The plight of India’s 200 million Dalits – and in particular Dalit women – has come under the spotlight at the World Council of Churches’ 10th Assembly held in Busan, South Korea, this week.
Among the displays at an exhibition accompanying the assembly is one from the National Council of Churches in India which highlights discrimination against Dalits – who comprise 17 per cent of India’s population. People visiting the booth are invited to discuss the issue of caste while Rev Sunil Raj Phillip, executive secretary of the NCCI Commission on Dalits, draws a caricature of them.
Rev Sunil Raj Phillip (right) shows caricature of an assembly participant at the WCC assembly in Busan. PICTURE: WCC
Rev Phillip, himself a Dalit, was quoted as saying that the term Dalit means “oppressed, broken and crushed”. “Dalits call themselves this term to denote both their struggles and resistance,” he said.
Rev Phillip, himself a Dalit, was quoted as saying that the term Dalit means “oppressed, broken and crushed”. “Dalits call themselves this term to denote both their struggles and resistance,” he said.
Based on a reading of Matthew 6:24 and amid ongoing caste discrimination and violence in India, the NCCI has previously declared that ‘No-one can serve Christ and caste’.
According to the NCCI, women are the prime victims of violence against Dalits with on average three raped every day in India. They also account for many of the 27,000 incidents of serious atrocities and human rights violations against Dalits registered under the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 in India every year.
The 10 day assembly, which ends today and which attracted some 2,000 participants from around the world, has tackled a wide range of issues and heard from speakers from across the globe.
Among those to speak at the assembly was Leymah Gbowee, a peace activist, social worker and women’s rights advocate who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011 for leading a nonviolent movement of Christian and Muslim women which play a key role in ending Liberia’s civil war in 2003. Others included Dr Wedad Abbas Tawfik, a Coptic Christian who spoke about the suffering experienced by Christians in Egypt.
