Church In Asia Committed Towards Migrants And Indigenous Peoples With Concrete Plans

Transcription

1 January - July 2011 Volume 37, Nos. 1-7 Among Ourselves Church In Asia Committed Towards Migrants And Indigenous Peoples With Concrete Plans The Office of Human Development (OHD) of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences (FABC) had a special workshop on the Church s Response to the Issues of Migrants and Indigenous Peoples in the light of Catholic Social Teaching with special reference to Caritas in Veritate from 26 th to 29 th July, 2011, at the Redemptorist Centre, Pattaya, Thailand. Thirty-five (35) delegates representing the Episcopal Conferences through the Commissions for Migrants, Indigenous Peoples (IPs), the Commission for Justice and Peace, Caritas and Church Based Organisations from 12 countries participated in this intensive workshop leading to concrete country-level action plans through networking, advocacy and action. The main focus of the workshop was the Church s response to the struggles of Migrants and Indigenous Peoples in the light of the Catholic Social Teachings with special reference to Caritas in Veritate. The workshop was inaugurated by Fr. Raymond O Toole, Asst. Secretary General of FABC. The keynote address was given by Archbishop Giovanni D Aniello, Apostolic Nuncio of Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. He highlighted the plight of the poor and the marginalized migrants and Indigenous Peoples (IPs) of Asia and the special call of the Catholic Social Teachings to respond to their human rights and dignity. Fr. Nithiya, OHD Executive Secretary gave the orientation talk where he stressed the need for concrete action plans towards the entitlements of the marginalized through socio-pastoral advocacy. Fr. Felix Wilfred in his keynote address analysed with concrete data the human rights exploitations of Migrants and Indigenous Peoples and the focus of Catholic Social Teachings, especially Caritas in Veritate in responding to cont d on page 39> January -July

2 Migrants Of Asia And Catholic Social Teachings Nature of Migration Temporary/seasonal permanent For survival for additional income Conflict-induced migration Forced (refugees) - voluntary Fr. Felix Wilfred Various Forms of Migration From Geographic Perspective Internal migration rural to urban rural to rural inter-state or inter-province migration International Migration: Within Asian Countries Gulf countries The West Push and Pull Factors in Migration Rural poverty and landlessness Debts, lack of education, lack of opportunities Developmental displacements Environmental hazards and disasters Wage-gap or differential Urbanization Growth in manufacturing sector Opportunities to switching over to different non-farm jobs Availability of wok on a regular basis in towns and cities Estimated Stocks of Migrant Workers in Asia Internal Migration in Asia Patterns and Examples Contrary to general impression the internal migration is much larger than international migration In China for example there is Million internal migrants against a mere 458,000 international migration for work. Through market liberalization and creation of export-oriented manufacturing, many flock to the eastern coastal regions of the country. Patterns of Internal Migration India: Three important trends may be observed: Very high levels of temporary migration An increase in rural-urban migration due to a variety of new pushes and pulls A greater propensity to migrate among certain castes. A study of Northern Bihar shows that migration rates among the Dalits and backward castes have risen more strongly than for other castes. The Case of India An estimated 20 million people migrate temporarily each year in India. In India 24% migrated as non-farm labourers in 2000 against 3% in 1983 before liberalization. This is the new trend. The main point is that in the absence of other opportunities to diversify locally, many households are exploring opportunities outside village. Cross-Border Migration Cross-border migration, especially of Cambodians and Lao workers to Thailand for unskilled jobs; Vietnamese into Cambodia for semiskilled jobs such as construction foremen, machine mechanics etc. Generally border controls lax and fees paid to officials However thousands of illegal workers are being transported from Thailand due to shrinking work opportunities. The Case of Vietnam Vietnam: 4.3 Million internal migrants against 300,000 international migration. Increase in temporary migration into Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Can Tao etc. There is much migration from the Red River Delta. 2 Info on Human Development

3 Easy access to remunerative jobs and urban facilities by rural-urban migrants is made very difficulty by the elaborate and complex KT classification system for residents. Reforming this could bring many benefits to the migrants. Migration the Case of Bangladesh Rural-urban migration has increased steadily. 6.3% annual increase of migration into Dhaka the capital city. Most people look for work in the garments industry, rickshaw transport and the domestic sector. The garment industry currently employs around 1.8 million people (80-90% of whom are women) in more than 3500 small and medium-sized factories spread around Export Processing Zones. Internal Migration the Case of Cambodia 3% of the labour force employed in garment manufacturing units economic crisis hit also migration. The most severely hit internal migrants were pretty traders (women), porters, waitresses, rice field workers, garment workers, motorcycle drivers and skilled and unskilled construction workers. Lack of literacy as well as difficulties for ethnic minority migrants as important barriers for remunerative job The problem of trafficking is serious. Some Problems Facing Migrants Housing: Poor migrants stay in slums. Roughly half of the population in Mumbai and 40% in Delhi live in slums. Roughly 500,000 people migrate to Delhi evey year mainly to work in the factories there, or as workers in teashops, vendors and drivers. Over half migrants sleep in the open They face harassment, abuse, theft, forcible eviction and demolition of their dwellings. Food: Migrants do not have right to food subsidies and have to spend a sizeable portion of their wages on basic food supplies sometime up to 75%. Schooling: When entire families migrate, children say behind to do household chores while the parents work. Harassment: The migrants are harassed by local authorities, police, local thugs The harassment is also due to the fact that they are undocumented. They migrate just for survival. Their situation is so vulnerable and insecure that they cannot organize Themselves to claim their rights. They are unable to seek judicial redress Feminization of Migration Autonomous female migration has increased because of great demand for female labour in certain services and industries The majority of female rural-urban migrants in East and South-East Asia are young and unmarried, and there is a concentration of this group in mega cities. Many of them employed in domestic sector or garment manufacturing industries A study of the cities of Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh estimates that 40% 45% of migrants are female Women Migrants Issues Confronting them Sexual harassment: The sexual exploitation of women by masons, contractors, the police and others is routine but goes unreported by women for fear of possible consequences (loss of employment, violence). Providing Amenities for Migrants Housing Food subsidy Health-care Schooling for children Migrant-friendly financial services Creating a sense of home and belonging January -July

4 Security Measures for Migrants System of identity-cards/ documents Freedom from harassment from police and local authorities Providing skills to migrant labourers Access to legal reddresal against violation of human rights Access to information regarding opportunities Issues to be Addressed At structural level creating conditions for a dignified life so that people need not migrate for survival Better distribution of resources Land-reform to remove landlessness causing migration. Diversification and decentralization of job opportunities rather than concentrating them in cities. Greater investment in the agricultural sector Migration Policy In some countries like the Philippines, migration has become part of sate policy for economic development. It is positively encouraged by the state. The Filipino migrants remit every year $ 7.6 billion, that is 10% of GDP. In 2001, 7.4 million Filipinos were working abroad; of these 3.1 million were temporary contract workers, the rest more permanent emigrants. But this is not followed by the necessary means to protect the migrants and meet their requirements. Incorporating Migration into Policy Framework Policy regarding migrants conditioned by two ideological orientations: A) Neo-liberal: It views migration as contributing to poverty alleviation, creation of wealth, boosting economy B) Structural: Migration as a symptom of inequality of resource distribution; it is impoverishing and source of many human rights violations. Migration policy needs to tackle migration at different levels, through institutions that are geared to different sectors: - labour, - gender - agriculture - rural development - social welfare - urban development Trafficking There is a close nexus between migration and trafficking. Many migrants are vulnerable and become victims of trafficking. Definition of Trafficking - UN Trafficking in persons shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons by means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion This is done for the purpose of exploitation and slavery It involves giving and receiving payments to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person. Exploitation includes sexual exploitation, forced labour or practices similar to slavery. The Extent of Trafficking of Women 150,000 women from South Asian countries are trafficked annually. In South Asia, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are the key centres of human Trafficking India and Pakistan are the major destinations as well as transit countries to other regions, in particular Middle East. 225,000 women from South East Asia are victims of trafficking annually. Trafficked Women Sex-Workers There are a lot of agents in sex trade The suppliers of sex workers offer false promises to the prospects and tactfully pick them up and create a situation for the victim with no other alternatives other than that of being sex-workers. Agents get lucrative remuneration from sex-trade. 4 Info on Human Development

5 UN Declaration on Human Rights also includes immigration as a human right. Pacem in Terris of Pope John XXIII It views the sovereignty of the state as a limited one. The justification of the state is in that it promotes common good. Common good is not limited to nation state. Pacem in Terris expands the concept of common good to include all of humanity. Traumatic Experiences of Trafficked Women Statelessness nowhere to go, and no protection Extreme psychological stress, depression and even suicide Suffering from identity-crisis Sexual exploitation Physical violence Harassment by trafficking agents Infectitious diseases HIV/Aids Trafficked Person and State Sovereignty Social Teachings on Migration The first instance, Pius XII addressing the post-war situation of migrants in Exsul Familia Nazarethana. Migration treated as signs of the times in Vat. II. Statements of John Paul II and Benedict XVI for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees. Migrants Reflect Holy Family in Egypt Exsul Familia Nazarethana roots solidarity with the immigrant in the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt Jesus, May and Joseph are seen as refugees. Call to Christians to see the face of Jesus in the refugees. Comment of Pacem in Terris on Migration We must remember that, of its very nature, civil authority exists, not to confine its people within the boundaries of their nation, but rather to protect, above all else, the common good of the entire human family. John Paul II Later social teachings stress solidarity as the basis to address migrants issue It is a firm and preserving determination to commit oneself to the common good. There is a shared humanity and a life of interdependence Regardless of their citizenship status, ethnicity or religion, migrants belong to the human family. For Christians, the migrant is not merely an individual to be respected in accordance with the norms established by law, but a person whose presence challenges them and whose needs become an obligation for their responsibility. Migrants John Paul II According to John Paul II, the migrant is not merely an individual to be respected in accordance with the norms established by law, but a person whose presence challenges them and whose needs become and obligation for their responsibility. Pius XII Radio Address 1941 For the Creator of the universe made all good things primarily for the good of all. Since land everywhere offers the possibility of supporting a large number of people, the sovereignty of the Tate, although it must be respected, cannot be exaggerated to the point that access to this land is denied to needy and decent people from other nations, provided that the public wealth considered carefully does not forbid this. Pacem in Terris Strangers No Longer Both these documents specify that persons have a right to migrate when they do not have access to a life of dignity in their homeland. January -July

6 John Paul II 1996 Message for World Migration Day He maintains the fundamental political perspective in addressing the problem of undocumented migration. He insists that the best policy would be for states to prevent unauthorized migration in the fist place, by addressing the root causes, such as political instability, and economic inequality. Political Principle The political principle of Catholic social thought on migration insists on both the right of the person to migrate and the right of the sovereign state to control its borders. These two rights are in tension with one another, but migration policy must respect both of these rights. Two Principles of Social Teaching Cosmopolitan Principle This means considering migration as an issue of human dignity and rights, going beyond consideration of nation, ethnicity, etc. Caritas in Veritate on Migration (no. 62) Pope acknowledges that migration is an epoch making phenomenon Addressing the issue of migrants calls for international cooperation the countries of origin and of migration. The need for international norms to safeguard the welfare and rights of migrants Migrant workers contribute significantly to the economy of the host country They make remittance to their countries of origin Every migrant is a human person who, as such, possesses fundamental, inalienable rights that must be respected by everyone and in every circumstance. (no. 62). What can the Christian Communities do? Enhance the agency of the migrants Address locally the structural causes leading to migration for survival Take up advocacy programme and crate public awareness about migrant issues Contribute to the formulation of state policy protecting the human rights of the migrants. Trafficking in Social Teaching 1. Trafficking is a human rights issue. Trafficked persons are the most defenseless members of the human family, the least of our brothers and sisters. 2. The emphasis on solidarity and the option for the poor is repeated in Church reflections on the phenomenon of human trafficking 3. John Paul II highlights the humanity of migrants, which supersedes their undocumented status. The inherent dignity of a person requires a particular form of solidarity in the case of undocumented migrants. 4. Trafficking is a human rights issue. Trafficked persons are the most defenseless members of the human family, the least of our brothers and sisters. 6 Info on Human Development

7 Response Of The Church In Asia To The Appeal Of Caritas In Veritate An Analysis Of The Situational Challenges Of The Migrants In Asian Countries And Possible Avenues For Our Effective Advocacy And Action Introduction Most Asian developing governments regarded migration positively seeing that it backs economic improvement to their respective countries. For nongovernment organizations (NGO) and civil society groups working for migrants however, labor migration is the result of poor governance that has caused so much poverty, the usual culprit of labor migration. If labor exporting countries had considered remittance as the most alluring factor in employing labor migration because it assists to advance their economic development and secure their balance of payments labor importing countries on the other hand keep the status quo of employing migrant workers in their own domestic industrial system to keep their own global economic competitiveness. This is how to some extent the current global economic system is sustained in order to survive or develop. Hence the nexus of migration and development is being pursued as an acceptable system while aiming to save on social costs. So migrants are needed by both the sending and receiving countries, but the Church worries the very high psycho-social costs that come along with this unfortunate reality. For almost four decades now in Asia, the main focus ascribed to labor migration is remittance. Ordinarily, most people believed that remittance had contributed to the advancement of the countries domestic economies. But this becomes a suspect when, a still many people in a sending country remains to be poor despite the fact that a large portion of its people are working overseas such as in the case of the Philippines. The Church continue to worry on how much more the migrants have to suffer as they remain part of the system where they are left without a choice when macro determinants such as the global economic recession, political instability and natural calamities take place. This was the case witnessed this year in Egypt, Libya and Japan. The results are right away perceived on the way families are coping up. Some could be creative and successful in overcoming the challenges brought about by the global factors affecting them, but sometimes unfortunately their families are disintegrating not only literally but also figuratively along with the emerging new values that they have acquired in the process. Fr. Edwin D. Corros, CS Executive Secretary, CBCP-ECMI Thanks to the Church teachings that allow pastoral workers to discern and realize the high costs that migrants and society have to pay particularly if they are not cautious to the vulnerabilities to which they are exposed to as migrants and once hostage by the system that comes along with migration as unnecessary evil. In the documents of the church such as the Caritas in Veritate or even that of the Erga Migrante Caritas Christi the primary subject of the document is focused and directed mainly to the migrants. Little is provided among the families left behind. This is understandable as the migrants, being in the midst of the receiving Church, form part immediately of the poor sector of the host societies. The migrants are considered poor, because they are perceived as victims of the unjust system, living at the fringes of society whereas from the perspective of the sending countries the migrants are perceived to be in a better economic state by society and even by the church, because they are the ones who have access to jobs and receive better income. Before presenting what possible avenues can the Asian Church do for an effective advocacy and action, allow me first to present some of the pressing issues that had been January -July

