Suspected Hindu militants burn orphanage, killing nun locked inside (CNA)

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In this world we will have persecutions, as Jesus warned us. But we should never forget that the victory already is ours. I pray for those suffering in India and elsewhere. God does not forget His own - stay strong!
 
****Orissa is a remarkable state: US Consul General
Bhubaneswar (PTI):
hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/004200809120941.htm
Terming Orissa as a state with vision, US Consul General Bertha Payne on Thursday said many American businessmen and women were interested to invest in the eastern state.

Payne, who took over office of the Consul General in Kolkata in July told reporters after meeting Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik that the state of economy in Orissa was “remarkable”.

“I have come to Orissa to learn something about the state, its people, culture and economy. The state has a vision to grow,” she said. …
 
****Police gag order silences Sisters of Mother Teresa
by Nirmala Carvalho
Nuns are accused of abducting and converting children, but they regain custody after accusations are shown to be false. Sangh Parivar, which accuses them of “child trafficking,” plans a demonstration against the nuns for tomorrow. Insecurity spreads to the state of Karnataka where three Pentecostal churches are shut down despite having all the right papers.
asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=13201&size=A
Chhattisgarh (AsiaNews) – Police have imposed a gag order on the nuns from the Missionaries of Charity who were charged on 5 September with kidnapping and converting four infants. Radical Hindus are instead stepping up their campaign against the sisters whose convent is now under police protection.
 
****Christian converts being forced to renounce faith and then destroy churches
catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=13705
Christian converts being forced to renounce faith and then destroy churches

New Dehli, Sep 3, 2008 / 07:08 pm (CNA).- Contrary to an earlier report by Fides, the outbreak of anti-Christian violence in India is not lessening. Some Christian converts victimized by extremist Hindu attacks in the Indian state of Orissa are now being forced to return to Hinduism and attack their Christian churches.
 
******Christians from Orissa recount harrowing experiences
catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0804635.htm
By Anto Akkara
Catholic News Service
catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0804635.htm
CUTTACK, India (CNS) – Suresh Nayak, a Catholic from Orissa state’s Kandhamal district, cannot overcome the experience of being forced, under the threat of death, to convert to Hinduism.

“We lost everything, but the humiliating ceremony to disown our Christian faith still haunts me,” Nayak told Catholic News Service at a refugee camp in Cuttack, about 20 miles from Bhubaneswar, Orissa’s capital.

“They tonsured my head and made me drink cow dung water to purify me. We were also forced to write a declaration that we are becoming Hindus of our own (will) and giving up the Christian faith,” he said.**
 
****Orissa, the drama of the refugees: forced conversion to Hinduism or more violence
by Nirmala Carvalho
asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=13213&geo=2&size=A
According to the government, the situation is “under control”, but it has delayed the elections, and has barred entry to the district of Kandhamal. A Christian activist denounces new violence against the refugees, while Hindu fundamentalists have drawn up a list of 140 Christians “guilty” of the murder of the Swami.
 
INDIA Christians, Others Demand Ban On Hindu Extremist Groups As Anti-Christian Violence Spreads
September 11, 2008
ucanews.com/2008/09/11/christians-others-demand-ban-on-hindu-extremist-groups-as-anti-christian-violence-spreads/
NEW DELHI (UCAN) – Christian and other groups in India have demanded a ban on some Hindu radical organizations as anti-Christian violence spread to more states.
Anti-Christian violence prompted communist groups, the Lok Janashakti Party (people’s power party), the All India Christian Council, Christian Social Forum and others to issue separate calls for a ban on Bajrang Dal (party of the strong and stout) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP, world Hindu council).
 
I signed the first petition some time ago, just signed the second one.
 
marymol said:
News about floods in Orissa -
deepikaglobal.com/ENG3_sub.asp?ccode=ENG3&newscode=26284

Any Catholics or Christians in affected areas who are able to help would show true Christian character ; so would too hopefully the hindus as well !

