By Sahil Pandey Patna: In the wake of Bihar elections, Congress leader Randeep Surjewala on Sunday asserted that the results of the Bihar elections would change the dominance of caste and religion in politics and hoped that this would give a new dimension to electoral politics in the nation.
“Bihar will break the caste and religion barrier and will give way for the rest of the country to follow. The Bharatiya Janata Party divided the country through fear, hatred and religion. Prices of farm produce and aspirations of the weaker sections have taken a backseat,” Surjewala said in Patna.
The Congress leader further said that Bihar has always changed the politics in the country and highlighted that the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-Congress and other left were not fighting for power but for change in the system.
“RJD-Congress and other left parties are not just trying to capture for power but this alliance is a change in the system and will do what is important for Bihar. I earlier claimed that Mahagathbandan will get over 150 seats. We will not fight for seats but will fight for Bihar,” he added.
Reacting on the exit polls, Surjewala said, “The people of Bihar voted for change. A tired government of the BJP and JDU has pushed Bihar into a bad state. I hope people have voted for a new youthful and energetic government. The verdict of the people is sealed in the EVM. I know TV surveys showed us in the majority but the final result will be out on November 10.”
Exit polls differed in their prediction of tallies of major players in Bihar assembly polls on Saturday with most predicting an edge for Mahagathbandhan or its victory. While some predicted that the ruling NDA and Mahagathbandhan were in the contest for the halfway mark in 243-member assembly, others predicted a clear victory for the opposition alliance.
The former Chief Rabbi of Britain and the Commowealth, Lord Jonathan Sacks, died Saturday morning at the age of 72, after being diagnosed with cancer nearly a month earlier. Lord Sacks was born in London on 8 March 1948 and lead the British Orthodox Jewish community from 1991 to 2013. He was known as a prolific writer on key issues of our times, including secularism, individualism and religion. His fame reached well beyond the Jewish community in Britain and in 2016 Lord Sacks was awarded the “Templeton Prize for Progress Toward Research or Discoveries about Spiritual Realities”.
In a message, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, President of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW), paid tribute to a man he describes as “a friend” and “an eloquent proponent of some of the greatest truths of humanity.”
A friend, a leader, an eloquent spokesman for humanity
“I recall with clarity some of his forceful and persuasive presentations of the truths expressed in Judaism and indeed in the Christian faith, truths which help us to make sense of our lives, our communities and our destinies”, Cardinal Nichols wrote in his message. He went on to recall his meeting with Pope Benedict at St Mary’s University on 17 September 2010, in which Lord Sacks quoted St. John Henry Newman, who said: “We should ever conduct ourselves towards our enemy as if he were one day to be our friend” and gave eloquent expression to the shared Jewish and Christian beliefs with these poignant words: “In the face of a deeply individualistic culture we offer community. Against consumerism, we talk about the things that have value but not a price. Against cynicism, we dare to admire and respect. In the face of fragmenting families, we believe in consecrating relationships”.
Cardinal Nichols concluded his message, adding, “I have lost a friend; the Jewish community a great leader; humanity an eloquent spokesman”.
A deep commitment to interpersonal relationships
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, praised Lord Sacks’ leadership and his “deep commitment to interpersonal relationships”. “You couldn’t help but be swept up in his delight at living, his sense of humour, his kindness, and his desire to know, understand and value others,” he said. Other messages have been sent by a number of political and religious leaders, including British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Addressing the World Health Assembly, which resumed proceedings on Monday after its annual session in May was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, Tedros said the world had achieved a “great convergence” in 2015 when governments adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on finance for development.
It’s time to forge a new era of cooperation, that puts health and well-being at the centre of our common future.
The rules of the game are: -cooperation -solidarity -compassion -peace.
“Since then, the creeping tides of misguided nationalism and isolationism have eroded that sense of common purpose. The Paris Agreement has been undermined; the commitments made in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda have gone largely unfulfilled; and although there has been progress toward the SDGs, too often our efforts have remained siloed and splintered”, he said.
