Catholic coalition comes out against CAA, NRC

Representation Pic

The state unit of Justice Coalition of Religious, an amalgamation of 18 Roman Catholic religious organisations based out of New York, working to alleviate human and environmental suffering, has come out with a strong-worded statement against the CAA and proposed NRC. Reiterating its stand on the issue, they said the country needs a non-discriminatory refugee policy, especially one compliant with international conventions.

Members of the organisation, accredited by the UN, had gathered in Mumbai from 16-18 January to participate in a workshop - Rights-based Advocacy in Relation to the Sustainable Development Goals. In its statement, the organisation said that it opposed the CAA, as it was "counterproductive" and "unconstitutional".

Margaret Gonsalves

The statement further mentions, "The CAA is the first instance of religion being overtly used as a criterion for citizenship under Indian nationality laws and therefore, is fundamentally discriminatory and divisive in nature. It is at odds with secular principles enshrined in the Constitution. The law also undermines India's commitment to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and other human rights treaties to which the country is a signatory."

"By giving special privileges to migrants from certain religious communities, the government has singled out Muslims. We are dismayed that a statutory attempt is being made to give privilege to people of certain faiths while relegating the Muslims to a secondary status," it said, adding, "Muslims and Christians have been experiencing a deep sense of vulnerability and insecurity with the rising tide of majoritarian nationalism in the country. Given this context, we are also concerned that the Act would be used, along with the NRC, to render Muslim citizens stateless due to their inability to meet stringent identity proof requirements."

"We appeal to the government to develop a sustainable refugee policy, which is non-discriminatory and compliant with international conventions. Identity proof and permanent residence documents remain the privilege of the moneyed, and a significant percentage of the poor lack these documents," it added.

Lastly, the statement said, "We express solidarity with all those engaging in peaceful protests. We condemn the use of violence by the police against students and others engaged in peaceful demonstrations in different parts of the country."

When asked whether the press release (condemning CAA) put up by the Archbishop of Bombay Cardinal Oswal Gracias in December 2019 helped boost the community's voice of dissent, Brinelle Dsouza, coordinator for Justice Coalition of Religious (Western India), said, "I don't think it was instrumental, but it is a part of the larger Christian voice that is emerging. As Christians, we are strongly opposed to that which gives privileges to certain religions over others, and CAA is something of that sort. We are also minorities so we wouldn't want the government to pit some minority communities against the other."

Sister Margaret Gonsalves, who is one of the 34 sisters part of the organisation's state unit, said, "I feel that the Christians from this side of the city (Vasai) are not involved much in the issue. I also feel there is a cold response from the church. I work with underprivileged women, children and the poor, and I can say for sure that the CAA will affect them.

"They are adivasis, living in shanties...how will they produce documents?" She added, "In my understanding, Hitlerism is not needed in India. We have always been a very tolerant country."

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