His Mercy may be …helping to wash off , let us hope , the fires of hell the enemy has been trying to lit up !
Click to expand...
I am sure the Catholics and Protestants are both helping though I hear there is an acute shortage of boats. The state escaped the justice of man but it appears not that of God. Regardless it is a human tragedy and were Catholics in a position to assist they surely would.
God bless
Derrick
 
******INDIA: MURDER, RAPE, ARSON CONTINUE
fiacona.org/newsdetail.php?catid=100&newsid=231
Rape, Murder, Arson in Orissa

Attacks on Christians continued in the Kandhamal district. While a young woman was reportedly gang-raped by unidentified rioters on Sunday night (Sept. 21), a man went missing and was allegedly killed on Friday (Sept. 19).
Father Ajay Singh of the Catholic Archdiocese of Bhubaneswar, Orissa’s capital, told Compass that a local Oriya-language newspaper, Dharitri, reported that a 20-year-old woman was raped by about 15 men in an area under Tikabali police jurisdiction in Kandhamal late on Sept. 21. The victim, who was living in a relief camp and believed to be Christian, had gone back to her house to see her grandmother.
A group of men stormed the house and took her to a nearby jungle and raped her, Singh said, adding that the police had confirmed the incident.

**
 
cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/10/24/nun.rape.ap/index.html

NEW DELHI, India (AP) – A Roman Catholic nun who accused a Hindu mob of raping her said Friday that she will not cooperate with local police, alleging that they stood by idly during the attack.

A nun is assisted as she leaves a press conference in which she says police stood by as a mob raped her.

Hiding her head and face behind a scarf, the nun told reporters that she was raped after a mob attacked a Christian prayer hall on August 25 in the eastern state of Orissa.

In her first public comments, the nun said a group of about 50 men tore off her clothes and raped her. Later, she said, she was paraded naked, together with a priest, past several policeman who refused to help her.

When she arrived at the police station, officers tried to dissuade her from filing a complaint, she said.

“I was raped and now I don’t want to be victimized by Orissa police,” she said, calling for a federal investigation.

Orissa police have been harshly criticized for waiting more than a month to begin investigating the attack and only taking steps after the story appeared in news reports.

Police said they had been waiting for a medical report confirming a rape in order to begin their investigation. Police have since detained five men, though it was unclear whether they have been charged with any crime.

The Associated Press does not normally identify people who say they are the victims of sex crimes. The authorities did not provide her age or nationality.

The violence between Hindus and Christians followed the killing of a Hindu religious leader. Police blamed Maoist rebels, but conservative Hindu groups blamed Christian residents and set fire to a Christian orphanage.

The state government said 32 people died in the ensuing clashes. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India said at least 40 Christians were killed.

Relations are usually peaceful between Christians, who make up 2.5 percent of India’s 1.1 billion people, and Hindus, who account for more than 80 percent.

However, Orissa has a history of anti-Christian violence with hard-line Hindu groups claiming Christian missionary groups are forcing or bribing people to convert to Christianity, charges denied by Christian leaders.
 
Thanks Mauricio for keeping in touch with us. I have been trying to help in more practical ways, and therefore no updates for a while now. There are so many problems in so many places now that the entire 30 million Indian Christians are quite insecure.
God bless
Derrick
 
On 24th August, around 4:30pm, hearing the shouting of a large crowd, at the gate of Divyajyoti Pastoral Centre, I ran out through the back door and escaped to the forest along with others. We saw our house going up in flames. Around 8:30 pm we came out of the forest and went to the house of a Hindu gentleman who gave us shelter.

On 25th August, around1:30 pm,the mob entered the room where I was staying in that house, one of them stopped me on my face, caught my hair and pulled me out of the house. Two of them were holding my neck to cut off my head with axe. Others told them to take me out to the road; I saw Fr. Chellan also being taken out and being beaten. The mob consisting of 40-50 men was armed with lathis, axes, spades, crowbars, iron-rods, sickles etc.They took both of us to the main road. Then they led us to the burnt down Janavikas building saying that they were going to throw us into the smouldering fire.

When we reached the Janavikas building, they threw me to the verandah on the way to the dining room which was full of ashes and broken glass pieces. One of them tore my blouse and others my undergarments. Father Chellan protested and they beat him and pulled him out from there.
They pulled out my saree and one of the stepped on my right hand and another on my left hand and then a third person raped me on the verandah mentioned above. When it was over, I managed to get up and put my petticoat and saree. Then another young man caught me and took me to a room near the staircase. He opened his pants and was attempting to rape me when they reached there.