8 there as results when labor migration was cordially embraced by Asian governments and economies, particularly by the countries that had adopted labor export as a policy to attain socio-economic development. 1. Broken families Asia s practice of contractual labor migration had exposed family members instantaneously to a possible disintegration. When temporary separation is prolonged, such becomes permanent. This renders both the migrants and their families left behind to an unnatural order of forming and living family life. Isolation and loneliness both affect the migrants and their family members. They have to look for meaningful ways to overcome them. Some families were successful, but others were not. Despite the modern means of communication available to them, they still fall on the temptation to act against the practices acceptable by society where they come from. Doing an illicit act especially among those who are living far away from the watchful eyes of their loved ones eventually becomes easy. What is highly observed by many pastoral workers and chaplains to the Filipino communities overseas for instance is that, in those countries that prohibit family unification, migrants tend significantly to fall into illicit relationships. Unlike in countries in Europe with more developed economies, where family unification is allowed and even guaranteed, circular contract migration characterizes the type of migration that prevails in Asia. The circular contract migration produces a negative effect in shaping family values and forming family life. There are observations of family break-ups, family abandonment or discretely practicing of having double families. The prolonged separation of migrants from their families challenges always both parties to remain faithful to their marital and familial vows. As we already knew, due to loneliness and isolation many migrants are prone to abandon their families and create a new one. Of recent, conversion to Islam has been observed as the migrants most common and quickest passport to move away from their moral responsibility. The number of cases that had been brought to CBCP-ECMI for intervention had confirmed that this problem in fact has put family at great risk. Some cases had revealed that most wives discovered the illicit affairs of their husband through the internet or via social networking (E.g. Facebook or Bandoo). 2. Stateless or undocumented children of migrants Connected to the aforementioned psycho-social cost consequential to labor migration is the increasing figures of children born out of legal union by many migrants. For this reason, there is more to the report of family abandonment by migrant workers. For instance, Filipinos coming from vacation have stories to tell that founding a new family is just as common as those migrants who had decided to become undocumented, or even among professionals in the Middle East. These stories were confirmed by the very cases that were brought to the attention of CBCP-ECMI by the very wives who had complained about their husband who had no longer communicated and failed to send regular remittance. In all probability, children are born and are growing-up undocumented as well whenever there is no way by which their identity could not be registered as their parents fear to disclose their own identity. In May this year alone for example, the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah had made arrangement for the 420 undocumented distressed Filipinos including 98 children. 1 In Korea there were reports that undocumented children were not very welcome in normal schools as they pose possible trouble to the host educational institutions. For instance, in March 2009 the report of Korea Immigration Service and its Ministry of Science, Education and Technology, of the over 17,000 children of undocumented migrants in Korea many were not enrolled in its regular educational system. Four out of ten elementary schools refused to accept children of irregular migrants. 2 This practice is definitely against the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which states that every child (18 years and below) has the right to education 3. In the 2007 Bishops Institute for Social Action (BISA) held in Sabah, Malaysia that CBCP-ECMI had attended, the issue of stateless children of Filipino ancestry working in palm oil plantations came out as one of the concerns expressed at the workshop by the pastoral workers based in Kota Kinabalu. Due to the political complexity that involved the governments of Malaysia and the Philippines concerning their respective Sabah claims, nothing concrete was pursued in this regard. The statelessness of Filipino children is not limited in Malaysia. There are also the children of Rohingya refugees currently living in Malaysia after having fled persecution in Burma many years ago. While the constitution of Malaysia provides citizenship to children born in their territory, such provision regrettably is not extended to Rohingya children, according to International Observatory of Statelessness (IOS). Besides the Burmese and Filipino children, the Indonesians are also reported to have undocumented children in Malaysia putting them also at risk of statelessness. 3. Care deficit and emotional impact Another downside of migration as reported by NGOs such as the Center for Migrants Rights Advocacy and Migrant Forum in Asia is the care deficit and emotional impact of parental absence affecting or being experienced by the children of migrants. Fundamentally, the family is 8 Info on Human Development

9 the normal site of values and character formation where parents and children act as the main protagonists, but now threatened in the context of labor migration. With the advent of feminization of migration, the transnational family had become a common result where the very physical absence of mothers has tremendous effect among the children who are growing up without their parents on their side, where love and intimacy between parents and children are missing. Given the fact that children are being taken care of by their grandparents, aunts, uncles or other relatives, these however are not the complete parental substitute why care deficit is experienced according to studies. The deficit comes in the very nature of care that migrant parents failed to give especially in times of need. This is distinctly perceived when vacations from overseas work of migrant parents are considered visits by children as the former are not staying long. Children resent the fact that their parents were not present in the very important moments of their lives such as during their school graduation or similar social activities to which the presence of the parent is so required. In terms of health, it revealed in the studies conducted by the CBCP- ECMI in partnership with the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC) and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) in 2004, that children of migrants are prone to sickness than those children of non-migrant parents. 4 Ordinarily, migrant parents tend to send gifts to gain their children s love and attention. Moreover, the commodification (giving gifts to compensate ones absence) of the love that migrant parents have to their children causes them to develop suspicious character. Moreover, there is even an observation that links to children of migrants who are marrying young that is attributed to the issue of care deficit. Pastoral workers perceive children of migrants to long for affection that they could probably get by having a boyfriend or a girlfriend and marry early. 4. Illegal recruitment and human trafficking trafficking is considered the second most profitable illegal industry in the world. In 2008, the United Nations had estimated nearly 2.5 million people from 127 different countries were being trafficked into 137 countries around the world. In the Philippines, the campaign against human trafficking remains weak and less effective due to the very low rate of prosecution despite the many cases that had been brought to court. The US constantly castigates countries like the Philippines, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Taiwan that failed to curve human trafficking by putting them under its watch list regularly. The real push factor why people are being trafficked is still linked to unemployment and poverty. 5. Increasing number of HIV-AIDS among the migrant sector The constant exposure of migrant workers to medical examination before they could be accepted to their prospective work overseas renders them exposed to society s discriminatory treatment a difficulty that people living with HIV and AIDS (PLHA) have to struggle daily. Once they contracted this dreaded diseases, their families as well becomes the immediately recipient of economic loss. In the Philippines, the migrant sector is prominently reported among the most vulnerable sector. As a modest contribution to fight the spread of HIV and AIDS, the CBCP-ECMI enrolled itself to the newly created Philippine Catholic Network on HIV and AIDS (PHILCHAN). CBCP-ECMI believes that the campaign can be easily done through its information dissemination program. ECMI includes a module on HIV and AIDS in the usual information dissemination program that it conducts in the dioceses and parishes regularly. The challenge in the country for the migrant sector on how to protect them from contacting the dreaded disease remains a strong priority. The political inability of some government leaders like the Philippines, Pakistan or Sri Lanka to create sustainable means of livelihood for their own people remains the major reason why their citizens opt to go abroad. To some extent some people log into the net to look for jobs. This practice unfortunately exposes them highly to become victims of illegal recruitment or worse of human trafficking. Still out of desperation to get a job overseas, they also use the back doors and other means to leave the country only to become victims of human trafficking 5. Pastoral workers for migrants know that human trafficking thrive because of the patronage existing in almost all societies. Besides, next to drug, human January -July

10 6. Marriage migration Once upon a time in the 70 s and 80 s, the mail order bride was happening among Asians marrying a westerner or a Caucasian, dominated particularly by Filipinos. In the Asian context from the 90 s marriage migration was facilitated by match making agencies when developing countries supplied the brides while countries of advanced economies supplied the husbands. Such match making agencies are even classified in the cyberspace alongside with pornography and sex tourism. It should be noted however that in this type of migration, such can never be classified as economic or political. This means that most people move for reason to do business or tourism as indicated when one applies for a visa. But what is there in marriage migration that should be the cause of pastoral concern? The mere fact that Korea has probably the highest number of centers dedicated to the assistance of foreign spouse would indicate probably that international marriages are not smooth sailing. While most international marriages are reported successful, there were some reports of battered Vietnamese, Filipino, Chinese or Thai spouses that had reached the chaplaincies offices in Taiwan, Korea or Japan. In Korea, international centers even have programs for abused wives. Centers for distressed foreigners in Taiwan have foreign brides as residents besides the foreign workers. At times, marriage migration is also linked to trafficking. 7. International students As Asian economies become more progressive, wealthier families send their children to other countries to study and learn other cultures. The Philippines have been for a long time a magnet of international students from Korea, Vietnam, East Timor and Iran. Ironically, while many Filipinos have financial difficulty in entering tertiary education, students from other countries as far as some countries of Africa found the Philippine university education too cheap. Incidentally, there are no pastoral interventions so far dedicated to university international students in the Philippines, to which the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People is also concerned. This is again understandable due to one s migration perspective. Most people in the Philippines consider foreign students as wealthier than their local counterparts. Schools and universities would think it strange to look after their needs, when in fact local school authorities are more concerned about providing pastoral and material assistance to the local university s poor students. One cannot imagine of a need to pastorally take care of foreign students when one knows that they are in a better shape, in a more advantageous position to look after their selves. Culture exchange is the easiest way to assist foreign students, particularly if they are not of Christian background. How is the Asian Church responding to the migration realities in Asia? Caring for the migrants in Asia validates the provision in the Holy Father s encyclical Caritas in Veritate that migrants should never be taken merely as workforce or commodity or instruments of development. 6 This was once also said by Blessed John Paul II. The church in Asia responds differently and dynamically to the various and distinct characteristics of migrants existing in Asia. As extremely vast and very varied in socio-economic-political, cultural and religious realities, the Asian Church being a small minority in the region re-appropriately applies the various Pope s encyclicals including the instructions coming from the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People. Among these interventions being done by the Asian Church are the following: 1. Issuance of pastoral letter on migration by the local bishops conference. In comparison to Europe with a long tradition of migrants in their midst, there were few documents issued by Churches in Asia on migration. They were mostly in the form of pastoral letters inspired by the discussion made at the Assemblies of the Federation of the Asian Bishops Conference (FABC). The Philippines being known globally as a major source of labor export had come out with its first pastoral letter in 1988 on the occasion of the celebration of its National Migrants Sunday. That year after, the Chinese Regional Bishops Conference in 1989 issued its first pastoral letter that courageously calling the attention of the officials of the government, the members of its Judiciary and Executive besides employers in addressing the issues of the foreign workers. In 1991 of February 15, the Indonesian bishop issued their own pastoral letter as part of the Thanksgiving Year declared by the Republic of Indonesia focusing more on the issue of tourism. 10 Info on Human Development

11 Japan s Catholic Bishops Conference in 1992 issued its pastoral letter entitled Seeking the Kingdom of God which Transcend Differences in Nationality. The Catholic Bishops Conference of Korea in 1993 through its Justice and Peace Committee issued a statement calling on their people not to maltreat the foreign in their midst. In 1995, the CBCP once more issued a pastoral letter entitled Comfort my People, Comfort them (Is. 40.1) soon after OFW Flor Contemplacion was sentenced to death by the Singaporean government. In 1998 another pastoral letter was likewise issued by the Chinese Regional Bishops Conference entitled Solidarity, a Pastoral Letter for Foreign Workers. Again in 2007 the same bishop s conference had issued the pastoral letter, Showing Concern to Migrants and Itinerant People after conducting a conference involving the sending churches of the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. 2. Special attention given by the Federation of the Asian Bishops Conference on migration Besides the initiatives and pastoral letters issued by the Episcopal Conferences, the FABC has dedicated special attention to migrants concerns which inspired further local Churches to create programs for migrants. The Asian Institute for Social Action (AISA) of the Office of Human Development of FABC had discussed migration first in Macao in It was followed in Yokohama in 1990, in Taipei in 1991 and in Kota Kinabalu in The same office of FABC eventually organized a symposium on Filipino Migrant Workers in Asia in This interest on migration was highlighted again at the VI General Assembly held in Manila in 1995 which chose the concerns of migrants and refugees as one of the five pastoral priorities for the Asian Churches. The concern on migrants and refugees were once more reiterated at the VII and VIII Plenary Assemblies in held respectively Thailand in 2000 and Korea in 2004 respectively. 3. Establishment of Episcopal, diocesan or parish structures addressing the various problems faced by migrant workers and their families Due to the popularity of labor migration in the country, the Church in the Philippines probably was the first in Asia to establish its own Episcopal commission to address its migrants concerns. After migrations had been discussed as an important issue a t the level of the FABC, other local Churches responded as well by creating first a Desk, others a Committee under a certain Episcopal structure while others had established their own independent Episcopal commission for migrant and itinerant people. In early 2000, a formation program eventually was developed by the Scalabrini Migration Center to assist pastoral workers to prepare for their ministry to migrants. This formation program comes as a one-week seminar and was organized in partnership with the CBCP-ECMI. This program was eventually instrumental in assisting other local churches in the institution and on-going formation of their intervention to migrants concern. Among the Churches assisted by CBCP-ECMI were Vietnam, Korea, Japan and the Bishops Conference of Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore. Other Churches developed their own migrant ministry. Recently, Hong Kong was first to enlist resident Catholic foreigners in their midst as members of the local Church. The aim is to help foreigner integrate into the local Church. 4. Provision of religious and sacramental services to migrants of Catholic origin Easiest among the interventions that could be delivered among Catholic migrants are the sacramental and religious services in democratic societies in Asia. Filipino migrants being numerous in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan and Korea are easily ministered by the local churches. Fortunately, the presence of religious missionaries in these countries had facilitated the religious ministry to Catholic migrants. Even those in Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei receive regular pastoral assistance from the local clergy. Unfortunately, Catholic migrants in the Middle East do not easily receive religious or sacramental assistance as Catholicism is not permitted. There had been requests raised by Catholic foreign communities in the Middle East, but only those Islamic kingdoms that are tolerant to the Christian expression that migrants are allowed to celebrate their own masses in the Church such as in Kuwait, Dubai, Lebanon and Israel. In highly restricted Islamic societies, masses are limitedly celebrated in the embassies of Western countries. The services and programs extended by the Church were not limited catholic migrants as most diocesan commission for migrants are equally accessed by migrants coming from other faiths. 5. Establishment of diocesan desk or centers to respond to the domestic needs of foreign workers Depending on the religious and democratic realities of a given Asian country the establishment of a structure for migrants varies from country to country. While it is true that the Philippines probably could be considered as the first Asian Church to set up an Episcopal commission for migrants, this does not mean that the whole dioceses were quick in responding to the migrants concerns by creating a diocesan intervention. The Korean Church probably is considered as the most active and pro-active in its own intervention to the needs of the migrants. Out of its sixteen dioceses for instance, thirteen Korean dioceses have active migrant ministry. It also sends priests to look after the January -July

