Extremists in India encouraged by poor prosecution: US

WASHINGTON: Some extremists in India perceive ineffective prosecution of attacks on religious minorities, particularly at the state and local level, as a signal to commit such violence with impunity, a US government report suggests.

While the Indian government generally respected the constitutional right for freedom of religion, it sometimes did not act swiftly enough to counter effectively societal attacks against religious minorities and attempts by some leaders of state and local governments to limit religious freedom, said the 2006 International Religious Freedom Report.

This resulted in part from legal constraints on central government action inherent in the country's federal structure and from shortcomings in its law enforcement and justice systems, although courts regularly upheld the constitutional provision of religious freedom, said the report released Friday by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

The US government discussed religious freedom issues with the Indian government as part of its overall policy to promote human rights, said the annual report to the US Congress under its International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.

The US embassy and its consulates promoted religious freedom in their discussions with India's leadership, as well as with state and local officials, and supported initiatives to encourage religious and communal harmony, it said.

During meetings with key leaders of all significant religious communities, US officials discussed reports of ongoing harassment of minority groups, converts, and missionaries, explained US government policies around the world, and endeavoured to better understand Indian religious attitudes towards the US, the report said.

US embassy officers continued to investigate and discuss religious freedom, incidents of concern such as violence in Gujarat, the implementation and reversal of anti-conversion legislation, attacks on places of worship, caste-based discrimination, and the plight of internally displaced Hindu Kashmiris, it said.

The report, covering 197 countries, also reviews actions taken by the US government to advance international religious freedom in eight countries that were designated as CPCs (countries of particular concern)" last year. These were Myanmar, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Vietnam.

Countries that have "engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom" are designated as CPCs. This year's list of countries so designated may be released in a couple of months.

Releasing the report, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice hoped it will serve as a source of encouragement to those whose plight is documented in the report and whose right to believe and practise and worship as they choose is still denied by their governments.

Later, briefing the media, the US ambassador at large for international religious freedom, John V. Hanford III, said in India, the central government is leading efforts to promote greater respect for religious freedom, although there have been instances in which some state and local governments have attempted to limit this freedom.

There is a rise of fundamentalism in many religious contexts around the world with followers trying either to create sectarian violence or to get highly restrictive laws on other religions, he said in reply to a question.

"And so that is a general trend that we see as well throughout-in certain corners of the Muslim world, the Hindu world and the Buddhist world," Hanford added.

Events over the past year, such as the "Mohammed cartoons" printed across Europe, which many around the world felt deeply offensive, point to the need to go beyond protection of religious freedom and law to a concerted effort to create the conditions for harmony, mutual understanding, and respect within our societies, he said.

The India section of the report said while the central government took positive steps in key areas to improve religious freedom, the status of religious freedom generally remained the same as in the previous year ended June 30, 2005.

The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) continued to implement an inclusive and secular platform based on respect for the country's traditions of secular government and religious tolerance, and the rights of religious minorities, it said.

Terrorists attempted to provoke religious conflict by attacking Hindu temples in Ayodhya and Varanasi. The government reacted in a swift manner to rein in Hindu extremists, prevent revenge attacks and reprisal and assure the Muslim community of its safety, the report noted.

The government also quelled religious violence in Vadodara, Gujarat, after protests over the demolition of a Muslim shrine threatened to spark Hindu-Muslim violence. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) continued monitoring ongoing legal battles surrounding the 2002 Gujarat riots.

The vast majority of Indians of every religious faith lived in peaceful coexistence; however, tensions between religious groups were a problem in some areas. While the government took some steps, violence directed against minorities by both state and non-state actors occurred in several states, it said.

Conversion continued to be a highly contentious issue. Some Hindu organisations and others frequently alleged that Christian missionaries lured converts, particularly from the lower castes, with offers of free education and healthcare, and equated such actions with forced conversions, the report said.