Category: News

The Daily Telegraph has reported that the number of anti-Semitic attacks in the UK in 2014 is set to be the highest recorded in the past three decades.

The record number of incidents includes everything from violent assaults to verbal abuse, hate-mail and attacks on social media.
The exact figures will not be released until February 2015 but the number is likely to exceed 1,000.

Previously the highest number of anti-Semitic incidents recorded in Britain in a single year in the recent past was 931 in 2009.
The Community Security Trust (CST), a charity that monitors anti-Semitism in Britain, expects the total for 2014 to be the highest since it started collating the figures in 1984.

Vivian Wineman, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said: “The sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents over the summer may have been occasioned by events in Gaza but much of the behaviour was pure anti-Semitism and had nothing to do with the Middle East. Such behaviour is totally unacceptable. We live in a tolerant society with a government and all political parties committed to fighting prejudice and anti-Semitism, but we cannot afford to be complacent. As Lord Sacks [the former Chief Rabbi] says, ‘anti-Semitism is a light sleeper’.”

 

On 22 December a Pakistani morning TV show broadcast a discussion which included accusations that the Ahmadi community were responsible for the Peshawar massacre and were the enemy of Pakistan, and the common enemy of Muslims.

The TV company have subsequently apologised for this lapse, admitting their code of conduct was broken.

On 27 December, reported The Express Tribune, a 27-year-old leader of the Jamaat-i-Ahmadiyya (JA) was killed in Gujranwala, allegedly for his beliefs. Luqman Ahmad Shahzad was on the way to his farm from his home when he was shot in the head.

Two motives for his killing were suggested: Shahzad was the only Ahmadi in his family and his entire family had nursed a grudge against him for his conversion; there was also a possibility it had been prompted by his refusal to attend his cousin’s wedding because he had reservations about her marriage to a low-caste man.

The Reuter’s report of the murder linked it very clearly with the TV show, stating that “Saturday’s killing was the second time Hussain’s show has hosted religious leaders denouncing Ahmadis. In 2008, he hosted scholars who called for the Ahmadis to be killed. Within a day, two prominent Ahmadis had been shot dead.” They described Luqman Ahmad Shehzad as “the eleventh person killed for being Ahmadi in Pakistan this year.”

“Christians will tomorrow affirm their faith that God became flesh at a particular time and place in history. It is a catastrophe and a crime that those who celebrate the birth of Christ are in many parts of the world, most numerously in the region that includes ancient Palestine, suffering ferocious persecution.

“The Prince of Wales remarked last month on the “indescribable tragedy that Christianity is now under such threat in the Middle East”. Western governments need to make Christians’ rights and religious liberties integral to diplomatic policy, lest their historic presence be scattered amid scarcely imaginable carnage…

“Those who suffer for their faith, even to the point of martyrdom, should know too that they will not be abandoned or forgotten by the world in that fate. So must their oppressors.”

Read full article here

Christmas is an occasion mostly associated with joy and celebration. Sadly, attacks on church services and worshippers in recent years mean that for many it is a time of heightened tension and fear.

World Watch Monitor recently reported on the tension for religious minorities in India, stating that “Since the start of the holiday season, India’s minority religious groups of Christians and Muslims have been especially under pressure.”

The Indian Parliament has hardly functioned since the start of December because several opposition lawmakers have been protesting against a series of attacks against the nation’s religious minorities.

On the morning of 1 December St Sebastian’s church at Dilshad Garden – a large Catholic church in a crowded middleclass area of Delhi – went up in flames. The interior of the church was destroyed before half a dozen firefighting trucks managed to extinguish the blaze.

Hours after the fire, a Minister for food processing industries Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, who has been handpicked by Prime Minister Modi, stunned the nation with a provocative statement.

Speaking at a BJP rally in Delhi, ahead of state elections, Jyoti encouraged the audience to make a decision, saying “People of Delhi have to decide if they want a government of Ramzaadon (followers of Ram – a major Hindu deity) or a government of those who are Haraamzadon (illegitimate).”