12 Korean Catholics in other parts of the world. Just like the Philippines, Korea has a network of priests and pastoral workers in other countries of the Korean migrants. 6. Lobbying and advocacy work to relevant government agencies whose task and responsibility are linked to migration and drafting of migration policies. This is where Church in Asia should really work hard. Sending and receiving Church officials must go beyond political promises. If even within the Church the advocacy for structure building is already considered difficult, lobbying for the same with government is doubly challenging. In the Philippines, there is a strong critical collaboration of the Church and government in the migrants concerns. The government however at times uses only the Church in its advantage more than advancing the interests of the migrants. Labor contract migration is a billion dollar industry wherein others stakeholders, particularly labor brokers are likewise working hard to lobby and seek control on government policies that may not advance their own business interests. This is the reason why in the Philippines for instance, despite the fact that labor migration is not a policy as claimed by its government leaders, their own actions contradicted themselves when is declared a quota of one million Filipino workers to be sent overseas annually for jobs since In December 2009 for instance when the global economic recession was already felt by the country, no less than the president of the Philippines had issued an executive order directing its Department of Labor and Employment to exhaust all means to find new countries where jobs could be availed by Filipinos. In countries where Catholicism is a minority, this aspect of the work for migrants is understandably very difficult. 7. Provision of on-going formation to migrant chaplains and pastoral workers including the introducing of Migration Theology Program in university Pioneering in the service to the migrants pastoral workers is the ongoing formation that is made available through a formal education initiated by the Philippine Church in Asia following the directives of Erga Migrantes Caritas Christi 7. In partnership with the Scalabrini Migration Center and the CBCP-ECMI, the Loyola School of Theology of the Ateneo de Manila University since 2009 had offered a Migration Theology Program for everyone interested in the pastoral work for migrants. Besides the formal theology program offered by the Ateneo University, annually the CBCP-ECMI provides a week of extensive program called Exodus seminar designed for migrant pastoral workers. The Exodus program has in fact been brought to Korea, Malaysia, Japan and Vietnam and had had been in existence for ten years. Unfortunately due to scarcity of funding ECMI failed to deliver the program this year. 8. Cooperation between sending and receiving Churches The PCPCMIP s Erga Migrantes Caritas Christi No. 70 states that to ensure that the pastoral care of migrants may be one of communion (that is, born from an ecclesiology of communion and serving a spirituality of communion), it is essential that the Churches of departure and arrival establish an intense collaboration with one another. Basically, what this article instructs is the very foundation of the CBCP-ECMI s network of chaplains for Filipino communities existing not only in Asia but throughout the world. The CBCP-ECMI continues to collaborate with receiving countries of Filipino migrants through the work of chaplains and pastoral workers among Filipino ministry overseas. This collaboration has its own limits when dealing with countries of the Middle East, besides Kuwait, Israel and Lebanon. Attempts in the past were made to send priests to Saudi Arabia but the security of the pastoral workers could not be guaranteed by the local Church. Lay people however are more effective in the evangelization of the migrants in the Middle East. Fear of arrest and loss of jobs, lay people belonging to some lay organizations are actively yet secretly conducting religious services to their Catholic migrants in the Middle East. 9. Establishment of the celebration of the National Migrants Sunday The Philippines probably once more had led the Asian Church in celebrating the National Migrants Sunday 8. This however does not mean that it has attained national impact for its goals. In the national consultation conducted by ECMI this year, it was discovered that only a few dioceses had truly heard of the programs of the Episcopal Commission. On the other hand, receiving Churches as well have difficulty convincing local Catholics to appreciate the celebration as migrants had been perceived as threats to the local workers. There is in other words, a need for more education among the people of the phenomenon of migration. Lobbying for this event is not as well received warmly by most local churches. The usual reading why this program probably fails to attain its goal is the fact that local churches are not truly educated of the harsh realities experienced by migrants and their families. Perspectives in the understanding on the reality of migration remains probably insufficiently explained. Hence, a more comprehensive approach is needed to popularize and mainstream the celebration. In the Philippines, it was only when the celebration of the national event was brought to other diocese that people started to get familiar of the issues of the migrants. Hence, people came to appreciate the celebration only recently. 12 Info on Human Development

13 10. Organizing of conference and forums related to migrants issues and concerns Among the other programs of the CBCP-ECMI is the on-going formation of migrant pastoral workers and chaplains to the Filipino ministry/communities overseas. The ECMI conducts Exodus 9 program annually through the generous support provided by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Italy and Missio of Germany. Besides these on-going seminars and even the migration theology course pioneered probably in Asia, ECMI organizes in partnership with other migrant NGOs conferences, forums, seminars on migrant rights protection and welfare; policy reforms; reintegration programs; financial literacy education; HIV- AIDS; anti-human trafficking and the like. Constantly, ECMI and probably other Episcopal Commissions are doing the same such as those in Malaysia, Taiwan, Korea and Japan. 11. Networking with migrant NGO and government entities working with migrants issues The ECMI could not afford to work independently from others on the issues and concerns of migrants. As CBCP-ECMI continues to advocate and lobby for the interests of the migrants even within the Church system, it cannot as well work apart from other NGOs and especially from government agencies concerned with the same sector whose needs are being equally addressed by the Church. By the mere reason that migration is a socio-economic and political issue, the Church needs to deal with government and other NGOs. Obviously, the work becomes unfortunately difficult when support is lacking from the very Church it belongs. When networking with other civil society groups and non-government organizations, the Church is given the chance to demonstrate its prophetic role in its position of serving the interest of the poor the migrants, including their families. The issue of seafarers is a classic example where the Church can push harder in working with governments. The Apostleship of the Sea (AOS) or Stella Maris is recognized by governments in assisting protect the rights and welfare of seafarers. In the Philippines, the AOS is made partner by the Church in celebrating National Seafarers Sunday. programs that Asian churches had already developed in responding to the varied realities of migration in Asia, the families left behind of migrants should be considered as the primary avenue for an effective advocacy and action. This is where the real partnership of the receiving and sending Churches could meaningfully develop. The complex realities linked to migration are factors that have to be considered as potential threats to the very foundation and unity of the family. This is one reason why even in the Philippines, the CBCP-ECMI continues to focus its programs on the preservation of the family of migrants. Among the documents on migration issued by the Church, the families left behind is not given enough emphasis. Understandably, the documents on migration are so focused on the instructions and reflection solely on the migrants. They are not addressed specifically on the documents of EMCC or even in the first social encyclical of Pope Benedict IV, Caritas in Veritate No. 62. There seems to be an absence in the acknowledgement of the truth how families of migrants are highly exposed to various vulnerabilities more than those experienced by any ordinary non-migrant family. There is even a strong gap in defining between what an ideal family is from a migrant family perceived or labeled always as dysfunctional. Studies on this respect are needed to understand clearly on how families left behind by migrants are coping, struggling or living in their separation either temporarily brought about by circular migration or permanently due to the inability of the migrants to return home as characterized by many reported undocumented migrants. The gap between the church documents on migration from the intervention at local Churches exists due to differing perspectives. Migrants are seen as the poor in the receiving countries whereas left behind families of migrants are perceived by the sending countries as privileged. Hence, What are the possible avenues for effective advocacy and actions for the Asian Church? Given the many forms of pastoral January -July

14 Erga Migrantes Caritas Christi was crafted mainly from the experience of those working directly among receiving countries of migrants. There was nothing basically written from the experience of countries of origin (receiving Church). As already explained, the receiving Church definitely looks at the migrants in their midst as people suffering from all forms of discrimination, injustice, abuse and other realities link to deprivation whereas, the sending Church perceived the families left behind as a target of possible source to fund certain church programs and services. This came clear in the first national consultation meeting that was conducted by CBCP-ECMI as it prepared for the review of its own programs for migrants in preparation for the celebration of its 25 th National Migrants Sunday this year. The remittance being the most appealing symbol of migration overwhelms the very disadvantaged position of families left behind. Very few in the church perceive the nexus of migrant families and their vulnerabilities. Others simply would like to work merely on the nexus of migration and development, with the stress on financial empowerment. For those working in this ministry, challenges remain aplenty to assuage the migrants disadvantaged position. There is a galore of sufferings experienced by families left behind which needs to be addressed squarely not only by the Church leaders but by the migrants and their families themselves. The Church is in the best position to accompany the families of migrants in discerning what is best for them. Moreover, the Church pastoral workers need to clearly distinguish the connection of migration and development. The sending Church must campaign more within its ranks to look at migration beyond remittances and truly do something that would treat the migrants beyond merely as instruments of production 10. Almost certainly, it is from such perception that solidarity to the families of migrants would instigate a better response. Probably even the holding of the National Migrants Sunday celebration would cause real change. Conclusion people moving from one country to another as the imbalance of socio-economic and political power continue to dominate the Asian landscape. Already happening in Japan and Korea are the existence of people from Eastern Europe and South America. Besides, other nationalities coming from within Asia, they are already present in these two countries although they are too far away from their own respective continents. People from some African countries in Malaysia are equally present as those coming from far away Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. What is the intervention of the Church for theses migrants of non-christian origin? Malaysian Church may wish to share its experience and use this probably as well as its own primary advocacy. Migration, although prevalent in Asian countries, does not catch enough or similar heat in term of pastoral response from all Churches due to the character of the Church as a tiny minority in this continent. Nonetheless, the interest is growing. Thanks to the labor of OHD of FABC! It continues to remind Asian Churches of its responsibility to the poor of the world, on how human development be approached in serving the migrant sector. Migrants belonging to a non- Catholic religion would even demand a different intervention in comparison to the usual programs and services offered to Catholic migrants. Even international students coming to the Philippines are not necessarily Catholics. What is the Asian Church doing? We are aware how important interreligious dialogue is needed in this respect. How many among our missionaries have the tools in this field when working with migrants. There are no easy answers, but certainly there are good practices that had been made by other Churches such as India, Japan, Korea and Malaysia which needed documentation. Receiving churches are the most privileged to answer this issue. If the Church considers this very important in pursuing human development from the context of migration, such issue deserves serious discussion as it is for the issues of the families left behind by migrants. Certainly, this discussion would even open to further discussion or debate to those who may not even yet ready to plunge into the issues of migration. Finally, the dream that migrants and pastoral workers are hoping for is when government leaders could really bring about better governance to their respective countries, when people would stop leaving because there are other options already available to choose from in order to attain progress and security. On the contrary, when environmental degradation, armed conflict or hunger is constantly experienced by the people and the government leaders fail to alleviate their situation, these experiences will inevitably become imminent threats to their survival. Undoubtedly, this is where the work for advocacy for migrant pastoral workers in sending countries really begins. The Church s prophetic role to be present in this advocacy is very much needed. Easily to forecast in Asia is the increasing number of 14 Info on Human Development

