What’s
Going On in Asia?
Hong
Kong
HKJP
against Death Penalty
On 30 November 2005, the Justice and Peace
Commission of the HK Catholic Diocese (HKJP), jointed
other members of the Joint Committee against the
Death Penalty (JCADP), such as Amnesty International
Hong Kong and Grassroots Cultural Center, to hold a
candle light vigil to protest the use of death
penalty. The action was part of a worldwide
initiative, started by a Catholic group, Community of
Sant'Egidio, in November 2005, to express opposition
to death penalty.
In the candle light vigil, participants protested
against the execution of the Australian national Mr.
Ngyuen Van Tuong in Singapore. Mr. Nguyen was
arrested for importing 396.2 grams of heroin to
Singapore and was convicted under the Misuse of Drugs
Act, which carries a mandatory death sentence.
JCADP and HKJP are also concerned with the widespread
use of death penalty in the People's Republic of
China. In October 2005, JCADP has urged the HK
government to play a more active role in coordinating
the information between Chinese authorities and the
family of detained Hong Kong citizens.
Source: http://www.hkjp.org/article/cnweekly051023.htm
India
Activities
of the NCJPD
The National Commission for Justice, Peace and
Development (NCJPD), Catholic Bishops' Conference of
India (CBCI) has been engaging in various issues,
such as child rights, Church concern for the
marginalized, rights of the dalits and tribals and
right to education, as well as activities, like
training on rights based approach and common action
plans with the religious JP Commissions.
COMBATTING CHILD RIGHTS VIOLATION:
In September, a two-day seminar was organized to
understand the situation of child rights violation,
as well as to schedule an action plan to combat these
violations. The sessions were given by Bishop Peter
Remigius, the Chairman of the NCJPD, Fr. Nithiya, Dr.
Gathia, Archbishop Vincent and Bishop Anil Couto of
Delhi. At the end of the seminar, it was noted that
child rights violation is present in different
sectors and forms: displaced children, abortion of
girl child, street children, sexual and physical
abused children, children induced to drugs, and
mentally and physically challenged children. In
response, it was planned that within one year, the
participants of the program would combat these
violations through: promotion of education;
empowerment of children to fight for equal rights;
use of the church institutions and media to advocate
for child rights; lobbying with government agencies
and networking with like minded groups and
individuals. To combat discrimination against the
girl child, they planned to conscientize parents and
build pubic opinion on the issue.
CHURCH CONCERN FOR THE MARGINALIZED:
In response to discrimination based on colour, creed
and ethnicity, the NCJPD is addressing the caste
system in India, together with CBCI Commission on
Scheduled Caste (Dalit) and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST)
which addresses their issues.
As it was found that most of the uneducated in India
are socially and economically marginalized people and
Christians of dalit and tribal origin, this year's
Justice Sunday message was also on the same theme to
respond to the issue. Moreover, the forthcoming theme
of the General Body meeting of the Bishops will be
"Catholic Education and the Church's concern for
the marginalised". The NCJPD with other
Commissions will be conducting consultations and
meetings in all the 12 ecclesiastical regions of the
country. At the meeting planned for 8-15 February
2006, more than 200 bishops will be participating and
working on an action plan to focus on education of
the marginalized.
NCJPD INITIATED ACTION PLANS:
In the past year, the NCJPD initiated an action plan
in the Kerala region through its 4 zones,
concentrating on the issue of the recent self-financing
of educational institutions which further
marginalizes the dalits and tribals who are already
under poverty and structural violence. In addition,
the 4 zones of Kerala are also planning to deal with
other different issues in the state level, ranging
from farmers suicide in the Northern zone, child
labour and erosion of social values in the Central
zone, land rights of dalits and migrant workers in
the Eastern zone and sea sand mining in the Southern
zone.
In collaboration with Karnataka Regional JP Forum,
the NCJPD organized a consultation on 27-28
September, with the aim for the Diocesan Commissions
for Justice and Peace and each religious
congregation's JP Commission to work together in
addressing justice issues, conflicts and human rights.
As a result of the input sessions and group
discussions, a common action plan was proposed for
Karnataka region, including training programs,
women's empowerment, documentation, networking,
advocacy and lobbying, peace-building, and education
for human rights.
