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Convicted Hindu Nationalist Legislator in India Released on Bail
Posted on August 15, 2010 by particularkev
Stunned Christians suspect bias in case of politician's role in Orissa violence.
NEW DELHI, July 30 (CDN) — Less than a month after Orissa state legislator Manoj Pradhan was sentenced to seven years of prison for his part in anti-Christian mob violence in 2008, he was released on bail pending his appeal.
Along with fellow Hindu nationalist Prafulla Mallick, Pradhan on June 29 was convicted of causing grievous hurt and rioting in connection with the murder of a Christian, Parikhita Nayak. Justice B.P. Ray heard the petition on July 7, and the same day he granted Pradhan and Mallick bail conditional on posting bail bond of 20,000 rupees (US$430) each.
Pradhan and Mallick were released from jail on July 12 and await the outcome of an appeal to the Orissa High Court.
Attorney Bibhu Dutta Das said that ordinary people don't get bail so easily when convicted of such crimes, and he questioned how Pradhan could be granted release just for being a legislator.
"It takes years for convictions in High Court," Das told Compass. "We will not sit silent. We will challenge this bail order in the [New Delhi] Supreme Court very soon."
The Christian community expressed shock that someone sentenced to seven years in prison would get bail within seven days of applying for it.
"I am very disappointed with the judiciary system," said Nayak's widow, Kanaka Rekha Nayak, who along with her two daughters has been forced into hiding because of threats against her. "I went through several life threats, but still I took my daughters for hearings whenever I was called by the court, risking my daughters' lives – certainly not for this day."
In addition to the bail, the court has issued a stay order on the 5,000 rupee (US$107) fine imposed on Pradhan and Mallick. Attorney Das told Compass the decision was biased, as the Lower Court Record was not even consulted beforehand.
"This is the normal court procedure, and it was bypassed for Pradhan," he said. "The judgment was pre-determined."
Dibakar Parichha of the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar Catholic Archdiocese told Compass, "Sometimes the judicial system seems mockery to me. One court convicts him, and another one grants him bail."
The rulings are demoralizing to those who look toward the courts for justice, he said.
"There is a very powerful force behind this. It is not as simple as it looks," Parichha said.
Dr. John Dayal, secretary general of the All India Christian Council, said he was surprised by the orders.
"While it is a legal right for anybody to get bail, it is surprising that Pradhan was wanted in so many cases, and he can coerce and influence witnesses," Dayal said. "His petition should not have been granted."
The two Hindu nationalists were convicted by the Phulbani Fast Track Sessions Court I Judge Sobhan Kumar Das. Pradhan, member of the state Legislative Assembly (MLA) from G. Udayagiri, Kandhamal for the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), filed a petition stating that his name was not mentioned in the original First Information Report filed by Kanaka Rekha Nayak, but that he was dragged into the case later.
The bail order includes a warning to Pradhan to refrain from intimidating witnesses, stating, "The petitioner shall not threaten the witnesses examined."
Rekha Nayak, along with her daughters Lipsa Nayak (4 years old when her father was killed) and Amisha Nayak (then 2 years old) were eyewitnesses to the murder of her 31-year-old husband, a Dalit Christian from Tiangia, Budedipada, in Kandhamal district. He was murdered on Aug. 27, 2008.
Rev. Dr. Richard Howell, general secretary of the Evangelical Fellowship of India, urged the Christian community to keep hope.
"The case is still on, not that it has come to an end," he said. "There is a move that is being made to take the case further."
Attorney Das has said he plans to appeal Pradhan's sentence of seven years, in hopes of increasing it to life imprisonment.
Pradhan, who denies any wrongdoing, has been charged in 14 cases related to the August-September 2008 anti-Christian attacks. In seven of the cases he has been acquitted, he was convicted of "grievous hurt" in the Nayak case, and six more are pending against him.
Of the 14 cases in which he faces charges, seven involve murder; of those murder cases, he has been acquitted in three.
Cases have been filed against Pradhan for rioting, rioting with deadly weapons, unlawful assembly, causing disappearance of evidence of offense, murder, wrongfully restraining someone, wrongful confinement, mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy houses, voluntarily causing grievous hurt and voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means.
Pradhan was also accused of setting fire to houses of people belonging to the minority Christian community.
The Times of India reported Pradhan as "one of the close disciples" of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP or World Hindu Council) leader Swami Laxamananda Saraswati, whose assassination on Aug. 23, 2008, touched off the anti-Christian violence in Kandhamal and other parts of Orissa.
Rekha Nayak filed a complaint and a case was registered against Mallick and others for murder, destroying evidence, rioting and unlawful assembly. Pradhan was arrested on Oct. 16, 2008, from Berhampur, and in December 2009 he obtained bail from the Orissa High Court.
Despite his role in the attacks, Pradhan – campaigning from jail – was the only BJP candidate elected from the G. Udayagiri constituency in the 2009 Assembly elections from Kandhamal district.
In recent court actions, Fast Track Court-II Additional Sessions Judge Chittaranjan Das on July 21 acquitted nine persons who had been arrested in the Tikabali area for various offenses, including arson, due to "lack of evidence." The main charge against them was torching of a church on Aug. 28, 2008 at Beladevi village.
At least 132 persons have been convicted in different cases related to the 2008 violence in Orissa's Kandhamal district, state Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said on July 19. Patnaik said that 24 members of the Hindu extremist Bajrang Dal (Youth Wing of World Hindu Council) and VHP have been arrested and jailed.
Revenue and Disaster Management minister S.N. Patro said on July 21 that the 55 Christian places of worship were damaged in Tikabali block; 44 in G. Udaygiri; 39 in Raikia; 34 in K. Nuagaon; 19 in Baliguda; 16 in Daringbadi; nine in Phulbani; six in Kotgarh; five in Tumudibandha; and one each in Phiringia and Chakapada blocks.
India Briefs: Recent Incidents of Persecution
Karnataka – Hindu extremists from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh accused a pastor in Aldur of forceful conversion on July 24 and threatened him, telling him not to preach about Jesus. The All India Christian Council reported that the extremists filed a police complaint against Pastor Anand Kumar of forceful conversion. Both police and extremists ordered Pastor Kumar to remove the cross and name plate of the church. At press time area Christians were taking steps to resolve the issue.
Jammu and Kashmir – The state's Foreigners Registration Officer reportedly issued a notice to a senior Christian worker to leave India by July 20 after a false complaint of forceful conversion was filed against him. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that the state succumbed to pressure by Muslim extremists to deport Father Jim Borst, who has run Good Shepherd School in the Kashmir Valley since 1963. The school has been attacked on two occasions by members of other schools who felt they were unable to compete with it. For eight years these groups have led a campaign against Borst, claiming he was forcibly converting people under the guise of providing education. Borst, who denies the charge, has a valid visa till 2014. The interior minister reportedly said he had no knowledge of the deportation order, and Borst's superiors indicated he would not leave.
Madhya Pradesh – Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) extremists on July 18 disrupted Christian worship in Barwaha, near Indore. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that Pastor Subash Chouhan of the Indian Evangelical Team was leading Sunday worship when the extremists stormed in on the terrified Christians. They accused Pastor Chouhan of forceful conversion, photographed the congregation and told the pastor to close his tailoring school, which includes non-Christian students. This is the second time Pastor Chouhan has been arrested on false charges of forceful conversion; previously he was jailed for three days. The case was pending at press time.
Punjab – Police arrested Christians on July 10 after Hindu nationalists beat them, falsely accusing them of forcible conversion in Gurdaspur. Members of the Indian Pentecostal Church of God (IPCG) Western Region were visiting houses in the area on a social outreach mission when a group of extremists began to argue with them and then started beating four of them with their fists and shoes. Later they handed the Christians over to police, along with three more Christian men and five Christian women, complaining that they were converting people from the Hindu religion. Pastor Promod Samuel, along with the IPCG head A.M. Samuel, rushed to the Gurdaspur City police station to help the Christians, but officers detained them as well. Samuel told Compass that the president of the Hindu extremist groups Shiva Sena and Bajrang Dal, as well as many other Hindu nationalist leaders, gathered at the police station clamoring for officers to file charges against the 14 Christians. Hearing of the arrests, Christian leaders of Gurdaspur requested their release. The Christians were not released until Samuel signed an agreement assuring that Christians would not enter any non-Christian home. "The extremists are continuously following us around, to keep a check on us." Samuel said.
