some of the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad as "evil and inhuman," particularly "his command to spread by the sword the faith." The pope later said he was "deeply sorry" and stressed the remarks did not reflect his own opinions. He has since led a public campaign for dialogue with Muslims. Bin Laden's audiotape was posted late Wednesday on a militant Web site that has carried al-Qaida statements in the past and bore the logo of the extremist group's media wing Al-Sahab. "The response will be what you see and not what you hear and let our mothers bereave us if we do not make victorious our messenger of God," said a voice believed to be bin Laden's, without specifying what action would be taken. He said the cartoons "came in the framework of a new Crusade in which the Pope of the Vatican has played a large, lengthy role," according to a transcript released by the SITE Institute, a U. S. group that monitors terror messages. "You went overboard in your unbelief and freed yourselves of the etiquettes of dispute and fighting and went to the extent of publishing these insulting drawings," he said. "This is the greater and more serious tragedy, and reckoning for it will be more severe." The five-minute message, bin Laden's first this year, came as the Muslim world marks the Prophet Muhammad's birthday on Thursday. It made no mention of the fifth anniversary Wednesday of the U. S.-led invasion in Iraq. On Feb. 13, Danish newspapers republished one of the cartoons, which shows Muhammad wearing a bomb-shaped turban, to illustrate their commitment to freedom of speech after police said they had uncovered the beginnings of a plot to kill the artist. Muslims widely saw the cartoons as an insult, depicting the prophet as violent. Islamic law generally opposes any depiction of the prophet, even favorable, for fear it could lead to idolatry. The original 12 cartoons, first published in a Danish newspaper and then in several papers across Europe, triggered major protests in Muslim countries in 2006. There have been renewed protests in the last month, though not as large or widespread. A few dozen university students waved banners and chanted slogans against Denmark on Thursday in Islamabad. The students said they had not seen the bin Laden message. Ben Venzke, the head of Other Top Headlines Photos Stocks Rebound After Wednesday's Drop 174 IntelCenter, a U. S. group that monitors militant messages, called Wednesday's message a "clear threat against EU member countries and an indicator of a possible upcoming significant attack." Talat Masood, a retired Pakistani general and security analyst, said bin Laden was likely too isolated to organize an attack. But the al-Qaida leader may be hoping to use anger over the cartoons to inspire violence, he said. "Even if he has not got the capacity (to launch an attack), he will try to infuse hatred,'" Masood said. ------ Associated Press writers Maamoun Youssef in Cairo, Egypt and Lily Hindy in New York contributed to this report. Continue... |
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March21, 2008 - [India Thinkers Net] Festival day for India ,peace & its symbol >> |
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