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Date: Fri, 26 Apr 2002 10:17:06 +0530 Muslim and Christian Organisations defy Atal, Government statements on Gujarat, assert Genocide is a global concern URGENT JOINT STATEMENT BY MAJSLIS E MUSHAWARRAT, CATHOLIC UNION AND CHRISTIAN COUNCIL New Delhi, April 25th 2002 In a joint statement today, prominent Muslim and Christian organisations have decried the Indian and Gujarat state Government efforts to whitewash the Gujarat carnage through provocative statements by the Foreign office and cynical and misleading advertisements by the state administration in newspapers. The All India Muslim Majlis e Mushawarat, the All India Catholic Union and the All India Christian Council in a joint statement said the genocide in Gujarat, which has been violence widely compared to during the Nazi regime in Europe, is not a mere internal matter of India, but an issue of concern to every compassionate and democratic human being on the globe. Mushawarat secretary Navaid Hamid and Dr John Dayal, vice president of the Catholic Union and secretary general of the Christian Council in the joint statement said: "India believes in the concept of the world as one village, Vasudeva Kutumbakam as the ancient Texts put it. In such a global village, made more cohesive in the cyber age, the gang rape of hundreds of Muslim women, the murder of thousands of innocent children and adults in Gujarat in the past 58 days -- amounting to a carefully planned genocide by the Hindutva parivar with state connivance -- cannot go unchallenged. "We firmly believe that the entire United Nations system is on test. India is a signatory to the UN Charter, as also to the Human Rights Declaration and the Special Resolution on Religious Freedom. Neither India nor the United Nations members can run away from their responsibility in this case. India's record shows its interventions in many different countries which faced similar situations of racial and religious violence of such magnitude." "The motives of the Indian government have been exposed in the Ministry of External Affairs statement alleging that European Union and others are `interfering and taking sides in the on-going highly politically charged internal debate.' The killings and rape are not an issue of debate - they are the bitter and shameful reality. By turning the killings into a political debate, the government mocks not just the dead, but also insults Indian democracy and the rule of law", the joint statement said. "The Gujarat government has rubbed salt in the wounds of the victims by its cynical, callous and coercive advertisements in newspapers claiming it has brought the situation under control. The daily killings and the travails of the victims are proof that the state government is lying to fool international public opinion. "We join the many organisations that have demanded an international investigation into the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Bajrang Dal and all other organisations of the Hindutva parivar whose actions threaten not just the minorities of India and civil society, but also endanger international peace." For further details, please contact Navaid Hamid Ph 3261369 and John dayal 9811021072, 2722262 --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9617B Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