Andhra Pradesh – Hindu extremists toppled a church building and attacked Christians on July 6 in Parawada, Visakhapatnam. The All India Christian Council (AICC) reported that local Hindu extremists were jealous and angry that a church stood at the entrance of the village and urged the Christians to move. The extremists threatened to attack the Christian community, claiming that they would allow no church in the area. When the church pastor refused to give in to their demand, they began damaging his household goods and pulled down the church building. The extremists also stopped the Christians from drawing water from a well. AICC was taking steps to resolve the matter at press time.
Madhya Pradesh – Police on July 4 arrested and charged two Christians under the state's controversial "anti-conversion" law at Jawahar Nadar, Adharthal. According to the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), a member of the Apostolic Christian Assembly, Shravan Kuman Dubey, invited Vishal Lal to lead a prayer service for his 6-year-old son Ravi's birthday. Around 7:30 p.m., during prayer, a mob of nearly 75 Hindu nationalist extremists accompanied by police entered the house and falsely accused those present of forced conversion, taking 14 Christians to the Adhartal police station. After nearly four hours, police charged Shravan Kumar and Vishal Lal with forcible conversion and sent the others home. With GCIC intervention, both were released on bail the next day.
Madhya Pradesh – Hindu extremists belonging to the Dharma Raksha Samithi (Religion Protection Council) on June 28 stopped a Christian school bus and questioned young elementary students in Indore. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that the bus was carrying Christian students from Orissa to their school in Indore. The extremists ordered the young students to get out of the bus and asked them whether forceful conversion was taking place, frightening the schoolchildren as police remained mere spectators. After threatening to harm the Christians if they carried out any Christian activities, they let them go. Area Christian leaders condemned the incident as a sign of Hindu extremists' "reign of terror" in the state and demanded an investigation.
Karnataka – On June 13 in Anekal, Bangalore, Hindu extremists from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh beat a pastor whom they accused of forceful conversion. The Evangelical Fellowship of India reported that, in an apparently premeditated attack, an unidentified extremist telephoned Pastor Sam Joseph to come and pray for a sick person. The pastor agreed, only to be taken to a gathering of Hindu extremists with media people. The extremists accused the pastor of forceful conversion, beat him up and dragged him to Hebbagudi police station. Police released the pastor without charges after forcing him to agree that he would no longer lead Christian meetings.
Himachal Pradesh – State officials on June 5 sealed a Mission India building, claiming that it belongs to "outsiders," in Bari, Mandi district. The Evangelical Fellowship of India's (EFI) advocacy desk reported that the government closed the building, which functioned as a Bible study center and orphanage, claiming that no land in the area could be owned by non-native people. Pastor Sam Abraham told Compass that Mission India purchased the plot in 2005, constructed a building in 2007 and began using it as a Bible study center and orphanage in 2008. In July 2008, Hindu extremists filed a complaint against Mission India of forceful conversion and demanded the building be shut down. The extremists have since accused the Christians of forceful conversion, verbally abused them for their faith and threatened to kill them if they did not leave. Mission India officials asserted that the land legally belongs to them and that they have all necessary documents. At press time the Christians were looking for a place to rent that would accommodate at least 10 orphans.
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Conviction of Legislator in India Falls Short of Expectations
Posted on July 18, 2010 by particularkev
In murder of Christian, Hindu nationalist sentenced to seven years for causing 'grievous hurt.'
NEW DELHI, July 2 (CDN) — Christians in Orissa state had mixed feelings about the sentencing on Tuesday (June 29) of state legislator Manoj Pradhan to seven years in prison for causing grievous hurt and rioting – but not for murder.
"Pradhan is not convicted of murder, but offenses of voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons and rioting were upheld," attorney Bibhu Dutta Das told Compass. "Pradhan will be debarred from attending the Orissa Legislative Assembly unless the order of conviction is stayed by the Orissa High Court, or if special permission is granted by the court allowing him to attend."
Kanaka Rekha Nayak, widow of murdered Christian Parikhita Nayak, acknowledged that the verdict on Pradhan and fellow Hindu nationalist Prafulla Mallick in the August-September 2008 violence against Christians did not meet her expectations. She said she was happy that Pradhan was finally behind bars, but that she "expected the court to at least pronounce life imprisonment on Pradhan and Mallick for the gruesome act that they committed."
Das said he will try to increase the sentence.
"Pradhan spearheaded the riots and has several criminal charges against him – he cannot be let off with a simple punishment," Das said. "We will be filing a criminal revision in the Orissa High Court for enhancing the period to life imprisonment."
The day after Pradhan was sentenced, two Hindu nationalists were reportedly convicted of "culpable homicide not amounting to murder" in the burning death of a paralyzed Christian during the 2008 attacks on Christians in Orissa state's Kandhamal district and sentenced to only six years of prison.
UCAN agency reported that Sushanta Sahu and Tukuna Sahu were convicted and sentenced on Wednesday (June 30) in the death of Rasananda Pradhan, a paralytic burned alive when Hindu extremists set his house on fire on Aug. 24, 2008. Church leaders criticized the lenient sentences.
Manoj Pradhan has been charged in 14 cases related to the August-September 2008 anti-Christian attacks. In seven of the cases he has been acquitted, he was convicted of "grievous hurt" in this one, and six more are pending against him.
After a series of trials in which murder suspects in the 2008 Kandhamal district violence have gone free as Hindu extremist threats kept witnesses from testifying, the testimony of Nayak's daughter, 6-year-old Lipsa Nayak, helped seal Pradhan's conviction.
His widow, Rekha Nayak, told Compass that due to the severe threats on her life that she has received, she and her two daughters were forced to flee the area and go into hiding.
There were around 1,500 Hindu supporters present for this week's verdict, a source in the courtroom told Compass on condition of anonymity.
"We had to leave the place before the judgment was pronounced and could not enter that area for three or four days after the verdict," said the source, adding that prosecuting lawyers and human rights activists received the main threats.
Along with the seven years of prison, the Phulbani Court sentenced the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member of the Legislative Assembly of Orissa from G. Udayagiri, Kandhamal to a fine a little more than US$100, as it did for Mallick. The verdict came from Fast Track Sessions Court I Judge Sobhan Kumar Das in the Aug. 27, 2008 murder of 31-year-old Parikhita Nayak, a Dalit Christian from Tiangia, Budedipada, in Raikia block of Kandhamal district.
"I have the highest regard for the judiciary," Pradhan told Press Trust of India after this week's verdict. "We will appeal against the verdict in the higher court."
Dibakar Parichha of the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar Catholic Archdiocese told Compass that the judgment was "a good boost to the Christian community."
"When the trials were on, the Nayak family faced terrible times," Parichha added. "Pradhan and his associates threatened Kanaka Rekha, the widow of the deceased, right inside the courtroom of dire consequences if they testified about them."
Archbishop Raphael Cheenath of the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar diocese issued a statement saying that the verdict had boosted confidence in the judiciary that criminals will be punished.
"People have been waiting for good judgment, and we have confidence in the judiciary that criminals will be punished," Cheenath said, adding that the sentence will show criminals that the law will not spare any one. "One day or other, they will be punished."
The Rev. Richard Howell, general secretary of the Evangelical Fellowship of India, told Compass that the verdict offered some hope.
"The fact that something has happened gives us some hope that more convictions would take place in the trials to come," he said.
Calling the conviction "justice that was long overdue," Howell said that not much can be expected from Fast Track Courts as no security is provided to witnesses.
Girl's Testimony
During the 2008 anti-Christian attacks that followed the death of Hindu leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, Lipsa Nayak's parents and her sister had taken refuge in the forest to escape the fury of the Hindu extremists, but the rampaging mob tracked them down.
Lipsa, then 4 years old, along with her mother and then 2-year-old sister, Amisha Nayak, watched in horror as the crowd allegedly beat her father for two hours and then killed him by cutting him into pieces and burning him.
Rekha Nayak filed a complaint and a case was registered against Pradhan, Mallick and others for murder, destroying evidence, rioting and unlawful assembly. Pradhan was arrested on Oct. 16, 2008, from Berhampur, and in December 2009 he obtained bail from the Orissa High Court.
Despite his role in the attacks, Pradhan was the only BJP candidate elected from the G. Udayagiri constituency in the 2009 Assembly elections from Kandhamal district. He had campaigned inside jail.
On March 14, Rekha Nayak and her daughter Lipsa testified in court in spite of the threats. Rekha Nayak reportedly testified that when the Hindu mob demanded that her husband renounce Christianity or face death, he kept quiet, which led to his death.