I hid myself under the staircase. The crowd was shouting “where is that sister, come let us rape her, at least 100 people should rape.”
They found me under the staircase and took me out to the road. There I saw Fr. Chellan was kneeling down and the crowd was beating him. They were searching for a rope to tie us both of us together to burn us in fire. Someone suggested to make us parade naked. They made us walk on the road till Nuagoan market which was half a kilometer from there.
They made to fold our hands and walk. I was with petticoat and saree as they had already torn away my blouse and undergarments. They tried to strip even there and I resisted and they went on beating me with hands on my cheeks and head and with sticks on my back several times.

When I reached the market the market place about a dozen of OSAP policemen were there. I went to them asking to protect me and I sat in between two policemen but they did not move. One from the crowd again pulled out from there and they wanted to lock us in their temple
mandap . The crowd led me and Fr. Chellan to the Nuagaon block building saying that they will hand us over to BDO. From there along with the block officer the mob took us to police outpost Nuagaon, other policemen remained far.

The mob said that they will come back after eating and one of them who attacked me remained back in the police outpost. Policemen then came to police outpost. They were talking very friendly with the man who had attacked me and stayed back. In police outpost we remained until
the inspector in charge of Balliguda with his police team came and took us to Balliguda. They were afraid to take us straight to the police station and they kept us sometimes in jeep. In the garage, from there, they brought us to the station. The inspector in charge and other government officers took me privately and asked whatever happened to me. I narrated everything in detail to the police, how I was attacked, raped, taken away from policemen paraded half naked and how the policemen did not help me when I asked for help while weeping bitterly. I saw the inspector writing down. The inspector asked me
“are you interested in filing FIR? Do you know what will be the consequence?” At about 10:00 pm I was taken for medical check-up accompanied by a lady police officer to Balliguda Hospital . They were afraid to keep us in police station, saying the mob may attack police station. So the police took us to the IB (Inspection Bungalow) where CRP men were camping. On 26th August around 9:00 am, we were taken to Balliguda police station. When I was writing the FIR, the I I C asked me to hurry up and not to write in detail. When I started writing about the police, the I I C told me “this is not the way to write FIR, make it short”. So I re-wrote it for the third time in one and half page. I filed the FIR but I was not given a copy of it.
At around 4:00 pm the inspector in charge of Balliguda police station along with some other government officers put us in the OSRTC bus to Bhubaneswar along with other stranded passengers. Police were there till Rangamati where all passengers had their supper. After that I did not see the police. We got down near Nayagarh and traveled in a private vehicle and reached Bhubaneswar around 2:00 am on 27th August.

State Police failed to stop the crimes, failed to protect me from the attackers, they were friendly with the attackers. They tried their best that I did best that I did not register an FIR, not make complaints against police, police did not take down my statement as I narrated in detail and they abandoned me half of the way. I was raped and now I don’t want to be victimized by the Orissa police. I want CBI enquiry.
God bless India , God bless you all.
Sr. Meena
 
Derrickdcosta said:
On 24th August, around 4:30pm, hearing the shouting of a large crowd, at the gate of Divyajyoti Pastoral Centre, I ran out through the back door and escaped to the forest along with others. We saw our house going up in flames. Around 8:30 pm we came out of the forest and went to the house of a Hindu gentleman who gave us shelter.

On 25th August, around1:30 pm,the mob entered the room where I was staying in that house, one of them stopped me on my face, caught my hair and pulled me out of the house. Two of them were holding my neck to cut off my head with axe. Others told them to take me out to the road; I saw Fr. Chellan also being taken out and being beaten. The mob consisting of 40-50 men was armed with lathis, axes, spades, crowbars, iron-rods, sickles etc.They took both of us to the main road. Then they led us to the burnt down Janavikas building saying that they were going to throw us into the smouldering fire.

When we reached the Janavikas building, they threw me to the verandah on the way to the dining room which was full of ashes and broken glass pieces. One of them tore my blouse and others my undergarments. Father Chellan protested and they beat him and pulled him out from there.
They pulled out my saree and one of the stepped on my right hand and another on my left hand and then a third person raped me on the verandah mentioned above. When it was over, I managed to get up and put my petticoat and saree. Then another young man caught me and took me to a room near the staircase. He opened his pants and was attempting to rape me when they reached there.