The Minister swiftly made a public apology, but the storm over her using this term to brand the religious minorities of the country ended only after Prime Minister Modi himself appeared in both houses of Parliament and urged the opposition to accept the apology tendered by saying she is a ‘first-time MP from rural background.’

A week later 57 migrant Muslim families were ‘reconverted’ to Hinduism before the media in Agra. Nand Kishore Balmiki, the organiser of the reconversion, boasted to the media that they “will purge society of foreign faiths,” the largest of which in India are Christianity and Islam.

The media reported that the ‘reconverts’ – comprised mainly of impoverished waste pickers – were encouraged to attend the ceremony by being offered ration cards, voter identity and a Below Poverty Line card that would entitle them to government welfare schemes.

Further intensifying the situation, on 10 December the Regional Head of another group of extreme Hindu nationalists, Rajeshwar Singh, is reported to have declared that 5000 Christians and Muslims will be ‘brought home to Hinduism’ on Christmas day at Aligarh – 160 kms south east of New Delhi – also in Uttar Pradesh state.

Singh represents Dharma Jagram Samiti (DJM), a group supported by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (the RSS), an extreme Hindu nationalist voluntary organisation funded by the BJP. The RSS has been linked to violent attacks against minorities over the past twenty years or more.

The group’s initial claims stated that the ‘ghar vapsi’ (‘home-coming’) campaign would be the largest to date and that it would be led by BJP Parliamentarian Yogi Adityanath – known for his aggressive Hindu nationalist rhetoric.

Under pressure from the Prime Minister, the RSS has now forced the DJS to call off the ceremony. However today (Dec 18) The Hindu reports that the DJS says the ceremony was postponed, not cancelled “in the strategic interest of the cause” and that the work of re-conversion will “continue slowly and steadily, but cautiously”.

Rajeshwar Singh had claimed that Christmas has been chosen for the reconversion because the event is a ‘test of strength’ for both religions.

“If their religion is better, they can stop them. It is a test for both of us. If they come to us on Christmas, it is the biggest rejection of the faith,” Singh was quoted as saying in the Economic Times..

India’s Parliament has been especially heated over the conversion debate, with opposition targeting the BJP. The party responded with a strong counter-offensive in support of Hindu fundamentalist’s stance on reconversions.

Unfazed by the barrage of criticism in the Parliament and the media, Venkaiah Naidu, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, on 13 December called for national and state level anti-conversion laws. At the moment, five of India’s 15 states have laws that forbid coercing someone to change religions.

‘Good Governance Day’

The most controversial element of the conversion campaign emerged on 15 December when the Times of India unearthed a government circular of the education department attempting to shift children’s attention from Christmas to ‘good governance’ by recognizing a new Indian holiday on Christmas Day.

Good Governance Day is being established to encourage students to celebrate the birthdays of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a former Prime Minister of India, and Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, a Hindu nationalist, educationist and politician.

The circular encourages schools and colleges to organise various student competitions such as activities including narratives, essay and quizzes on promoting the message of ‘good governance.’

“The situation is alarming. This Christmas looks like it is not a pleasant one,” Bishop Simon John of Delhi Diocese of the Believers Church told World Watch Monitor following the alleged Christmas Day circular to schools.

“Mark ‘good governance day’ on Christmas, government tells schools” said the Times of India in its lead story sparking more vociferous protests in Parliament and outside. It published a photocopy of what it claims to be the government circular.

The federal Human Resource Development ministry promptly denied allegations that it is requiring schools to now remain open on Christmas Day.

On 10 December, International Human Rights day, the Justice, Peace and Development Commission of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India expressed the anguish of the Christian community.

“The most distressing is the situation of the religious minorities whose right to religious freedom is ruthlessly rubbished and trampled upon by the militant majoritarian groups that apparently enjoy utmost impunity in the new political ambience,” the Commission said.

Alarmed by the developments including the Christmas ‘insult’ to the Christians by the federal government itself, the National council of Churches in India (NCCI) has taken an unprecedented step by deciding, for the first time, not to invite the Chief Minister of state for its annual Christmas prayer meeting.

