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A Silent Moment
Issues of
Concern/Events
UDHR 60
Activities:
Move Media
Rights Festival (Thailand)
Film Festival
for UDHR 60 (Nepal)
ACPP’s
Backgrounder on UDHR
Respect Human
Rights of All (Japan)
12th Tji Hak Soon
Justice and Peace Award
Landslide UN Vote
in Favour of Arms Trade Treaty
Justice and Peace
Resources
10 Commandments of Environment
Social Justice
Sunday Statement 2008
Palestine and
Israel: 60 years of Refugees, War and Suffering
JPW Exchange Corner
Award for
Fr. Allwyn of India
Pax
Christi and ACPP’s Invitation: Prayers and
Wishes for Bethlehem
ACPP’s
Christmas Message 2008
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A
Silent Moment
As we journey with the Holy Family to
Bethlehem, we pray for all who make forced
journeys. Give them strength to carry on and
courage to walk the road ahead.
Wake up, little baby God
And hear our cry
As we hear the innkeeper say there is no room,
we pray for refugees for whom there is no
country. Gather them to yourself and keep them
free from harm.
Wake up, little baby God
And hear our cry
As we contemplate that first Christmas night,
we pray for those with nowhere to lay their
head. Comfort them in their need and uphold
them in their plight.
Wake up, little baby God
And hear our cry
As we listen to the cry of the infant king, we
pray for children everywhere born into poverty.
Wrap them in your love and uphold them in your
tender mercy.
Wake up, little baby God
And hear our cry
As we remember the fear of the shepherds in
the presence of the angels, we pray for all who are
afraid to look ahead. Reassure them with your
presence and embolden them to face the future.
Wake up, little baby God
And hear our cry
As we recall the flight of the Holy Family
into Egypt, we pray for all who flee from
danger. Enfold them in your care and challenge
us to offer our protection.
Wake up, little baby God
And hear our cry
That justice may be born.
from “Protection and
comfort” by Annabel Shilson-Thomas
courtesy of CAFOD Prayer
Pack: Christmas
www.cafod.org.uk/worship
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What’s
Going On in Asia?
India
Situation in Orissa and NCJPD’s
Response
As of end of November, there were about
11 relief camps sheltering about 11,000 people who
have been displaced by the violent attacks in
Orissa. There was a decrease in the number from
October mainly because the people migrated to other
parts of the country, but not back to their
villages. There were also claims that people
were pressured to vacate the camps to show that
normalcy had been restored. Some cases, such as
the probe into various attacks including the sexual
assault of a nun, are still pending in the Supreme
Court which refused to order a CBI (or Central Bureau
of Investigation, the investigating agency of the
federal government) probe. At the same time,
violence and forced re-conversion to Hinduism are
still taking place in the state, generating fear and
terror, allegedly in part because of the impunity
enjoyed by the attackers.
After the widespread violence that
erupted in Orissa and other states following the
death of a radical Hindu leader in late August, the
National Commission for Justice, Peace and
Development (NCJPD) of the Catholic Bishops’
Conference of India (CBCI) was involved in
data-gathering, fact-finding and advocacy/lobbying
work at various levels. In September, the NCJPD
and Commission for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes
and Backward Castes organized a fact finding mission
with Archbishop Raphael Cheenath of
Cuttack-Bhubaneswar. They met Christians who
fled their villages and those sheltered by local
Christians in other villages, as well as leaders of
Christian denominations and the civil society.
However, they were not able to enter Kandhamal,
the epicenter of the violence.
The NCJPD also organized several
meetings in October, such as a meeting of CBCI
secretaries of various commissions, and issued a
pastoral letter, as well as a joint statement.
Another meeting for bishops and key leaders of
affected dioceses was organized in November in
Kolkata. Each diocese represented came up with
its own action plan with agreement of inter-diocesan
and regional level collaboration in times of
conflict.
Meanwhile, the issue has also been
brought up at the United Nations Human Rights
Council, and international pressure on Indian
authorities was also mobilized through the Justice
and Peace Commission of Episcopal Conferences and
through Urgent Appeals with Hotline Asia.
Continued vigilance is needed, as it was
reported that the Hindu fundamentalist groups are
threatening to organize a bandh (closure) all over
Orissa on Christmas day if the Orissa government
fails to arrest the culprits responsible for the
murder of their leader. This is another
potential occasion for similar violence. In
December 2007, there was destruction and burning of
properties of Christians and attacks on the community
that started on Christmas eve in Kandhamal, the same
district of Orissa.
