NEW DELHI (UCAN) -- Catholic and Protestant leaders have demanded delaying the parliamentary election in a violence-affected area in eastern India, where thousands of Christians continue to be displaced. The situation “is still very tense and abnormal” in the Kandhamal district of Orissa, where no “free and fair” election is possible, Archbishop Raphael Cheenath of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar said in a letter to federal officials.
Tribal-dominated Kandhamal district was the center of anti-Christian violence, which killed about 60 people and displaced at least 50,000 people, mostly Christians.
About 3,200 people, “a fraction of the affected,” live in state-run refugee camps unable to move back to their homes for fear of attacks, said the prelate’s April 3 letter to India’s Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswami.
The Protestant Church of North India sent a similar letter to Gopalaswami April 6 asking him to “put off the polls” in Kandhamal until the situation “is right for Christians to exercise their right to vote.”
Archbishop Cheenath’s letter, released to media, said “the first and foremost requirement” for holding “a free and fair poll” is to have peace. The current situation does not even allow Kandhamal Christians the freedom of movement and speech, he said.
“A considerable number” of the displaced people have fled the district “out of mortal fright” but the government “has not made any survey whatsoever of these people and nobody knows where they are at present,” the archbishop’s letter said.
Those in relief camps also cannot vote as they have no documents to prove their identities. The government effort to provide them identity cards “is neither complete nor satisfactory,” the letter said. The people also have no means to make sure their names are listed in the voters list, the prelate added.
The elections “if at all held” would produce “a fractured verdict to the glee of rioters and miscreants” who always wanted the minority Christians not to utilize their franchise, the prelate said.
The state is scheduled to elect its 21 representatives to parliament in a two-phased polling on April 16 and 23. India will elect its 543-member national parliament in a five-phased polls starting on April 16.
Reverenced Enos Das Pradhan, general secretary of the Church of North India, in his letter to Gopalaswami said “Christians are still in the grip of the fear of attack.” He said “calling for election at this point would be disastrous.”
The Catholic Church has also launched a campaign to collect signatures from people across India requesting postponement of the election. Father Nithya Sagayam, executive secretary of Justice and Peace commission of Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, launched the campaign. He told UCA News the signature request will be presented to the Election Commissioner soon after Easter on April 12.
Father Babu Joseph, spokesperson of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, told UCA News April 8 the Church has not received any response from the Chief Election Commissioner’s office to Archbishop Cheenath’s letter.
Source: www.ucanews.com
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Tribal-dominated Kandhamal district was the center of anti-Christian violence, which killed about 60 people and displaced at least 50,000 people, mostly Christians.
About 3,200 people, “a fraction of the affected,” live in state-run refugee camps unable to move back to their homes for fear of attacks, said the prelate’s April 3 letter to India’s Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswami.
The Protestant Church of North India sent a similar letter to Gopalaswami April 6 asking him to “put off the polls” in Kandhamal until the situation “is right for Christians to exercise their right to vote.”
Archbishop Cheenath’s letter, released to media, said “the first and foremost requirement” for holding “a free and fair poll” is to have peace. The current situation does not even allow Kandhamal Christians the freedom of movement and speech, he said.
“A considerable number” of the displaced people have fled the district “out of mortal fright” but the government “has not made any survey whatsoever of these people and nobody knows where they are at present,” the archbishop’s letter said.
Those in relief camps also cannot vote as they have no documents to prove their identities. The government effort to provide them identity cards “is neither complete nor satisfactory,” the letter said. The people also have no means to make sure their names are listed in the voters list, the prelate added.
The elections “if at all held” would produce “a fractured verdict to the glee of rioters and miscreants” who always wanted the minority Christians not to utilize their franchise, the prelate said.
The state is scheduled to elect its 21 representatives to parliament in a two-phased polling on April 16 and 23. India will elect its 543-member national parliament in a five-phased polls starting on April 16.
Reverenced Enos Das Pradhan, general secretary of the Church of North India, in his letter to Gopalaswami said “Christians are still in the grip of the fear of attack.” He said “calling for election at this point would be disastrous.”
The Catholic Church has also launched a campaign to collect signatures from people across India requesting postponement of the election. Father Nithya Sagayam, executive secretary of Justice and Peace commission of Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, launched the campaign. He told UCA News the signature request will be presented to the Election Commissioner soon after Easter on April 12.
Father Babu Joseph, spokesperson of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, told UCA News April 8 the Church has not received any response from the Chief Election Commissioner’s office to Archbishop Cheenath’s letter.
Source: www.ucanews.com
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