: Pope urges India PM to guarantee religious freedom : By Luke Baker : ROME, June 26 (Reuters) - Pope John Paul on Monday urged Indian Prime : Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, who is in Italy for a two-day state : visit, to guarantee religious freedoms in his predominantly Hindu : country. : ``The Holy Father took the opportunity once again to underline the : importance of religious freedom,'' Chief Vatican spokesman Joaquin : Navarro-Valls said in a statement after Vajpayee's 15-minute audience : with the Pope. : ``The tradition of religious freedom in India has been damaged by : recent acts of violence, of which Christians, and the Catholic Church : in particular, have been victims,'' he added. : Last week, vandals struck a cemetery in the southern Indian town of : Rajahmundry, damaging crosses on 40 graves. It was the latest in a : series of attacks on the Christian community this year. : Over a dozen people, including a priest, have been killed and churches : burnt in attacks, which Indian officials have accused arch-foe Pakistan : of engineering. Pakistan denies the charges and others believe militant : Hindu factions are to blame. : On the eve of his visit, Vajpayee asked India's state governments to : investigate every incident of violence against Christians and to take : speedy action against the culprits. : ``My government is committed to upholding the law of the land which : guarantees equal rights to all our citizens without any discrimination, : but no rights to anybody or any organisation... to spread ill-will and : hatred,'' he said. : The Pope visited India in November last year when he praised the nation : for its religious tolerance, saying it was greater than in many : countries. : Christians make up less than two percent of India's one billion people, : while Hindus account for about 85 percent. : INDIA OFFERS ITALY HIGH TECH AID : Vajpayee later met Italian Prime Minister Giuliano Amato for talks on : expanding trade between the countries, particularly in the information : technology sector. : Italy is India's fourth biggest trading partner within the European : Union, but the value of trade, at just over $2 billion, is still small. : In a speech delivered to the Italian-Indian business community, : Vajpayee said the target would be to expand two-way trade flows to $5 : billion by 2004 and $10 billion by 2009. : It is also hoped Italian foreign direct investment in India, totalling : less than $1.3 billion over the past decade, will accelerate sharply, : particularly given that India's economy is growing at over six percent : a year, Vajpayee said. : After the speech, India's National Association of Software and Service : Companies (NASSC) announced Italy had requested 100 software trainers : be sent from India to help train Italian software professionals. Italy : has a huge shortage of IT professionals. : In return, Italy planned to smooth the way for Indian companies looking : to set up in Italy and to provide Indian professionals with ``liberal'' : work permits. : Vajpayee was due to leave for Portugal on Monday for an India-EU summit. : Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ : Before you buy. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html <A HREF="http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