“We used to invite the chief minister every year. But to protest what is happening, we have decided not to invite him this year,” Rev. Christopher Rajkumar, Executive Secretary of NCCI’s Commission on Justice, Peace and Creation told WWM from Nagpur on Dec. 16.

Headquartered at Nagpur, the second capital of Maharashtra state, NCCI consists of 30 Orthodox and mainline Protestant churches. Maharashtra state came under BJP rule after the state elections in October.

“This Christmas evokes not joy but fears. It should not happen. But is happening,” Rajkumar said.

Update

Morning Star News reports that a Hindu nationalist drive to “reconvert” non-Hindus over the Christmas season foundered, but protests against the campaign led to an unexpected consequence: a proposal to ban on all conversions except “reconversions” to Hinduism. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu proposed a ban on all religious conversions – not just “forced” or “fraudulent” ones.

Naidu floated the proposal with the supposed goal of quieting the growing din over conversions to minority faiths and alleged “reconversions” to Hinduism, though Christian leaders believe it came at least in part to appease Hindu nationalists upset at the government effort to distance itself from the “reconversion” campaign.

While no legislation has been drafted, voices within and outside of parliament supported the proposal by Naidu – who said he was a proud member of the Hindu extremist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) – which would conspicuously violate religious freedom provisions in India’s constitution.

Read the full article

BLOOD, TREASURE AND ISLAMIC STATE:
WAR, EXTREMISM AND THE LOOTING OF CULTURE

This event was presented today by the APPG in partnership with Walk of Truth, an independent non-profit organisation founded by Tasoula Georgiou Hadjitofi.

Walk of Truth raises public awareness of threats to cultural heritage from crime and war, and engages ordinary people in the struggle to protect and restore endangered monuments and artifacts.

Tasoula Hadjitofi, a refugee, presented four looted frescoes which have been rescued as a result of a Walk of Truth initiative to attract anonymous tips regarding the whereabouts of stolen cultural artifacts. Two of the frescoes date from the 12th century and were removed from one of the most important monasteries of the Byzantine period (the Monastery of Apsinthiotissa) located in the occupied area of Cyprus. Hadjitofi is appealing to global experts to assist Walk of Truth in identifying the other two stolen artifacts placed in its trust.

Speakers included:

Baroness Berridge Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion or Belief

Prof Dr Willy Bruggeman Chairman of the Belgian Federal Police Council, former Deputy Director of Europol
“Looted Art – New Kind of Blood Money” Reported in The Times, 17 December

Baron Serge Brammertz Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
“Destruction of Cultural Heritage as a Weapon of War”

Professor Norman Palmer CBE QC visiting professor of Law at King’s College London and the University of Notre Dame in London
“What Law can and can’t do”

Tasoula Hadjitofi founder of Walk of Truth, former Honorary Consul of Cyprus in The Netherlands
“From Refugee to Guardian of Cultural Heritage”

Read Erasmus’ take on this story from the Economist

After the event, the organisers shared this summary of what had taken place:

The main theme of the presentation focused on the magnitude of the looting and destruction of cultural heritage that is taking place in areas of conflict like Syria and Iraq . Lady Berridge, who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion or Belief, opened the presentations and spoke about how ISIS is funding its organization through the profits made through the illegal sale of stolen antiquities. She stressed the importance of protecting the human right of freedom of religion or belief, which is clearly being targeted by terrorist organisations such as ISIS and she thanked Baroness Brinton.

Tasoula Hadjitofi, a war refugee from Famagusta, Cyprus, spoke about the impact that the loss of cultural heritage has on human dignity, stressing that it must become the priority of every country to protect cultural heritage. The lack of cooperation and standardization of global laws combating art trafficking allows for these crimes against humanity to take place. Mrs. Hadjitofi
raised the point that although extremism, destruction and looting whether in Cyprus, Iraq, or Syria might take place far from us the buyers for these stolen antiquities were among us.

