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A documentary film that captures the agony of Kandhamal villagers of the eastern Indian state of Odisha is all set for release in Kerala, India.

Directed by K P Sasi, “Voice from the Ruins – Kandhamal in search of Justice,” will be screened at three different places in Kerala, southern India, in the second half of July.

The 90-minute film “not just captures the agony of the people; but narrates their journey and struggle to secure justice,” says Fr.  Ajaya Kumar Singh, a social activist who has been working among the survivors of the 2008 anti-Christian violence in Kandhamal.

V S Achuthanandan, a former Kerala chief minister and noted Communist leader, will open the film’s screening at Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala state capital, on July 19. Fr Singh and Dhirendra Panda, coordinator of the National Solidarity Forum, are scheduled to lead the discussion on the film after the screening.

The film will be first screened at Jawahar Bal Bhavan, Thrissur, on July 17 and at K P Kesavan Memorial Hall in Kozhikode the following day. Fr Singh told Matters India that the film focuses on the history of Odisha Christians and reasons for attacks on them.

Kandhamal district in Odisha is mainly inhabited by Tribals and Dalits, many of them Christians. A hate campaign against the Kandhamal Christians started in late 1960s and sustained for several decades culminating in violence in 1980s, 1990s and 2000s.

In 2008, Kandhamal witnessed the worst violence against Christians in modern India. It led to the destruction of more than 350 churches, displacement of over 56,000 people, destruction of over 6,500 houses, deaths of over 93 people and abuse of over 40 women. The survivors of the violence still struggle for proper compensation, rehabilitation and justice delivery systems.

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(Vatican Radio) Caritas Europa and its local partners have called on the French and Italian governments to take action to respect the human dignity and fundamental rights of migrants stuck in the Italian border town of Ventimiglia. Caritas says more than a thousand migrants are stranded in “dire conditions” in Ventimiglia, having being denied entry into France by border police. The standoff has escalated tensions between the two neighbouring countries over the free movement of migrants to northern Europe. Marie Tempesta is the Policy and Advocacy Officer for Caritas Europa and she spoke to Susy Hodges about this issue.

Listen to the interview with Marie Tempesta of Caritas Europa: 

Stranded in Ventimiglia with no proper reception centre, Tempesta said most of the migrants are  having to sleep out in the open in what she described as “almost disastrous conditions” and they include pregnant women, children and babies.  The fortunate ones are being housed in a local Catholic Church which has some showers in its basement but it’s not nearly enough to cater for the needs of all those stranded in the border town. Most of the migrants were from Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia but Tempesta said they include some asylum seekers from Syria. She described how the local Caritas partners were helping to distribute hygiene kits containing the bare essentials.

EU seeks to "externalise" migrant crisis

Asked about the attitude of European Union nations towards the migrants and asylum seekers and how to solve the issue, Tempesta said showing “solidarity” towards these vulnerable people is the only “effective, long-term solution” for tackling this crisis. She criticized what she called moves to “externalize” the migrant crisis in Europe by persuading third party countries to take in the migrants and prevent them from coming to the EU in the first place.

Please find below a press release from Caritas Europa on its appeal for Italy and France to take action on this issue:

“Caritas Europa, together with its members Secours Catholique-Caritas France and Caritas Italy, calls on the EU and in particular on the French and Italian governments to take action to respect the human dignity and fundamental rights of migrants stuck in Ventimiglia, Italy.

On 24 June, at Caritas Ventimiglia-San Remo’s 25th anniversary celebrations, the youngest person in the audience was Sharifa Maria, a baby girl only a few days old. She is the first baby born in the “camp” opened by Caritas Ventimiglia-San Remo to provide humanitarian assistance to migrants in Ventimiglia. But she will certainly not be the last one as several pregnant women live in the camp.

Migrants, mostly Sudanese, Eritreans and Ethiopians, arrived in Ventimiglia from Sicily with the hope of continuing their journey to France and northern Europe. However, they were blocked at the border between Italy and France. Stuck in Ventimiglia, with no access to any type of services or any proper reception centres, the families, pregnant women, children and babies are forced to sleep outside.

On 31 May, Mons. Suetta opened the church Sant’Antonio to provide a safe haven for 5,000 exhausted migrants, a place of respite for the people before they reattempt to cross the border. To further ease their suffering, Caritas Ventimiglia-San Remo, with the support of the Nice delegation of Secours Catholique-Caritas France, Caritas Monaco and other Christian and Islamic organisations, is distributing food, hygiene kits and clothes. The migrants also have access to a few showers in the basement of the church. In addition, Caritas has successfully advocated for the reopening of the reception centre in order to cover the basic needs and ensure respect for the human dignity of the migrants. The centre will finally open in a few days.

