South Asia Citizens Web

One of the darkest aspects of Myanmar’s political transition is a surge in religious intolerance, especially toward Muslims. Last week the government proposed a law that would require anyone who wants to change religion to first seek permission from local authorities; it would also penalize proselytizing through “improper influence and persuasion.” This is one of four bills the government has drafted at the instigation of a powerful group of radical Buddhist monks called Mabatha. A coalition of almost 100 civil society groups, led by well-known women activists and ethnic minority leaders, immediately protested the president’s endorsement of the discriminatory laws. The Mabatha denounced them as “traitors,” but that only prompted more civil society groups to oppose the bills.

We have two scenarios unfolding simultaneously today. In one, Narendra Modi declares, “I will be [the] prime minister of all Indians, including those who did not vote for me”, and invites the neighbouring countries’ leaders to his swearing-in; President Mukherjee in his Parliamentary address pledges a commitment to the welfare of religious minorities; and home minister Rajnath Singh condemns the barbaric rape and hanging of two Dalit girls in Badaun. In the second scenario, over a dozen communal incidents break out across India; a young Muslim IT professional is hacked to death by the Hindu Rashtra Sena in Pune in an outburst of Sangh triumphalism; Hindutva hawk Ajit Doval of the Vivekananda International Foundation becomes national security adviser; and singer Shubha Mudgal is bullied by Modi supporters in the US.

Triumphant and victorious in the 16th general elections for the Lok Sabha, the Hindu nationalists are attributing their victory as rejection of secularism by the Indian electorate. The election results have unwittingly started sort of questioning on the desirability of using the term secularism. It is true that secularism has become a much abused term in India.

A curfew was clamped down in the Aluthgama and Beruwela Police divisions of Kalutara district in the Western Province of Sri Lanka following an outbreak of communal violence on Sunday June 15th 2014 that was triggered off by the “Ethno Religious Fascist” Organization the Bodhu Bala Sena (BBS).

While Islamabad’s authority does not extend to the tribal areas, Taliban’s unofficial court in Waziristan rules on cases in Karachi