RIGHTS BASED APPROACH (RBA) TRAINING:
As a continuation of the August 2004 National
training held on the Rights Based Approach (RBA)
training to social justice and peace, the NCJPD and
the Western Regional JPD Commission organized a two-day
training in Mumbai last in July 2005. Participants
came from Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat; they analysed
various forms of injustices and planned to take this
training to the local people in their local languages
for wider knowledge and empowerment for the people.
On 22-24 November, a training was held in
collaboration with a team for training in RBA and
Catholic Social Teaching. The previous participants
from the 2004 program were also active in giving
sessions and taking up issues.
Source:
CBCI-NCJPD
Japan
JCCJP's Activities for Peace
As part of the campaign to mark the 60th
Anniversary of the end of World War II, the Japan
Catholic Council for Justice and Peace (JCCJP) has
prepared some English information on the current
conditions in Japan, including its activities related
to building peace in the country and the Asian region.
In response to the message of the Catholic Bishops'
Conference of Japan, entitled "The Road to Peace
Based on Nonviolence, Now Is the Time to Be
Prophetic," the JCCJP organized a peace campaign
from 23 June 2005 to 1 January 2006. There will be
various activities such as publication of booklet
"Message of the 60th year since the end of World
War II", picture-campaign and commemorative
lectures, as well as other seminars and support for
other groups working on peace and non-violence.
The information describes the changes in political
situation, including the bad amendment to the
Constitution especially the Article 9 and the
Fundamental Law of Education, the history textbook
issue, sex slave issue and discrimination against
foreigners and migrants.
On the historical awareness and history textbook
issue, right-wing people ignore issues of the
previous war, while countries which suffered
criticize these nationalists. In response, the JCCJP
has announced a petition protesting against adoption
of the controversial history textbook and sent it to
10 of the Boards of Education in Japan. Meanwhile,
responding to the historical awareness on modern
history in Asia, historians at the civil level from
China, Japan and South Korea joined forces to produce
a combined version of the region's modern history;
the JCCJP is supporting their efforts by promoting
the book worldwide.
In order to promote awareness on the truth about sex
slaves for soldiers during the war, a museum (The
Women's Active Museum on War and Peace) was
inaugurated on 1 August 2005, aiming to show the
realities of wartime violence especially on women.
The JCCJP has made its contribution and support for
establishment of this museum.
On the issue of realignment of the US Military
Forces, which begins to make serious impact on Japan,
especially local people in Okinawa who dislike
existence of the Military base, local people and
civil organizations keep on protesting against this
plan. The JCCJP supports and participates in this
protest move. It appeared that the U.S. forces cannot
ignore local sentiments and resistance movement, and
seem to be examining an alternative place.
Among the human rights issues observed was that
foreign workers and criminals are being treated and
monitored on the same level. The JCCJP is supporting
the activities of the Catholic Commission of Japan
for Migrants, Refugees, and People on the Move which
is in charge of this issue. This is also an issue of
concern because of the new technology of control
introduced by the Immigration Bureau which is making
the Japanese society an increasingly monitored
society.
Other recent activities of the JCCJP are the "31st
National Meeting of Japan Council for Justice and
Peace" held on 23-25 September in Yokohama. (Theme:
"Don't ignore something worth caring about")
and the "Justice and Peace Fact Finding Mission"
in Tokyo, Okinawa and Hiroshima, held on 20-28
November.
For full text of the report of JCCJP (English version),
please click here.
Source:
Japan Catholic Council for Justice & Peace (JCCJP)
JCCJP hosts Justice and Peace Fact Finding Mission
2005
Following the resolution reached during the
JPW meeting in Pakistan, the Japan Catholic Council
for Justice and Peace (JCCJP) organized the Justice
and Peace Fact Finding Mission (FFM) on 20-28
November 2005 in Okinawa, Hiroshima and Tokyo. The
objectives of the FFM were: 1) to understand the
impact of the growing US military presence in the
region, 2) to know the impact of the present policies
against the people's struggle for peace, freedom and
democracy, and 3) to identify a way to consolidate
and strengthen a justice and peace network in the
region, in collaboration with different actors
working for non-violence, peace and reconciliation.
