Intolerance and violent repression of religious and ethnic minorities, often the most vulnerable groups in many societies, is on the increase, said a prominent human rights advocacy group.

“There is a growing trend of growing intolerance,”  Philippe Dam, acting Geneva director of Human Rights Watch, told ENInews. Recently, he said, the advocacy body studied repression against Shia Muslims in Saudi Arabia, Tibetan monasteries, and Coptic Christians in Egypt.

Dam, who conducts advocacy work at the U.N. Human Rights Council, emphasized, however, that in Egypt repression is going on beyond minority groups.

Egyptian security forces have also been quite infamous, he said, for the repression of political protesters and added that in China any kind of expression of dissent “is also repressed dreadfully,” and any kind of opposition is also suppressed in Saudi Arabia.

On the Oct. 9 massacre of Coptic Christians in Egypt, the third such incident this year, Dam said that “impunity for violence against groups of people belonging to minority groups is what is fueling the violence.”

Asked how religious minorities could be better protected, Dam said the issue of accountability is very important. Any use of violence or acts of repression against people belonging to religious minorities should be thoroughly investigated and individuals responsible should be brought to justice, he said.

In Egypt, there is a need for “better protection” for the Coptic community, Human Rights Watch said. In China, it said the government “should immediately end excessive restrictions” on the Kirti monastery where seven monks this year have set themselves on fire to protest such security measures as detentions and blockades. In Saudi Arabia, authorities should immediately stop arbitrary arrests of Shia in the Eastern province.

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An international human rights group said recently that some 800 people have died in riots in Nigeria that swept the country since April’s presidential election that gave a new mandate to its Christian leader Goodluck Jonathan.

Human Rights Watch issued a report last Monday urging the new government to work fast to ensure that those responsible for the violence are arrested and that justice is served, Christian Today said.

In northern Nigeria Christians wept over mass graves where their loved ones were hurriedly buried. ICC reports that the government rushed the burials so that there would be no exact figures of the number of the victims, Christian Today said.

The unrest began on April 18 when early returns in the elections already showed that Jonathan, from majority Christian southern Nigeria, had a sizeable lead over his Muslim opponent, Muhammadu Buhari.

The Muslim majority north broke out in simultaneous riots that occurred in almost every state in the north, Christian Telegraph said, quoting an International Christian Concern report.

Supporters of Buhari also staged demonstrations claiming the elections had been fixed. However, international observers dubbed the polls as the fairest in the history of Nigeria—while HRW says it was also the most violent.

Corinne Dufka, senior West Africa researcher of HRW told Christian Today, “The newly-elected authorities should quickly build on the democratic gains from the elections by bringing to justice those who orchestrated these horrific crimes and addressing the root causes of the violence.”

The HRW based its report on interviews with 55 witnesses including clergy from both Christian and Muslim faiths and members of the police, according to Christian Today.

The homes, churches and businesses of Christians who were suspected of supporting Jonathan were torched, and the Christian Association of Nigeria said at least 170 Christians were reported killed, according to Christian Today.

However, others say that the number of Christians who died in the north could be higher. An ICC spokesperson said, “Nigerian government authorities were in such a hurry to hide the extent of the massacre, that they organized mass burials of the victims almost immediately after the attacks. As a result, the exact death toll remains unknown,” Christian Telegraph reported.

Greatest losses in Kaduna State

ICC said the most losses, however, were in Kaduna state, the northern part of which is majority Muslim, and the southern part of which is majority Christian. ICC estimates more than 300 people were slaughtered in Kafanchan town in southern Kaduna, and Zonkwa town in the northern part of the state, according to Christian Today.

HRW pegs the number of deaths at higher than 500. Some 1,000 families were displaced and are now in government camps. Over 200 were rendered homeless while hundreds of other Christians have fled, Christian Telegraph said.

Attacks with machetes

A group of students in a Christian college were pursued by a mob and were driven against a wall where they were beaten and struck with machetes, killing four students and one Christian lecturer, Christian Today said.

There are also reports of serious abuse and excessive force wielded by the police and military with reports of eight cases of unarmed citizens in Kaduna and Zaria who were killed and detainees who were beaten, Christian Today said.