The pandemic had set the SDGs back even further while also providing evidence of their importance, he added.
“However, we must be honest: we can only realise the full power and potential of the SDGs if the international community urgently recaptures the sense of common purpose that gave birth to them. In that spirit, we congratulate President Elect Joe Biden and Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris and we look forward to working with their administration very closely.”
Tedros said it was time for a new era of cooperation, with emphasis on health and well-being globally.
“It’s time for the world to heal – from the ravages of this pandemic, and the geopolitical divisions that only drive us further into the chasm of an unhealthier, un-safer and unfairer future”, he said.
‘Fork in the road’
“The world has reached a fork in the road. We cannot afford to pump carbon dioxide into the atmosphere at the same rate and still breathe clean air. We must choose.
We cannot afford ever-deepening inequalities and expect continued peace and prosperity. We must choose. And we cannot afford to see health merely as a by-product of development, or a commodity that only the rich can afford”, he said.
“Today and every day, we must choose health. We’re one big family.”
Hate speech and the role of religion in conflicts are on the agenda for this year’s meeting but the main focus is on how women regard political leadership and responsibility and the big challenges facing humanity.
Religions for Peace (RfP), which describes itself as the biggest interreligious NGO in the world, is seeking answers to the drift away from traditional diplomacy and its emphasis on multilateralism and mutual reliability between states toward nationalism and populism, often culminating in violence.
The RfP’s 50th anniversary year, like almost everything else in 2020, has been overshadowed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The same goes for the conference “Women, Faith & Diplomacy”. Lectures and debates are all happening online. Azza Karam, general secretary of the RfP, the first woman in the post, is one of the few to have come from abroad. Her stay will include daily tests for Covid-19.
Karam says the conference is to be seen as a forum for exchange and moral support for the global community at a time of crisis. “The exchange here gives us the opportunity to understand that we are all at a critical juncture in world history. Not just because of the pandemic, but also because of a worsening environment that affects the hundreds of millions of lives and challenges national health services.” Karam, an Egyptian-born citizen of the Netherlands who served as an adviser to the United Nations on culture and religion, has been resident in the United States for twenty years. She has devoted her career to issues of religion, democracy, development, human rights, and gender.
For her, the conference on “Women, Faith & Diplomacy” is about finding a connection of global relevance. In her view, people of faith can bring about a “new kind of leadership and diplomacy” on both the micro and the macro levels.
Last year’s Religion for Peace conference in Lindau was attended by more than 1,000 religious figures
Religion dominated by men
Azza Karam combines her agenda with a critical look at organized religion. “Today, religion is dominated by men,” she says, adding that religious institutions “prioritized men” in their search for solutions and expertise. At the same time, she says. 90 percent of religious work is done by women. “They are the ones who ensure that religions can survive,” Karam says women have a different style of leadership and always see their responsibilities as part of a service. One example she gives is the widespread admiration for the German chancellor Angela Merkel. “She is a great model for many, many women in the world. And for many men, too.” Karam says her desire to see a different style of leadership applies to men and women and aims to make space for a more inclusive and sensitive approach to people and their problems.
The delegates run the gamut of world religions and regions: there are female delegates from the Arab World, a Catholic nun from Nigeria, human rights activists and environmentalists from Cameroon, Zambia and other African countries and elsewhere in the world, such as Asia, the Balkans, or Latin America. There’s even a female bishop from Sweden, along with a series of participants who have played a leading role in interreligious dialogue or science. The conference will open with messages from the UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres and the German government.
The Lindau conference brings people together — in the year of the COVID-19 pandemic things will be different
Peace and light
A large wooden sculpture entitled the “Ring for Peace” (pictured above) will take center stage at a small service called “peace and light”. The artwork was unveiled last year by RfP in Lindau’s main park.
