Orissa, killings and terror continue ahead of Christmas
ICC Note: This story provides additional information on attacks in Orissa from last week, and reveals the danger facing Christians who attempt to return home.
by Nirmala Carvalho
12/3/08 Bhubaneshwar, India (AsiaNews) – There is still widespread terror in the district of Kandhamal (Orissa), where for months attacks and killings have continued against the Christians. The government of Orissa is forcing Christians to return to their villages, but is not guaranteeing them any security.
In recent days, two Christian women have been killed in the district. They had returned to the village to try to harvest rice from their fields, hoping to provide food for their family.
One of them, Bimala Nayak, 52, was hacked to death with axes and thrown into the forest. Her body was found in three pieces, outside the village of Gubria. She had left the refugee camp of Nuagaon to harvest the rice from her plot of land.
The other, Lalita Digal, 45, was killed in Dodabali last November 25. She was staying in the refugee camp of K.Nuagam, and on November 21 she had left to return to the village and harvest the rice. She was staying with some Hindu friends in the village. Witnesses say that the woman was taken away from the house where she was staying. Her body has not yet been found.
Other episodes of violence have taken place in the village of Tiangia. On the night of November 25, two homes belonging to Christians were burned, as was one belonging to a Hindu who had dared to welcome Christians… [Go To Full Story]
