|
Buddhist acts of violence against evangelical churches
World Evangelical Alliance (25.03.2002) / HRWF International Secretariat (26.03.2002) C Website http://www.hrwf.net C Email info@hrwf.net - Independent evangelical churches are often targeted in the rural areas of Sri Lanka, where Buddhist monks incite the local people to harass or attack the small Protestant fellowships, which they feel threaten to undermine the cultural and religious unity of Sri Lanka, a Buddhist nation.
The Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka says that these attacks on Christians have been escalating in recent months, as the Sri Lankan Society for the Preservation of Buddhism has become more aggressive in its efforts to ferret out Protestant Christianity in the countryside. According to the EASL, their aim is to establish chapters of the Buddhist Society in every district to monitor the growth of Christianity and prevent conversions. They also aim to close down churches already established in traditional Buddhist villages.
This situation is quite serious, as small numbers of radical monks and their followers have damaged or destroyed numerous churches, and several pastors and church members have been murdered in recent years. As this report indicates, the local police are often not sympathetic to plight of the churches, which only emboldens the anti-Christian agitators and mobs.
Church under siege in Walpitamulla, Veyangoda
Pastor Chandrakumar, his wife and four children have been living in Veyangoda for the past 10 years, serving the Lord. Several weeks ago a mob walked in to the house church during the Sunday service and ordered Pastor Chandrakumar to stop his ministry in the area.
However, Pastor Chandrakumar continued his ministry. The following week they returned, again during Sunday service. Angered at the sight of the worship service in progress, they stormed the church, assaulting believers and destroying the cross in the church. One of the victims was the Pastor's son, aged 6 years, who suffered stab injuries. The mob left, warning Pastor Chandrakumar that if he continued to conduct services, they would return and kill his children.
From that day onwards the house church came under continuous attack lasting 17 days. A barrage of stones and other missiles would be thrown at the church daily starting at 2 AM until dawn. On the 19th of March, the stones damaged the roof and broken tiles fell through. One of the pastor's children sustained head injuries and was rushed to the hospital for medical attention. The hospital authorities refused to treat him unless a police entry was filed.
This was done and subsequently the police took two of the mob leaders into custody. They appeared before the court on the 22nd of March, and the court refused to release them on bail. This resulted in the mob inciting the village to search for Pastor Chandrakumar and his family. Fearing for their lives, Pastor Chandrakumar, his wife and two of the children fled the village and sought refuge with another pastor in a neighbouring village.
The other two children were taken to safety by a church member in another village. The pastor and family continue to be in grave danger.
This attack was the third attack on Christian workers in the region since the anti-Christian Buddhist organization Bauddha Sanrakshana Sabhava (Society for the Preservation of Buddhism) established themselves in the region a few months ago.
Other attacks have been in the villages of Ganemulla, Dambulla and Welikanda. This Buddhist society has its headquarters in the Asgiriya Temple in Kandy, and is led by an influential monk, the Venerable Medagama Dharmananda Thero. Their aim is to establish chapters of the society in every district to monitor the growth Christianity and prevent conversions. They also aim to close down churches already established in traditional Buddhist villages.
The flower vendors of Dambulla
This village is situated in a predominantly Buddhist area where most of the land belongs to the local Buddhist temple. A Christian ministry was established by a worker in recent times, and 12 families came to Christ through this ministry. These families earned their living as flower vendors, selling flowers to devotees who visit the temple. The villagers, led by the Buddhist monk, threatened them, saying that until they renounce Christianity they will not be permitted to sell flowers. They were also ordered to vacate their homes and leave the village (the land they live on was owned by the temple). A house occupied by a family of believers was attacked and damaged.
The house church in Ganemulla
A small house church came under threat by the local villages. The Buddhist monk of the local temple and the Roman Catholic priest of the area joined hands to organize a protest march in the village against the presence of the house church. The police intervened and stopped the protest. They also ordered the pastor to stop holding meetings in his house on the grounds that it was creating a disturbance in the neighbourhood. The village was well mobilized by the anti-Christian lobby to the extent that a believer was denied burial rights at the local cemetery. The cemetery gates were locked, and the family was forced to divert the funeral procession to another village to bury their dead.
Welikanda: pastor attacked
The villagers of Welikanda, led by a Buddhist monk, followed and attacked a pastor while he was traveling. The house church was compelled to move and hold meetings in a different location due to threats. Concerning the assault on the pastor, the police have instituted a case against both the attackers and the pastor for 'breach of peace'. |