She further voiced that religious symbols are being used as commodities with no regard to their spiritual and emotional value and presented two twelfth-century frescoes that were recently repatriated and restored by her Walk of Truth organization. These religious symbols, looted from the Monastery of Aspinthiotissa (originally located in the occupied area of Cyprus), are just two
examples of the brutal war being waged against religious and cultural symbols in areas of conflict. She continued to stress that without respect for cultural and religious diversity there can be no possibility for peace and reconciliation.

Esteemed guest speaker, Dr. Willy Bruggeman, Chairman of the Belgian Federal Police Council, and former Deputy Director of Europol, discussed how profits generated from looted art have become a new source of funding for terrorist organizations who acquired between $4 and $6 billion dollars last year. He concluded that a workable international agreement between countries
to combat art trafficking along with the support and cooperation of the governmental, public and private sectors was needed in order to win the war against art traffickers.

Baron Serge Brammertz, a Belgian jurist and the prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, discussed the connection between the destruction of cultural heritage, cultural cleansing and genocide. He spoke of the limited resources available to investigators and the difficulties that exist in gaining access to countries in conflict to collect evidence of crimes committed. He stressed the importance of including the destruction of cultural and religious heritage into the International Criminal Tribunal’s investigative strategies.

Professor Norman Palmer, a barrister practicing in London and a visiting professor of law at King’s College, talked about what “law can and cannot do,” concluding that a sound legal approach complemented by diplomatic and other initiatives that support the reinstitution of unlawfully removed cultural treasures is much needed.

David Burrowes, MP, stated that because this area of illicit art trafficking was presented at the House of Lords under the banner of religious freedom, it made an important statement that this isn’t just an issue for those concerned about art, or those concerned about their particular country, which has been desecrated. It’s a matter of concern for each of us as well as a shared
responsibility.

The success of this symposium led to the possibility for a future collaborative event, a debate to be held at the United Nations in New York on the controversial issue of ownership of cultural heritage.

The third Freedom of Thought report, highlighting global discrimination against atheists, humanists and the non-religious, was published yesterday by the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU).

The report assesses every independent country around the world, and every country gets a rating. There is also a brand new poster style map.

In their preface, Gulalai Ismail and Agnes Ojera, both working to promote human rights in Pakistan and Uganda respectively, said:

“The rights of the non-religious, and the rights of religious minorities and non-conformists, are a touchstone for the freedoms of thought and expression at large. Discrimination and persecution against the non-religious in particular is very often bound up with political suppression, with fears about progressive values, or with oppression in the name of religion. Humanists and secularists are often among the first to ask questions, and to raise the alarm when human rights are being trampled, when religion is misused or abused, or — even with the best intentions — if religion has become part of the problem. Silence the non-religious, and you silence some of the leading voices of responsible concern in society.”

The authors indicate that several states are persecuting atheists right from the top with what sounds very much like hate speech, blurring the line between legal or political discrimination on the one hand, versus social persecution of hate speech on the other hand.

So, increasingly, the report also looks at the social issues. Are the non-religious marginalised? Is atheism a social taboo? Is it even possible to ‘come out’ atheist without risking being cut off from friends, or rejected by family?

In this 2014 edition, each country — in addition to the ratings table and the main body text and the “Individual Cases” of people who’ve suffered at the hands of the law — for the first time also features “Testimonies” from people who have contacted or spoken to IHEU about their unique, personal situation, or their views on the society around them.

They may not have been dragged through the courts on blasphemy charges, or had their children take off them for being an apostate, but the people behind the testimonies are also suffering, often in silence. They haven’t been prosecuted for apostasy —but in some cases they can’t ‘come out’ at all!

“We know that in the most oppressively persecutory countries, based on even the most conservative demographic estimates of non-religious populations, that for every high-profile case of a humanist writer in exile, or an atheist blogger attacked in the street, there are hundreds, if not many thousands, of others who for the most part stay quiet, keep their heads down, go along with what their family says or what their friends expect.

“They should not have to do this. In most countries, the majority are free to say, “There is a God and these are my values.” The religious minorities might say “There is a different God or gods, and these are my values.” The non-religious minority must be just as free to say “We are all human, and these are my values”.