Sources: NCJPD
Human Chain in Mumbai
To express their commitment to peace,
people in Mumbai, under the banner of “Mumbai
for Peace: a campaign of Mumbai-based
organizations,” organized a “human
chain” on 12 December, where they held hands in
unity from 12 noon for 15 minutes. There were
long chains extending to the eastern and western
suburbs, comprised of schoolchildren in uniforms,
office workers, city employees, commuters and senior
citizens. Many of them expressed anger at what
they see as the failure by the security and
intelligence apparatus to prevent the earlier
terrorist attack in their city and other earlier
bombings in the country over the last year.
This is a non-violent response to the
bomb blasts and attacks on 26-29 November that
started in the Chatrapathi Shivaji Terminus (CST)
railway station and followed in major hotels such as
the Taj Mahal and Oberoi-Trident, as well as the
Jewish Centre in Mumbai. It is reported that
around 188 were killed in this attack, including 2
Jewish leaders, and migrants from different parts of
India.
A pledge was made to show their
commitment to building a world based on the
principles of tolerance and peace, equality and
justice, by refusing to give in to terror, violence,
hatred and intolerance.
They also spelled out 10 expectations to
the government to ensure long-term peace and
non-violence in the country. Among the
expectations are: mapping out strategies and taking
action on them; punishment for those responsible for
violent attacks; a comprehensive Communal Violence
Bill; implementation of police reform with active
facilitation of community participation in security
gathering; ensuring moderation and sensitivity in
media reporting of violence; and evolving a policy
for legal action against hate speech.
For more information, please go to the
Citizens’ Initiative for Peace web site: www.mumbaicitizens.com.
Sources:
Citizens’ Initiative for Peace, NDTV.com,
Reuters India
Sri Lanka
Prison Week in Sri Lanka
During Prison Week (1-7 September 2008),
the Kandy Human Rights Office organized a programme
on values education at the Bogambara prison, Kandy,
where there are more than 2,500 prisoners who are
either in remand or have been sentenced.
The programme, which took place on 3
September, started with a prayer service organized by
the prison chaplain, followed by a cultural programme
with 48 children, youth and a few adults presenting
messages with song and dance. There was also a
drama presented by the prisoners, which highlighted
the need to address issues of rehabilitation, welfare
and assistance to their families, especially children
of long-term prisoners.
Ten scholarships were presented to
children of prisoners along with school books.
Fr. Nandana Manatunga of Human Rights Office and Mr.
U.H. Ranil Kumara, the welfare officer, addressed the
gathering and one of the prisoners who is serving
life imprisonment delivered the vote of thanks,
especially grateful that his 16-year-old daughter
received a scholarship.
The Prison Week was organized by the
prison welfare officers to draw attention of the
general public about prisoners, prison conditions and
the need to assist families of prisoners.
Source: Human
Rights Office (Kandy, Sri Lanka)
Thailand
Human Rights as Answer to Political
Turmoil
In the midst of political turmoil in
Thailand, Thai Catholics called for peace and
harmony. Under the context of the escalating
conflict between the ruling party and the opposition,
"practicing human rights by reducing prejudice
and respecting differences among us" was chosen
as the slogan for Human Rights Day for the Catholic
Church in Thailand on 16 November 2008. The
Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace prepared a
message, Treat
Human Rights with Positive Attitude and Respect for
Difference, for this occasion. Bp.
Philip Banchong Chaiyara, president of the Justice
and Peace Commission, urged citizens to respect
freedom of expression and different opinion of
others.
On 2 December 2008, the crisis was
settled after the Constitutional Court held that the
People Power Party was guilty of election fraud and
should be dissolved. It is foreseeable that
without tolerance to different opinions, stability
cannot be sustained.
Sources:
AsiaNews, CCJP-Thailand
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Issues
of Concern/Events
The following articles are excerpts from various
sources and information channelled to ACPP-Hotline
Asia, on topics of concern identified by the network
at the recent JPW meetings.
UDHR 60 Activities
International Human Rights Day on 10
December 2008 marked the 60th anniversary
of the adoption of the first international human
rights document, the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (UDHR). In the preamble and 30 articles,
the UDHR proclaims that human rights are the
foundation of justice and peace and everyone in the
world has inherent dignity and equal and inalienable
rights. It also laid down the principles of
indivisibility and interdependence of rights.