There were 11 participants from Hong Kong, India,
Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan,
Philippines, South Korea and USA, including bishops,
religious priests and nuns, and lay people. The
program of FFM included visitations to the Yasukuni
Shrine and the War Museum in Tokyo to experience the
militarism promoted by the present government; the
Peace Memorial and museum in Okinawa islands where 75%
of the US bases in Japan are located today; and the
Atomic Bomb Museum, Peace Park, and Hiroshima
National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb
Victims in Hiroshima to be exposed to the horror of
atomic bomb, as well as the desire of the people for
lasting peace in the region. They also met with
people in those communities who shared their
testimonies, including resource persons who are
actively involved in peace-building.
A recurring theme during this mission was the
protection of Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution
which has been the basis of democracy and peace
movements in Japan, promoting a culture of peace and
absolute denial of violence to solve conflicts in the
past 60 years. The Article 9 of the Constitution of
Japan is a sign of hope and a prophetic statement to
other nations that still rely on military superiority
as means of security.
After the evaluation and planning of the program, the
participants produced a statement and action plan
where they expressed on-going solidarity with
brothers and sisters who are working for a universal
culture of peace rooted in justice. They pledged to
continue to educate each other on specific political
issues that they experienced in the FFM. Grounded in
the concern for human dignity and the integrity of
creation, they pledged to collaborate in advocating
policies and peace within the Church and before the
governments. Among the common action plans agreed
were: the continuous support for Japan's peace
campaigns; appealing to the Japanese authorities and
diplomatic representatives on the issues of the FFM;
translating the statement into different languages to
make it known within the Church; and writing
solidarity letters to support activists working for
peace.
For a copy of the Justice and Peace Fact Finding
Mission statement, please click here.
This FFM is part of the JCCJP's campaign for peace,
and commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the end
of the Second World War. This is also the first
international meeting which was hosted in Japan by
the staff and members of JCCJP, and all the
participants are very appreciative of their planning,
organization and all aspects of the program by the
dedicated staff.
Source:
JCCJP, ACPP sources
Pakistan
Christian Leaders urge Pakistan President to
repeal Blasphemy Law
Christian religious leaders in Pakistan
wrote an open letter to the Pakistan President,
Pervez Musharraf, to call for justice, proper
investigations and above all an assurance that "Christians
in Pakistan are citizens like the rest", after a
series of events in Sangla Hill, Nankana district,
Punjab.
On 12 November 2005, an angry mob of around 2,000
people vandalised and set fire to three churches, a
nuns' convent, two Catholic schools, the homes of a
protestant pastor and a parish priest, a girls' hotel
and the homes of some Christians, all in the village
of Sangla Hill. The attacks were sparked by a
presumed and baseless case of blasphemy that Yusaf
Masih, a local Christian, had set the Quran on fire.
Although the parish Priest, Fr Samson Dilawar,
informed the police on Friday night about the
potential threats twelve hours before the attack, the
police only came in force three hours after the
violent crowd had dispersed.
The incident sharply reveals the ineffectiveness of
the new rules of the Blasphemy Laws, hence, the
leaders called "once more" for the laws to
be repealed, saying that their shortcomings have been
revealed "yet again". All schools belonging
to Churches were closed on November 17, as a mark of
protest.
The letter was signed by Mgr Lawrence John Saldanha,
Archbishop of Catholic Archdiocese of Lahore and
President Catholic Bishops' Conference, Reverend
Alexander J. Malik, Moderator of Church of Pakistan,
Victor Azariah, National Council of Churches in
Pakistan and Col. Gulzar Patras, Territorial
Commander of Salvation Army.
Source:
AsiaNews, NCJP
NCJP's
response to Sangla Hill incidents
Joint Resolution and Action Plan of Christian
Orgnisations:
National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP)
Pakistan organized a National Consultation Meeting on
"Ending Religious Intolerance" on 4
December 2005 at Lahore, Pakistan, in the background
of the Sangla Hill incident in which churches and
Christian properties were destroyed and burnt on 12
November 2005.
Church leaders and representatives of civil society
organizations, including NCJP, Commission for Peace
and Human Development, Centre of Legal Assistance and
Settlement (CLASS), All Pakistan Minorities Alliance,
Christian Study Centre - Rawalpindi, Justice and
Peace Commission (MSLCP)- Multan, Adal and AWARD-
Faisalabad, Human Development Centre- Toba Tek Singh,
participated to discuss strategies to weed out
religious intolerance. The meeting was followed by a
press conference, presented with a joint resolution
and plan of action of Christian organizations.