Prosecution and defense lawyers questioned Lipsa for more than 90 minutes, and she reportedly answered all questions without wavering. Asked by the judge if she could identify the killer of her father, she pointed to Pradhan.
So far he has been exonerated of murder charges against him for "lack of witnesses." Christian leaders say that Pradhan has been intimidating witnesses because of his position as a member of the Legislative Assembly.
The government of Orissa has set up two Fast Track courts to try cases related to the violence that spread to more than a dozen districts of Orissa. The attacks killed more than 100 people and burned 4,640 houses, 252 churches and 13 educational institutions.
Trials are being held for 38 cases in which 154 people have been convicted and more than twice that many have been acquitted, as high as 621 by one count. Victims filed 3,232 complaints in the various police stations of Kandhamal district. Of these, police registered cases in only 832 instances.
"Nearly 12,000 people are accused in the riot case – 11,803 are out on bail," said attorney Das.
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WORLD EVANGELICAL ALLIANCE ASSEMBLY CLOSES IN THAILAND
More than 500 senior evangelical leaders gathering in Pattaya, Thailand from October 25-30, 2008, have wrapped up their General Assembly, after five days of intensive discussion to plan the way forward in world evangelization, reports Michael Ireland, chief correspondent, ASSIST News Service.
On Wednesday, delegates agreed upon six major resolutions setting out an evangelical response to religious liberty, HIV and Aids, poverty, peacemaking, creation care and the global financial crisis, according to a media release obtained by ANS.
"The worldwide financial turmoil is, at its root, evidence of what happens when too many are captivated by greed and put their faith in, and entrust their security and future aspirations to, a system animated by the maximization of wealth. Many legitimately feel betrayed," read the resolution on the global financial crisis.
"While we hope that the painful consequences of the turmoil will be mitigated, our concern is that its impact will continue to permeate into more regions and economies of the world. We recognize that this economic crisis will have the most painful impact on the poor, who are the most vulnerable.
"We reaffirm our faith in God and acknowledge that He is in control. We repent when we have placed our trust in money, institutions and persons, rather than God. Our security is not found in the things of this world."
The resolution called on Christians to care for the poor during the crisis and live simply and generously.
"The Body of Christ, His Church, is living with HIV," stated the resolution on HIV, a major focus area for the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA). "With brokenness we admit that as Evangelical Christians we have allowed stigmatization and discrimination to characterize our relationships with people living with HIV. We repent of these sinful attitudes and commit to ensuring that they are changed."
In the preamble to the resolution on the Millennium Development Goals, evangelical leaders stated, "In coping with the financial crisis of 2008, governments and international institutions have shown how quickly and effectively they can move to mobilize massive resources in the face of serious threats to our global, common economic well being.
"Yet one child dying of preventable causes every three seconds and 2.7 billion people barely sustained on an income of less than two dollars per day has yet to evoke a similar level of urgent response.
"We believe this to be an affront to God, a shame to governments and civil society, and a massive challenge to the witness and mission of the followers of Christ."
World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) international director Dr Geoff Tunnicliffe told delegates that they faced additional challenges to fulfilling the Great Commission from radical secularism, postmodernism, declining Christianity at the same time as growing interest in spirituality, trafficking and migration.
He insisted, however, that great challenges also brought great opportunities for evangelical engagement.
"We see this tremendous growth and this seismic shift in the church around the world and we are excited to what God is doing as he raises up women and men around the world in so many different places," he said.
"As we think about the global reality of the world in which we live, [there are] immense challenges but also immense opportunities."
Dr Tunnicliffe also said that the WEA would remain committed to integral mission "or holistic transformation, a proclamation and demonstration of the Gospel".
"It is not simply that evangelism and social involvement are done alongside of each other but rather in integral mission proclamation has social consequences. We call people to love and repentance in all areas of life," he said.
He reaffirmed the WEA's commitment to world evangelization.
"If anyone tells you that we've gone soft on world evangelization you can tell them that we are totally committed to world evangelization because it is only Jesus Christ that changes people's lives," he said.
A highlight of the week was an address from the Rev Joel Edwards, who was commissioned during the assembly as the new director of Christian anti-poverty movement Micah Challenge.
In his address, the former head of the UK Evangelical Alliance told delegates that the power to rehabilitate the word 'evangelical' lay in their hands.
"Whatever people think of evangelical Christians, if people are going to think differently about evangelicals the only people who can actually change their minds are evangelicals," he said.
"We must reinvent, rehabilitate and re-inhabit what evangelical means as good news. We must present Christ credibly to our culture and we should seek to be active citizens working for long-term spiritual and social change.
"Words can change their meaning. If 420 million evangelicals in over 130 nations across the world really wanted it to happen, evangelical could mean good news."
In another key address, the head of the Evangelical Fellowship of India, the Rev Richard Howell said that an identity anchored in Christ and a universal God was an evangelical non-negotiable in an age of pluralism.
"We have but one agenda: obedience to the Triune God revealed in Jesus Christ," said Dr Howell. "We are evangelical Christians for the sake of God."
"Our identity has to be related back to God. Unless we do that, we will never know who we are. Our identity comes from God and God alone."
"The Christian belief in the oneness of God implies God's universality, and the universality implies transcendence with respect to any given culture.
"Christians can never be first of all Asians, Africans, Europeans, Americans, Australians and then Christians."
The assembly also heard from the Chair of the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (LCWE), Douglas Birdsall.
The WEA is collaborating with the LCWE in its major Cape Town 2010 meeting, which will bring together 4,000 evangelicals to assess the next steps in realizing the movement's vision of 'the whole church taking the whole gospel to the whole world'.
"You might ask is there a need for an international congress that deals with world evangelization," Birdsall told the assembly. "I would say that throughout history, such a gathering is only necessary when the future of the life of the church is threatened by some type of challenge – either internal challenge or external pressure."
The assembly also saw the launch of the WEA Leadership Institute, a brand new initiative to see the leaders of the WEA's 128 national alliances trained to serve and proclaim Christ within some challenging contexts.
"Leading an Evangelical Alliance is not easy," commented Dr Tunnicliffe. "That's why we want to provide them with the relevant training and resources."
Also commissioned during the week was the new leader of the WEA's Religious Liberty Commission, Sri Lankan national Godfrey Yogarajah.
Dr Tunnicliffe rounded up the assembly with a call to evangelicals to keep in step with God's work on earth.
"It is my prayer that we in our community will be women and men who live with divine purpose within our lives, that we will be good leaders envisioned by God to make a difference in the world," he said.
"The most important thing that you can do with your [life] is to integrate it into the never ending story of God's kingdom. God's already at work in the world. He's doing things. We just need to align with what He is doing."
World Evangelical Alliance is made up of 128 national evangelical alliances located in 7 regions and 104 associate member organizations. The vision of WEA is to extend the Kingdom of God by making disciples of all nations and by Christ-centered transformation within society. WEA exists to foster Christian unity, to provide an identity, voice and platform for the 420 million evangelical Christians worldwide.
Report from the Christian Telegraph
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INDIA: CHRISTIAN COUPLE KILLED, HOUSES TORCHED IN ORISSA
Posted on October 1, 2008 by particularkev
Displaced Christians survive bomb blasts as violence continues in Kandhamal district.
NEW DELHI, September 30 (Compass Direct News) – A Christian couple was found murdered, a woman killed, numerous houses and churches burned and low-intensity bombs exploded at relief camps in the past week in Orissa state's Kandhamal district, where Hindu extremist violence began more than a month ago.
On Sunday (Sept. 28), police found the body of Priyatamma Digal, an auxiliary nurse and midwife, in a river. On Monday, the body of her husband, Meghanath, was recovered. According to The Times of India newspaper, the Christian couple was killed last Thursday (Sept. 25).
This morning attacks by unidentified armed groups in the villages of Rudangia, Telingia and Gadaguda in Kandhamal resulted in more than 100 houses burned and the death of Ramani Nayak of Rudangia village, reported The Hindu. Her religious affiliation was not known at press time.
Eight people were seriously injured in the attacks, according to reports, and about 20 people received minor injuries.
Bomb blasts yesterday rocked three Kandhamal relief camps in the Nuagaon area, Mahasinghi village and Baliguda town, reported the Press Trust of India (PTI).
No casualties were reported, but the explosions left residents of the relief camps fearing for their lives.
"Since they have been successful in exploding bombs near the heavily guarded relief camp, there is no guarantee that the explosions will not take place in other camps," one refugee told PTI.
Axe Attack
The Times of India also reported that five houses were torched in Phirigia block in Kandhamal (Gochhapada police jurisdiction) on Sunday night.