To reaffirm these beautiful aspirations set in the
UDHR, the United Nations, many non-governmental
organizations and some governments held activities to
observe the 60th anniversary of the UDHR
(UDHR 60). Some activities are highlighted
below.
Move Media Rights Festival
(Thailand)
Movie is a powerful tool that can
lead us to have better understanding of issues in our
communities and other countries with a human rights
perspective. It is the first time for Bangkok,
Thailand to hold the international human rights film
festival, “Move Media Rights
Festival”. The event was scheduled on
11-19 December 2008 to celebrate UDHR 60.
Thematic issues, such as global warming and
environmental rights, human trafficking, right to
education, children and women rights, death penalty,
rights of refugees and migrant workers, rights of
ethnic minorities and indigenous people, were
highlighted in the film festival. Besides
screening of human rights films, there were also
workshops and a seminar to create dialogue and
enhance awareness of the public regarding the issues
of concern in Asia.
Source:
Move Media Rights Festival
Film Festival for UDHR 60 (Nepal)
The United Nations Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal (OHCHR-Nepal)
and its partners also used movie as a means to
promote human rights as a universal
value. A film festival for the public was
launched in Kathmandu on 1-6 December 2008.
Thematic issues, such as human rights in general,
forced displacement, women’s rights,
children’s rights, and ending impunity for human
rights violations, were introduced.
You can find out about other
interesting activities held by the OHCHR in their
website: http://nepal.ohchr.org.
Source:
OHCHR-Nepal
ACPP’s
Backgrounder on UDHR
To resonate the landmark event of
UDHR 60, the Asian Center for the Progress of
Peoples (ACPP) has produced a Backgrounder on the
UDHR, UDHR-a
response to demands of human dignity, to
re-visit the provisions of the UDHR as well as the
Christian basis of human rights.
Respect for human rights is part of
our faith, which can be found in various parts in the
Compendium
of the Social Doctrine of the Church.
In the document, late Pope John Paul II gives an
inspirational definition and application of human
rights in his World Day of Peace Message in 1999:
Human rights correspond to the
demands of human dignity and entail the fulfillment
of the essential needs of the person in material and
spiritual spheres. They apply to every stage of
life and to every political, social, economic and
cultural situation. The integral promotion of
every category of human rights is the true guarantee
of full respect for each individual right.
Noting the gap between aspiration and
implementation of universal human rights, ACPP
works to promote human rights, as well as to
scrutinize the government’s observance of human
rights and address of human rights violations.
As such, the ACPP, which has been issuing Urgent
Appeals (UAs) to call for intervention on
cases of injustice, invokes the UDHR or other
international human rights instruments as grounds to
request governments concerned to adhere to their
obligations, not only to respect and protect human
rights, but also to fulfill them.
To download the full text of the
Backgrounder, please visit the ACPP’s
website at http://www.acpp.org/uappeals/bground/udhr60.htm.
You are invited to participate in the ACPP’s
human rights work, such as responding to ACPP’s
UAs to express international solidarity.
To subscribe to UAs and other publications of
the ACPP, please email your contact details to
ACPP at hotline@acpp.org.
Source:
ACPP
Respect Human Rights of All
(Japan)
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference
of Japan published a message, Respect
Human Rights of All, on International
Human Rights Day to recall the universality of human
rights which is bestowed by God and recognized in the
UDHR. Concerning human rights violations, the
message underlined the rise of market fundamentalism
and the pressing issue of environmental problems and
income inequalities which ultimately threaten the
survival of the poor.
To respond to these human rights
issues, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of
Japan suggested two approaches, illuminated by late
Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, to
illustrate individuals’ and governments’
responsibilities to promote and protect human rights.
“I would however like to
emphasize that no human right is safe if we fail to
commit ourselves to safeguarding all of them. When
the violation of any fundamental human right is
accepted without reaction, all other rights are
placed at risk. It is therefore essential that there
should be a global approach to the subject of human
rights and a serious commitment to defend them”. (Late
Pope John Paul II)
“Every State has the primary
duty to protect its own population from grave and
sustained violations of human rights, as well as from
the consequences of humanitarian crises, whether
natural or man-made”. (Pope Benedict
XVI)
In light of the teaching from
Christian faith and international human rights
standards, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of
Japan advocates human rights promotion as a
strategy to realize human dignity for all.
Source: The
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Japan
12th Tji
Hak Soon Justice and Peace Award
Tji Hak Soon Justice and Peace Award
was founded in 1997 as a memorial to the late Bp.
