Subject: Unabated violence against Christians in Orissa and Karnataka
The Federation of Indian American Christian Organization of North America (FIACONA), is profoundly shocked, deeply grieved, and extremely upset at the continuing violence against Christians in Orissa and Karnataka.
In the last 72 hours, 30 Christians were martyred and 400 plus injured. Tens of thousands of Christians have fled to the jungles to save their lives and are subsisting on roots and herbs. Hundreds of village churches have been burnt and razed to ground. Christian nuns have been gang-raped and burnt to death. Priests have been killed and attacked with iron rods, clubs, swords, and country made guns. Alleged Hindu radicals are supposedly responsible for this utterly unbelievable carnage. It is reported that they force Christians to bow before Hindu Gods and threaten them with death if they do not denounce Christianity and accept Hinduism. Christians are targeted irrespective of age and gender. Even children are not spared from these barbaric acts. Christians are assaulted, humiliated, paraded half-naked, beaten up, their limbs mutilated, tortured, burnt alive, raped, and murdered.
There are more than 124 incidents in Orissa and more than 143 incidents in Karnataka, where Christians have been mercilessly victimized. These stupendously anti-humanity acts are not only appalling, but are also macabre, horrid, revolting, disgusting, vile and inhuman acts of violence that are big blots of shame on the secular and democratic fabric of the Indian Constitution. It is a shame that on the land of the Mahatma, where non-violence is the sacred mantra, violence is so unashamedly, unabashedly, and unabatedly propagated, instigated, and supported by few anti-social individuals or groups, in the name of religion. Christians are a peace-loving community and abhor violence of any kind. All the Christians of India and the world are mere mute spectators at the ghastly events happening in Orissa and Karnataka against their peace-loving brethren.
The international community is deeply concerned, and on 29 August 2008, a day of prayer will be observed in front of the Office of the United Nations from 12 pm to 3 pm, where innumerable Christians assembled to denounce the villainous acts perpetrated against Christians in Orissa and Karnataka.
On behalf of The Federation of Indian American Christian Organization of North America (FIACONA), I request your honorable self to urgently look into this matter, and if necessary to call the armed forces to intervene and thus stop this shameless violence.
All the Christians of India and the world look up to your intervention to stop this violence, as the constitutional machineries of Orissa and Karnataka have completely broken down. We have full faith and confidence in your abilities and are certain that you shall indeed restore peace, love and harmony, once again in these troubled states.
