IRFN (Jan. 16-Jan. 23): Tibet: Elderly Monks Die in Suspicious Circumstances

Jan 23, 2008

International Religious Freedom Archive
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1. Tibet: Elderly Monks Die in Suspicious Circumstances(Jan. 17)
2. Canada: Sikh Barred from Courthouse for Carrying Kirpan(Jan. 15)
3. Pakistan: Muslims in Tribal Region Fined for "un-Islamic" Acts(Jan. 17)
4. Kazakhstan: Nazarbayev Moves to Curtail Missionary Activities(Jan. 17)
5. Belarus: Editor Gets Jail for Reprinting Mohammed Cartoon(Jan. 18)
6. Egypt: Government Allows Religious Bodies to Weigh in on Legal Matters(Jan. 20)
7. Malaysia: Authorities Confiscate Christian Children's Books(Jan. 22)

Features: IBN Live reports that Orissa State's National Minority Committee has deemed the December attacks on Christians "pre-planned" and said that the government failed to act to protect its citizens.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's references to God is being criticized by those who accuse him of violating France's separation of church and state, Reuters reports.

Updates: A Malaysian man who fought with the country's Muslim authorities over his wife's religious identity has won the right to bury his deceased wife according to Christian rites, Reuters reports.

The Jakarta Post reports that the government of Indonesia told the Indonesian Ulemas Council that it cannot dictate state policy towards religious groups, after the Council demanded that the country's Ahmadi community renounce a major tenet of their faith.

1. Tibet: Elderly Monks Die in Suspicious Circumstances
January 17
Shigatse, Tibet
Two Tibetan monks, both expected to help pick the next Dalai Lama, were found hanged last fall at the Tashilhunpo monastery, the official seat of the Panchen Lama, Tibetan Buddhism's second most important religious figure, Asia News reports. Officially ruled suicide, Gyaltsen Tsepa and Yangpa Locho, both 71, died between September and November 2007, though the deaths did not come to light until recently. Both had a history of clashes with the Chinese government.

2. Canada: Sikh Barred from Courthouse for Carrying Kirpan
January 15
Calgary, Canada
Tejinder Sidhu, a witness in a case involving a fatal car crash, was barred from a Canadian courthouse for wearing a kirpan, a small ceremonial dagger which Sikhs wear as one of the symbols of their faith, CBC News reports. When Sidhu arrived at the courthouse to testify, he was told that he would not be allowed to enter unless he relinquished his kirpan to security guards. Kirpans are on a list of items banned from Alberta's courthouses.

3. Pakistan: Muslims in Tribal Region Fined for "un-Islamic" Acts
January 17
Khyber Agency, Pakistan
The Indian Express reports that Tanzim Bilmaroof, a radical Islamic group in Khyber Agency, the western area of Pakistan which shares a border with Afghanistan, has banned men in the region from shaving their beards, threatening to impose a fine of 5,000 rupees for those who do. The head of the group, Haji Namdar, announced the ban in a radio broadcast, saying that as "shaving the beard is forbidden in Islam", he felt it was his duty to "make every Muslim of my tribe sport a beard". Tanzim Bilmaroof has set fines for other acts it deemed un-Islamic in the past, including a fine of 500 rupees for failing to pray five times a day or owning audio cassettes, and a fine of 50,000 rupees for owning a satellite dish.

4. Kazakhstan: Nazarbayev Moves to Curtail Missionary Activity
January 17
Astana, Kazakhstan
Nursultan Nazarbayev, the president of Kazakhstan, has spoken out against missionaries in the country, Interfax reports, saying that Kazakhstan had become a "dumping site for religious movements of all kinds". In the name of "ethnic peace and accord" Nazarbayev called on his party to "curtail [the missionaries'] unlimited freedom", saying their work threatened to introduce religious radicalism and cause political extremism.

5. Belarus: Editor Gets Jail for Reprinting Mohammed Cartoon
January 18
Minsk, Belarus
Alexander Sdvizhkov, the former deputy editor of Zhoda, a small-circulation Belarusian newspaper, was sentenced to three years in prison on Friday for republishing a caricature of the Prophet Mohammed in his newspaper, The Associated Press reports. Belarusian officials began to investigate Sdvizhkov in February 2006 for "inciting religious hatred"; in March 2006 Zhoda was shut down on the order of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, after it reprinted the Danish cartoon, which caused worldwide riots in 2006. Sdvizhkov plans to appeal.

6. Egypt: Government Allows Religious Bodies to Weigh in on Legal Matters
January 20
Egypt
Egypt's Deputy Chairman of the State Council has sought advice on re-conversions from Islam to Christianity from Al-Azhar, the country's foremost authority on Islamic theology, Al-Arabiya reports. The State Council oversees lawsuits brought by those converting from one religion to another, including lawsuits from Coptic Christians who convert back to Christianity from Islam. The fatwa from Al-Azhar states that potential converts should be given a chance to repent, but if they insist on leaving Islam they should be penalized. Re-conversion, according to the fatwa, is "a grave crime that cannot be met with leniency."

7. Malaysia: Authorities Confiscate Christian Children's Books
January 22
Malaysia
Malaysia's Publications and Koran Texts Control Department, a division of the country's Internal Security Ministry, recently confiscated books with images of Abraham and Moses, which were deemed violations of Sharia law, The Washington Times reports. The books, banned in December were intended for Christian children. The books were collected from bookstores in the cities of Johor Bahru, Senawang and Ipoh.