Daniel Tji Hak-soon (1921-1993) for his work for
social justice and democracy. The Tji Hak Soon
Justice and Peace Award aims to keep on the spirit of
Bp. Tji, by supporting organizations or individuals
who have contributed to the Justice and Peace of
Humanity. Organizations or individuals who work
for democracy, human rights, peace and
reconciliation, right to self-determination, and
social justice can qualify as a nominee.
Winners of the Award are given a cash prize of USD
10,000.
The National Commission for Justice
and Peace of Pakistan and the ACPP were
recipients of the Award in 2001 and 2003,
respectively. For more information on the
Award, please visit website of the Tji Hak-Soon
Justice and Peace Foundation at
http://www.justice.or.kr/e_index.html.
Source: Tji
Hak-Soon Justice and Peace Foundation
Landslide UN Vote in favour of
Arms Trade Treaty
Every day, over 1,000 people are
killed directly by firearms and many thousands more
die indirectly from armed violence or are displaced,
raped and tortured. Since the UN process
started in December 2006, approximately 695,000
people have been killed directly with firearms,
illustrating the urgent need for an Arms Trade Treaty
(ATT).
Caritas Internationalis has long been
working towards global peace through
disarmament. It has become part of the group
that has been working for the ATT – an
initiative originally launched by Dr. Oscar Arias and
seven other Nobel Laureates in 1997. Today, the
initiative has gained the support of governments,
civil society and Peace Laureates worldwide.
In October, Mr. Didier Destremau, former French
Diplomat and Fr. Nithiya Sagayam OFM Cap., Executive
Secretary of National Commission for Justice, Peace
and Development (NCJPD) India, represented Caritas
Francein lobbying the United Nations for more urgency
from states, ensuring a strong Treaty on Arms Trade
with human rights and development aspects. Both
were keen to take this peace initiative forward
through awareness-building, especially among youth
and women through training and publications on the
ATT and giving focus on involving parliamentarians to
implement a strong and legally binding treaty.
145 states, mainly from Africa, South
and Central America and Europe, voted in favour of
the treaty, indicating strong demand for arms control
from countries affected by armed violence and from
major exporters. Although the US and Zimbabwe
voted against it, the result showed a definite
“no” to the irresponsible arms transfer
which have flooded the world’s conflict zones.
Source:
NCJPD
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Justice and
Peace Resources
10 Commandments of Environment
On World Environment Day, 5 June
2008, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace
published the 10 Commandments of Environment.
Bp. Giampaolo Crepaldi, Secretary of the Council,
explained that the Commandments were the important
aspects on environment extracted from the Compendium
of Social Doctrine of the Church. He stressed
that "nothing in this world exists outside the
divine plan of creation and redemption.”
The Commandments remind us that
nature is a gift from our Creator and is for the
collective good of the human family, thus we also
share the collective responsibility to preserve
it. Therefore, we should not regard nature as
an instrument which can be manipulated and
exploited. Concerning development, economic
development needs to take into account the integrity
and rhythm of nature, as well as the livelihood of
the people in the poorest regions. The practice
of a self-disciplined lifestyle is also a way to
protect the nature.
Please find the full text of the 10
Commandments from Catholic.net’s website: http://www.catholic.net/index.php?id=499&option=dedestaca.
Sources:
CathNews, Zenit
Social Justice Sunday Statement
2008
Back in 1992, the Australian Catholic
Bishops Conference (ACBC) already voiced their
concern about the growing disparity and the issue of
poverty and the underclass in Australia income
in its statement, In 2008, A Rich Young Nation:
The Common Wealth for the Common Good. challenge
of affluence and poverty in concern Australia,
was issued to reiterate the Church’s over
consumerism and economic justice.
The Social Justice Sunday Statement
of the ACBC advocated that we should re-examine our
lifestyle and choose to live more simply and in
solidarity with the poor. It also observed that
people were trapped in consumerism and in debt to
purchase luxury goods. Ultimately, people have
to overwork to maintain their material life.
Moreover, people are opposed to tax reforms as a
means of redistribution of wealth in the society, to
help people living in poverty. In this context,
the Bishops called for a sustainable reform to the
structural problem.
Parishes, schools and groups can
order printed copies of the booklet from the
Australian Social Justice Council (ACSJC) Secretariat
(www.socialjustice.catholic.org.au). Electronic
copies can be downloaded from the websites of ACSJC
and/or the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference
(www.acbc.catholic.org.au).