Last Thursday (Sept. 25), some 700 people armed with axes, swords, and iron bars attacked a Missionaries of Charity house in Sukananda village in Kandhamal, reported Asia News agency.
"There was no one at home, because when the violence erupted against the Christians, we took our few belongings and moved to our house in Bhubaneswar," Sister M. Suma told the agency. "We brought with us the tabernacle, the altar, and especially the Dalit and tribal girls whom we were sheltering."
Late on Wednesday (Sept. 24), mobs burned about 30 houses and two prayer houses in Simanjodi village and 50 houses in Batingia village, reported The Indian Express newspaper.
In Rakingia village, an Orissa Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) team that had gone to clear roadblocks was attacked, forcing the accompanying police to open fire, added the newspaper.
"Two tribal people have reportedly been killed," the daily reported. "Sources said tribals with bows and arrows launched an attack on the ODRAF."
According to the All India Christian Council (AICC), at least 57 people have been killed, more than 18,000 injured and over 4,300 houses, 150 churches and 13 educational institutions destroyed since the Aug. 24 outbreak of violence in Orissa. Two Christian women were also gang-raped.
The violence, which later spread to at least 14 districts of Orissa, has left more than 50,000 people homeless.
The attacks began following the killing of a leader of the Hindu extremist Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP), Laxmanananda Saraswati, and four of his disciples on Aug. 23 in Kandhamal district. Maoists have claimed responsibility for the assassination, but the VHP has persisted in blaming local Christians.
According to media reports, Christians in Orissa retaliated in at least one incident. A man was killed in Raikia Block after "Dalit Christians of Gundhari village hurled bombs at the tribal-dominated village of Sirsapanga in the afternoon [of Sept. 24)," The Indian Express reported. "Sources said the deceased, Raghav Digal, a Dalit Hindu, was a government employee."
'Withdraw Federal Forces'
The leader of an influential tribal group believed to be instigating violence in Kandhamal demanded withdrawal of federal security personnel from the district as a "precondition" to stopping the attacks.
Yesterday Lambodar Kanhar, secretary of the Kandhamal Zilla Kui Samaj (Kui people group) Coordination Committee, was quoted by The Indian Express as saying that he was ready to give assurance that tribal people would not resort to violence if the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were taken out of the rural pockets of the district.
Kanhar accused the CRPF of having let loose "a reign of terror" on "innocent" tribal villagers.
The Global Council of Indian Christians' Dr. Sajan K. George said Kanhar's demand was an attempt to "complete 'ethnic-cleansing' of Christians." A representative of the Christian Legal Association said Hindu extremist assailants were upset that federal forces were trying to prevent them from attacking Christians and their property.
At the same time, European Union (EU) representatives yesterday spoke to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during the India-EU summit in France about the government's failure to prevent a "massacre" of Christians in Orissa and Karnataka states.
According to the AICC, in the southern state of Karnataka at least 19 churches and 20 Christians have been attacked. At least four churches and four Christian schools had been vandalized in the north-central state of Madhya Pradesh, and four churches attacked in the southern state of Kerala. Two churches had also been damaged in the national capital, Delhi.
Singh yesterday made assurances that attacks on Christians would be stopped.
Christians from various denominations, along with people from other faiths, are holding a weeklong sit-in day and night at Jantar Mantar observatory in New Delhi that began on Friday (Sept. 26) to protest the lack of security. The demonstration demanding protection for minority targets in Orissa and other states will conclude with a motorbike rally on Thursday (Oct 2).
Christian leaders such as Dr. John Dayal, the Rev. Dr. Richard Howell, A.C. Michael and Jenis Francis are participating in the protest.
This report from Compass Direct News
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INDIA: OFFICIALS DOUBT CHRISTIANS KILLED HINDU LEADER
Orissa government leaks assessment pointing toward Maoists; protests nationwide
NEW DELHI, August 29 (Compass Direct News) – Sources in the government of Orissa said in an India media report today that they believe that Christians were not behind the killing of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) leader Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his disciples on Saturday (August 23).
The death toll in "retributive" attacks against Christians today stood at 36, according to the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC).
A private news channel, NDTV 24X7, reported unnamed government sources as saying that their assessment was that Christians had no role in the killing, and that the probe was leading to Maoist (extreme Marxist) culprits.
Inspector General of Police (Intelligence) Manmohan Praharaj had on Wednesday told The Indian Express newspaper that evidence available to police was "consistent with the Maoist stamp in the kind of operation they undertake."
"The assailants had left a note written on the letterhead of Vamsadhara Zonal Committee, signed by one Azad, and it is consistent with the Maoist methods," he added.
After the attack on Saraswati's ashram (religious center) in Kandhamal district, the VHP and the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), partner of the ruling coalition with the Biju Janata Dal party, claimed that Christians had killed Saraswati because he was fighting "forced" conversions. Saraswati was allegedly behind a spate of anti-Christian attacks in Kandhamal last Christmas season. The violence lasted for more than a week beginning December 24, and killed at least four Christians and burned 730 houses and 95 churches.
With Hindu extremist leaders having urged followers to "Kill Christians and destroy their institutions," mobs allegedly led by the VHP today carried on attacks on Christians in Orissa's Kandhamal district for the sixth consecutive day, though there were reportedly fewer incidents than in the previous five days.
To express solidarity with the victims of the violence, Christians from various denominations and across the country registered their protests. Around 45,000 Christian schools and colleges throughout the country remained closed today to demand protection of Christians in Orissa.
"Survival is more important than education," the Rev. Dr. Babu Joseph, spokesman of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), told Indo-Asian News Service (IANS), refering to the CBCI's call for a nationwide closure of Christian schools.
A Hindu extremist group in Gwalior city in the northern state of Madhya Pradesh, however, pelted stones at some schools and churches.
"While all Christian schools and colleges in Madhya Pradesh remained closed on Friday in protest, a group of people pelted stones at Carmel Convent School, St. Theresa School and Church and St. Paul's Church in Gwalior," V.K. Suryavanshi, superintendent of police, told IANS. Madhya Pradesh is ruled by the BJP.
'Ethnic Cleansing'
Raising cries against "ethnic cleansing" of Christians in Orissa, thousands of Christians today staged a rally in the national capital to protest violence that has claimed at least 30 lives, destroyed hundreds of houses and churches and forced thousands of Christians to flee to jungles.
Among other protests across the country, at the Orissa House in New Delhi Christians from almost 30 churches and numerous organizations gathered to protest the violence. Addressing the throng was Archbishop Raphael Cheenath from Orissa, Archbishop Vincent Concessao of Delhi, Dr. John Dayal of the All India Christian Council (AICC) and the Rev. Dr. Richard Howell of the Evangelical Fellowship of India.
Member of Parliament P.C. Thomas, retired high court judge Kulse Patil, attorneys from the Christian Legal Association, human rights activists Shabnam Hashmi and Teesta Setalvad, and Dalit leader Udit Raj were also part of the protest.
Christians submitted a memorandum to Orissa Gov. Murlidhar Chandrakant Bhandare after the rally.
"In deep anguish and pain, we, the Christian community of the Delhi and National Capital Region, submit this memorandum to you, and not to the Chief Minister of Orissa, because we believe that by not stopping the ethnic cleansing of Christians in Orissa in the last six days, he has abdicated his Constitutional duties to the Sangh Parivar [family of Hindu extremist groups] and thereby has forfeited his right to be in government," it said.
The memorandum also demanded declaration of President's Rule in Orissa under Article 356 of the Indian Constitution, saying the constitutional machinery of the state had failed.
"Nuns have been raped, pastors, priests, religious workers injured in their hundreds," it reads. "Over forty churches have been destroyed, many for the second time, apart from once again hundreds upon hundreds of houses burnt in towns, villages and forest settlements. Christians have been chased and hunted like animals."
The GCIC will stage a day-long sit-in protest in front of the Orissa state assembly in state capital Bhubaneswar tomorrow.
Organizations in the United States and United Kingdom also have condemned the violence, demanding action against the attackers. Christian Solidarity Worldwide, the Dalit Freedom Network, the Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations in North American, the Indian National Overseas Congress, and the Indian Muslim Council of the USA are among them.
'National Shame'
A Christian delegation from across various denominations yesterday met with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who called the Orissa violence a "national shame." Singh assured the church leaders of compensation of 300,000 rupees (US$7,500) to the families of those killed, reported The Hindu newspaper.
Singh also reportedly promised funds from the Prime Ministers' Relief Fund for providing relief and rehabilitation to all those affected by the violence.