15 An Indian Reading of Genesis: Perspectives of Indigenous People and Migrants The multi-polar alienation caused by the human-made infirmities- arrogance or oppression, domination or hatred, avarice or malice, violence or cruelty- manifests itself through various life-negating conflicts in the following forms: Powerful elite vs. Powerless people, White vs. Black, Male vs. Female, Billionaire vs. Pauper, Humans vs. Nature, Creatures vs. Creator. The human-made discriminatory system of social hierarchy expressed through the evil of casteism upholding the iniquitous practice of untouchability keeps on excluding, exploiting, and eliminating as many as 260 millions of the humans from the rest of the humanity in the south Asian scenario. But the creative breath of God right from the primordial beginning of the wounded history has never ceased to be actively engaged in the ingenious labour of creating new heavens and new earth (1: 1, 3) for humanizing the nature and divinizing the humans. While setting the stage for a hermeneutical dialogue between the world of the Dalits and the stories of the book of Genesis, we could come across some creative ways of strengthening the on-going Dalit struggles for creating a new humanity. This dialogue seeks to envisage the promotion of the culture of freedom from the clutches of the culture of casteism upholding the evil practice of untouchabilty. The implications of the accompaniment of the God of history with the fore-parents portrayed in the book of Genesis could be portrayed for Dalit emancipation along the following sections: (I) Contemplative Intuition, (II) Compassionate Intelligence, (III) Committed Integration. Contemplative Intuition 1. God of Integration not of Fragmentation 2. Indomitable Faith through Risk-taking 3. Determination against Determinism Compassionate Intelligence 4. Tracing Historical Roots 5. Assertion for Land, Rights, and Dignity 6. Credible and Efficient Leadership Committed Integartion 7. Moral Integrity and Self-Discipline 8. Patriarchy to be Eradicated 9. To be Awakened to New Dreams 1.0 God of Integration not of Fragmentation The formless chaotic disorder of cosmic darkness is Fr. A. Maria Arul Raja, SJ daringly penetrated and churned by the divine storm by way of creating the space for orderly cosmos-human-divine bond of union. This harmonious networking is envisioned to lead to fruitful multiplication. Accordingly all the humans female, male, and trans-genders -empowered by the image and likeness of life-generating God (1:26-27; 4:1-2) are entitled to create a culture of celebration of protecting the promoting life in multiple forms. If this inter-dependent lifeaffirming culture is violated in any form then the Creator has every reason to become restless. But unfortunately the humans have taken reckless license for trampling upon the God-given-human-dignity of other humans and indiscriminately destroying the life of the nature. With their claim for false autonomy (2:17) away from the organic link with the Creator, Co-creation, and Co-humans, they lose their discerning capacity from the eyes of the Creator. This has created systems of discriminatory hierarchical conflicts (permanent purityundying pollution, venerable higher- unworthy lower, angelic white- satanic black, honourable male- deplorable female or esteemed spiritual- inferior material), in the name of knowing good and evil. These whimsical systems and practices are projected as the natural order, moral order, and even divine order by the power elite and imposed on the majority of the common people. Such systems of cognition and action lead to bloodshed caused by the murder committed by the humans upon their own co-humans (3:2-8). Every situation of the accumulation power seeks to pounce on the weak humans for the indulgences of the strong humans. This is how the January -July

16 dignity of the (preferably fair-skinned) women s body (6:1-6) is sought to be haunted by the atrocious passion and lust of the power-drunk men (sons of God?). Is this the humanity that God created? Through the eyes of the caste-minded power-mongers, the human body of Dalit women is reduced to be the gratis site of giving vent to masculine lust and that of Dalit men the location for extracting cheap labour. Could one perceive that the divine wrath expresses itself in the form of asserting trends of growing sensibilities of human rights from among the Dalit women and men? Tackling the all-pervading culture of violent corruption and vicious iniquity is an enormous task, perhaps leading to an attitude of kill-all (6:13,17). Nevertheless, what matters to God here is the appropriate concern of ultimately cultivating life (6:18-22) through creating a corruption-free and casteless society by all humans. Never again should life be terminated (8:18-22). This is the promising divine gift, for all seasons, bestowed on the all living creatures. If so, the Dalit-haters cannot have the sinful license for devastating the lives of the Dalits. The Dalits on the other hand cannot afford to give in to the spirit of defeatism and determinism. Like Noah, they have to be ultimately rooted in the faith for getting awakened to the vast horizon of new life for all the humans in the whole of the cosmic family. The Babel project of building a tower to touch the heights of the heavens (11:1-9) could be inter-textually reread from the avaricious human projects of becoming like God (3:1-19), or of claiming to be more acceptable to God than one s own brother (4:1-16), or of violently possessing human daughters as heroic deeds of grandeur (6:1-4). Many so-called development projects set afloat with much fanfare are claimed by the neo-colonial corporate corridors of power to give a face-lift to the cities of India. In fact, such profitobsessed projects drive the Dalits away reducing them as unemployed migrants or unwanted, sex workers or slum dwellers. The well-knit organized power-centres like Tower of Babel are to be eyed from the perspectives of God. Perhaps such edifices of power-accumulation are to be demolished for building up human communities founded on egalitarian ethics. 2.0 Indomitable Faith through Risk-taking The customary human choice, by and large, has been the familiar rut of habit rather than the unknown path of exploration. But the definite point of departure for elderly Abram and his barren wife to move out from their native soil is to be perceived from the spirit of risk-taking to cooperate with God with promises of progeny and prosperity gets reiterated (13:14-17; 15:5, 7, 18; 18:10; 22:17). The divine promise is repeated to the succeeding generations (26:24; 28:3-4, 13-15; 32:12; 35:9-12; 37:11-12; 48:16). In the case of the Dalits, even if there is no blue print for the next phase of emancipation, they have to break the barriers of the prevailing ambience of untouchability. Relying on the Lord of history, the culture of risk-taking could lead them to break new grounds to see the dawn of new humanity free from caste hierarchy. The single-minded agenda of God in making a microscopic minority of nomadic and migrant people (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) into a large multitude of people with dignified ownership of land can never be forgotten. It has been appropriately responded to by these ancestors with his single-minded pursuit. The intention of God to create a caste-free humanity is to be adequately responded to by all the humans. This will be the fitting worship of the Lord of history. All people of good will from among the Dalits and others are to be constantly reminded of this, as Jacob was reminded of his commitment to the God of Bethel. 3.0 Determination against Determinism The Dalits are forced to undergo the cumulative effect of humiliation of being excluded and exploited by the casteminded people down the centuries. Being ill-treated as lesser humans, their collective consciousness may seem to be crushed with lack of fertile imagination or creative ways for wriggling out of this curse. If so, the burden of determinism caused by sense of fatalism (karma) upheld by magical consciousness buries Dalit assertion alive. Demolition of the enslaved mind-set is the starting point for any journey towards abundant life of fruitful multiplication of emancipatory efforts. Abraham s priority is primarily to rely on the lifegiving God even at the cost of the life of his only son who could never be retrieved when sacrificed. Through this absolute act of risk-taking surrender to God, Abraham gets the revelation of the transformation of the the possible moment of blood-shed into the actual moment of promotion of life. And hence his son, the only link with the rest of history, is spared from being sacrificed as a burnt offering (22: 12-15). Multiplying the whole descendants of Abraham in abundance (stars of heaven and sand of the sea-shore) is 16 Info on Human Development

17 worked through God s covenantal promise on the one hand and Abraham s unconditional co-operation with the same Lord of history (17:1-8; 22:17). Down the centuries, many Dalits have been killed in the name of serving gods, goddesses, traditions, harmony, law and order. But the life-promoting agenda of God could never tolerate the blood-shed of the innocent Issacs, that too in the name of sacrifice to God, even for a single moment. While accompanying the Dalits struggling for emancipated life, many people claim to serve the Dalits without changing their own convenient personal gains, emotional baggage, ideological leanings or cultural prejudices. But one has to realize the significance of risk-taking demanding the surrender of all these. The radical openness to the Godgiven human dignity and the fundamental option for egalitarian ethos has to transform all of them. This lifeaffirming orientation of the Dalits serves the whole of the humanity as God s abundant blessing. Deep within the Dalits are radically open to explore new avenues from the ways of innovative intervention of the God of history. They are ready to learn from the models of emancipation emerging from struggles against systems of racism, patriarchy or bonded labour. Such radical openness could inspire their dreams and visions to work out vast array of possibilities and alternative paths of emancipation. The spirit of determination with historical consciousness instilled into Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph from the book of Genesis could empower the Dalits to assertively fight against the baggage of determinism imposed on them. With such assertive spirit inspired by the God of history, they could claim their rightful space- rights for land, education, health and empowerment as co-citizens and co-humans along with all types of ethnic groups of people (15:20-21). The experience of humiliation may sometimes create amidst the Dalits a sense of helpless irony or sarcastic mockery (17:17; 18:12) of some of the constructive initiatives to build up themselves. But such gloomy moments dampening the spirit of self-assertion, need not have to lead them to an attitude of resignation. The hope-generating affirmation of God upholding Abraham with futuristic dreams of becoming multitudes of peoples and becoming co-humans with other nations empowers Abraham to fight out pessimistic moments and affirming optimistic assertion. Despite the ordeal of on-going humiliation, the Dalits continue their mission of community-building modeled after the heartening hospitality of Abraham for the sojourners in the desert. Along with such pursuits of humanization of others, they mask their experience of denial of dignity resulting in humiliation. Whatever the nature of people whom they encounter- friends or foes, divine or human, governmental bodies or non-governmental organizations - they have to assert themselves by way of proclaiming the damage done to their human dignity. Dalits of the whole world! Proclaim your pain! You have nothing to loose except the shackles of untouchability. The silent suffering of Sarah in the form of veiled laughter is laughed at by the God of history for whom nothing is impossible. The silent suffering of the Dalits in the form of unproductive emotional upheavals may not help them to wriggle out of their sad states of affairs. Relying on the same God, they are challenged to explore creative ways of identifying and naming the feelings they experience when they are not treated as co-humans with others. Such audacious commitment of faith to the Lord of history could empower them against the situation of helplessness to play the major role in moving away from the barrenness of caste culture into the fertility of egalitarianism. Jacob s night-long combat with an anonymous wrestler, he resiliently kept on wrestling with him till the day break (32:22-24). With such audacity his name is transformed into Israel (he who strives with God or God strives). He manages to steal away his father s blessing (27:1-45) and wrest for him the divine blessing from the anonymous face by way of encountering God face to face (32:22-30). Deprived of opportunities, heaped with abuses, surrounded by humiliation, alienated from their kinsfolk, and dismissed as unwanted, the Dalits may experience certain hesitation to encounter others. But with the spirit of self-assertion and determination, they could keep on resiliently encountering the false accusations and malicious propaganda projected from the anonymous quarters. In fact, such moments of attack by anonymous wrestlers and known faces are to be taken as opportunities offered by God to proclaim the truth that the Dalit agenda is after all a human agenda building up an egalitarian society. Indeed, this realization is a blessing indeed. This blessing has to be assertively claimed with the spirit of audacity of Jacob. January -July

18 4.0 Tracing Historical roots Tracing the myths of origin is quite necessary to reconstruct the past, to be reawakened to the present and to raise the hopes for future in the course of history. The dominant seek to construct their myths with the intention of recapitulating their power positions making themselves privileged over the powerless common folk. For instance, the myth of Purusha Sukta (Rig Veda X:80) set afloat for over three millennia is deployed for perpetuating discriminatory caste hierarchy upholding the abominable practice of untouchability in India. But the ordinary folk like Dalits have to work out the strategies of myth-making, not only to humanize themselves but also those repressive humans in the face of asymmetry of power. The take-off story of the whole of the Bible seems to undertake this responsibility of democratizing the God-given dignity to all humans of all ages in the entire universe of creation (1:26-27). This is also the part of the fine tuned harmony (1:31) from the womb of anarchy (1:2). This indeed is the outcome of the creative divine intervention. Even while tracing the roots of the descendants after every turn and twist of historical journey- personal clashes (4:17-5:1-32), great floods (10:1-32), ethnic hatred (19:30-38) on their way of spreading abroad on the earth after the flood, the fore-parents portrayed in the book of Genesis could collect this much of data from oral memory. This is the need of the hour for the Dalits to reconstruct and rewrite their own history through oral order of the memory, even with the minimum data available. Though kept illiterate under subjugation for centuries, the Dalits, as the indigenous daughters and sons of the soil, should claim their due space at all levels- historical, mythological, legal, educational, aesthetic, psychological, spiritual, economic, political, oral or literary (11:10-32; 14:1-16). In fact the Dalits are earnestly dreaming dreams and seeing visions to build up a new humanity with such affirming cordiality with one another. Even if the casteminded people keep on committing crimes of creating the culture of fragmentation, the Dalits cannot afford to loose their commitment to build up the culture of communion. Like Abraham and Isaac who revisit their own native roots with commitment (24:1-67), the Dalits have to be assertively rooted again and again in their soil of struggles for creating a new humanity of communion. In the face of growing multiplication of the descendents and emerging difficulties, the need for reconstructing historical details- persons, events, crises, and hopes through memory embedded in their collective consciousness (36:1-37:1). From their collective memory of orality, we encounter here a large number of men and women living in various regions with large varieties of styles of leadership. The history of Dalit struggles has to be traced and documented like this list to the last detail for the benefit of the future generations. At the same time, the Dalits are painfully aware of the fact that history repeats itself in the story of perpetuation of the caste slavery in different forms in different times down the centuries. And they are very hopeful that the same history of oppression will be subverted by the gradual uprising of the collective confidence of the Dalits in building up a new humanity without any trace of crimes of casteism and untouchability. Just like Joseph ditched by his own brothers into the waterless pit gradually asserted himself as the most acclaimed leader of the Egyptian empire, the disempowered Dalits, through their overhauling awakening and organized assertion, continue to be instrumental in humanizing all people- both the Dalits and the anti-dalits. 5.0 Assertion for Land, Rights, and Dignity At the crucial moment of the death of his dear wife in the alien country, the sojourner Abraham manages to claim a land from the Hittittes as the burial ground to be owned by his family (23:6-19). Though migrated to Egypt for escaping the severity of the famine and meeting his own lost son Joseph (42:1-5; 43:1-2; 46:1-7), Jacob is very keen in getting himself buried after death back in the very soil which his own ancestors bought and were buried in (48:2-4; 49:29-32; 50: 12-13). Jacob s sense of autonomy and independence of Israelites is quite commendable. It is also surprising for the Cananite inhabitants that the moment of Jacob s burial as a migrant shepherd could draw a very large number of the Hebrews and the Egyptians together. But the Dalits in their own native soil are not fortunate like the fore-parents of Genesis. The denial of landownership in their own native soil is the most blatantly cruel form of the oppression of the human rights of Dalits in addition to the denial of decent education and dignified health care. Even tiny pieces of land owned by the Dalits are surreptitiously snatched away from them through false cases of litigation foisted against them. In some areas their lands are violently encroached upon by the self-styled muscle powers in the name of promoting industrial developments or so-called national development projects. Even the panchami land, originally handed over to the Dalits after retrieving them from the land-grabbers during the colonial period of Indian history, is again taken away from them. So much so, the collective living space of the Dalits in the Indian scenario is relegated as the cheri or colony. It connotes that this cheri is after all not the epicenter of the village of the citizens, i.e., the caste-people. The fore-parents in Genesis enjoy dignified space both at the moment of living or encountering death, even as a migrant sojourner. But in the case of Dalits in India, the recognition of human dignity is denied in their own native soil while living and even after their death in the cemeteries and burial grounds. The Dalits are violently banned by the caste-minded people from to burying their dead in the common cemetery in various parts of India. The practice 18 Info on Human Development