Source:
Justice Trends
Palestine and Israel: 60 years of
Refugees, War and Suffering
The Australian Catholic Social
Justice Council (ACSJC) published Palestine
and Israel: 60 years of refugees, war and suffering
in its Catholic Social Justice Series in June 2008 to
recognize the suffering of both Palestinians and
Israelis and as an effort to
seek reconciliation, justice and peace.
The author, Peter Manning, a veteran
journalist and academic, expressed that the religious
and historical significance of the region; the events
of Holocaust; the humanitarian crisis in Palestine
and Israel; and the impact to regional and
international security are the grounds for us to be
concerned about the crisis. In the paper, he
gave an overview of the historical background of the
conflict between Palestine and Israel, the decades of
occupation and resistance, peace plan, involvement of
the Australian government, position of church, and
suggested actions. Let’s remember the
plight of Palestine.
Sources:
Palestine and Israel: 60 years of refugees, war and
suffering, ACSJC
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JPW Exchange
Corner
Award for Fr. Allwyn of India
The Catholic Priests’ Conference
of India (CPCI) presented the CPCI Award for
Excellence to Fr. Allwyn D’ Silva of Mumbai
Archdiocese, for his untiring efforts in setting up
an alternative ministry of promoting Human Rights as
a Diocesan Priest.
In the citation, Fr. Allwyn is
described as having the “traditional life of a
diocesan priest and the modern life of a Human Rights
activist with his commitment for a new face of the
Church of India which is dialogical in its basic
attitude open to the Indian culture, oriented towards
Human Rights and in solidarity with the struggle for
justice.”
With his vision of a “God who is
Provident and Just for all people,” Fr. Allwyn
joined other awardees who have shown outstanding
achievements in different fields of ministry, at the
Award presentation ceremony held at St. Pius College,
Mumbai, during the annual get-together of diocesan
priests on 4 December.
The CPCI is a national voluntary
organization of diocesan priests, founded in 1987,
with its headquarters in Bangalore. The Award
is meant to recognize and appreciate diocesan priests
who have excelled in different sections of service to
humanity, like education, developmental work, human
rights, alternative ministry, health, art and
culture, pastoral work, media and communication,
legal ministry, literature and academics.
Awardees were selected by a committee specially
constituted by CPCI and headed by its national
president Fr. Sebastian Poomattam of Raipur Diocese.
Source: CPCI
Pax Christi and ACPP’s
Invitation: Prayers and Wishes for Bethlehem
While many of us in Asia can prepare
and celebrate Christmas in the security and comfort
of our homes, people in Bethlehem, the birthplace of
Jesus Christ, will again celebrate the season in a
difficult climate. Concerns on violence, peace
and security, and justice issues continue due to the
conflict between Palestine and Israel.
Nonetheless, many individuals and groups persist in
searching for non-violent ways to voice their rights
and work for a peaceful and just future. Your
wishes and prayers can break through feelings of
isolation and will bring hope to the people in
Bethlehem.
Pax Christi International and the ACPP
are supporting the joint campaign put forth by the
Arab Educational Institute and other groups in
Palestine as well as the World Council of Churches
and its Palestine Israel Ecumenical Forum.
Please send your wishes and prayers
for justice and peace to the Arab Educational
Institute at aei@p-ol.com
before 7 January (Eastern Christmas). Messages
collected will be printed and handed out as personal
messages, educational materials (at schools), in the
context of interfaith prayers and in the newly
established peace house of the Arab Educational
Institute opposite the Wall at Rachel’s Tomb in
Bethlehem.
For details please visit the web
sites of:
ACPP (http://www.acpp.org/jpc/campaigns/sa081202.htm)
or Pax Christi (http://www.paxchristi.net/international/xmas/eng.htm).
ACPP is also collecting
Chinese and English messages through Facebook.
Those with Facebook accounts, can participate in the
event: “Collection of Wishes and Prayers for
Bethlehem” hosted by Social Concern Group (HK)
at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/event.php?eid=48951078948.
Sources: Pax
Christi International, ACPP
ACPP’s
Christmas Message 2008
This year, ACPP’s
Christmas Message is about promoting human
dignity, which corresponds to the theme of 60th
Anniversary of Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. Everyone is invited to participate in
God’s work of restoring human dignity to all.
The message is available at ACPP
web site at www.acpp.org or by sending your address
to hotline@acpp.org.
Source: ACPP
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