Dufka told Christian Today, “The Nigerian authorities should promptly investigate these credible reports of unlawful killings and other abuses by members of the security forces. The use of violence by rioters, mobs, and state actors alike needs to be stopped.”

President Jonathan has set up an investigating committee to look into the riots, but the HRW reported that Christians are not confident that justice will be effectively rendered, Christian Today said.

Sources:

http://www.christiantelegraph.com/issue12912.html

http://in.christiantoday.com/articles/post-election-violence-in-nigeria-claimed-800-lives-rights-group/6271.htm

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A Christian human rights group is seeking justice on behalf of an Ethiopian Christian evangelist who was beaten to death and his pregnant wife who was injured and left unconscious by a group of Muslim attackers.

International Christian Concern asked government officials in Ethiopia to arrest and prosecute the murderers of Abraham Abera. The group of men also beat and injured Abera’s pregnant wife, Birtukan, whom they left unconscious on the road, OneNewsNow said.

Birtukan, who was hospitalized, said when she regained consciousness that she knew two of the assailants, OneNewsNow said. The incident occurred in south-central Worabe, an Ethiopian village with a 97 percent Muslim-majority population, according to Worthy News.

Jonathan Racho, ICC regional manager of Africa, said it is possible that the attackers will not face prosecution. He told OneNewsNow, “Most of the local officials in the area are Muslims, and we are afraid that they may not bring any charges against the attackers.”

Racho also expressed concern about growing radicalization of Muslims in the area. “Most of the time, the moderate Muslims in Ethiopia are more violent, and they entice them to kill Christians [and] destroy churches. In Ethiopia, we have seen the recent radicalization of the Muslims,” OneNewsNow reported.

Lured from home

The incident occurred when a group of Muslims lured Abera and his wife Birtukan away from Kale Hiwot Church, which is both the ministry and home of the Christians. Abera was told that a friend of theirs was ill and needed help badly, Worthy News said.

Once Abera and Birtukan were out of range of the church, the men began to beat the male evangelist to death with rods. They told the couple that the Christian population is growing in the area, and because of this, believers will be destroyed, OneNewsNow said.

When Birtukan tried to intervene they attacked her and inflicted her with an acute head injury which rendered her unconscious on the street. She was left alone on the road, Worthy News reported.

Others found Birtukan and brought her to a hospital in Butajira, a nearby town. When she regained consciousness she recalled the details of the attack and said she could identify two of the assailants, OneNewsNow reported.

Birtukan recalled being told by the attackers, “You [Christians] are growing in number in our area. You are spreading your message [the gospel]. We will destroy you,” according to Worthy News.

Birtukan also sustained injuries to her midsection. However, she was told by hospital medics that her baby will survive, according to Worthy News.

A Christian leader (unidentified) told Worthy News, “Christians in Worabe and its surrounding areas are persecuted at the hands of Muslim radicals, and the local government officials, who are Muslims, don’t protect Christians. We urge the higher government authorities [state and federal officials] to intervene and protect us.”

Racho of the ICC told Worthy News, “The brutal killing of Evangelist Abraham and the beating of his wife, Birtukan, is deeply troubling. We urge the federal government authorities to investigate this latest attack as well as reports of persecution against Christians in the Silte zone, [where Worabe is located].”

Racho also is asking Christians around the world to contact the Ethiopian embassy within their vicinity and to urge officials to prosecute the assailants and render justice for Abera and Birtukan, according to OneNewsNow.

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An international human rights group in Iran called recently for the release from prison of a Christian pastor who was sentenced to death for allegedly changing his religion.

The 11^th Circuit Criminal Court of Appeals of Gilan Province, Iran upheld a death sentence on Youcef Nadarkhani, 32, on the charge of apostasy, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran told CNN.

The ICC said another Christian pastor, Behrouz Sadegh-Khanjani, 35, faces a similar charge in an unrelated case. There is fear that he may also be sentenced to death, Iranian.com said.

Constitutional right

Iran’s Islamic Penal Code does not state that apostasy is a crime, Iranian.com said. Furthermore, two articles in the Iran constitution clearly defend the rights of Christians, CNN reported.