19 of double-glass system setting apart Dalits as the inferior untouchables from the so-called high caste people are still in vogue in the common civil space without any impunity. The Dalits are convinced that the celebration of the dignity of the Dalits by themselves and others as co-humans can never be a history without ever realizing the dream of actual ownership of land for Dalits to begin with. 6.0 Credible and Efficient Leadership Dalit emancipation could be effectively directed by credible and efficient leadership qualities. Different models of leadership emerge from the fore-parents especially when they encountered conflicts from within and outside. The Even in the face of severe and unprecedented famine, the migrant families of Aramaens, with their agrarian labour, grow hundredfold in prosperity. It creates heart burns amidst the Philistines who seek to drive them out (26:15-16). But Isaac continues to step up his agrarian efforts of digging wells in the outskirts, one after another, even amidst Philistine interference and succeeds in owning up springing water in the valley of Gerar (26:17-25, 32). The affirming spirit of God encourages Isaac not to move away from the land to be eventually owned by his descendents. And here the Dalits could look into strengthening the inner power of resilience amidst the disruptions created by the caste-minded people. Like the assertive spirit of Isaac in incorrigibly keeping on digging following elements learnt from the stories of Genesis could be helpful for empowering the Dalits. The competitive spirit for immediate incentives and instant success could trigger some divisions among the Dalits. The seeds of voice of dissension may be sown from outside for reducing the Dalits as a house divided from within. Inspired by Abram who tries to save Lot (14:11-16), the Dalits are called upon to mobilize and align themselves with all powers at their disposal to rescue other less fortunate Dalits gripped under the persecution of the caste-minded people. Burying all divisions and dissensions within the house, the common enemy of discriminatory caste hierarchy has to be defeated in their on-going struggle. wells till he gets the springing water for the properity of his own people, the Dalits have to enhance their efforts in sustaining their struggles for creating a new humanity. When the assertion of the Dalits and the affirmation of the Lord of history encounter each other with the sense of unbroken covenant, then the Dalit dream of a new nation of egalitarianism will dawn upon human history. The drama of stealing the father s blessing for the younger son Jacob, though it is originally intended for the elder son Esau, is hastily and assetively executed (27:18-24). The seething fury of Esau with the plan of murdering his younger brother Jacob is sought to be managed by Rebekah by way of instructing her younger son to go underground until the elder son forgets these ugly events January -July

20 ending up with deprivation of his father s blessings and birth right (27: 41-45). In the story of conflict between Esau and Jacob, the deprivation of one s birth right and blessings is the result of following two factors: (1) Jacob s tricky manipulation of the dominant surreptitiously eating into the due share of the naïve people (2) Esau s voluntary surrender of one s rights for gaining one s momentary pleasures. In the story of the conflict between the Dalits and the caste-minded people, the Dalits are deprived of the prosperity due for them as the sons and daughters of the soil. On the one hand, the meticulously interwoven system of caste hierarchy has systematically alienated them from the land, resources, opportunities, and even the rights to ensure their survival. On the other hand, one cannot deny the reality that there are some cases in which the Dalits have been losing their assertive powers by way of yielding to the short-term incentives as promised by the caste powers. By no means, can the divine blessings of becoming co-humans with others ever be compromised. For this end, the Dalits have to learn from the systematic planning and neat execution of Rebekah and her youner son Jacob. By no means, can they be deprived of their birth right of becoming dignified human beings. For this end, they cannot walk on the track of selfpity as in the case of the elder son Easu. One has to realize that Dalit assertion for their human rights is not a rat-race between Dalits and others for some resources and opportunities. It is ultimately a sacred project of seeking the divine blessings for all- both the Dalits and others- as God s sons and daughters. For realizing this end, the Dalits cannot afford to be ever naively submissive to the norms of casteism. They are challenged to simultaneously grow innocent like the dove and shrewd like the serpent. Jacob is right earnest, while journeying towards Haran, in accomplishing the assigned task of getting married to the bride from among the kinsfolk of his mother. On the way, he spontaneously reaches out to the strangers, shepherds and women with his courteous conversation and benevolent deeds. While pursuing the agenda of creating a new humanity based on egalitarianism, the Dalits need the social capital of networking across the nations and peoples. The spontaneous cultivation of the web of such networking across cultures and continents could help them to effectively join hands with all people of good will to achieve the agenda of humanizing all through humanizing themselves. The voice of dissent of Jacob gradually and diplomatically runs counter to the voice of self-centred status-quoism of Laban. Jacob might have felt that all his labour for all these years is simply taken for granted by his father-in-law. Jacob s legitimate and polite ways of representing his need for getting his due wages (30: 26, 29, 31-33) is sought to be tactfully set aside by Laban with sweet-coated affirmation (30: 27-28) and overnight transfer of the best of his sheep and goats to the custody of his sons at a distance (30: 35-36). The human rights of the Dalits have been out rightly denied by the castobsessed powers with their traditional tactics of diversion, procrastination, sanctions, threats and freebies along with the slogans of nonviolence, patriotism, politeness, morality, civility, courtesy, religiosity, loyalty, universalism, harmony, law and order. While involved in rendering justice to those who are dehumanized and defaced, the Dalits have to learn the art of shrewdly discerning how the life-negating powers are cunningly mouthing life-promoting slogans. Exposing the political agenda of the caste-minded people alone may not be adequate. Systematic ways of deploying the educational skills and meticulous planning of the dominant are also required for the self-empowerment of the Dalits. Through multi-faceted skills the exploited Jacobs could encounter the sugar-coated atrocities of the exploiting Labans. Jacob s way of sending others (32: 4-8) with large contingencies of gifts (32: 13-17, 20-21) before himself to meet his brother Esau manifests his pre-occupation to protect himself. This seems to be the typical feature of selfcentred leader. This may not be an inspiring model for evolving credible leadership for leading the Dalit struggles in the face encountering friends or foes. The troubled spirit of Egyptian rulers and citizens haunted by dreams of devastation is brilliantly enlightened (40:1-23; 41:8-32) by Joseph with the intuition inspired by the divine. In the face of the enormous famine gripping the country, he evolves systematic models and effective policies for alleviating the crisis of the Egyptian soil (41:33-56). In spite of Joseph s status as a foreigner and prisoner, the Egyptians have appropriately acknowledged his genius for rightly interpreting the dreams and effectively managing the crisis. In the Indian context, the Dalit efficiency is never acknowledged by way of systematic denial of opportunities. Even if some of the Dalits prove their mettle worthy of credible leadership, they are dismissed as culpable exception or unbelievable anomaly. In the face such caste prejudices against the Dalits, they need not wait for the acknowledgement of the caste-obsessed people. They need to claim their own space of leadership tempered with skillful efficiency and unquestionable credibility empowered by the Lord of history. In the context of the Egyptian practice of 20 Info on Human Development

21 untouchability, Joseph daringly seeks to demolish it by organizing table fellowship of the enslaved Hebrews (deplorable shepherd class) along with Egyptian administrators (43:32) and marrying an Egyptian (41:49). He serves as an inspiring model for annihilation of the roots of casteism from the Indian soil. Joseph does not seem to nurse grudges against his own siblings for their murderous tricks of reducing him to be a dead brother (37:18-36). In stead he magnanimously affirms them with hospitable treatment with dignified embrace (44:1-34; 47:1-27). His brothers too reciprocate the good will gestures of amicable bond of union with Joseph, the Egyptian governer (50:16-26). These initiatives of fraternal dialogue lead them to a jubilant reunion of the dispersed family from the eldest to the youngest (45:1-28). Joseph s warning against his own brothers against such unhealthy competitions among themselves (45:24) has to serve as a reminder to the Dalits that intra-dalit resentment will defeat their collective human agenda of creating a new human community. Joseph s leadership qualities inspire every one along the lines of speaking out in transparency (45:1-3; 46: 31-34) and evolving creative alternatives in the face of crises by feeling one with the victims of history (47:13-26). In the process of humanization of the Dalits and others, such qualities are required for the leaders from among the Dalits and others. 7.0 Moral Integrity and Self-discipline The questionable method of Lot s daughters seeking their child to be fathered by their own father that too when he is inebriated (19:32-35) is not approved. It may appear to be legitimate in the name of evading the shame of being childless. This is totally an abomination to be condemned. The end cannot justify the means. The corridors of power and the mainline media cry hoarse about the nonviolability of law and order, harmony and peace. It is legitimate. But if they pursue the same, at the cost of the dignity and life of the victims of untouchability, in their policies, planning, projects or programmes, they stand condemned as illegitimate by the lifeseeking struggles of the Dalits and the lifeaffirming agenda of God. God, after all, is not hasty in indiscriminately destroying the city of Sodom and Gomorrah. Hearing the outcry against their grave enormity of the culture of sin as a way of life in the city (18:20), he wants to personally verify the ground reality (18:16, 21). But God, as the Judge of all the earth takes the survey that there is not even 50, 45, 40, 30, 20, or 10 righteous people across the city (vv 22-32). And eventually the wrathful visitation from the heavens destroys Sodom and Gomorroh with brimstone and fire (19:24-25). When casteism is practiced with the perpetuation of the untouchability reducing the Dalits as the lesser humans unworthy of human dignity, they are seething with righteous wrath. How to express this rage? When to communicate this anger? Where to deploy this fury? Here the Dalits are to be empowered by divine righteousness to play a creative role in constructing a new humanity freed from the evil of discriminatory social hierarchy. Half-hearted measures of Lot and distracted mind-set of his wife cannot be the model for Dalits in their attempt at annihilating the caste system. A full-fledged commitment with undivided heart of the model of Abraham could save the world from the devastating effects of casteism (18:16-33). The all-permeating wickedness of all people of the city Sodom with no single exception (19:4-7) to abuse his angelic visitors could not be combated even with his helpless bargain of placing his own virgin daughters at their lustful disposal (19: 7-8) as a last resort. The offer of his daughters for saving his guests is not acceptable, for it violates the human rights of women. But such is the vulnerable situation that Lot is subjected to, as the migrant sojourner whose rightful but feeble voice is brutally drowned in the atrocious manhandling of the wicked crowds of the city of Sodom (18:8,20; 19:9). Ultimately the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are destroyed. In the story of Isaac s twin sons, the shrewdness of the younger brother Jacob outmaneuvers his elder brother Esau by way of tricky bargain leading to the voluntary January -July