I hid myself under the staircase. The crowd was shouting “where is that sister, come let us rape her, at least 100 people should rape.”
They found me under the staircase and took me out to the road. There I saw Fr. Chellan was kneeling down and the crowd was beating him. They were searching for a rope to tie us both of us together to burn us in fire. Someone suggested to make us parade naked. They made us walk on the road till Nuagoan market which was half a kilometer from there.
They made to fold our hands and walk. I was with petticoat and saree as they had already torn away my blouse and undergarments. They tried to strip even there and I resisted and they went on beating me with hands on my cheeks and head and with sticks on my back several times.

When I reached the market the market place about a dozen of OSAP policemen were there. I went to them asking to protect me and I sat in between two policemen but they did not move. One from the crowd again pulled out from there and they wanted to lock us in their temple
mandap . The crowd led me and Fr. Chellan to the Nuagaon block building saying that they will hand us over to BDO. From there along with the block officer the mob took us to police outpost Nuagaon, other policemen remained far.

The mob said that they will come back after eating and one of them who attacked me remained back in the police outpost. Policemen then came to police outpost. They were talking very friendly with the man who had attacked me and stayed back. In police outpost we remained until
the inspector in charge of Balliguda with his police team came and took us to Balliguda. They were afraid to take us straight to the police station and they kept us sometimes in jeep. In the garage, from there, they brought us to the station. The inspector in charge and other government officers took me privately and asked whatever happened to me. I narrated everything in detail to the police, how I was attacked, raped, taken away from policemen paraded half naked and how the policemen did not help me when I asked for help while weeping bitterly. I saw the inspector writing down. The inspector asked me
“are you interested in filing FIR? Do you know what will be the consequence?” At about 10:00 pm I was taken for medical check-up accompanied by a lady police officer to Balliguda Hospital . They were afraid to keep us in police station, saying the mob may attack police station. So the police took us to the IB (Inspection Bungalow) where CRP men were camping. On 26th August around 9:00 am, we were taken to Balliguda police station. When I was writing the FIR, the I I C asked me to hurry up and not to write in detail. When I started writing about the police, the I I C told me “this is not the way to write FIR, make it short”. So I re-wrote it for the third time in one and half page. I filed the FIR but I was not given a copy of it.
At around 4:00 pm the inspector in charge of Balliguda police station along with some other government officers put us in the OSRTC bus to Bhubaneswar along with other stranded passengers. Police were there till Rangamati where all passengers had their supper. After that I did not see the police. We got down near Nayagarh and traveled in a private vehicle and reached Bhubaneswar around 2:00 am on 27th August.

State Police failed to stop the crimes, failed to protect me from the attackers, they were friendly with the attackers. They tried their best that I did best that I did not register an FIR, not make complaints against police, police did not take down my statement as I narrated in detail and they abandoned me half of the way. I was raped and now I don’t want to be victimized by the Orissa police. I want CBI enquiry.
God bless India , God bless you all.
Sr. Meena
Click to expand...
Nuns have taken Catholic education to the four corners of the globe and are usually respected for it. Lately it has seemed like that is changing. God help us all and protect our religious everywhere.
 
Since I last wrote about the killings in India, there has been a new development. Now a Catholic Nun, has said that she was forced by the Church and her Order to have an abortion, after the local priest raped her. This comes on the heels of the police supposely closing in on some of the Hindu mobs that have gone on this killing and burning spree. While I have never met a Hindu, I find the whole way of religion extremely crude and cruel.

What are the opinions of the group here?
 
seekerz said:
Nuns have taken Catholic education to the four corners of the globe and are usually respected for it. Lately it has seemed like that is changing. God help us all and protect our religious everywhere.
Click to expand...
Thanks,
These are sick crimes, the organisers of these and similar crimes are given immunity from prosecution which partly explains their savagery and macabre actions. The Indian government so well rewarded with nuclear deals by the United States and the world is not inclined to deliver justice any time in the future. Still there is a small effort being made to get the religious back and get small communities organised to counsel and rebuild the families. I wish not to expand on this any further at this time.

There is not one Christian institution standing in the villages of Kandhamal and the tragedy is that the violence is now being “packaged” as an ethnic conflict. This is a lie the right wing groups given tax free charitable deductible status in USA and UK are chanelling the money to attack Christians, arm and train groups of thugs even provide training to make bombs see this ( ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080070088 and dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1200926) , and later perhaps attack the Indian muslims after the elections (they need the muslim vote to return to power in India).
Only God can help us now.
God bless
Derrick
 
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