The representatives agreed that the Sangla Hill
incidents are merely one manifestation of the
alarming level of religious intolerance prevailing in
the country being fueled by hate speech and
discriminatory laws. They condemned the present
government in failing to repair the situation, as
well as hiding facts from the people of Pakistan by
concealing the extent of the abuse of Blasphemy Laws.
Hence, the participating organizations urges the
government:
- To apprehend
the instigators of the mob violence who were
responsible for abusing religion and law at
Sangla Hill without delay.
- To make public
the findings of the Judicial Inquiry
immediately.
To set free all innocent persons including
Yousuf Masih who was clearly victimized due
to his religion.
- To repeal
Blasphemy Laws, Hudood Ordinances and other
discriminatory laws and articles of the
constitution.
They also
vowed to undertake a movement to inform people of
Pakistan about the alarming conditions of intolerance
and violence due to religious apartheid in the
country. They resolved to take all peaceful and
lawful measures to combat religious intolerance till
its end.
40 days after the Sangla Hill incidents:
On 20 December 2005, the Christian Community held two
prayer meetings at Sangla Hill, one in the compound
of United Presbyterian and the other in the Catholic
Church. About 1,000 Christians participated in the
prayer, when the Christian community at Sangla Hill
completed 40 days of mourning, as practiced in the
culture.
The NCJP, in collaboration with Joint Action
Committee for Peoples Rights, held a peaceful protest
against the government. Ms. Asma Jehangir, UN Special
Rapporteur on Religious Tolerance and Chairperson of
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Mr. Joseph
Francis of CLASS and Mr. Peter Jacob of the NCJP
addressed the participants on the following concerns
and demands:
- As the abuse
of Blasphemy Laws is susceptible to creating
lawlessness, it should be repealed.
- To promote
interfaith harmony, the discriminatory laws
and policies should be removed.
- Instead of
making claims and rhetoric promises to
promote interfaith harmony, government of
Pakistan should embark on practical steps and
identify extremists and bring them to court.
- Government of
Pakistan should refrain from practicing their
own will and desire in all national affairs
and allow the real spirit of democracy to
prevail in the interest of the common people.
Source:
National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP)
Pakistan
Philippines
JPICC- AMRSP's Activities on WTO
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an
international trade body that wrought corporate
globalization. This institution which supposedly
promotes free trade, has in fact contributed to the
concentration of wealth in the hands of the rich few,
growing inequality within and between nations. In
December 2005, at the 6th Ministerial Meeting held in
Hong Kong, trade ministers will gathered to approve
amendments on trade policies, including agreements on
Agriculture, Services and trade-related intellectual
property rights. It is believed that these will
further benefit the transnational corporations and
further risk national and local economies, affecting
workers, farmers, indigenous peoples, women and other
social groups, health and safety, the environment and
animal welfare.
In response to the challenges of the neo-liberal
policies of the WTO, the Association of Major
Religious Superiors in the Philippines (AMRSP) and
its 7 mission partners, as a Church group, has
organized a campaign to show its common stance and
efforts to educate the basic sectors and the
religious on how WTO has affected the lives of the
people. They have expressed commitment to carry out
its avowed mission to be in solidarity with the poor,
and are challenged to address the grave implications
of WTO policies to the basic sectors and the
Philippine nation as a whole.
The aim of the campaign is to come up with a common
statement against the policies and lobby to the
Philippine government delegates to promote the
interest of the Filipino people during the meeting;
to conduct educational activities among the basic
sectors and the religious about WTO and how they
affect the lives of the people (social, political,
economic and cultural aspects); and to participate in
the international campaign against WTO in December,
in order to broaden the network with other Church/inter-faith
groups working for peace, justice and human rights.
Among the build-up of activities are: discussion/forum
about the WTO and Peasants in September; solidarity
with peasants and forum on General Agreement on Trade
and Services (GATS) in October; a Forum on WTO and
its implications to the basic sectors in November and
human rights activities in December. 11
representatives of AMRSP participated an ecumenical
conference in Hong Kong, as well as other related
people's movement during the People's Action week on
11-18 December 2005.
Source:
JPICC-AMRSP
Singapore
Think
Centre - Human Rights Day Message
On the International Human Rights Day, 10 December,
Think Centre has reiterated that human rights should
be viewed as a vital part of civilization. In
particular, they emphasised the sanctity of life: the
right to life is the most fundamental form of rights.