22 surrender of the birth right of the first born just for the pittance of eating bread and drinking red-hot stew at the moment of acute weariness and hunger (25: 27-34). The self-pity of Esau (25: 30, 32), though self-dependent (25:28), forfeits his own birth right and self-determination. By and large, the land-owning land-grabbers have captured the lion s share of powers and privileges relegating the large number of labourers as the landless migrant workers and dehumanized Dalits, in the scenario of Indian history. The Dalits have been all along deployed as the cheap labour, numerical strength, or vote banks with mere lip service and empty promises by the caste-minded leaders both within and out side the church. But the Dalits have to be awakened to the fact that in the name of addressing their weariness and hunger through crocodile tears the casteminded offer short term incentives. These oppressive elements should not be permitted to take control of the voiceless and the landless people. As dignified human persons, the Dalits should never forfeit their birth rights. Neither self-pity nor patronage should ever be permitted to play the havoc of doing away with the God-given birth right of becoming co-human with others. The evil of self-pity seeking the patronage of the caste-minded destroys the Dalit power of self-determination. Enticed by Joseph s handsomeness, his master s wife is keeping on wooing him to sleep with her. But consistently he refuses to fall a prey to her temptation. While attempting to run away from her grip, one of his garments is snatched away by her. It is loudly presented to the masters as the proof for his attempt to rape her. And Joseph, the Hebrew is jailed by the authorities for his alleged attempt at womanizing in the house of the captain (39: 7-20). But all along these trials and tribulations, God has been with him with steadfast love. Even in the face of indifference shown by the prison authorities, God s accompaniment with him makes him happy (39:21-23). The Dalits have been the victims of many allegations leveled by those who are bent upon demonizing them. Many Dalit women have been the rape victims and many Dalit men have been facing criminal cases in the hands of the caste-powers. Quite often the innocent ones cannot defend themselves for want of proof. As in the case of the imprisonment of Joseph and the accusations of his master s wife, the perpetrators of such violent acts against Dalits go scot free and the victims are further victimized. The Dalit hope is that at least one day the truth will prevail under the protective hand of God. This hope has to be sustained by the spirit of moral integrity and self-discipline, both at the collective and personal levels, for those committed to work for Dalit emancipation. 8.0 Patriarchy to be Eradicated As an alien woman dwelling in the alien soils of Egypt (12:10-20), and Gerar (20:1-18), Abraham s wife Sarah is eyed as the commodity to be possessed by the local kings. Only in the face of the divine warning against taking the wife of the displaced alien, with dire sequences of death and destruction for his household, the indulgent kings tends to justify this heinous act with the claim of integrity of heart and innocence of hands. But the rulers seek to exonerate him self with the claim that they have not completely violated the modesty of the married woman. Mere claim of integrity of heart and innocence of hands will not be adequate to undo the harm done to the displaced couple of Abraham and Sarah. The woman s dignity has to be duly restored with appropriate compensation (20: 14). Only then, the dreadful divine visitation against the perpetrators of violence could be withdrawn from them by way of transforming barrenness into fertility again (20:17-18). Whenever Dalits raise their voice against the atrocious practices of casteim and untouchability, Dalit women are on the receiving end undergoing the ordeal of gang rapes and mass killing along with arson and looting. The female body is made as the medium by the caste-minded people to teach a bitter lesson for the Dalits that they should never dare to raise their voice with self-assertion against violent humiliations heaped upon them. It is ridiculous to observe that those who practice untouchability do not seem to hesitate to exploit the Dalit women with sexual intentions. The caste-minded seem to have the convenient practice of excluding the Dalits at large but seeking the bodily pleasures from the Dalit women. Only the ferocity of the divine warning could keep the rapists and womanizers haunting the Dalit women. The ill-treatment and exploitation meted out to the slave-girl Hagar cannot be ignored or pardoned. Such humiliations get further heaped up with the gesture of noninterference of Abram (16:6), and of the subtle arrogance of Hagar (16:4). How to end up the violence unleashed against the voiceless Dalits like Hagar who is summarily dismissed after extracting her labour throughout? The slave girl Hagar and her child are ruthlessly driven away by Abraham without the sensibilities of the human rights as one is sensitized today. In spite of the unceremonious dismissal of the helpless slave girl with her young child crying with thirst in the scorching wilderness (21:14-15), the divine intervention comes out with the fertile offer of building up a nation through this child almost orphaned in the wilderness of Beer-sheba (21:13, 15-20). But the divine hand never loses sight of the covenantal agenda of making Abraham as a great nation through his rightful heir Isaac from the dying womb of Sarah and the righteous agenda of making the slave girl s son as a nation even while she was ill-treated in Beer-sheba. The self-assertion of the Dalits brings in many problems from all quarters- Dalit, pro-dalit, and anti-dalit. Whatever is going to be the complex nature of the problems with varying intensity and magnitude, the Dalits cannot afford to lose sight of the 22 Info on Human Development

23 agenda of creating a new humanity free from discriminatory hierarchy. We come across five women in 29:15-30 (Leah, Rachel, Zilpah, Bilhah, and Dinah) with varying roles and functions. The rat-race created between the women, ill-treatement meted out to them, or total negligence of the girl children are part of the prevailing culture of patriarchy during the time of the biblical Patriarchs. One need not subscribe to this evil of patriarchy. Amidst these contradictions we also perceive their perspectives that the turns and twists of their life journey are reread in relation to the large frame work of the divine intervention of promoting them as dignified persons and nation. Any one who is less loved (Leah) or the young (Abel, Jacob, or Joseph) becomes the epicenter of God s care. And the same God continues to does not withdraw his love for others (Rachel, Cain, Ishmael, or other brothers of Joseph). The Dalits being counted as the most hated people of history are to become the centre of every one s preferential love as clearly shown by biblical God. The caste-minded people (self-) acclaimed to be the most privileged are also to be loved to the effect of helping them to give up their hatred towards the Dalits. Ultimately, the fanning of the animosity projected to exist between the caste-minded and the Dalits for claiming some resources, keeps on stonewalling the ways of rebuilding the entire human family free from discriminatory hierarchy. Even when systematically excluded by her in-laws, the widowed Tamar judiciously claims her rightful space of becoming a mother through the blood relationship of her husband s household (38:6-21). The journey of the multiplication of Israel s descendents has many such ups and downs. The Dalit struggles for building up a new humanity with egalitarian society cannot shy away from the silenced cry of the women which is traditionally drowned in the war cry of the patriarchy. The liberation for the Dalits can never be realized without striking at the roots of patriarchy. When Dinah is raped, the offenders are ruthlessly punished. But her personal choice to get married to a particular man is turned down just because he is of a non- Israelite origin (34: 1-31). This indeed is a tragic story portraying the honour killing as indulged by the Aramaens who claim themselves superior by virtue of their practice of circumcision to the Hivites who do not practice it. Rape of any girl can never be justified. But is it legitimate to respond to it through massacre, loot, and total annihilation? In India we come across honour killing when the Dalit boy or girl is in love with a non-dalit partner. Some times both the partners are killed and some times the Dalit boy or girl is killed along with their kith and kin. The caste-minded honour is constructed on the basis of exclusion away from the touchability with the Dalits. The human honour of the Dalits is sought to be constructed on the basis of annihilation of untouchability. The so-called honour constructed upon one s caste, gender, language, or religion is nothing but disgrace. 9.0 To be Awakened to New Dreams The Lord of history proclaims himself as the God of Abraham, and God of Isaac (23: 13), and through the renewal of this promise now to Jacob asserts himself as the God of Jacob as well. This is the moment of Jacob s enlightenment of getting awakened to the irreversible promise made to his fore-parents (28:16-17). In the course of on-going struggles, the Dalits may encounter moments of being burnt out with weariness. At these moments of disillusionment, they require a new lease of life through dreaming dreams and seeing visions in dialoguing with different heavenly inspirations or earthly ideologies. The Dalit dreams have to go beyond the confines of day-to-day survival agenda or safety issues. They are after all dreams of creating a new society with no traces of any discriminatory hierarchy. The divine affirmation is already guaranteed for realizing this dream of building up the new humanity. Whenever Dalits are assured of such a lifeorientation and wherever they meet other humans with such life-affirming solidarity, these are the sacred sites (Beth-el) upon which they encounter God, the Lord of history. The collective jealousy prevailing among the siblings for pampering the younger brother Joseph leads them to illtreat him. And further when he expresses his dreams of becoming great to them further makes them plot to kill the younger brother (37:18-20) without any eye witnesses. But with total reliance on the Lord of history and in-depth intuition, he undertakes the risk of right interpretation of the personal dreams and interior movements of all people, irrespective of the outcome (40: 8-22). In the Indian scenario, the Dalits have been hated, penalized, and ostracized for no fault of theirs. Even when they gently express the need for acknowledging their rights as co-human with others, the caste-minded people cry hoarse as if the national harmony is destroyed and religious purity is desecrated. Such a situation deserves to be ferociously treated like Sodom and Gomorrah immersed in the rains of fiery divine wrath. And further, if Dalit dreams of duly constructing a caste-free human society are bracketed out, Indian society is bound to be drowned into the Primeval Deluge of anarchy. When Dalit visions of freeing humanity from every trace of discriminatory hierarchy are set aside, all human achievements will be razed to the grounds like the Tower of Babel. 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24 Indigenous Peoples And Social Teachings Tensions in Definition The tension could be seen in the attempt to define indigenous people in UN and its various bodies. India, China, Pakistan and several other Asian states deny the category of indigenous peoples Fr. Felix Wilfred populations which inhabited the country, or a geographical region to which the country belongs, at the time of conquest or colonization or the establishment of present state boundaries and who irrespective of their legal status, retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural and political institutions. Demography Indigenous Peoples Indigenous people constitute about 5% of world population, but they are 15% of world s poor. 300 to 370 million people belong to indigenous people 70% of indigenous people live in Asia Indigenous peoples have 4000 languages More than 100 pharmaceutical companies are currently funding projects to study indigenous plant knowledge and specific plants used by native healers. Who are the Indigenous Peoples? In recent times there has been a tension and polarization in defining the indigenous peoples. Some states deny that they have indigenous peoples in their country. Other states want to determine who the indigenous people are. There is a fear of secessionist tendencies. Indigenous people want self-definition. They want to define themselves as indigenous independent of external criteria used by states or other international bodies. Terminological Use in Asia Thailand: indigenous hill peoples Malaysia: indigenous peoples, and Orang Asli specifically for indigenous groups in Peninsula Malaysia India: scheduled tribes Nepal: Janajata Indigenous Peoples in Asia Attempts to Define Indigenous Peoples The first attempt we find in no. 109 of Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention (1957). This was refined in the ILO Convention no. 169 (1989). It defines thus indigenous peoples: Peoples in independent countries who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the Key Facts Indigenous peoples suffer higher rates of poverty, landlessness, malnutrition and internal displacement than other members of society, and they have lower levels of literacy and less access to health services The Adivasi or tribal peoples of India constitute only 8% of the total population of the county, but 40% of them are internally displaced. In Thailand, more than 40% of indigenous girls and women who migrate to cities work in the sex trade. The majority of females trafficked across state borders in South-East Asia are from indigenous communities. The Issue of Citizenship Members of hill tribes in some countries like Thailand suffer from the lack of citizenship rights which makes them vulnerable and deprives them of basic social services. Tribal people in Myanmar face some worst consequences due to civil war. In 2006 in Karen state civilians were displaced and some 232 villages were destroyed Between , some 470,000 Mon, Karen, Shan and Karenni people were internally displaced as a consequence of violence, military operation and human rights violation. Land Alienation This is one of the crucial issues affecting the indigenous peoples. 24 Info on Human Development

25 Traditional mode of ownership was not based on documents and titles. Using modern patterns of ownership, the tribals and other indigenous peoples were alienated from their lands Loss of Lands and Territories Due to absence of precise legal regulations affirming indigenous peoples customary rights over their traditional lands as well as in a number of unresolved disputes between state lands (including national parks, watershed areas and forestry preservation area) and community lands. Due to corruption by law- enforcement officers related to the forest industry. Indigenous Lands Contrasting Legal Situations Philippines: The Indigenous Peoples rights Act (1997) recognizes indigenous peoples rights over their ancestral lands and territories and incorporates a process of demarcation and titling through the granting of Certificates of Ancestral Domain titles (CADT) Cambodia: Dispossession of indigenous lands has resulted in in increased rates of poverty and forced migration. This situation is fostered by insufficient legal development of the indigenous land provisions of the Land Law, including the lack of a procedural framework for land demarcation and titling. Displacement Development-caused Indigenous peoples are subject to displacement; their economic territories are submerged by dam projects or taken over for mining schemes. Example: In Bangladesh Kaptai Hydroelectric Project rendered some 100,000 of the indigenous peoples homeless and submerged about acres equivalent to 40% of the land suitable for intensive cultivation. Violence and Conflict The encroachment by migrants in the areas of indigenous peoples or state-policy of resettlement, neglect etc. have led to resurgence of ethnic violence. The war and conflict situation has affected seriously the development of indigenous peoples their economy, education etc. Violence Suffered by Indigenous Women Gender-based violence is used in armed conflicts. For example, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Philippines, etc. There are numerous cases of gang-rape, sexual enslavement and killing of tribal women by members of the military Increasing number of indigenous women have become victims of sexual trafficking and prostitution In areas such as Chiang Mai, in Thailand thousands of women are sex workers, and 70 80% of them are India: After many massive protests by Adivasis and forest dwellers, India adopted the Scheduled Tribes and Other traditional Forest Dwellers Bill. It grants extensive rights to indigenous forest dwellers. Displacement Displacement takes place concretely when huge dams are built and when mining is done in the territories of indigenous peoples. Example from India: 8.54 million tribals were displaced as a result of development projects in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Orissa. The Sardar Sarovar Dam and Power Project has caused the relocation of 320, 000 tribals and affecting their livelihood. Displacement of tribals in the state of Jahrkand as a result of mining. reportedly HIV positive. State-Violence against Indigenous Peoples This seems to be the order of the day in many Asian countries: India, Nepal, Vietnam, Lao, Myanmar, Indonesia, etc. Massive human rights violation against indigenous people perpetrated by the military and paramilitary forces. It includes arbitrary arrests, torture, political January -July

26 killing of indigenous leaders, etc. Major Issues Affecting Indigenous Peoples From Policy Perspective The state policy of trying to integrate them in the national mainstream Development policies which displace the indigenous peoples and unsettle their identity and deprive their livelihood. State policy of conservation and reserved areas. Ban on logging affecting the indigenous communities. It imposes great costs in terms of livelihood options. All these policies move the indigenous people from the centre to the periphery, from agents they are made into victims Market Economy Affecting the Indigenous Peoples The lands of the indigenous people are rich in natural resources biodiversity, forest and reserves of minerals, etc. The intrusion of market forces which for profit exploit these resources aided often by state agencies and politicians Cultural Alienation The rich culture of indigenous peoples are not acknowledged and affirmed Their language is not fostered. Imposition of alien language and culture on indigenous peoples From being a living culture, the indigenous peoples culture is made into object of conservation and exploited for commercial purpose and in tourism industry Cultural alienation leads to loss of identity Right to Land and Resources World Council of Indigenous Peoples (WCIP) submitted the following to UN Working group in 1985: Indigenous peoples shall have exclusive rights to their traditional lands and its resource Where the lands and resources have been taken away, they shall be returned The right to land includes surface and subsurface rights, full rights to interior and coastal waters No action or course of conduct may be undertaken which may result in the destruction of land, air, water, sea ice, wildlife, habitat or natural resources without the free consent of the indigenous peoples. Emotional Ties with the Land For the indigenous peoples, land is not merely a possession and a means of production. The entire relationship between the spiritual life of indigenous peoples and mother earth has deeper emotional bonds. The land is not a commodity which an be acquired but something to be enjoyed freely. Right to Culture, Language and Education There is a lot of discrimination against indigenous peoples. Government policies pursue discriminatory and oppressive cultural policies - they are essentially assimilative in character. The phenomenon of cultural genocide and ethnocide takes on various forms. The knowledge indigenous peoples had gathered over centuries is being exploited by commercial companies for their profit. Right to Development The crisis of modern development model to sustainable development. Rights of Indigenous Peoples Land and Resources Culture, language and education Development Self-determination, autonomy and self-government 26 Info on Human Development