Nadarkhani’s lawyer filed an objection before Iran’s Supreme Court, citing these two constitutional articles, one of which allows Christians “the right to freely worship and form religious societies,” the other “obligates the Iranian government to uphold the equality and human rights of Christians,” CNN reported.

Never were Muslims

Both Christian pastors deny committing apostasy (renouncing one’s religion). Both say they were never Muslims. CNN reports Nadarkhani said he was forced by his interrogators to sign a statement admitting he committed apostasy.

Although born to Muslim parents, Nadarkhani never accepted any religion before he became a Christian at the age of 19. CNN said Nadarkhani’s interrogators lied to him, saying that at age 15, the child of Muslims automatically becomes a Muslim if he does not accept any other religion.

Khanjani, who is also charged with apostasy, is the son of Christians. His Christian mother is an immigrant from the Congo, and his father converted to Christianity before Khanjani was born, CNN said.

Loophole

Despite existing constitutional rights, the presiding judge in Nadarkhani’s case based his ruling on the writings of Iranian religious scholars, Iranian.com said. There is a constitutional provision which instructs judges “to consult sources when there is no codified-law that addresses a matter,” CNN reported.

The penal code also allows “judges to draw upon their personal knowledge when adjudicating cases,” CNN said.

Mahmoud Taravatrooy, lawyer for Khanjani, consulted top clerics regarding apostasy under Islam. He told CNN that four Ayatollahs, one of them the late Grand Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, said that converting from Islam to an Abrahamic religion, including Christianity, is not apostasy, CNN said.

North to South

Nadarkhani is with the Church of Iran ministry and is pastor some 400 churchgoers in Rasht, a city in the north, Iranian.com said. Khanjani comes from Shiraz, a city in the south, CNN reported.

However, the charges of apostasy against both pastors may be seen as part of a larger trend in persecuting Christians, Firouz Sadegh-Khanjani, brother of Behrouz, told CNN.

Aaron Rhodes, spokesman for ICHR, told Iranian.com, “It is the low point of any judicial system to sentence a person to death outside of its own legal framework. To execute someone based on the religion they choose to practice or not practice is the ultimate form of religious discrimination.”

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Belgium’s recent decision to ban the burka has stirred the interest of some similarly inclined European countries, even as it has wreaked the ire of the human rights group Amnesty international, The Vancouver Sun reported.

On Thursday night Belgium’s parliament voted to prohibit the burka, which covers  a woman’s entire face and body, and leaves just slits for the eyes.  The face veil niqab is also banned.  The measure, which was approved by a 136 to zero votes with two abstentions, is intended to help fight terrorism.

In passing the measure, it was noted that the burka and niqab permit full concealment of one’s identity.  It was also hoped that the ban will help to exercise equal rights for men and women, ABC News reported.

The Vancouver Sun said that some members of Belgium’s parliament noted that the veils are a symbol of the oppression of women in some Islamic societies.  There are half a million Muslims in Belgium, most of who do not wear the burka or the niqab.  OneIndia reported that the ban is expected to affect perhaps 100 women.

It will be imposed primarily in areas intended for public use such as streets, parks, sport arenas and buildings.  Women who do not follow the ban may be charged 22 pounds and be jailed for a week, OneIndia reported.

Belgium is the first country to ban the burka and the niqab.  However this may start a domino effect as France President Nicolas Sarkozy introduced a similar ban to start in September.  Legislation is also being introduced and/or considered to ban the burka in Italy, Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland, according to the Vancouver Sun.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has expressed displeasure at Belgium’s new legislation saying that it is a discriminatory and dangerous precedent because it obstructs women’s rights to freedom of expression and religion.

Another group, Human Rights Watch expressed doubt that banning the burka and niqab would protect public safety, much less the rights of Muslim women, OneIndia reported.

The law must now be ratified by Belgium’s senate, but it is possible that such may not go through before mid-June, when parliament dissolves for elections.  Meanwhile, some cities are already imposing a ban on the burka through their local councils.  In the capital city Brussels, 29 women were fined for wearing the burka.

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