The federal government also seeks a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the violence against Christians.
"We would have liked ideally that this matter be handed over to the CBI, because those responsible should get justice immediately as judicial probe takes longer time," Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal (from the Congress Party) told the Press Trust of India news agency. Sibal, however, clarified that it was for the state government to recommend a probe by the federal investigating agency, as the federal government could not do this on its own.
The opposition Congress Party in the Orissa state assembly House moved a no-confidence motion against the ruling coalition late today. It posed little threat to the government, which had the required majority to defeat it in a voice vote.
Tensions, Mob Attacks Continue as Violence Ebbs
NEW DELHI, August 29 (Compass Direct News) – As a week of violence drew to a close following the killing of senior Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Laxmananada Saraswati, some angry Hindu mobs were still attacking Christians in spite of orders by the Orissa state administration to shoot agitators on sight.
The "shoot-at-sight" orders are in place in eight of the most sensitive areas as the number of deaths climbed to at least 36, according to the Global Council of Indian Christians. By nightfall in Orissa state, authorities had discovered the body of Abhimanyu Naik of Kandhamal district near Raikia village; they said he was the apparent victim of a mob attack.
The government maintains a figure of 19 dead, while Christian and human rights agencies calculate higher tolls. The Asian Centre for Human Rights asserts that more than 50 persons, mainly Christians, have been killed. Dr. John Dayal, secretary general of the All India Christian Council, reported in a letter to United Progressive Alliance Chairperson Sonia Gandhi that 30 persons have been killed.
Orissa police have reportedly put about 165 people behind bars for the violence, but Vijay Simha, senior editor of independent weekly news magazine Tehelka, told Compass from Kandhamal district that there is no evidence against them.
"These arrests are based purely on suspicion," he said. "There is terror all over. Those who are hiding in the forest and those in the homes – no one feels safe. The areas are totally deserted."
Orissa officials report that in Kandhamal district alone 20 churches have been burned, 19 people killed, 10 people seriously injured, 28 vehicles burned and more than 500 houses burned down or destroyed. But lawyer Bibhu Dutta Das told Compass that the number of houses burned or destroyed in Kandhamal could be "a lot more than what was quoted in the government report – the number can be over 1,000."
Sources said churches were attacked today in Tharnamal, Phatara, and Panbarani. Churches were burned throughout the district of Bolangir and the areas of Ganjam and Kalumunda in the past few days. In Bolangir, four churches were burned yesterday in Dhandhamal, Monihira, Phatkorra, and Bilaikani.
The assault on churches continued in Bolangir district. Sources said that in Tharnamal, Bolangir a mob of around 60 people attacked a church building where Christians were present inside. The attackers included at least four minors. The Christians were able to flee as the assailants destroyed the structure.
Additionally, one church was burned in Kalumunda, and one in Ganjam.
Appeals for Help
Deputy Inspector General of Police R.P. Koche told Compass that tensions remain while security is gradually increasing.
"Curfew is relaxed in Phulbani town, and the situation is quite under control," he said. "Though tension prevails in Kandhamal, the situation is improving gradually in some areas. Security forces have been able to enter inaccessible areas by removing obstacles placed by miscreants."
Koche said that a number of Special Forces were deployed in Kandhamal district, including the Central Reserve Police Force and the Rapid Action Force, while Orissa state armed police had deployed 24 platoons in the area.
Local sources in Baliguda said the curfew there was relaxed today, and markets were re-opened.
Christian and human rights agencies have appealed for the government to do more to bring the violence under control. After the New Delhi-based Human Rights Law Network filed a petition in Cuttack High Court, the Orissa High Court yesterday directed the state government to immediately deploy more forces to protect the rights and properties of the people.
Another petition was filed by the Utkal Christian Council. The High Court of Orissa heard the case today and issued show-cause notices to the state of Orissa and the Union of India to file replies.
"It has been directed that the state shall requisition required number of security forces, and the central government shall provide the same," Attorney B.D. Das told Compass. "Further, it was directed that the state shall furnish the details of how much security forces it has applied for with the Central Government and how many has the Central government so far provided for the maintenance of law and order situation in the state."
In addition, the National Human Rights Commission today asked the Orissa government to file a detailed report on violence in the state within two weeks.
Relief Camps
Suresh Mohapatra, a government administrator, told media that the state government had opened seven relief camps along the affected areas that could accommodate nearly 5,000 people.
"People are still coming to camps," he said, adding that he expected the flow to end soon as "the riots have stopped."
Local sources told Compass that more than 1,000 people are at a relief camp at G. Udaygiri, with the government providing makeshift shelter and basic foods.
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INDIA: DEATHS MOUNT AS VIOLENCE SPREADS IN ORISSA
Rampaging Hindu extremists kill four more Christians today.
NEW DELHI, August 26 (Compass Direct News) – At least 18 people are confirmed dead in 92 incidents of violence against Christians since suspected Maoists murdered Hindu leader Swamiji Laxmanananda Saraswati and four others on Saturday (Aug. 23) in Orissa state.
With Hindu extremists inciting hatred by heated accusations that Christians killed Saraswati, the national newspaper Hindu reported today that nine people had been killed in Orissa violence, and a Compass source near the state capital of Bhubaneswar confirmed an additional nine people slain.
The death count by the Hindu included four people killed in the Barakhama area. News agencies had earlier confirmed three dead in Raikia and two others, including a woman, killed in Bargarh, where a missionary-run orphanage was set on fire yesterday. The figure of 92 incidents thus far comes from the Global Council of Indian Christians.
Additionally, the Compass source said that Hindu extremists today killed pastor Samuel Naik of the Bakingia Seventh-Day Adventist Church at Kandhamal, and Jacob Digal and Gopan Naik of Damba village were slain this morning. Also killed today was Golok Naik of Pidinanju village (under Mondakia police station), and yesterday pastor Mukunda Bardhan from Mukundapur, Gajapati was burned to death.
Three other people whose names have not yet been verified, said the source, were killed in Katingia village of G. Udaygiri, along with a pastor belonging to Operation Mobilization from the same area. In Badimunda, about 12 kilometers (seven miles) from G. Udaygiri, nearly 25 Christian homes were burned down.
There were many reports of Christians being pulled from their homes and killed or beaten, with many homes of Christians torched in Baliguda. According to reports by the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI), the East India office of Compassion International in Bhubaneswar was ransacked.
Saraswati and four others were killed by suspected Maoists in the swami's ashram, or religious center, in the Jalespata area of Kandhamal district's Tumudiband Block in Orissa state. A warning letter found at the Saraswati religious center and use of expensive arms suggested Maoists were behind the attack.
In a state with a strong Maoist presence, police reportedly said they have evidence to link the communist rebels to the murders of Saraswati and his four associates. One police theory is that Maoists would attack Hindu leaders in a misguided effort to gain support among area tribal people, many of whom have converted to Christianity.
On Sunday (Aug. 24) the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a partner in the state's ruling coalition, and the Hindu extremist Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) called for 12-hour a shut-down in which inflammatory speeches were made accusing Christians of killing Saraswati.
Authorities in Denial
Orissa Police Chief Gopal Chandra Nanda downplayed the violence, telling Reuters that incidents were only "sporadic" and that "some prayer houses have been attacked and vehicles have been burnt."
Likewise, local authorities and media have painted the shutdown as "peaceful," denying that organized attacks took place. The state is ruled by a coalition of the BJP and the Biju Janata Dal party.
At the same time, Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) extremists have continued to incite hatred against Christians and criticized the local government. VHP Secretary General Pravin Tagodia accused the state government of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik of acting like a "eunuch" and demanded his apology for the killing of Saraswati and his companions.
"Christians murdered Swamiji, but the government is lying and giving it a Maoist color," Tagodia said. "Naveen as an individual and police, in particular, are responsible for this attack orchestrated by the church on Hindu dharma.''
At the same time, a senior leader from Christian relief and development organization World Vision told Compass that a news report about the arrest of their staff members in connection with Saraswati's killing was false. The police had merely kept two of their employees for protection, he said.
"No complaint had been lodged against them," he said. "The employees have safely reached their homes."
Widespread Violence
Sources from Kandhamal district said hundreds of Christians along with their families have fled to the nearby forests to save their lives in the rainy climate and are without shelter, food and clothing.
"Three adults and one child were reportedly killed in fresh violence in Barakhama, Kandhamal," EFI News reported.
At least 14 Christians have been killed in Kandhamal, according to the news agency: Hacked to death by a rampaging mob of Hindu extremists were two Christians in Mutungia village, one in Petaponga village, one in Borimunda village, three in Katinga village, three in Tianga village, three in Adikuppa village and one in Bakingia village.