27 The importance of regeneration of natural resources for development Indigenous people have developed for centuries systems of successful management of natural resources and sustainable development without wanton destruction. The right to development should respect the indigenous communities development practices. Right to Self-determination Many Asian states are reluctant to recognize indigenous communities as peoples entitled to self-determination Difference in the perception of the scope and content of this self-determination Right to Self-determination International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 1966 states: In those states in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities exist, persons belonging to such minorities shall not be denied the right, in community with the other members of their group, to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practice their own religion or to use their own language (Article 27). Indigenous Communities and Governance The traditional concept and practice of protected areas it led to the exclusion of local people. It was managed by the state. Modern paradigm: Community Conserved Areas (CCCS). It is done through the agency of the local communities who - are concerned about ecosystem through their relation to it - take effective action to maintain or enhance biodiversity - are major players in decision-making and implementing decisions. National Policies and Indigenous Peoples Role of Indigenous Women in Natural Resource Management Women suffer hardships when ecological degradation occurs in forests and other common pool resources. It makes difficult their traditional activities It is necessary that any policy formulation on natural resource management takes gender equations into account. There is need to acknowledge the specific needs, perspectives, and roles of women in natural resource management. Catholic Social Teachings on Indigenous Peoples There is relatively little dealing with the indigenous peoples in the social teachings. We have some speeches of Pope John Paul II, when he addresses groups of indigenous peoples of Canada, Ecuador, Australia. However, the social teachings have some basic principles which have very relevant application to the issues facing the indigenous peoples. Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church Here we have at least in two places explicit reference to indigenous peoples. No. 180 in the Compendiums speaks of the respect for different forms of property ownership. If forms of property unknown in the past take on significant importance in the process of economic and social development, nonetheless, traditional forms of property must not be forgotten. Individual property is not the only legitimate form of ownership. The ancient forms of community property also has a particular importance it is particularly characteristic of the social structure of many indigenous peoples (no. 180) Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church Land and Identity of indigenous peoples: The relationship of indigenous peoples to their lands and resources deserves particular attention, since it is a fundamental expression of their identity. The rights of indigenous peoples must be protected. These peoples offer an example of a life lived in harmony with the environment that they have come to know well and to preserve. Their extraordinary experience, which is an irreplaceable resource for all humanity, runs the risk of being lost together with the environment from which they originate. (Compendium of the social doctrine of the Church no. 471). Principles from Social Teachings Cultural Pluralism In the context of an evolutionary understanding of January -July

28 cultures which places them in a hierarchy, Vatican II propounds an anthropological and pluralistic understanding of culture Gaudium et Spes speaks of plurality of cultures each one different from the other and none of them to be placed one over the other. Such an understanding of culture helps us see the different indigenous cultures and their values in their own terms and not in reference to others. Principles An Integrated Understanding of Justice Justice is to be understood not only within human societies but also in relation to the environment. The degradation and exploitation of nature do affect the practice of justice. Every violation of solidarity and civic friendship harms the environment, just as environmental deterioration in turn upsets relations in society. (Caritas in Veritate no. 51). It follows that indigenous peoples living in the natural habitats and availing the resources of nature are affected when nature is affected and its resources overexploited. Exploitation of nature turns out to be injustice meted out to them. Pluralistic Understanding of Society and Common Good Society is not made up of only individuals but also of groups/communities. Common good results from the cooperation of all groups in a society Therefore there can be no policy or practice of exclusion in the pursuit of common good As such indigenous peoples are integral part of the society and its pursuit of common good. Universal Destination of Goods and Resources In an important teaching Vat. II (Gaudium et Spes) reinforced the traditional understanding of the primacy of the social nature of property and resources Private property rights are not absolute but subject to common good and social goals. This teaching help us to prevent the use of the forest and other resources of indigenous peoples for accumulation of wealth on the part of few individuals, company and corporations. relationship to the natural environment. The environment is God s gift to everyone, and in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations and towards humanity as a whole. When nature, including the human being, is viewed as the result of mere chance or evolutionary determinism, our sense of responsibility wanes. In nature, the believer recognizes the wonderful result of God s creative activity, which we may use responsibly to satisfy our legitimate needs, material or otherwise, while respecting the intrinsic balance of creation. (no. 48). Such a vision of nature and environment leads us to a greater appreciation of indigenous peoples Principles Vision From Anthropocentric Vision to Environment conscious integral vision u Traditional Christian vision has been strongly anthropocentric. u More recent documents of the Church, while speaking of environmental issues has moved more and more towards an integral vision of reality that includes nature and its condition. u The emergence of a new theology of creation human beings as stewards of nature and not its masters. By Way of Conclusion u u u u In recent times, growing awareness in Asia regarding the plight of indigenous peoples. New policies, accords and programmes are devised. But there is implementation gap. At the same time, violence and discrimination continue to take place. The need for dialogue with indigenous people; creating room for their growing participation in decision-making in all areas that affect their life, dignity and rights. Caritas in Veritate Pope Benedict XVI Speaking of the Environment, the Pope notes: Today the subject of development is also closely related to the duties arising from our 28 Info on Human Development

29 Critical Analysis Of The Challenges Of The Indigenous Peoples In Asia And The Church seffective Response Caritas in veritate is the principle around which the Church s social doctrine turns, a principle that takes on practical form in the criteria that govern moral action. I would like to consider two of these in particular, of special relevance to the commitment to development in an increasingly globalized society: justice and the common good. # 6 Benedict XVI Fr. Ewald Dinter, SVD The world population is 6.9 billion people. Close to 400 million are Indigenous Peoples (IPs). The aspirations of the IPs are in many fields but their problems can be focused on two main areas: land and human dignity. Their land is getting smaller; it is taken away. The IPs often are socially discriminated, culturally displaced, economically marginalized, and politically disenfranchised. They are pushed out of their ancestral domains. Powerful communities continue to acquire tribal lands sources of land-based wealth and instruments of commerce. This situation is aggravated by many IPs low awareness of the extent of alienation and marginalization that is occurring in their countries. IPs rights are not yet fully realized. January -July

30 International Labor Organization 1921 ILP studies on the labor conditions of indigenous and tribal workers (ITPs) 1930 Convention No. 29 for standard and development work on ITPs Andean Indian Program ILO, Book. Indigenous Peoples: Living and Wording Conditions 1957 Adoption of the Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention (No. 107) 1986 Expert meeting recommends the revision of Convention No Adoption of the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention (No. 169) Response of International Organizations The situation among IPs is addressed by the international community through legal instruments passed by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations (UN). In 1921 already, the ILO carried out studies on the local conditions of indigenous and tribal workers. In 1953, ILO published a book entitled Indigenous Peoples: Living and Working Conditions of Aboriginal Populations in Independent Countries. In 1989, the ILO adopted ILO 169 or The Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention. ILO 169 recognizes the rights of IPs, especially to the territories they occupy and use. The UN Assembly addressed IPs concerns. The Declaration on Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious, and Linguistic Minorities was released in On September 13, 2007, the General Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. According to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UPFII), this document has the most comprehensive statement of the rights of indigenous peoples. It is also the clearest indication that the international community is committing itself to the protection of the individual and collective rights of indigenous peoples. Before that the UN declared the year 1993 as the Year of the Indigenous Peoples. One year later the Decade of the IP was promulgated. Some countries like Australia and the Philippines issued legislation that recognized the rights of IPs. The Philippines 1987 Constitution include the rights of IPs and ten years later, the Philippine Congress passed into law The Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA). Meanwhile, in 2008, Australia s Prime Minister Kevin Rupp issued the government s Apology to the Stolen Generations. 30 Info on Human Development

31 Declaration on Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities International Year of the World s Indigenous Peoples Proclamation of the International Decade of the World s Indigenous Peoples Second International Decade World Conference on Indigenous Peoples Note: 1992 *minorities*; 1993 indigenous peoples - mentality of power, they have violated the rights of ethnic groups and peoples, and shown contempt for their cultures and religious traditions.... In this attitude of the Pope some religious congregations in different parts of the world asked for forgiveness. e.g. the Franciscan Province of San Felipe de Jesus apologized to the Mayan people in Yucatan in They begged for forgiveness for not having respected your culture and for having imposed upon you for many centuries a religion that you did not understand. The Oblates of Canada, in 1991, apologized for the part we played in the cultural, linguistic, and religious imperialism...of the Natives of Canada. The Jesuits did it during their GC. The Church in the Philippines, in 2010 prayed we failed to imitate Jesus who welcomed and accepted all cultures...we suppressed the indigenous spirit... We ask for pardon. Response of the Church In the Holy Year 2000, on March 12, the First Sunday of Lent, Pope John Paul II called a Day of Pardon. In his homily, the Holy Father confessed that we cannot fail to recognize the infidelities of the Gospel committed by some of our brethren, especially during the second millennium. Let us ask pardon for the divisions which have occurred among Christians, for the violence some have used in the service of the truth and for the distrustful and hostile attitudes sometimes taken towards the followers of other religions. Among the seven different prayers, the ethnic groups and peoples were part of it. The Holy Father prayed,...christians have often denied the gospel; yielding to a January -July

32 Confession of the seven sins. Nr. 5. Sins committed in actions against love, peace, the rights of peoples, and respect for cultures and religions Archbishop Stephen Humio Hamao: Let us pray that contemplating Jesus, our Lord and our Peace, Christians will be able to repent of the words and attitudes caused by pride, by hatred, by the desire to dominate others, by enmity towards members of other religions and towards the weakest groups in society, such as immigrants and itinerants. After a pause the Holy Father prayed: Christians have often denied the Gospel; yielding to a mentality of power, they have violated the rights of ethnic groups and peoples, and shown contempt for their cultures and religious traditions: be patient and merciful towards us, and grant us your forgiveness! We ask this through Christ our Lord. We apologize for the part we played in the cultural, ethnic, linguistic, and religious imperialism that was part of the mentality with which the peoples of Europe first met the aboriginal peoples and which consistently has lurked behind the way the Native peoples of Canada have been treated by civil governments and by the churches. We were, naively, part of this mentality and were, in fact, often a key player in its implementation. Oblates of Canada (Alberta, 1991) I have felt shame and humiliation as I have heard of suffering inflicted by my people, and as I think of the part our church played in that suffering. Anglican Archbishop Michael Peers (Ontario, Canada, 1993) Ten years after the DAY OF PARDON in the Vatican, the Bishops of the Philippines (CBCP) attended a 2-day seminar on the theme of Reconciliation. Some Bishops then held their own apology with rituals. We failed to imitate Jesus who welcomed and accepted all cultures. We demonized the rituals. You played gongs and were penalized by [the early missionaries]. We suppressed the indigenous spirit. What have we done in the name of the mainstream Church? We ask [the indigenous peoples] for pardon. Archbishop Sergio Utleg ECIP Chairman Purification of Memory We ask forgiveness of the Mayan people for not having understood your world view and your religion and for having denied your deities; for not having respected your culture and for having imposed upon you for many centuries a religion that you did not understand; for having demonized your religious practices and for having declared in word and writing that they were works of the devil and that your idols were Satan incarnate Franciscan Province of San Felipe de Jesus to the Mayan People Mani, Yucatan 2009 We have not always recognized that aggression and coercion have no place in the preaching of the Gospel of Freedom especially in cultures that are vulnerable to manipulation by more powerful forces. We have often contributed to the alienation of the very people we wanted to serve. Jesuits, GC 34, (General Congregation, 1995) Commitment of the Church The first meeting of the Federation of Asian Bishop s Conference of Taipei in 1974 talks of a triple dialogue with other Cultures, Religious Traditions, and the Poor. We dialogue with culture. At the end of the five hundred years of Western colonialism we repent the destruction of indigenous Asian cultures (FABC Paper No. 92p). 32 Info on Human Development

33 Dialogue with Cultures We dialogue with culture. At the end of five hundred years of Western colonialism, we repent the destruction of indigenous Asian cultures. Indeed, as the global market is eating away at the roots of local communities, we view minority, marginalized cultures as the cutting edge of mission. Human Values And The Pursuit Of A Full Humanity In Asia, FABC Paper No. 92p Dialogue with Religious Traditions Indigenous/Tribal Peoples have a world view distinct from other Peoples. They are deeply in touch with the world of spirits, and they recognize a supreme deity. They look forward to a specific eschatological status of being with their ancestors. Their moral life is dictated by taboos, placating and propitiating the spirits and the ancestors. Many Indigenous/Tribal Peoples have also legends regarding some form of fall from grace or a blissful existence, and have messianic expectations of salvation and redemption. Fr. Percy Bacani, MJ Dialogue with the Poor The Church can be a powerful agent of conscientization of the Indigenous/Tribal peoples in their given areas. It can unite scattered Indigenous/ Tribal populations for more effective and collective actions against the process of alienation and marginalization. Fr. Percy Bacani, MJ Church in the Philippines The Philippines has a population of 95 million Filipinos, among them are 14 Million Indigenous Peoples, belonging to some 110 tribes/ethnic groups. The Church through the Episcopal Commission on Indigenous Peoples (ECIP) commits itself to work for and with indigenous peoples to (a) secure justice, (b) protect ancestral lands; and (c) preserve cultural heritage. Its mandate is to foster among the Christian majority a greater awareness and appreciation of the indigenous peoples to lessen deep-seated prejudices against them. The ECIP affirms the God-given dignity of the indigenous Filipinos and their culture. In 1982 John Paul II said, a faith that does not become culture is a faith which has not been fully received, not thoroughly thought of, not fully lived. January -July

