Author:
Publication: Zenit.org
Date: December 13, 2004
Muslim Fundamentalists Blamed for
Incident in Tamil Nadu
A group of extremists recently
attacked the Catholic church of St. Francis of Assisi in Mathal,
Diocese of Kottar, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.
The Indian episcopate told the missionary
agency Fides last Thursday that a group of fanatics broke down the
door, smashed windows, and destroyed the statue of St. Francis outside
the church Dec. 3. Investigators found a rudimental handmade unexploded
bomb inside the church. Police said Muslim fundamentalists were to
blame.
Days before the Catholic parish
priest and community received threats, and anti-Christian slogans
appeared on the church walls, signed by a group called Byath. According
to the local press, Byath is the name of a local extremist group.
The pastor, identified only as Father
Perpetual, told the Fides agency how surprised he was by the attack
as "in this area Hindus, Christians and Muslims have always lived
peacefully side by side."
Recently episodes of religious fundamentalism,
of which the Catholic community in India has been a victim, prompted
the bishops to appeal to the central government for more protection.
The ruling Congress Party said that
a law to halt interreligious violence will soon be presented to Parliament.
The bill will include compensation for victims, speedier investigation
to identify perpetrators of attacks on places of worship or individuals,
and harsher punishments.
Meanwhile, on Dec. 5, the state
of Chhattisgarh was the scene of another attack against Christians.
Naxalite rebels ransacked and burned down the Church of Matha Mary
in the village of Pusnar, in Jagdalpur Diocese.
Some boys entered the church and
ran away with religious hymn books and the missal when they saw the
pastor. Later, around 9 p.m., about 20 individuals entered the building
after breaking open the door, threw straw inside the church, and
set it on fire.
The local bishop said the same church
was attacked two months ago. In October, a group entered the church,
took away the vestments and holy pictures, and then visited four
Catholic families, robbing them of valuables.
Bishop Simon Stock Palathra of Jagdalpur
deplored the fact that "till today none of the criminals have been
nabbed, even though the police know the attackers," reported AsiaNews.
According to the bishop, the Naxali,
who are responsible for the incidents, "do not want the tribals to
become Catholic or Hindu. They want them "to retain their tribal
culture as it suits them to rule over them."
The Naxali operate in central India
and say they are using violence to claim the rights of peasants who
have been left landless.
