{"id":665,"date":"2009-08-14T00:24:08","date_gmt":"2009-08-13T18:54:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mohamediqbalp.wordpress.com\/2009\/08\/14\/us-body-places-india-on-watch-list-for-failure-to-protect-minorities\/"},"modified":"2009-08-14T00:24:08","modified_gmt":"2009-08-13T18:54:08","slug":"us-body-places-india-on-watch-list-for-failure-to-protect-minorities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/venusimportexport.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/2009\/08\/14\/us-body-places-india-on-watch-list-for-failure-to-protect-minorities\/","title":{"rendered":"US body places India on Watch List for failure to protect minorities"},"content":{"rendered":"

US body places India on Watch List for failure to protect minorities | TwoCircles.net<\/a><\/p>\n

Submitted by admin on 13 August 2009 – 3:41am.<\/p>\n

* India News
* Indian Muslim
* Muslim World News<\/p>\n

By TwoCircles.net news desk<\/p>\n

New Delhi: India finds itself in the same company as Afghanistan, Egypt, Russia, and Somalia among others. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) placed India on its \u201cWatch List\u201d today for what it called Indian government\u2019s largely inadequate response in protecting its religious minorities.<\/p>\n

USCIRF said India earned the Watch List designation due to the disturbing increase in communal violence against religious minorities\u2013 specifically Christians in Orissa in 2008 and Muslims in Gujarat in 2002 \u2013 and the largely inadequate response from the Indian government to protect the rights of religious minorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is extremely disappointing that India, which has a multitude of religious communities, has done so little to protect and bring justice to its religious minorities under siege,\u201d said Leonard Leo, USCIRF chair. \u201cUSCIRF\u2019s India chapter was released this week to mark the one-year anniversary of the start of the anti-Christian violence in Orissa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Any country that is designated on the USCIRF Watch List requires \u201cclose monitoring due to the nature and extent of violations of religious freedom engaged in or tolerated by the government.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other countries currently on USCIRF\u2019s Watch List are Afghanistan, Belarus, Cuba, Egypt, Indonesia, Laos, the Russian Federation, Somalia, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Venezuela.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndia\u2019s democratic institutions charged with upholding the rule of law, most notably state and central judiciaries and police, have emerged as unwilling or unable to seek redress for victims of the violence. More must be done to ensure future violence does not occur and that perpetrators are held accountable,\u201d said Mr. Leo.<\/p>\n

Last year in Orissa, the murder of Swami Saraswati by Maoist rebels in Kandhamal sparked a prolonged and destructive campaign targeting Christians in Orissa, resulting in attacks against churches and individuals.<\/p>\n

These attacks largely were carried out by individuals associated with Hindu nationalist groups, and resulted in at least 40 deaths and the destruction of hundreds of homes and dozens of churches. Tens of thousands were displaced and today many still remain in refugee camps, afraid to return home.<\/p>\n

Similarly, during the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat, India\u2019s National Human Rights Commission found that the Indian government not only failed to prevent the attacks against religious minorities, but that state and local officials aided and participated in the violence.<\/p>\n

In both Orissa and Gujarat, court convictions have been infrequent, perpetrators rarely brought to justice and thousands of people remain displaced.<\/p>\n

This designation comes barely a week after Human Rights Watch issued a stinging report against Indian police system terming it as an \u201cabusive\u201d system where torture is common place and police officials engaged in fake encounters with no accountability.<\/p>\n

The USCIRF India chapter released today notes that the deficiencies in investigating and prosecuting cases have resulted in a culture of impunity that gives members of vulnerable minority communities few assurances of their safety, particularly in areas with a history of communal violence, and little hope of perpetrator accountability.<\/p>\n

The report recommends that the Obama Administration urge the government of India to take new measures to promote communal harmony, protect religious minorities, and prevent communal violence by calling on all political parties and religious or social organizations to publicly denounce violence against and harassment of religious minorities, women, and low-caste members, and to acknowledge that such violence constitutes a crime under Indian law.<\/p>\n

USCIRF issues its annual report on religious freedom each May. This year\u2019s India chapter was delayed because USCIRF had requested to visit India this summer. The Indian government, however, declined to issue USCIRF visas for the trip.<\/p>\n

USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the President and the leadership of both political parties in the Senate and the House of Representatives. USCIRF\u2019s principal responsibilities are to review the facts and circumstances of violations of religious freedom internationally and to make policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and Congress.<\/p>\n

Links:<\/p>\n

USCIRF Annual Report for 2009: http:\/\/www.uscirf.gov\/images\/AR2009\/final%20ar2009%20with%20cover.pdf<\/p>\n

Human Rights Watch report:
http:\/\/www.hrw.org\/en\/news\/2009\/08\/04\/abusive-and-abused<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

US body places India on Watch List for failure to protect minorities | TwoCircles.net Submitted by admin on 13 August 2009 – 3:41am. * India News * Indian Muslim * Muslim World News By TwoCircles.net news desk New Delhi: India finds itself in the same company as Afghanistan, Egypt, Russia, and Somalia among others. The…
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