2This aim — of equality, and the upholding of freedom of thought and expression for all — is not a luxury, it is a necessity. We hope that by exposing where these rights are not upheld for the non-religious, we are working toward a better, free global society for everyone.”

Read and/or download the report

The All Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion or Belief (APPG) today published the findings of its Parliamentary Inquiry into persecution in North Korea. The report, Religion and Belief in the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, includes witness accounts of the horrific human rights abuses suffered by religious and belief minorities in the country, which often go unheard because of the secrecy of the regime.

It concludes: “The DPRK systematically oppresses freedom of religion or belief, and Christians in particular are targeted by the regime and subjected to chronic human rights abuses, amounting to crimes against humanity.”

The report makes a number of recommendations to the British Government, including that it pursue the referral of the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea to the International Criminal Court to account for its treatment of its citizens. However, it also offers some positive ways in which the APPG believes Britain can help make life more bearable for the people of North Korea. The report recommends that the British Government use its ‘soft power’ to push the North Korean regime for further openness, and urges the BBC World Service to establish a radio broadcast to the Korean Peninsula, in both English and Korean languages, giving citizens a window out of their closed world.

Baroness Berridge, chairman of the APPG, commented: “For the past sixty-plus years, the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea has committed egregious human rights violations – the details of which would turn the stomach of even the most hardened person. This includes banishing those who follow a religion to remote places, incarcerating them, subjecting them to torture in labour camps, and murdering Christians for merely possessing a Bible.

“For many years North Korea has been viewed as an impossible case, but now the international community is finally beginning to afford the country the attention its people so desperately need.”

Read the executive summary

Read the full report

Hear Baroness Berridge on Radio 4 (begins at 15:40)

Uzbekistan authorities have banned a translation of the Koran, destroyed New Testaments and given heavy fines for ‘illegal’ religious gatherings, reports Forum 18.

The Religious Affairs Committee has banned the publication of a poetic translation of Koran into Uzbek. They stated that the Koran “was never translated into Uzbek in poetic form, and that Imam-hatyps from various regions of Uzbekistan gave a negative opinion of it”. However, Forum 18 was told that the Muslim Board, the Mufti and Deputy Chief Mufti, Abdulaziz Mansurov had given their approval along with that of a number of other religious scholars in Uzbekistan.

In Uzbekistan all exercise of freedom of religion or belief without state permission is forbidden. Via the Muslim Board and other state agencies the government imposes total control of every aspect of the Muslim community’s life.

In early November the Religious Affairs Committee was asked to authorise a limited print-run of up to 1,000 copies, for distribution among Muslim leaders, professionals, experts, scholars and others to gain backing for the verse translation. The Committee refused this request, telling Khusainov in a meeting that they “fear that the book may divide society and cause public tension”. Khusainov hopes that “one day we will be able to publish it”.

STATE CONTROL OF RELIGIOUS GATHERINGS

On the evening of 5 September police in Syrdarya in the centre of the country raided and searched Denis Absattarov’s home. He is a member of the local Full Gospel Church. The police stated they launched the raid following information from the chair of the local mahalla [local district] committee.

Police claimed in the subsequent court hearing (see below) that they found Absattarov, Kurbanay Abdiyeva, Arina Kim and Vladimir Mehseryakov holding a religious meeting without state permission. All four deny this, insisting that they were meeting as friends to drink tea together. Absattarov told Syrdarya District Criminal Court on 2 October that the authorities “broke in when they were about to pray together”.

Judge Nazarov fined the four defendants on 2 October, according to the decision seen by Forum 18. Absattarov was fined 55 times the minimum monthly salary; each of the others was fined 10 times the minimum monthly salary under Article 240 Part 1.

Article 240 Part 1 bans: “Carrying out of unauthorised religious activity, evasion by leaders of religious organisations of registration of the charter of the organisation, the unauthorised organisation and conduct of worship by religious ministers, and the organisation and conduct of special children’s and youth meetings, as well as vocational, literature and other study groups not relating to worship”. Article 241 Part 1 bans: “Teaching religious beliefs without specialised religious education and without permission from the central organ of a [registered] religious organisation, as well as teaching religious beliefs privately”.