34 EPISCOPAL COMMISSION ON INDIGENOUS PEOPLES By-Laws shall work for and with indigenous peoples (1) Secure justice (2) Protect ancestral lands (3) Preserve cultural heritage Christ Parish. The Church is working with the Mangyan communities in their struggle to attain security over their ancestral domains and to gain recognition of their rights as human beings. Our Mandate foster among the Christian majority greater awareness and appreciation of the indigenous peoples to lessen deep-seated prejudices against them. Our Philosophy of Work We affirm the God-given dignity of the indigenous Filipinos and their cultures. Our evangelization: witness of life and humble service dialogue of life and faith Our Commitment Cultural heritage Inculturation Integral Evangelization Education Capability Building Organizing Continuing Challenge We are on the way in our work for justice and the common good. We are trying to discern the Seeds of the Word hidden in the IPs culture and living conditions. This is our continuing challenge. Can the Indigenous Peoples see and feel that the Good News of Jesus has become a part of our own lives, that the Gospel shows us, how to behave in frustrations, how we solve conflicts and that we are joyful about the coming Reign of God. Examples on inculturation attempts Ancestral lands and wholistic development Justice and human rights Interfaith dialogue A Concrete Experience on the Island of Mindoro Mindoro, one of the 7000 islands in the Philippine archipelago, is home to the IPs, called the Mangyans. A hundred years ago Mindoro had a population of some The census of 2000, counts more than 1 Million inhabitants; close to 10 percent are the Mangyans. The indigenous peoples the Iraya, Alangan, Tadyawan, Buhid, Taubuid, Hanunuo, and Ratagnon tribes. In 1958, concrete programs for the Mangyans were began by the Church. In 1990 a compehensive program was worked out together with the Mangyans. From then onwards, more basic ecclesial communities (BECs) develped. In 2004, the Mangyan Mission became the Risen 34 Info on Human Development

35 Effective Ways Of Advocating Issues Of Migrants Through Church Activities Mr. Joachim Xavier Overview A. Structures that enable B. Understanding the unique content and scope of a Catholic ministry C. Avoiding an insular approach PART A STRUCTURES THAT ENABLE Getting Parishes Involved o Parish Migrant Ministry (PMM) o Involve ordinary Catholics in the care of migrants. o A new way of being church welcoming church What Do PMM Do o Represent the interest of migrants in the parish o See to the pastoral care of migrants in the parish o Increase awareness among parishioners o Facilitate the migrant participation in parish life o Carry our Migrant Sunday celebrations annually o Participate in appropriate advocacy initiatives Education programme for Refugee children by NBVM church January -July

36 Avoiding A Specialist /Sub-Contracting Mentality Living the good samaritan parable in the care of migrants. PART B Understanding The Unique Content And Scope Of A Catholic Ministry o Jesus the source, reason and sustainer. o Basis gospel, STC, etc. o Not limited to pure service but also advocacy for change consistent with gospel values. Distinction Between Diocesan and Parish Outfits o Diocesan offices promotes the development of PMMs. o Diocesan offices equips and supports pastoral care provided for by parishes PART C Avoiding An Insular Approach Deliberate Ecumenical Efforts o Working with our separated brothers o Creates opportunity for common understanding o e.g. Refugee School & Mobile Clinic with YWAM 36 Info on Human Development

37 Dialogue With Government o Influencing policies e.g. OHD Kota Kinabalu, Sabah on trafficking of persons o Provision of services e.g. Shelters by Good Shepherd Sisters Networking With NGO & FBO o Initiating or joining existing networks o JUMP (Northern Network of Migrants and Refugees) o MWG (Migration Working Group) Conclusion o An effective church based response is: Rooted in the Jesus and the Gospel Offers enabling structures Avoids and insular approach January -July

38 Movement Building For Social Transformation Fr. Nithiya Sagayam, OFM Cap Private and social Advocacy Many issues have both private and Social Advocacy. They are Women Children SC/ST Labour- unorganised Advocacy is social, political and democratic in all spheres Ten Techniques and strategies of building a movement 1. Identifying and framing the issues 2. Collecting information 3. Mobilising interested people 4. Networking 5. Froming alliances 6. Forming and sustaining coalitions 7. Planning campaigns 8. Involving media 9. Building pressure on the legislature 10. Establishing contacts within the systems 1. Identifying, Analysing and framing the issue What is an issue? Problem and issue Analysing the issue: Dimensions: Policy, politics, power and people content, cause, context and consequence Framing: showing what I want you to see 2. Collecting information 1. Laws relating to the issues 2. Policy on the issues 3. The persons concerned in implementing the laws and schemes 4. Sympathisers within the govt. of our issue and opponents of our cause 5. Neutral ground persons who have not made up their mind on this issue 6. Media coverage and its analysis 7. Other groups working on the same issue 8. Possibility of forming a coalition with other groups Role of information To empower people because knowledge is empowering. To understand the issue To frame the issue To gain clarity on an issue To take stand on an issue To mobilise and organise people To negotiate with decision makers and make clear demands To decide the targets and prepare for defence To implement a policy To pinpoint loopholes in policies To suggest/oppose amendments to policies To demand new policies To inform people at large and influence public opinion To provide alternate, authentic, accurate, reliable and valid information Ø What information, 38 Info on Human Development

39 Ø from whom and Ø through what means 3. Mobilising interested people 1. Appeals, letters 2. Exhibition, posters, leaflets, handbills 3. Speeches 4. Meetings 5. Signature cmapaigns 6. Dramas, rallies, demonstrations 7. Street plays 8. Conferences, workshops, symposia 9. Competitions 10. Exposure through various media Organising and mobilising Peoples issue Peoples realisation Readiness to fight Issue pity project Issue anger organising People should feel that they can win Peoples participation 4. Networking 1. Network based on specific issues, - RTF themes, MCH, Child rights, labourers etc 2. Goal 3. to strengthen links, 4. share experiences 5. Widen the information base 6. Pool the expertise and understand the issues from all angles 7. Links within the network and among the networks though time consuming, is essential Networking is process of synergising resources and strength among like-minded people. Why Networks: pool of resources, information, knowledge and skills strength of number, diversity, skills and expertise collective bargaining power. Types of Networks: Issue based, area specific, identify based, donor driven, Coalition Alliance Network Federation Effectiveness and Efficiency of networking Patible perspective Commonality of issue Clarity of goals, objectives and activities Clearly defined role and responsibilities Convergence of interests Constant communication and dialogue Coordination as partners Collective leadership Cultivation of trust Conflict resolution 5. Forming alliances Form alliance, close association with some of them Potential allies, Greater alliance, greater the impact on 1. decision makers 2. policy makers 3. bureaucracy 4. legislature 5. judiciary or 6. media 6. Planning Campaigns Collect all relevant info relating campaign including legal info, policy statements, scientific info etc Identify the key players including those 1. who make decisions, 2. Who oppose them 3. Who have no opinion on the issue Analyse one s own and opponents strengths and weaknesses and the opportunities available (SWOT analysis) 7. Involving the media If the cause is news worthy, media will be interested Activist must convince the media of his issue Creating sympathy on the news makers Sympathy for the cause Appeal to the feelings and compassion January -July

40 8. Building Pressure on legislature Legislators are the representatives of people Legislators can be informed by inviting them to the organizations or their workshops or seminars Use of memorandum- represented by a team Flood of letters 9. Establish friendly contacts within the democratic system Credible relationships with the power centres legislature and bureaucracy are the most powerful institutions in the governance of the country But people are not socially aware of their Rights and hence build them through conscientisation process. At the same time with clear and specific goals SELECT THE BEST WORDS IN CAMPAIGN AND LOBBYING USE YOUR POWERFUL MEDIUM OF COMMUNICATION! USE IT PRO-ACTIVELY TALK WITH FACTS TALK WITH FOCUS Occasion! MAKE USE OF EVERY OCCASION WITH PERSONS, EVENTS, PLACES, FRIENDS AND RELATIONS FOR YOUR GOAL! THIS IS AN ACT OF EVANGELIZATION! GOOD NEWS TO THE POOR! 10. Monitoring, Evaluation and Review Reflection Action - Reflection Campaign coordination Steering Committee/Core Group Lobby Group Communication Research, etc. Regular monitoring Regular evaluation Regular review and modification Time! Every minute is precious! Never postpone plan your activities ahead of time Record your Daily activities PROVE YOURSELF CREDIBLE, TRANSPARENT AND EFFICIENT IN ALL THAT YOU DO Goals and Objectives Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø S- pecific M- easurable A- chievable R- ealistic T- ime-bound Stone! Do not throw at duty bearers and loose your chances for the people s welfare! NON-VIOLENCE PLEASE! IN THOUGHT, WORD AND ACTIONS!! The word! AVOID WRONG WORDS 40 Info on Human Development

41 con t from page 1> their challenges. Fr. Edwin Corros highlighted the sociopastoral challenges of the migrants and their families in Asian countries and possible avenues for effective advocacy and actions. Fr Ewald Dinter gave a critical analysis of the challenges of the IPs in Asia and focused on dialogue and inculturation that leads to get the best potentials of the IPs for global peace and sustainable development. The countries that participated are: Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Singapore, France and Thailand. The Church based organisations like Asian Centre for Progress of Peoples, (ACPP), Cardijn Community International (CCI), Franciscans International, Woori Theological Institute (WTI) also participated. Focus Bible speaks of the preferential option of God for the poor who were migrants and the marginalised. The CST and in a special way Caritas in Veritate continue to focus on the concern for the oppressed and the deprived under priority focus. The Church in Asia through her Episcopal Commissions for the Migrants, IPs, Justice and Peace, Caritas, Religious Congregations and Church-based organisations are focused on the socio-pastoral entitlements of these people in their economic, socio-cultural rights together with civil and political rights. These ensure their welfare and holistic development. From charity-based activities they have moved to development welfare. However, we have to focus on the human rights-based approach to development, focusing on Migrants and IPs. We should have comprehensive understanding of the social teachings for our pastoral services, especially from an anthropocentric approach to a wider, ecological-centric one not only for respecting IPs and their lands but also to protect their rights to development. Present Context: The delegates from these countries presented their country reports that brought out the following facts: Over half the world s population lives in the Asia- Pacific region. Asia hosts around 53 million out of the world s 191 million migrants. More than half of the Christians in Asia is of the indigenous peoples; majority of them are from the rural areas that are filled with poverty and deprivation leading them to migrate into towns and to other countries for job and survival. The migrants are easily exploited, less paid, trafficked and marginalised. Their rights and dignity are neither upheld nor protected. The Indigenous Peoples have lost their rich culture, ownership of land and are displaced in the name of development. They are cut off from holistic development in life. Well planned strategies are needed to ensure their sociopastoral entitlements which include their economic, socio-cultural rights together with civil and political rights of the Migrants and Indigenous Peoples. The issue of domestic migration (from rural areas to towns within the country) in which most of the IPs become victims needs special and immediate response. The workshop ended with the Holy Eucharist in which each country presented their country plan of action as offertory at the altar and blessed by God in this prophetic pilgrimage. The Episcopal Conferences are appealed to draw up a workable action plans towards tangible result with periodical review and report mechanisms. Following proposals are the outcome of the workshop for effective implementation. Proposals for Concrete Actions a. At the Asian Level 1. The resource materials and powerpoints will be circulated in CD and Book by end of August, The OHD will support the Episcopal Commissions January -July

42 and implement them through Diocesan Commissions. 5. It is proposed that each Migrants commission develop guidelines to the (domestic and overseas) migrants on their socio pastoral entitlements and make them known widely. for Migrants and IPs with periodical updates with best practices, victims stories and success stories. 3. The OHD will collaborate with Church based Organisations (like ICMC, Pax Christi, Franciscans International, CCI, ACPP etc.) in this process and get their potentials for capacity building, networking and policy making. 4. The OHD will network with the related UN agencies and other reliable NGOs working on Migrants and IPs to create linkages between them and the conferences. b. At the Conference /National Level 1. Due to the growing concern of the issue of Migration and IPs in Asia, the Episcopal Conferences are requested to give special focus to the ministry of migrants and IPs (where applicable) through the establishment of a Commission either independently or as part of labour or JP Commissions. 2. The Episcopal Commissions for Migrants, IPs and Justice and Peace together with Caritas could focus on a country wise joint action plans for Migrants and IPs. 3. It is proposed that a Pastoral Letter for the Migration Day, 18 th December be prepared by the Migrant Commission of the Conference with concrete action plans and circulated widely. 4. The Migrants Commissions are to take up lobbying and advocacy work with respective government ministries towards safe migration c. At the diocesan Level 1. It is proposed that in every diocese that Pastoral Ministry for the Migrants (PMM) be established to take care of the spiritual and pastoral needs of the migrants. 2. Special preference must be given to the domestic migrants and IPs in our institutions for education, health and social welfare. Efforts are to be made for sponsorship and subsidy to support them. 3. It is suggested that in our magazines and journals a page be allotted to focus on labour news, employment etc. to help the migrants and IPs. 4. It is proposed that that every diocesan migrant/ip commissions have a grievance cell to protect the Rights of the Migrants and IPs. 5. It is proposed that there be a chaplain for migrants in the Cities/towns where different language is spoken by a sizable number of migrants. 6. It is proposed that the Migrant and IP Commissions through the parishes/bccs collect the data of migrants who are entering into their diocesan territory in order to offer them strategic support. Fr. Nithiya Sagayam, OFM Cap. Executive Secretary 42 Info on Human Development

43 January -July