Yet, the situation remains dire and requires immediate action. Caritas Europa, Caritas Italy and Secours Catholique-Caritas France urge the EU and the Italian and French authorities to:

•             Provide for the basic needs of migrants, including those in transit, to guarantee their human dignity and refrain from using arbitrary detention or arrest;

•             Guarantee solidarity and responsibility-sharing among EU Member States and between the EU and non-EU countries; Italian and French governments must agree on a common response to the situation, respecting the fundamental rights of migrants;

•             Give priority to protecting people instead of protecting borders, with particular attention to women and children;

•             Open more safe and legal paths to come to Europe”

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(Vatican Radio) South Africa’s bishops have called on the country’s parliament to intervene in a censorship crisis regarding the reporting of violent protests ahead of elections next month.

Bishop Abel Gabuza, head of the Justice and Peace Commission of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference, has urged the parliament’s communications committee to urgently reconvene to discuss the crisis.

Philippa Hitchen reports: 

South Africa’s parliament is currently in recess until after the local government elections, due to be held on August 3rd. But Bishop Gabuza is urging its communications committee to meet and discuss the crisis engulfing the South African Broadcasting Corporation, or SABC.

In a statement, published on Wednesday, the bishop says “through its editorial policy and subsequent crisis, an impression has been created that the SABC is failing to report fully and objectively on events that have the capacity to diminish the holding of free and fair elections".

Bishop Gabuza says people will not trust the outcome of the elections if the censorship dispute is not resolved. He insists that it’s a matter of urgency to restore public confidence in the SABC, which owns three TV channels and eighteen radio stations.

The bishops’ call comes amid growing accusations of government interference and censorship at the highest levels of the public broadcasting network. In the last few months, free press activists have harshly criticized the SABC for what they see as an intensifying bias in favor of the governing African National Congress party ahead of the hotly contested local elections.

In particular the SABC’s Chief Operating Officer has been criticised for banning coverage of the sometimes violent protests that have erupted in recent months. Just two weeks ago, the bishops issued another statement warning about rising levels of electoral violence, adding that the country’s leaders have not been “visible and loud enough in their condemnation of the recent factional violence and political assassinations.” 

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Washington D.C., Jul 14, 2016 / 09:35 am (CNA).- In the wake of last week’s horrific deaths of Dallas police officers Brent Thompson, Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Michael Smith, and Patrick Zamarripa, there was a loud national cry lamenting the loss of life and demanding that the violence against police “must stop.”

I wholeheartedly share these sentiments, especially since I have family members who serve in law enforcement.

However I wonder why some do not lament the tragic loss of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile too?

As Catholics, we believe Alton and Philando are made in the image and likeness of God and are worthy of inestimable dignity and respect.

Why then the comparable silence with regard to their lives and deaths?

I believe that the national conversation misses the point: nothing about a person negates who they are and whose they are. They are made in the image and likeness of God. By trivializing, minimizing, and ultimately dehumanizing our brothers and sisters to rationalize or even justify their deaths (a common tactic among abortion advocates, by the way), we fall into a moral trap and may cause scandal. Alton and Philando are not different in this regard.

We must, as Catholics, assert our moral view at these moments even when they may be difficult and uncomfortable. Indeed Imago Dei must be the cornerstone in our national conversations about race, violence, crime, and lethal force. Otherwise we cannot possibly address, let alone resolve, these societal problems. Without our engagement, the current division and hostilities worsen.

For example, why are we silent in examining the morality of lethal or excessive force?

Far too often, those asking this question are condemned as anti-police. However, we cannot let fear of these labels deter us from this discussion.

Let’s assume for the sake of argument that one actively resists arrest: does the response warrant lethal force? Were non-lethal means available? If one commits an offense during his or her interaction with law enforcement officers, does the offense justify lethal force? These are legitimate questions arising from the understanding of our faith as it relates to the life and dignity of the human person and its implications for the common good.

These are the very questions that should be asked about Alton and Philando.

I sincerely hope that we will continue to pray and mourn for the fallen police officers and their families, but also for Alton and Philando and their families. They deserve a responsible discussion about the morality of using lethal force in a just manner in our society.

Recalling their dignity as children of God and asking questions about the circumstances of their death is a hallmark of our Catholic faith and American sensibilities.

Our silence in these matters must stop too.
 

