SOME TIME IN APRIL! KAMPALA IS BURNING
http://www.GOANET.org

By Dominic Fernandes
dominic.fernandes@gmail.com

Widespread riots have broken out in Kampala - the capital of Uganda. Indians and Indian property have been targeted on a unprecedented scale.

Two Indians have been reported killed by violent mobs, while two Ugandans have been shot by security forces trying their best to control the violence.

Increasing resentment against the very prosperous Hindu Indian community seems to have finally burst out -- with frustrated unemployed youth going on a rampage against Indian property. This resentment has been building up from the last few years with Indians controlling a large part of the post-Obote II Ugandan economy with many people seeing the Indians as greedy businessmen eager to line their pockets at any cost!

The final straw was the encroachment by the Indian business family The Mehtas on the eco treasure, the Mabira Forests, for sugar plantations. Mabira is one of the last remaining patches of natural forests and almost all Ugandans are upset with this give away by the government.

The Indians are unfortunately being seen as supporters of an increasingly unpopular , anti-environment, only interested in exploiting Ugandan resources to line their pockets.

Unfortunately, the common Indian on the streets, who has nothing to do with the Mehta family, or their devious plans, is being persecuted and made to pay a heavy price for the greed of some Indians.

The Indians of Kampala are today stunned by the Anti-indian hatred spewed by the average Ugandan, whom we always considered to be gentle, well mannered and soft spoken.

Unfortunately Indians seem to have become the Jews of Uganda, immensely rich and immensely hated.

Most Indian organisations have closed for the day, and Indians have been advised to keep indoors -- security has been stepped up with Indian business men hiring shot-gun armed guards and bracing for more attacks, reminiscent of the Kristallnicht pogroms of the Nazis.

The military police have been deployed with armoured cars moving about in central Kampala. It is difficult to move around to get pictures since I am an Asian, and fear being attacked.

Reports say that the Hindu temple in Kampala has been attacked this morning. Investor confidence was only just beginning to pickup in the last few years with the international community being assured of relative calm and stability 20 years after the end of the Amin terror and the chaos of the 1980-85 civil war.

These attacks can have serious consequences on the economic situation of the country already suffering from severe power shortages and endemic corruption a large scale exodus of Indian capital may leave a serious vacumn which will not be filled very easily or quickly .

With the common wealth summit poised for November this year, the Ugandan authorities will need to work over time to prove to the investor community that the country is not headed to repeat history !

Dominic Fernandes
Kampala, Uganda
12 April 2007.

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Christians Angered By Easter-Time Promotions
www.ctv.ca

This photo released by Israel's Antiquities Authority in Jerusalem, shows a burial box discovered during excavations of a cave in Jerusalem bearing the name Mariamene, a version of the name Mary. (AP / Israeli Antiquities Authority, Mariana Salzberger)


Updated: Fri. Apr. 6 2007 10:42 AM ET

NEW YORK - The Easter season has an odd, new tradition: The period of reflection on the Crucifixion and Resurrection has become a popular time for marketers to roll out works -- from the scholarly to the sensational -- that challenge Christianity's core beliefs.
In the last several years, churchgoers have been hit with a steady stream of claims that Jesus Christ didn't die on the cross, that he had a wife and kids, and that the Bible is a fraud.
Christians across a broad spectrum of belief are angered by the trend. They accept the freedom to question religion, but wonder why the assaults come during their faith's most sacred days.
"Why are they doing it now and why are they doing it in such a provocative way?'' asked Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit writer and author of "My Life With the Saints.''
"We have nothing to fear from serious scientific inquiry, but when it's slanted and leaves out the religious point of view, it's very misleading. It can all be tied together in a slick package that can be very compelling.''
This year's outrage for Christians was "The Lost Tomb of Jesus,'' a documentary suggesting that a south Jerusalem cave discovered in 1980 contained the remains of Jesus -- indicating he wasn't resurrected.
The filmmakers also suggest that Mary Magdalene was buried in the tomb, that she and Jesus were married, and that a stone box labelled "Judah son of Jesus'' belonged to their son.
The documentary was unveiled six days into Lent by James Cameron, Oscar-winning director of "Titanic,'' who produced the film.
Top archeologists in the U.S. and abroad called that claim and the film's findings preposterous, but a book based on the documentary quickly climbed the best-seller list.
"There is more tolerance in the general culture for all things wild and wacky about Jesus,'' said Ben Witherington, a New Testament expert at Asbury Theological Seminary and author of "What Have They Done With Jesus?''
Last year's Lenten season brought similar affronts.
The paperback edition of Dan Brown's novel "The Da Vinci Code'' -- about a Roman Catholic conspiracy to hide Jesus' marriage -- was released, along with Michael Baigent's nonfiction, "The Jesus Papers: Exposing the Greatest Cover-Up in History.''
Baigent said that Jesus was married and had a child and was not thought to be divine until long after his era. The author conceded that "we are short of evidence'' backing his claims. Still, his book publicity asked: "What if everything we have been told about the origins of Christianity is a lie?''
Other Easters have seen the release of works on the Gnostic gospels -- the religious rival that lost out to orthodox Christianity in ancient times -- and TV specials asserting that Jesus was merely human.
"It's become a rite of passage in the Lenten season,'' said Bill Donohue, head of the Catholic League, an anti-defamation group. "It's not a matter of 'Let's agree to disagree,' it's a matter of 'Let's undermine Christianity.' ''

Secularism losing hold on campus –says Father Raymond de Souza
http://www.wcr.ab.ca/news/2007/0409/campus040907.shtml
By Canadian Catholic News
Ottawa

Father Raymond de Souza says secularism's hold on the university, the media and the Church has lessened since he attended university in 1989.

"It's quite clear to me the Christian presence at Queen's is bolder and more confident," said de Souza, a National Post columnist and Queen's University Newman House chaplain.

He spoke at a fundraising dinner for Catholic Christian Outreach (CCO) March 24.

Fifteen years ago, students were "largely indifferent," de Souza said. "That ideological edge I discovered 15 years ago is no longer there."

He spoke of the "great hope on campus" and how the CCO program of "touching individual souls" is active on the "most exotic mission field we have."

He said he has found more openness to the Gospel on the university campus than in local parishes.

There is "no better cause than the evangelization of our campuses" because of the resulting fruit of happy families, and new seminarians, de Souza said.

*Father Raymond J. de Souza is a chaplain at Queen's University in Ontario

First edition of South Asian Focus launched

The first edition of South Asian Focus, a community newspaper published by The Brampton Guardian, was launched on April 12, 2007. It is meant to be the voice of Brampton residents who have their roots in the Subcontinent.
The Paper notes

“South Asian Focus will mirror the achievements, hopes, aspirations-- and, yes, the challenges and concerns-- of the resilient South Asian community, which continues to grow and thrive in ever larger numbers right through the region. The timing of its launch, during Baisakhi, signifies the dawn of a new, more exciting and prosperous era ahead.

Our primary reason for launching this newspaper is to reflect the immense contributions of the hard-working South Asian community towards Canada's overall growth and development.”

New arrivals to Canada are advised to pickup at free copy of the publication from their local store, as it contains information for job-seekers and skills training.

See www.southasianfocus.com 

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