Judge Nazarov also ordered two Bibles – one each in Uzbek and Russian – a Children’s Bible, and another Christian book, and two Christian songbooks to given to the Religious Affairs Committee in the capital Tashkent. He also ordered that a personal diary, one video-cassette tape and 26 DVD discs be destroyed. Judge Nazarov’s Assistant (who would not give his name) on 25 November told Forum 18 that he “cannot comment on the case”.

Religious literature seized from individuals – whether Muslims, Christians, Jehovah’s Witnesses or of other faiths – is frequently ordered destroyed by the courts.

On 24 October the private home of mother and son Durdona Abdullayeva and Ulugbek Kenzhayev was raided. Both belong to the Full Gospel Church and on 11 November Judge Sherzod Yuldashev of Tashkent’s Sergeli District Criminal Court fined each of them 30 times the minimum monthly salary under Administrative Code Article 184-2 (“Illegal production, storage, or import into Uzbekistan, with the intent to distribute or actual distribution, of religious materials by physical persons”).

The Judge also ordered the destruction of 30 Christian books, including three New Testaments (one in Russian and two in Uzbek), two booklets, one notebook with personal notes and 14 leaflets, as well as 125 video cassette tapes of films which have been shown on Uzbek television.

When asked why he ordered the destruction of the Christian holy scriptures, Judge Yuldashev fell silent. When Forum 18 repeated the question he replied “I cannot explain these things to you over the phone” and then put the phone down.

Monday 8 December 2014 – update from Forum 18
UZBEKISTAN: STATE-SPONSORED MEDIA ATTACKS CONTINUE

Uzbekistan’s state-sponsored mass media continues attacking named people exercising freedom of religion or belief, Forum 18 News Service notes. The victims are not given a right of reply and media staff evade answering question on the attacks.

The authors of attacks have included a Judge who subsequently fined people he attacked. Asked whether this made the Judge prejudiced against one party in a case, his assistant replied: “Who are you to question the Judge’s rights and what he can and cannot do?”

Recent allegations against named people include “making zombies out of children”, improperly associating with young girls, drug dealing, and that “a sudden death awaits every member of the [named religious community] who owns any kind of property and lives alone”.

Various religious believers commented to Forum 18 on the contradiction between state-supported media making serious allegations of crime, and law enforcement agencies making no known investigations. Belief communities thought the purpose of media attacks was to publicly discredit them, and when full names and addresses are published to make people afraid of physical attack.

Baroness Berridge has met Cardinal Pietro Parolin at the Holy See to discuss freedom of religion or belief worldwide.

The chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Freedom of Religion or Belief yesterday visited the Holy See to celebrate Mass at the Papal Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls, presided over by the Cardinal Secretary of State, His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

During the visit, Baroness Berridge attended talks with senior Vatican officials and others from the Holy See network to discuss freedom of religion or belief and particularly the persecution of Christian minorities in the Middle East. She presented a letter to Cardinal Pietro Parolin on behalf of the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief, respectfully appealing to His Holiness Pope Francis to convene a group of religious leaders around the issue of religion or belief.

Baroness Berridge said: “It was a real privilege to be part of this Mass to celebrate 100 years since the reinstatement of formal diplomatic relations between Britain and the Holy See. There are 1.2bn Catholics worldwide, equating to 17.5% of the world’s population, and the Holy See has diplomatic relations with 180 countries. This extraordinary reach makes the Holy See, with its global presence and interests, a unique diplomatic relationship.

“For me the highlight of this visit has been the opportunity to discuss our common interest in freedom of religion or belief across the world. I was grateful for the opportunity to be able to pass on a letter from the recently launched International Panel of Parliamentarians for freedom of religion or belief, which refers to the unique position of the Holy See to assemble a group of religious leaders that can change the trajectory of religious persecution and foster world peace.”