Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Cuttack (Agenzia Fides) – The tribal families of Dalits (the “untouchables”) in Orissa are subjected to constant harassment and oppression, based solely on caste discrimination. These dalits, deprived of land, ownership and all rights, are often helped by Christian groups and the Catholic Church that have not only their welfare at heart but also their dignity. This is why these people often seek to know and embrace the Christian faith. This dynamic, explains Fides sources, is the basis for violence on the part of radical Hindu groups against Christians, such as the terrible massacres that took place in the state of Orissa in 2008. Christians are accused of proselytizing and of wanting to convert Dalit Hindus, but “Christians are not doing anything other than putting into practice the commandment of love thy neighbour, in every way possible, to the outcasts of society, the poor, the lowly, the oppressed,” promoting not only their socio-economic development but also their rights at the institutional level. To confirm this trend, the Orissa police arrested 14 Christians on 29 March on charges of having carried out “forced conversions” in the district of Mayurbhanj.
But in Orissa, say local sources of Fides, there continues to be cases of blatant violation of Dalits' rights. In recent months, 83 families from the village of Ranapada (Puri district) were brutally attacked and driven away by non-Dalits from 54 nearby villages. The violence was motivated by the alleged violation of a Hindu temple by three Dalit women, who dared to enter the building. They are forbidden to do so because they are considered impure (Dalits being “untouchables”). The incident was in August 2010 and the accused families were fined, a fine that they refused to pay. This turned into a “punitive expedition”: the families were deprived of houses, land and their goods and now they do not know how they will survive.
The closeness of the Catholic Church to the poor and Dalits was highlighted recently by Archbishop John Barwa, who recently took up the role of Archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, in a celebration held on April 2, attended by 21 bishops, the Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio, and Cardinal Oswald Gracias, President of the Bishops' Conference of India. The Archbishop, himself a tribal, stated his desire for “unity in diversity and for reconciliation in Orissa,” explaining that his episcopal motto, “Thy Kingdom come”, expresses the need to proclaim and manifest the Kingdom of God on earth. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 6/4/2011)
