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Petition President Bush Re.
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Below is an e-mail Petition
to President Bush regarding |
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The Honorable George W. Bush
We the undersigned have become aware of the worsening situation for Christians in India as several alarming trends have begun to emerge. Attacks against Christians have increased in many Indian states and hundreds of Christians have had to flee their homes in fear of their lives. Recently three Roman Catholic priests were savagely beaten, and Christian women raped by Hindu extremists. In addition, Christian churches, schools, and the homes of Christians are being methodically destroyed by gangs of extremists. These attacks are mainly occurring in North India in areas where Christians are a small percentage of the total population. The attacks on Christians are well planned and executed, and the police are powerless to stop the attackers. An estimated 600 attacks against Christians occurred in 2003 and over 4,000 cases involving attacks are pending in India’s court system. Extremist violence has been particularly heavy in the Indian states including Gujarat, Orissa, Karnataka, and Chattisgarh. Five Indian states have enacted legislation designed to curtail conversion to other faiths, particularly Christianity. These laws require potential converts to seek government permission prior to the conversion becoming effective. The government collects personal information on the potential convert as well as information on the organization behind the conversion. These anti-conversion laws have been passed to curb what is considered ‘unethical conversion’ which supposedly occurs when the poor are tempted with material benefits and money to embrace a ‘foreign religion.’ Charges of ‘unethical conversion’ have led to a surge in anti-Christian feelings and rhetoric, which has been fueled by Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP) groups, and their more militant wings. Often the organizations behind the violence receive funding from the United States. We appeal to you to meet with the Indian Ambassador and express your dissatisfaction with the persecution taking place in India against the Christians and other minority groups. We specifically appeal to you to inform the Indian government that these human rights violations, both the anti-conversion laws and violence against Christians and other minority groups must be curbed. We also would like the flow of funds from the U.S. to these militant organizations stopped. Thank you for your early attention to this matter as more lives are endangered every day.
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