This year’s service at the wooden sculpture will be streamed live
The pandemic has affected both the organization and the theme of the event. Azza Karam: “We are in a moment when we must stand together as people and a family of people and recognize that any threat to the individual is a threat to everyone. At the same time, it’s a special moment for diplomacy.”
Tropical storm Eta hit the Florida Keys late on Sunday night, after wreaking devastation through parts of Central America over the weekend.
After having travelled and destroyed parts of Mexico, Cuba and Guatemala, authorities in Florida are asking that people “please take this very seriously”, and urging them to follow rules and protocol.
The National Hurricane Centre has warned that Storm Eta is likely to bring with it “strong winds, heavy rains and dangerous storm surge” over parts of South Florida and the Florida Keys.
In preparation, the closure of schools, public transport, and beaches has been ordered, and shelters have been opened for people living in mobile homes, parks and campgrounds in low-lying areas as they will be evacuated.
Pope Francis on Sunday prayed for all the victims of the storm in Central America. Eta, he said, has caused “many victims and considerable damage”, aggravating “the already difficult situation of the pandemic”.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Pope prayed that the Lord might “welcome the dead, comfort their families and support those who are most affected, as well as all those who are working hard to help them”.
At least 20 people were killed in Mexico, around 17 in Panama and 10 in Honduras, where hundreds of people are reportedly waiting to be rescued from flooded areas.
In Guatemala, homes were buried by mudslides, leaving some 150 people either dead or missing. Luckily, ahead of the storm’s arrival, Cuba had already evacuated tens of thousands of people. State media reported that there had been “no loss of life or significant damage to homes”.
In August 2020, a new surge in locally transmitted cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was reported in Rakhine State and other regions of Myanmar. According to the Ministry of Health and Sports, as of 30 October, 50 403 confirmed cases have been reported in Myanmar, with 2 858 confirmed cases in Rakhine State.
Consequently, to control the spread of COVID-19, Myanmar’s government introduced measures such as stay at home orders, banning of public events and closure of schools, entertainment venues, restaurants, and religious institutions as well as well restriction of movement within the state/between townships.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), these measures, which were introduced on August 16, have affected the continuity of humanitarian operations. The measures introduced in Rakhine State have necessitated the introduction of new ways of working.
In response to the measures taken by the government of Myanmar, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has introduced stringent protocols to be used in its field operations for COVID-19 prevention and control such as the use of personal protective equipment, guidelines for physical distancing and hygiene, and basic awareness messages in its programming. These protocols will help ensure continued delivery of assistance.
In partnership with the European Union (EU), from 13 to 28 October 2020 the FAO has completed unconditional cash distributions to 1 513 pregnant and lactating mothers in Buthidaung, Kyauktaw, Maungdaw, and Rathedaung townships in Rakhine State. The cash transfer for pregnant and lactating women (PLW) is complementary (top up) to the Government Maternal and Child Cash Transfer (MCCT). This cash will cover the nutritional needs of pregnant and lactating mothers and their infants. Along with these cash grants, face masks and bar soap were provided to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
The assistance was provided within the framework of a three-year project titled “Improving food security and nutrition security in Rakhine State.” The objective of this project is to increase the resilience of livelihoods to natural hazards and conflicts. Specifically, the EU-funded project aims to restore and protect agricultural livelihoods in the vulnerable communities of Buthidaung, Kyauktaw, Maungdaw, and Rathedaung townships in Rakhine State.
According to Reda Lebtahi, the emergency and rehabilitation coordinator of the FAO, several localized assessments have found that the impact of restrictions on movement has varied in different states and regions and across sectors. Measures against COVID-19 were found in the areas where research was conducted to have had a significant impact on food production, market access, the quality and prices of agricultural inputs, employment, and income generation.
“This unconditional, one-time cash grant specifically targeting women, particularly pregnant and lactating women with children under two years of age, ensures that mothers will continue to have the resources to access nutritious foods as well as improved incomes and knowledge of nutrition to improve their diets,” the FAO Emergency rehabilitation coordinator emphasized.