According to reports received from Kalahandi district, many incidents of violence and house burning have taken place even though it is more than 300 kilometers (186 miles) from the place where Saraswati was killed.
Christian sources said pastor Sikandar Singh of the Pentecostal Mission was beaten and his house was burned in Bhawanipatna. In Kharihar, three Christian shops were looted and burned. Pastor Alok Das was beaten at Kharihar, as was pastor I.M. Senapati. In Aampani, pastor David Diamond Pahar was beaten by more than 200 people. They chased him away from Aampani, and he is hiding in nearby villages.
Pastor Pravin Ship and two other area pastor identified only as Pradhan and Barik were beaten and chased away with their families. In Naktikani, an angry mob surrounded the village to attack Christians. The government sent forces to try to control the mob but without success.
Christian Pleas
A delegation of Christian leaders in New Delhi met with Home Minister Shivraj Patil to brief him of the situation and to register their concern. Patil assured the Christian delegation, including the Rev. Dr. Richard Howell, general secretary of EFI, and Father Babu Joseph, spokesperson of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India of the central government's support in curbing violence against Christians in the state.
Another delegation led by Orissa state Christian leaders met Gov. Rameshwar Thakur with the same objectives. The Rt. Rev. Samson Das and attorney Bibhu Dutta Das were also among those who met with the Orissa governor today.
In Kolkata, the All-India Minority Forum today condemned the attack on churches in Orissa and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Patnaik for his "failure" to protect religious minorities in his state.
"We condemn in unequivocal terms the incident of burning alive people who belong to the Christian community by Vishwa Hindu Parishad activists, and armed attacks on churches in Orissa," Forum President Idris Ali said.
'Kill Christians'
The violence has spread even though church leaders across the country condemned the Hindu priest's killing and appealed for peace.
The VHP and its allies had called for a 12-hour shutdown to protest the killing of the swami, and Christian leaders expected Hindu mobs would use it to mobilize strikes at the Christian community.
"But what has taken place has even surpassed what we expected," said one pastor who wished to remain anonymous.
Hindu extremists paraded the body of Saraswati throughout nearby villages, whipping up anger and mobilizing crowds against Christians, in uncontested defiance of a Kandhamal district administration prohibition against the gathering of four or more people. Among the slogans shouted was, "Kill Christians and destroy their institutions."
In spite of an Orissa state-imposed curfew, crowds violated restrictions and proceeded to attack Christian communities throughout the state. Compass has received reports that the violence has spread to the districts of Gajapati, Phulbani, Nuaparha, Kalahandi, Rayagada and Koraput.
The Orissa Legislative Assembly was disturbed for the second consecutive day at the various calls for the resignation of Chief Minister Patnaik.
Christians make up 2.4 percent of Orissa's population, or 897,861 of the total 36.7 million people.
Posted in Christianity, India	| Tagged Aampani, accusations, Adikuppa, All-India Minority Forum, Alok Das, apology, ashram, attorney, Babu Joseph, Badimunda, Bakingia, Bakingia Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Baliguda, Barakhama, Bargarh, Barik, beaten, Bharatiya Janata Party, Bhawanipatna, Bhubaneswar, Bibhu Dutta Das, Biju Janata Dal, BJP, Borimunda, burnt, Catholic Bishops' Conference of India, Chief Minister, Christian, Christianity, Christians, Coalition, communist, converted, Damba, David Diamond Pahar, deaths, East India Office of Compassion International, EFI, Evangelical Fellowship of India, extremists, Father, fire, G. Udaygiri, Gajapati, Gajapti, General Secretary, Global Council of Indian Christians, Golok Naik, Gopal Chandra Nanda, Gopan Naik, government, hatred, Hindu, Hinduism, Hindutva, Home Minister, I. M. Senapati, Idris Ali, incite, India, Jacob Digal, Jalespata, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Katinga, Katingia, Kharihar, killed, killing, Kolkata, Koraput, leader, Legislative Assembly, letter, Maoists, missionary, Mondakia, Mukunda Bardhan, Mukundapur, murdered, murders, Mutungia, Naktikani, nationalist, Naveen Patnaik, New Delhi, newspaper, Nuaparha, Operation Mobilization, Orissa, orphanage, Pastor, Pentecostal Mission, Petaponga, Phulbani, Pidinanju, police, Police Chief, Pradhan, Pravin Ship, Pravin Tagodia, prayer, President, protection, Raikia, Rameshwar Thakur, Rayagada, rebels, resignation, Reuters, Richard Howell, Samson Das, Samuel Naik, Secretary General, Shivraj Patil, Sikandar Singh, station, Swamiji Laxmanananda Sarawati, Tianga, Tumudiband Block, VHP, violence, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, warning, World Hindu Council, World Vision | 4 Comments
Marked as to-read: The Six Sacred Stones by Matthew Reilly goodreads.com/review/show?id… 1 hour ago


We have a wonderful Teen Advisory Board (TAB).
Let us know the best day(s) for you to meet. Meeting dates will be based upon when the most number of interested members can meet.
We need Teens who are Lively, Fun, and who love to read!
Let us know when you are available to meet. Meeting days will be selected on when the most people are available to meet.


My main area of research is the economics of networks and how this field of economics can be connected with research using social network analysis. The idea is that people don't make their consumption decisions independently of the people they know, but that they take decisions of their social network into account when choosing to buy or adopt a certain product. In my case, this decision is the choice of a cellular network operator, but the research has wider implications for other communications or network technologies.
The research is conducted using a variety of different data sources and statistical techniques – both more classical statistical techniques and techniques that have been specifically developed for network data. My most recent research uses electronic data from mobile phone companies to directly take social networks of consumers into account. This is particularly interesting, because this unique data allows to answer questions that have scarcely been tackled by research before and poses additional challenges when working with very large datasets. Due to the time-series character of the data, it is for example possible to trace the adoption of new products across social networks. Besides for economics, the research is highly relevant for marketing in markets with direct interaction between consumers (mobile telecommunications, instant messaging, social networking software etc). And this is in fact what I did at Idiro Technolgies.
Other research interests are the economics of innovation (where I worked on two projects for the British Department of Trade and Industry), industrial economics and social network analysis more generally.


In solidarity and dialogue with her fellow L.A. Rebellion filmmakers, Zeinabu irene Davis convenes the group of artists brought together by the UCLA film program—including notable directors Julie Dash (Daughters of the Dust) and Charles Burnett (Killer of Sheep)—to recall their experiences and historicize their legacy on film and far beyond. Screening followed by conversation with Davis, UChicago film scholar Allyson Nadia Field, and Cinema 53 curator Jacqueline Stewart.
Zeinabu irene Davis is an independent filmmaker and Professor of Communication at University of California, San Diego. She works in narrative, documentary and experimental genres. Her award-winning films include Mother of the River (1995), A Powerful Thang (1991), Cycles (1989), and the dramatic feature Compensation (1999). Davis' documentaries Trumpetistically Clora Bryant (2005), Co- Motion: Stories of Breastfeeding Women (2010) and Momentum: A Conversation with Black Women on Achieving Grad Degrees (2010) are distributed by Third World Newsreel and Women Make Movies. Her articles on African American cinema have been published in Afterimage, Black Film Review, Cineaste, Wide Angle and Hot Wire, and she has received fellowships from the Rockefeller Foundation, the Illinois and Ohio Arts Councils, the American Film Institute and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Allyson Nadia Field is Associate Professor of Cinema and Media Studies at University of Chicago. With Jacqueline Stewart and Jan-Christopher Horak, Field is co-editor of L.A. Rebellion: Creating a New Black Cinema, and serves as co-curator of the L.A. Rebellion Preservation Project of the UCLA Film & Television Archive.
Presented with support from the Department of Cinema and Media Studies at University of Chicago.


text:
D.C. Council Passes Law Limiting Shelter Access for Homeless
by Lauren M. Poteat December 13, 2017 October 31, 2020
D.C.'s Homeless Services Reform Amendment Act passed on Dec. 5. (Courtesy of humanevents.com)
Homeless populations in D.C. may be getting hit with even more bad news just days before the holidays.
On a 10-2 vote, the D.C. Council passed legislation Dec. 5 that would require homeless people to provide documentation proving previous D.C. residency before entering the city's shelters.
The Homeless Services Reform Amendment Act has been described by city officials as a series of necessary and largely technical reforms to ensure that homeless individuals and families have access to shelter in dire emergencies, but are otherwise steered to more permanent housing options that offer them more stability and are less expensive for the city.
