Indian bishops: No to Gujarat anti-conversion law
Bishops of the western state have described as "unconstitutional and discriminatory" amendments approved by the state parliament. They explain that conversion is a personal grace, in which earthly power should not interfere.
Gandhinagar (AsiaNews) Bishops of the western state of Gujarat have "called on the governor not to approve amendments to the law on religious freedom" because they are "unconstitutional and discriminatory" not only for Christians "but for all non Hindu religions".
In an open letter dated 20 September, Mgr Stanslaus Femandes SJ, Archbishop of Gandhinagar and secretary-general of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India, and Mgr Thomas Macwan, Bishop of Ahmedabad, asked Nava Kishore Sharma, the highest state authority, if these "draconian" amendments were based on any presuppositions.
The bishops said they were "surprised by how hard the proposal was" and asked "if any cases of forced conversion had been proved in the State". The bishops further said that "conversion is an inner grace: no power on earth can intervene in freedom of conscience. Any interference is out of place and inopportune".
The Parliament of Gujarat adopted the Freedom of Religion Act in 2003, de facto making any conversions illegal. The new version, approved on 19 September last, does not clearly define what "forced conversion" means, but it does clearly define to whom it applies. Christians have often been accused of such practices. The amended text reads: "Conversion means making someone give up their religion for another, however it does not however mean changing denomination within the same religion." In its classification, the new law groups Jains, Hindus and Buddhists into the same religion, and it does the same with Protestants and Catholics, Shiites and Sunnis. The text makes no mention of Sikhs; there are 19 million in the country.
According to Gujarat's opposition leader Arjun Modhvadia, the law won't survive legal challenges. "Buddhism was given the status of a separate religion by the National Commission for Minorities Act in 1992. As for Jains, they were given the same status by a division bench of the Supreme Court in 2004." More extremist elements in the government wanted to include Sikhism under Hinduism, but the proposal was rejected for fear of protests.
In their letter, the two bishops said: "The punishment for those committing this so-called crime is much more severe for members of lower castes; this is not right." Moreover, the very premise on which the legal elements of the amendments are based "goes against Article 25 of the Constitutions of India, which guarantees the freedom of conscience and freedom of profession, practice and propagation of religion" and "against Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights ratified by India".
The bishops added: "Further, the constant commitment of the Church in favour of interfaith harmony should be taken into account. For all these reasons, the amendments should not be approved."
.png)