Gloria Purvis, a Cornell University graduate, has served on the National Black Catholic Congress' Leadership Commission on Social Justice and was an Advisory Board Member on the Maryland Catholic Conference's Respect for Life Department.

She is a Board Member for the Northwest Pregnancy Center and Maternity Home in Washington, D.C.  She is the creator and host of the EWTN series, Authentically Free at Last, and also the host of Morning Glory which airs 7 to 8 am M - Fri on EWTN Global Catholic Radio.

Follow her on Twitter at @gloria_purvis

 

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IMAGE: CNS photo/Dale Gavlak

By Dale Gavlak

NAOUR, Jordan (CNS) -- Exuberant Syrian refugee children sang, danced and played with colorful clowns as they celebrated graduation at their Caritas-sponsored school in this sleepy suburb of the Jordanian capital, Amman.

Some 170 Muslim children, ages 5-17, proudly strode up on the outdoor platform of the Latin Patriarchate School of Naour, festooned for the occasion with red, yellow and orange balloons. They wore big smiles as they collected their certificates allowing them to move from primary to secondary school, while others completed high school.

The graduation march, "Pomp and Circumstance," played in the background as Father Rifat Bader called out the students' names and congratulated each one: Abdel Fattah Hisham al-Auda, Omar Karim Mohamed, Leen Nizar Laham ....

The graduation came at a time when many Syrian children are deprived of receiving an education. UNICEF, the U.N. children's agency, estimates that more than 2.1 million children inside Syria and 700,000 in neighboring countries are out of school.

"We wish for the joy on these children's faces to be like a prayer bringing peace and tranquility to our beloved Syria," Father Bader told Catholic News Service at the ceremony July 11.

"We are proud to be in Jordan, a country which welcomes refugees. All in all, we have 290 Syrian children -- both boys and girls -- in 20 schools supported by Caritas Jordan. All are Muslims. This is our pride, to welcome the people without discrimination," said Father Bader, who directs the Catholic Center for Studies and Media and whose home parish is the church in Naour with the school.

"Suffering people always need support and healing from wars and from those who have perpetrated these conflicts in Syria and Iraq," the Catholic priest told CNS.

"This is very good," beamed a mother named Um Karam, seeing her son graduate from his senior class. "I am happy that our children are able to realize their rights for education. Otherwise, they have no chance in life," she told CNS.

"I am thankful to Caritas. I have never seen such wonderful program like theirs," said the woman, dressed in a dark, long robe and a colorful scarf covering her head. Um Karam, using the Arabic familial name, "Karam's mother," said she and her family fled death and destruction in Syria three years ago.

"The Caritas teachers encourage the students to learn well. It's important for them to be able to attend school daily to learn and study seriously. This protects our children and offers a brighter hope for the future," Um Karam said.

The war in Syria has displaced nearly 4.8 million people, half of them children. Most fled for safety to neighboring Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey, while others risked their lives on rickety boats crossing the Mediterranean.

A number of Syrians have been living as refugees since the war began more than five years ago. Many young lives have been shaped by fear, violence and displacement.

UNICEF, Caritas and other international aid groups argue that education brings children and their families hope. Security and healing from trauma come by providing them a routine. Education also opens the opportunity to plan for the future, they say. Keeping children in school also protects them from exploitation and other dangers such as human trafficking, child labor, early marriage or falling prey to extremists.

Father Bader said it cost $140,000 to run the Caritas program at Naour for the past year, and that figure is multiplied twentyfold for the other school programs run by Caritas Jordan for Syrian refugees.

He said Caritas must raise funds for the program to continue in the coming term and has appealed for help.

"Teachers' salaries must be paid and meals provided for the students. Caritas provides food aid, good medical services and good education. Their intellectual growth is no less important than other basic aid they receive," Father Bader said. "It's important to educate these children now to respect each other and look to the future in hope."

The Syrian children showcased their many talents during the ceremony. Tiny girls in yellow, pink and green tutus twirled on the platform to everyone's amusement, while slightly older boys and girls dressed in black and red embroidered costumes performed Syrian folk dances.

Other students captured the mood and cry of many Syrians, singing in Arabic: "Give us peace."

"Caritas has given us love, care and support," Joseph, one of the older students, told parents and faculty, speaking in English. "The teachers taught us many things. They gave us happy memories and many friends."

"We pray to the merciful God in this Year of Mercy to give us peace, justice and joy," Father Bader said, adding that "human cooperation must also accompany such prayers."

"We hope that these prayers and children's cries will reach those responsible to find political solutions," the priest said.

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