However, the most the controversial portion of the bill has been the legal requirement that D.C. provide homeless individuals and families space in a shelter on nights when the temperature falls below freezing, making the capitol only one of three jurisdictions in the country to have this.
"We want to make sure we are serving District residents first as a priority, and we need the law to allow us to do that so that we're not trying to meet a larger national and regional affordable housing need but we are first focusing on residents who have no other place to go," said Laura Zeilinger, director of D.C.'s Department of Human Services.
Council member Trayon White (D-Ward 8) was one of the two members against the bill, which was originally proposed by Mayor Muriel Bowser.
"More than half of the population of families in our families shelter come from Wards 7 and 8," White said. "I voted against this bill because it's a bad bill. It took 11 amendments suggested by at least six members. I could not see how his bill would fundamentally make homeless services better. The District was quick to put hundreds of thousands of dollars to declare D.C. as a sanctuary city, but services for our own legal residents are neglected every day."
David Grosso (I-At Large), who also voted against the bill, agreed it was a bad choice.
"We are a city that has lots of money in savings," he said. "At some point we all have to take a deep breath and draw a line, and we need to invest [money] in people. I think we have an obligation as elected officials to stand up for the people who most need us to stand up for them, and that means we need to be investing in homeless services."
With an estimated 7,000 homeless people living in D.C., including 1,100 families, the fate of many disenfranchised residents remain in the air.
Council member Brandon T. Todd (D-Ward 4) was absent during the Dec. 5 vote.
EDITORIAL: Have We in D.C. Forgotten the Homeless?
In "Editorial"
Bowser Keeps Promise, Closes Doors of D.C. General
DC Council Bill Puts Homeless on Path to Housing
Tagged: D.C. Council, D.C. Department of Human Services, David Grosso, Homelessness in D.C., Laura Zeilinger, Lauren Poteat, Muriel Bowser, Trayon White
Lauren M. Poteat
Lauren Poteat is a versatile writer with a strong background in communications and media experience with an additional background in education and development. More by Lauren M. Poteat

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Tag: fatwa
Justice for Nurjahan
Photographs Shahidul Alam
Text Rahnuma Ahmed
It was reported in the papers as suicide. On 10 January 1993 Nurjahan, a woman in her twenties from a struggling peasant household from the Maulvi Bazar district of north-east Bangladesh, was found dead from poisoning at her parents' house in the village of Chattokchara.
Nurjahan Begum, 7th among 9 daughters, had been married five years before the incident. However, her husband abandoned her and she returned home to live with her parents. Later, her parents arranged another marriage for her, but since polyandry is forbidden by Muslim law, it was necessary to discover whether her first marriage had been properly dissolved. Nujahan's father consulted the village imam (religious leader), who declared that she was free to marry. However, he revoked this later and claimed that the marriage was illegal because the first still stood. A shalish (village council for settling disputes and trying offending villagers) met to judge whether Nurjahan and any of her family members had broken the law. The shalish found Nujahan guilty of fornication, on the grounds that she was still married to her first husband; after debating the punishment, it decided that 101 pebbles should be thrown at Nurjahan and her second husband.
Pebbles were preferred to stones since the intention, reportedly, was to shame the couple rather than hurt or kill them. Nurjahan's parents were also to be punished; the shalish decreed that they should be beaten with a broom. Nurjahan was made to stand in a hole that was then filled, half burying her, to receive her punishment. As she did so a member of the shalish approached her and castigated her for the shame she had brought on her family. She was not fit to live and should kill herself. Nurjahan was found dead the next day.
Nurjahan's father
Nurjahan's father: "This is where I found my daughter's body."
The affair was reported in a local newspaper. A campaign was launched by women's groups to demand a criminal investigation into the circumstances of the death. Public outrage and the success of the campaign turned it into a landmark case;
Accused being taken to Moulvibazar court
The accused in Moulvibazar court
proceedings were brought against the imam and the members of the shalish only a year after Nurjahan's death. He and eight others were subsequently found guilty of abetting the suicide and received the maximum possible penalty of seven years' hard labour. The village shordar (leader) died of illness while in custody.
The accused in court jail.
Imam leading prayers in court jail.
Nurjahan's father believes that his family was made to suffer because of a long-standing enmity between him and the shordar. A female relative of the shordar spoke ill of Nurjahan. "She was a bad woman," she said. "She would be seen working outside her home." A rickshaw-puller from Chattokchara came to her defence. "Yes, she worked outside her home. But what other choice did they have?" he argued. "The family is poor." But he did harbour some doubts. "Why was the wedding held secretly? Why were we not invited?"
Nurjahan's death has raised many issues for the Bangladeshi women's movement. Her tragedy has highlighted the manifold forms of women's subordination within rnarriage, the family and within the community. First, Nurjahan was abandoned by her husband. Then it was the imam who held the knowledge about whether she was free to marry, and he misled her. Finally, it was the members of the shalish, all men, who judged and punished her.
Shalishes have been known to fine and discipline members of the community; at the same time, there are also instances of women disobeying or ignoring and, in some cases, challenging shalish pronouncements. Nujahan's death has given rise to questions about the sphere of jurisdiction of the shalish, which is a community body with no legal status.
Wife of one of the accused, waiting outside courtroom.
There are few reminders of Nurjahan herself. Of her belongings, a torn corner of a shari, and a shawl she was wearing when she died, have been put aside. Her few remaining clothes were being worn by women in her family. Her only other belongings, a pot and two pans. were being used by her mother.
The family has no photographs. Her grave, like that of the shordar is a small clearing on a hillock near the village, scarcely recognisable as such. The district commissioner promised that the site will be named "Nurjahan tila".
Nurjahan's sister at her grave.
The government, in turn, announced that a road would soon be built to Chattokchara. However, in all likelihood, this is probably more significant for visiting journalists and officials, than for her family.
Author Shahidul AlamPosted on March 10, 2007 Categories Bangladesh, culture, exploitation, Governance, Islam, media, Media issues, People, Photography, Photojournalism, politics, Rahnuma Ahmed, Shahidul AlamTags fatwa, Human rights, Photography, Rahnuma Ahmed, Shahidul Alam, Shalish, Violence Against Women8 Comments on Justice for Nurjahan
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Feminist writer Taslima
Nasreen in hiding after receiving
a death threat from Islamic fundamentalists Third World activists
are using global
connections to pressure
the powers-that-be
and even save lives.
Bangladeshi photographer
Shahidul Alam
has little doubt
about the subversive
potential of the Internet
in his country.
Come out, we won't shoot. The sound of a police megaphone jolted us to attention. After they left our little flat in Dhaka I went up to the roof to try and find the person they thought we were hiding. I found no-one, but the raid made us realize that the nine-year-old dictatorship of General Ershad was feeling the pressure.
Running Drik, a photo library set up to promote a more positive view of developing countries, we were already in the business of disseminating information. Up to this point we had managed quietly to distribute our photographs abroad through helpful friends. Now the need was more urgent: we had to prevent further bloodshed. We couldn't phone or fax since none of us had an overseas line. Two days later in December 1990, when General Ershad did finally step down, we began collecting the money for the line.
The need came quickly. The new government elected a few months later turned out to be less than democratic after all. So in 1994 we decided finally to take the leap into high-tech communications. We linked up with TOOL, an overseas NGO, and set up our own electronic mail network, called DrikTAP. There was no way we could afford faxes, let alone telephone calls and mail was much too slow. Now with an ordinary telephone line we could send messages overseas cheaply.
We soon discovered that others were keen to jump into e-mail too, so we began to offer it as a service to local NGOs and activists. UNICEF and the Grameen Bank were amongst the first to join. Grameen was in the business of giving loans to the poor and had a wide rural base. UNICEF had field offices all over the country. They used our network to link up all their offices country-wide. Then Drik began to send photographs via e-mail. Something that could only be done earlier by big Western agencies like AP, AFP and Reuters.
Now our little network was beginning to connect to other like-minded groups and Drik was becoming known as an organization out to change the way the poorer countries were perceived. Our 'bulletin boards' were useful for everyday things like renting a flat or locating an expert but crucial when we needed to stay in touch in times of danger.