To enable coming generations to better appreciate the
value of human life, Think Centre recommends human
rights education for all to be well-informed of
international perspectives on human rights charter.
Based on these beliefs, the Centre has urged the
Singaporean government to: institutionalize human
rights education in schools and the community; and
abolish mandatory death penalty in Singapore. Since
drug-trafficking related death penalty is a prominent
problem in the country, the Centre also urged the
government to empower the Judiciary with
discretionary power on drug trafficking sentences.
Full text of the message is available at
http://www.thinkcentre.org/article.cfm?ArticleID=2680
Death Penalty in Singapore
In Singapore, the Campaign against Death Penalty
continues. Mr. Sinapan Samydorai, President of Think
Centre, reaffirms that death penalty is the ultimate
violation of the most fundamental human right, i.e.
right to life. The call has been expressed on
numerous occasions by the UN General Assembly, the
Human Rights Committee, the Economic and Social
Council and Security Council. Moreover the right to
life is also defended by Article 3 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and Article 6(2) of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR), which strictly restricts a sentence of death
to be imposed only for the "most serious crimes"
such as intentional murder.
Think Centre is currently campaigning for 2 Africans,
Mr. Iwuchuku Amara Tochi and Mr. Okele Nelson
Malachy, who are on death row due to drug trafficking.
To support the campaign, please visit http://www.thinkcentre.org
Source:
Think Centre
Thailand
CCJP Thailand's Seminar on Building
Understanding among Different Religion
The conflict in the three southernmost
provinces of Thailand - namely Yala, Pattani and
Narathiwat - has been escalating everyday since it
started nearly two years ago in January 2004. A
majority of the people living in these provinces are
Muslims who speak a southern dialect and the Yawi-Malayu
language. In most parts of Thailand, people are
Buddhist and speak Thai.
Several factors shaped this crisis, including
inequality in development opportunities;
misinterpretation of religious teachings;
misunderstanding and mistrust due to the lack of
ability to understand different languages and
cultures; illegal activities; abuse of the
authorities and laws, etc. In fact, socio-economic
and political factors are the key causes of this
conflict but not religion.
However, not many people understand clearly the
causes of the conflict and are led to believe that it
is a religious one.
In order not to fall prey to misunderstanding and to
the criminal elements who wish to ignite violence,
revenge and hatred among different sectors in the
society, the Catholic Commission for Justice and
Peace (CCJP-Thailand) supported Surat Thani Diocese -
in the southern region - to seek the truth and plan
for a proper action.
Through the invitation of Bishop Joseph Prathan
Sridarunsil, CCJP-Thailand helped contact resource
persons to share their experiences at a seminar for
priests, religious and lay Catholics on 26-28 October
2005.
The seminar was held at the Pastoral Center, Surat
Thani. There were 121 participants - 33 priest, 28
religious and 60 lay people. Dr. Sukri Wangputae, a
Muslim scholar, shared about Islam and the situation
in the south from the view point of Muslims. Fr.
Ignatius Ismartono SJ, from the Commission for Inter-religious
Dialogue and Ecumenical Affairs of Bishops'
Conference of Indonesia, shared on the topic 'Living
in a predominantly Muslim country: Indonesia'.
The important point, highlighted throughout the
seminar, was the need to understand ourselves and to
understand others. 'Being together with adherents of
different religions, believers listen to and at the
same time let themselves be addressed by the faith
and life of faith of others. A believer tries to
understand and to be open to be enriched by others
without being afraid of losing one's own, or of
robbing the richness of others,' Fr. Ismartono wrote
in his paper.
Fr. Ismartono also suggested some actions that need
to be taken for the situation to change; i.e. to
transform the atmosphere of hostility to tolerance,
dialogue and true sister-brotherhood. These actions
include visiting the conflict areas; advocating and
conducting deeper study of the cases; exchanging of
inspiration and developing respect; and collaboration.
In his paper, Fr, Ismartono also shared that the
Catholic Church in Indonesia, for example, provided
guidance to its believers on the issue through
pastoral letters.
After taking part at the seminar, CCJP concluded that
it has a big role to play in order to support the
local needs, understanding and strengthening the
unity of the people of Thailand. However, the key
player is indeed each and everyone.
(CCJP-Thailand thanks the ACPP Bangkok Desk for
translating the paper and interpreting the sharing of
Fr. Ismartono at the seminar.)
Source:
ACPP sources