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Statement of Christians Chins in De
Subject: Statement of Christians Chins in Delhi, India
STATEMENT OF PROTEST AGAINST RELIGIOUS PERSECUTIONS
IN CHIN STATE, BURMA.
We, Christian Chins based in Delhi, stage silent protest against the
military regime in Burma for its religious persecutions upon the Christian
Chin in the Chin State.
The regime arrested two pastors, Rev. Biak Kam of Thantlang Baptist Church
and Rev. Thawng Kam, General Secretary of the Thantlang Association of
Baptist Churches on the night of September 7, 1999 the day on which US
Department of State issued the 1999 Annual Report on International Religious
Freedom that took particular note of abuses against the Christian Chin.
The arrested pastors had called a meeting as to how to negotiate with the
military authorities, in charge of the area, and to make request for release
of headmen of 12 villages and three block chairmen of Thantlang Town who
were made responsible, by the battalion, for defection of a soldier of a
unit of the No. 266 Light Infantry Battalion led by Lt. Myo Kyaw. Rev. Biak
Kam and Rev. Thawng Kam were accused of calling a meeting without their
knowledge or permission. This is one of the many incidents of religious
persecutions in the state.
Following the brutal crack-down of the popular uprising and seizure of the
power in 1988, the military regime systematically put efforts to induce
members of the Christian Chins who constitute more than ninety percent of
the population of the state and prevent them from practising their belief
by:
1) destroying the crosses erected at the prayer places and forcibly making
Christians build pagodas at these places,
2) confiscating lands owned by churches and building Buddhist temples at
these places,
3) duping poor Christian parents and take their children to urban areas for
education but instead making them wear yellow rope and learn Buddhism, by
coercive mean,
4) arresting, detaining, interrogating and physically abusing pastors and
evangelists, and religiously selective exempting from forced labour and
'donations'.
5) preventing evangelists from delivering sermons unless these are
translated into Burmese and submit them in advance to local security forces
and get permission to preach,
6) preventing Christians from and, in some cases, disturbing holding of
religious gatherings, and
7) intentionally forcing the Christians to carry ammunitions and rations of
security forces and making them work as forced labours, even on Sundays.
We strongly demand that the State Peace and Development Council ( SPDC):
1) respect religious freedom in Chin State and other religious minority
areas,
2) stop arresting, detaining and physically abusing Christian clergy,
3) unconditionally release the pastors and all the village headmen and
block chairmen,
4) withdraw security forces from the Chin State
Dated the 28th September, 1999
Christian Chins based in Delhi
New Delhi