Two months later the Bangladeshi feminist writer Taslima Nasreen received a death threat from Islamic fundamentalists and was charged with blasphemy by the Government. We needed to move quickly – to create national and international pressure so Taslima could come out of hiding and defend herself in court. We managed to alert PEN (the international writers support group) and Amnesty International and the campaign took off. Our fragile network was working. Later one of our members showed us how to use traditional 'search engines' to locate human-rights groups and Bangladeshi 'newsgroups' overseas (Bangladesh.Soc.Culture is a good one). We knew things were going to get rougher politically and we needed a way of getting information out fast and cheap. If some of us got arrested, others could mobilize enough pressure to stop us simply 'disappearing'.
Our network became more popular by the month. Major NGOs, universities, research groups, UN agencies, even government organizations and embassies all joined. Conferences on a wide range of subjects sprang up: music, child rights, job applications, even buy-and-sell. We had begun talking to each other and to learn to be comfortable with the medium. We started to use Bangla (albeit in roman script) so we could at least speak our own language. Overseas friends were posting our human-rights messages in the popular Bangladesh newsgroups. When police raided the university to arrest student leaders the news was round the world in hours. Letters to the Prime Minister poured in from all over giving us some breathing space and sparing some lives.
Realizing how fragile our link was (a single telephone line connected up all our users, local and overseas) we campaigned for treating e-mail providers as special clients requiring quality lines. Though we were the leading e-mail provider in Bangladesh, DrikTAP was not fully legal – we had no 'official' government permission. On the other hand we were surprised that despite the amount of critical information we were pumping out over the network we had not faced any direct censorship. There had been doubts when one Drik worker was attacked and wounded and again when our server telephone line had been cut for a week. But on the whole we were getting away with it. I suppose shutting down the largest and most popular e-mail network in the country was something even the Government was reluctant to do, particularly with an election looming.
Gradually we began to find other uses for the technology. We set up training programs and eventually an e-mail club where we would meet and discuss problems. We would share the responsibilities of the network and decide collectively on future plans. It was a strange mix. The computer whiz kids and the computer illiterate, both came. Those comfortable with the technology took turns training newcomers. Political activists took on the role of lobbying for extra telephone lines and Internet access.
When Drik could no longer cope with the demand for technical support many of our more experienced members volunteered to help out answering queries. Some set up a system so users outside the capital could access the network using local calls. We began to work more as a family and the network took on a more human shape. We put up a notice for help from a local school that was struggling and a doctor offered his services. Others provided teaching aids, some gave money.
However, e-mail is still very expensive for most Bangladeshis – even local ?lites. A computer costs as much as half a year's average salary and a modem costs more than a cow, never mind the price of a telephone line. So we began performing like an electronic post office. People come in with a floppy disk; we send their e-mail and they come back later to collect their reply. And not everyone who uses the service is an activist. Our oldest user, Golam Kasem, had just turned 103 and had never seen a computer before. I would cycle over to his house in Indira Road with a printout of a message from his grandson in Canada and next day pedal up to collect his reply. I remember the frail old man, straightening up the computer printout and adjusting his thick glasses as he held the paper by his tungsten lamp.
There are some areas though where we totally failed. Our 'bulletin boards' were entirely dominated by men and many of the jokes were sexist. Some even racist. When a woman user objected to a sexist statement the men retaliated viciously. A few loud voices dominated the bulletin boards. The technology was new to many people. Often private mail would get posted accidentally on a bulletin board, sometimes with embarrassing consequences – making the system scary for novices.
On the whole however, DrikTAP has become a powerful way of talking to the outside world. And, more importantly, to each other. When our 'node' in Bangladesh grew bigger than the one in the head office of our Northern partner in Amsterdam we argued, for political reasons, that the head office should be in the developing world. Last July we proposed re-locating the head office of our global network in Bangladesh. In a small way we are witnessing a shift in the balance of power.
Author Shahidul AlamPosted on December 1, 1996 Categories Bangladesh, Global Issues, Governance, Human rights, Shahidul Alam, South AsiaTags fatwa, freedom, Freedom of Expression, Islam, Law, religion, Shahidul Alam, taslima nasreen, WriterLeave a comment on Online Lifeline
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Editor: shahidul@drik.net
Shahidul Alam, one of the journalists collectively considered the Time Person of the Year 2018. Photo Moises Sam/Magnum for Time
Majority World – a photo agency with a difference!
MW is an innovative agency that specialises in high quality imagery that provides unique insights into local cultures, development issues, environments and contemporary lifestyles in these diverse continents. It is a social enterprise that works with client organisations to commission assignments with experienced photographers who understand the language, the culture, and the locality because it is their own.
To know more click on this link (http://www.majorityworld.com)
Obituary of a Democracy
Statement of South Asian Independent Citizens on India's Citizenship Amendment Act
The Tide Will Turn
Shortcut to heaven
Η αλληλογραφία μεταξύ Αρουντάτι Ρόι και Σαχιντούλ Αλάμ μοιράζει δύναμη ψυχής και ελπίδα · Global Voices στα Ελληνικά on Reply to Arundhati: Yes, We Will Rise
Letter correspondence from Arundhati Roy and Shahidul Alam share resilience and hope | iamanonymous.com on Reply to Arundhati: Yes, We Will Rise
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Letter correspondence from Arundhati Roy and Shahidul Alam share resilience and hope · Global Voices on Reply to Arundhati: Yes, We Will Rise
Inside Shahidul Alam's Journey from Photographer to Prisoner | Time on Crossfire
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(TNS)—Swings in mortgage rates can sometimes make or break your home-buying prospects. When rates rise, it can squeeze your house budget to its limit and force you to reevaluate your plans. And when rates fall, you're in a better position to qualify for loan amount that gets you the dream house.
An unexpected drop in mortgage rates in late 2018 has galvanized some homebuyers into action ahead of the busy spring sales season, spurring an early rush of mortgage applications. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was expected to hover above 5 percent in 2019, but instead fell to nine-month lows around 4.59 percent, according to a Bankrate.com survey of the nation's largest mortgage lenders.
What's even better for homebuyers is that revised forecasts call for rates to stay firmly below 5 percent over the next three years. For homebuyers, that's a prime opportunity to snag a more affordable home loan, especially as price growth cools in some markets, says Joel Kan, associate vice president for Industry Surveys and Forecasts with the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The MBA's January mortgage rate forecast revised the 30-year fixed mortgage rate down from 5.1 percent to an average of 4.8 percent in 2019—the same average for all of last year. The average rate is expected to stay below 5 percent through 2021, according to the MBA's forecast.
Many large housing markets are feeling a chill as price growth slows dramatically and homes linger on the market longer, says Adam Smith, president and founder of the Colorado Real Estate Finance Group in Greenwood Village, Colo.
For example, U.S. home-price growth is expected to slow to 4.8 percent from Nov. 2018 to Nov. 2019, compared to the 5.1 percent growth from Nov. 2017 to Nov. 2018, according to CoreLogic's Home Price Index report.
Potential homebuyers who are crossing their fingers and waiting for home prices to fall further may miss the affordability boat if mortgage rates creep up again.
A severe shortage in both new construction and existing housing stock means homebuyers won't see softer home prices in the foreseeable future, Smith adds.
"We're not in a housing bubble, and we have a legit supply-and-demand problem on our hands for years," Smith says.
Using a mortgage calculator, you can run the numbers to see how today's lower rates impact your monthly mortgage payment. Say you're looking to buy a $300,000 home with a 30-year fixed mortgage at 4.5 percent and 10 percent down. Your monthly payment (before taxes and insurance) is roughly $1,368.
If you wait to buy a home and wind up with a 5 percent interest rate, you'll pay $81 more per month ($1,449). While that doesn't seem like much, the interest you'll pay over the life of the loan adds up considerably. At 4.5 percent, you'll pay about $247,220 in interest over the life of the loan compared to $279,767 with an interest rate of 5 percent—a savings of nearly $33,000 at the lower rate.
The decision to buy a home doesn't hinge on finances alone, of course. Your ability to buy may depend on selling your current home, finding something suitable in your price range, or a time-sensitive job move. You may not have the luxury of a wait-and-see approach to see if home prices or interest rates fall further, Kan says.
Most lenders offer a mortgage rate lock, allowing a borrower to lock in today's interest rate for a limited time, up to 60 days in most cases. Some lenders may charge a nominal fee or offer a rate lock for free. Either way, you gain peace of mind that your interest payments won't go up even if interest rates climb before closing day. Some lenders offer a float-down, too. They'll lock your rate and even reduce it if rates fall more before your loan is funded.
Finally, don't forget to shop with several mortgage lenders and a mortgage broker to compare interest rates, fees, loan types and terms. Comparing loan estimates side-by-side will help you narrow your choices to find the right loan for your needs.