In July 2020, the FAO also supported 6 000 of the most vulnerable farming households in northern and central Rakhine State with multi-purpose cash amounting to USD 642 000 and with various farm inputs. Findings of FAO Post Distribution Monitoring in September 2020, show that a majority of the farmers used most of the cash during the monsoon planting season, including costs for land preparation and labor. Beneficiaries also utilized the cash support for food and medical expenses.
Christians in India observed Dalit Liberation Sunday in solidarity and closeness with Christians of Dalit origin or former untouchables, who continue to face discrimination and injustice. Since 2007, the Office for Scheduled Castes-Backward Classes of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) and the National Council of Churches in India (NCCI), which comprises Protestant and Orthodox Churches, come together to mark the day on the second Sunday of November.
The word “Dalit”, derived from Sanskrit, meaning “broken” or “downtrodden”, and refers to former “untouchables,” who are so low in social status that they are considered outcasts or outside the rigid 4-tier caste system of Hindu society. As a result, through centuries, Dalits have been subjected to extreme exploitation, inhuman treatment, atrocities and poverty.
Government data shows 201 million of India’s 1.2 billion people belong to this socially deprived community. Some 60 percent of India’s 25 million Christians are of Dalit or indigenous origin. Most of the Dalit Christians are in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Focus on Dalit Women
The theme of the November 8 observance was “Challenging Caste: Affirming the Dignity of Dalit Women.”
“This land, where female deities are worshipped as power, knowledge and wealth, has become the most unsafe place for women. Facts show that Dalit women suffer the horrors more than Dalit men,” Bishop Sarat Chandra Nayak of Berhampur, chairman of the CBCI Office for SC/BC, said in his message.
He said that in recent months, many Dalit women have been targeted, attacked and brutally killed. “We bewail the fact that justice often eludes the Dalit survivors, while the perpetrators, backed by their political patrons, manipulate the law and move around scot-free.”
Change of mentality and heart
Violence against Dalits, Bishop Nayak pointed out, is often based on caste prejudice. The perpetrators consider Dalit women as mere objects to be used and thrown away. Unless there is a change in mentality in the heart, discrimination and crimes against the marginalized will continue. A change is possible only when “every family consciously and practically promotes at home the equal dignity and right of every child,” said the 63-year old bishop from the eastern state of Odisha.
He lamented that in India, intellectuals, human rights activists, civil society members and the unprejudiced media are “strategically silenced, while others become the mouthpiece of the power of the day and slaves of the privileged class”.
Dalit Liberation Sunday is an occasion for the whole Christian community to renew its responsibility toward sisters and brothers of Dalit origin, especially Christians.
1950 Presidential Order
To help the socio-economic uplift of Dalits, the Indian Constitution reserves for them special privileges and benefits such as quota in government jobs and educational institutions. However, the Constitution (Scheduled Caste) Order (Paragraph 3) that India’s first President Rajendra Prasad signed on August 10, 1950, initially stated that “…no person who professes a religion different from the Hindu religion shall be deemed to be a member of a Scheduled Caste.”
When Sikhs demanded these privileges, the Order was modified in 1956 to include them. Buddhists, too, were granted the benefits in 1990. But Muslims and Christians of low caste origin continue to be excluded despite their demands.
Dalit Christians and Muslims continue to demand the status of scheduled castes and observe the “Black Day” protest on August 10 each year against the Presidential Order of August 10, 1950. Christians separately observe Dalit Liberation Sunday Day on the second Sunday of November, demanding justice and the rights and dignity of Dalit Christians.
Thrice discriminated
According to the CBCI Office for SC/BC, Dalit Christians are thrice discriminated, namely within the Church, within society and by the State. It notes that Dalits embraced Christianity seeking a better life with dignity, but unchristian and discriminatory practices continue within the Church.
