[Assam] Religious workers -- degree must is good -- HPI, November 3, 2007

Mon Nov 5 22:29:14 CST 2007

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/134987.html

I wonder why some people want that the Hindu priests should remain in the Dark Ages. Shouldn't they know English and have a degree in Hinduism -- there are 750 million Hindus running thousands of univs --and they cannot run a good college on Hinduism studies  -then its shame shame only. ofcourse jains, budhists (Dalai Lama incl) don't offer degree program either  :-)

umesh

Hindu Press International <hpi.list at hindu.org> wrote:Hindu Press International November 3, 2007                 November 3, 2007 

   Malaysia Hindu Sangam Protests Handling of Temple Demolition 
   Malaysia Indian Leader Calls for Halt to Temple Demolition 
   Congressman Warns Against Making Religious Worker Visa Discriminatory  

    1. Malaysia Hindu Sangam Protests Handling of Temple Demolition Malaysia Hindu Sangam
 KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, November 3, 2007: (HPI note: The Malaysia Hindu Sangam president, Dato Vaithilingam, issued this press release.)

The Malaysia Hindu Sangam is shocked to understand that the developer of the land in Taman Karuppiah had never taken court action to evacuate the homes and buildings in the area. We understand that it was the former Mayor of Shah Alam who had taken the court order to clear the land. Having obtained the order, the Mayor, both former and present, had not followed procedures of having given reasonable time before the demolition of the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple Taman Karuppiah, Shah Alam on October 29, 2007. The temple which was demolished is no ordinary roadside shrine but it is a reasonably large temple with facilities for pujas, weddings, religious courses and kindergarten classes.

When the present Mayor went to the temple at about 9.00 AM the same day and said that the temple will be demolished withi  n two hours it is most unbelievable that such a senior responsible official could have no knowledge of the existing facilities of the temple. It is our view that he has not advised the Menteri Besar with the full details. It is also hard to believe that he was ignorant of the understanding by the officials of the MBSA, State Government, and MIC Officials with the temple officials the previous night on October 28, 2007 assuring that temple can remain a few more days until the Deepavali celebrations. 

It is our view that any court order which was obtained more than two years ago should have been treated with compassion to the devotees of the places of the worship of both the temple and the surau. We agree that the indiscriminate order to remove the Hindu temple and the surau was an unjust act of not considering the feelings of the respective religious followers in that area.

It is also our opinion that Mayor had no control over his enforcement officers who retaliated with heavy throwing of stones into the temple while a special pua was being conducted. It must be stated that the police force on duty at that time was restrained. The confrontational retaliatory action by the MBSA enforcement officers was in our opinion the cause for the violence in the temple.

Many officials of the temples, Malaysia Hindu Sangam and others were injured due to this aggressive attitude of the MBSA officers. Mr. T.  Ganesan, the Chairman of Malaysia Hindu Sangam, Selangor Branch, is one of those injured. Among the 14 people arrested and remanded at least half of them were innocent devotees of the temple who were merely playing a role of protecting the Deities. Attempting to destroy these Deities is very sensitive and is considered as an insult to the Hindu community. What else can the innocent devotees do when given only two hours notice? Such an act of detention by the police is condemned.

It is reliably learnt that the developer has allocated a land to the temple. However, we appeal to the developer to see that the land is suitable and appropriate in such a way that the structure of the temple will be facing the correct direction under the agamas.

In the mean time Malaysia Hindu Sangam appeals to the MIC leaders to have a dialogue with the leaders of the HINDRAF to find ways of solving the problems of temples in a peaceful manner. The Malaysia Hindu Sangam is w  illing to cooperate in this matter.

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  2. Malaysia Indian Leader Calls for Halt to Temple Demolition www.nst.com.my
 KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, November 3, 2007: MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu has called upon all state governments and local authorities that wanted to demolish Hindu temples in their areas, to cease immediately, as their actions could be construed as being disrespectful to Hinduism. "The demolition of a temple in Kg Karuppiah, Padang Jawa, on Tuesday night hurt the feelings of the Hindu community in the area. "Temples are still being destroyed even though I have repeatedly brought the issue up during meetings with menteris besar and chief ministers," he said in a statement yesterday.

He added that the first principle of the Rukun Negara was "belief in God" and that the government could not penalize those who merely wished to practice their religion and exercise their right to believe in God. "It is a well-known fact that the majority of Hindu voters, and almost the entire Indian community in fact, are Barisan Nasional supporters.  "As such, I am pleading with the government to not resort to drastic measures like demolishing temples, even though they have been constructed illegally."

Samy Vellu said the Indian community had no choice but to build their temples on private or government-owned land, as they did not own any land of their own to build the temples on in order to fulfill their religious obligations. He called upon state governments and local councils to find alternative locations to replace temples that are earmarked for demolition or to merge smaller temples on a bigger plot of land. "I would also like to advise Hindus to not build temples any where they please, but only on permitted land," he said.

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  3. Congressman Warns Against Making Religious Worker Visa Discriminatory www.earthtimes.org
 WASHINGTON, D.C., November 2, 2007: A Democratic Congressman has warned against a proposed rule change that would make it more difficult for Hindu, Buddhist and other non-Christian religious workers to get a US visa. Edward J. Markey sent a letter to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officials urging them to consult with, and incorporate the feedback of, religious groups while considering the change. USCIS is considering changing the definitions of eligible religious workers and religious denominations related to the R-1 Religious Worker visa after widespread reports of fraud and abuse.

The proposed immigration rule change could have the unintended effect of discriminating against people of non-Judeo-Christian faiths, Markey said, noting: Some religions in the United States, such as Hinduism and Buddhism, rely more heavily on foreign religious workers for their religious practice.  For example, several of my Hindu American constituents in Massachusetts rely heavily on religious workers from abroad. An overly restrictive final rule on R-1 visas could greatly impact their ability to fully practice their faith. A narrow eligibility definition for the R-1 visa requiring seminary-type training or the approval of a central religious body, which do not exist for all faiths, could jeopardize the ability of some to practice their religion. We are a tolerant and inclusive society and our laws should reflect these values," Markey said.

"In seeking to improve the R-1 visa rules, we have to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. While I applaud the efforts of Homeland Security officials to reduce fraud in the R-1 program, the proposed changes must not exclude or impede legitimate visa applicants of non-Judeo-Christian faiths.  I urge USCIS to encourage and thoroughly consider more feedback from religious organisations as it formulates changes to improve the R-1 visa rules,"said Markey, a senior member of the House Homeland Security Committee.

Religious organizations that increasingly serve immigrant populations cite a need to bring in workers with the spiritual, cultural and linguistic expertise to serve them. Religious worker visas are used to bring in Catholic nuns, Hebrew teachers, Muslim imams and Baptist church administrators, among other workers. In 2006, more than 11,000 of the visas were issued, most to natives of Korea, Israel and India. Religious organizations say no other visa category fits their workers as well, and they praise the current system for being relatively hassle-free. But the process might have invited fraud, immigration officials say.

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