The NCCI has for decades announced zero tolerance for caste discrimination in any form. “No one can serve Christ and caste — the practice of caste is a sin and untouchability a crime,” said a November 8 statement by the NCCI. “Practice of caste in its many manifestations despite it being rendered illegal is a blot on Indian social life and polity.” It denounced the practice, either tacitly or openly, in social institutions, including in Churches and in politics. (Source: UCANEWS)
Sikyong congratulates US President-elect Joe Biden and first woman Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
The democratically elected leader of Tibetan people Sikyong Dr Lobsang Sangay congratulated United States President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris on their victory in the 2020 US presidential election. Dr Sangay said he looked forward to a renewed policy and support on Tibet under Biden’s leadership.
“On behalf of the Central Tibetan Administration and the Tibetan people, I would like to congratulate you on your election as the 46th President of the United States of America,” the Sikyong said in congratulatory message to Joe Biden.
“For decades now, the US has supported the Tibet cause on various fronts, and we are always grateful to the US and its people. However, today the concern no longer remains only for the Tibetan people; instead, today the concern is for the global democracy and the universal ideals that have come under threat from authoritarian regime such as China.”
Sikyong welcomed Biden’s recent statement avowing to meet Tibetan spiritual leader and global peace icon, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, continuing a decades-old tradition followed by US presidents since George Bush Sr, and most prominently during the presidency of Barack Obama, who hosted His Holiness four times in the White House and publicly pronounced strong support for Middle Way Policy of the Central Tibetan Administration.
Sikyong also welcomed Biden’s commitment to sanction Chinese officials responsible for human rights abuses in Tibet and said he particularly looked forward to a renewed US policy and support on the Tibet issue under his leadership.
“I genuinely admire your decades of service to the nation, and your victory is an affirmation of the trust people of the United States places in you and the values that you stand for… My sincerest congratulations and wishes on a successful term.”
Congratulating the first woman Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, he said her ascension to America’s second-highest office as first woman and the first woman of color is pathbreaking and her becoming the highest-ranking woman in the history of American government marks a new era for women in global politics and leadership.
Kamala Devi Harris, a daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants, is set to become the highest-ranking woman in the nation’s 244-year existence, as well as a high-profile representation of the country’s increasingly diverse composition.
“While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last, because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities,” Harris said. “And to the children of our country, regardless of your gender, our country has sent you a clear message: Dream with ambition, lead with conviction. And see yourselves in a way that others may not simply because they’ve never seen it before, but know that we will applaud you every step of the way.”
Black women helped propel Harris and President-elect Joe Biden to victory by elevating turnout in places like Detroit, Milwaukee and Philadelphia. Those women will finally see themselves represented in the White House as Biden and Harris replace President Trump, who started his political career by perpetuating a racist birther lie about President Barack Obama and has a long track record of making misogynistic comments.
Born in Oakland, Harris spent years as a prosecutor in the Bay Area. She was elected San Francisco district attorney in 2003 and attorney general of California in 2010, high-profile jobs in the nation’s most-populous state — but not enough to build widespread name recognition.
She easily won a Senate seat in 2016 and soon made waves in Washington. A week after being sworn into office, she subjected John F. Kelly, Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security, to forceful interrogation. She established herself as an uncompromising critic of Trump appointees, particularly during confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh and Attorney General William P. Barr.
Although Harris did not emerge as a legislative force, she signed on to or introduced several bills that had little chance of passing but were nevertheless symbolic, including Medicare-for-all and other health-care reform plans. She introduced bills aimed at reducing racial disparities in health care, the economy and the criminal justice system.
Sikyong also referenced Harris’ Indian heritage, adding that it was a matter of immense pride and inspiration for Indians across the world.
‘As you work towards the imminent challenges of restoring human rights, equality and climate change around the world, we hope that you will lend your pivotal voice to the just cause of Tibet and further strengthen decades-long US-Tibet ties.’
