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PRESS
RELEASE CHICAGO MUSLIMS CONDEMN ONGOING COMMUNAL VIOLENCE, MASSACRE OF MUSLIMS, DESTRUCTION OF MOSQUES, AND TERRORISM AGAINST ETHNIC MINORITIES IN INDIA The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago (a Federation of over 40 Islamic centers, schools & institutions representing over 400,000 area Muslims) calls for forceful Governmental intervention in India to halt escalating communal violence and targeted killings of Muslims and other minorities, including Christians. Muslim Americans strongly condemn these acts of terrorism by militant Hindus in India, predominantly in the state of Gujarat. In just the past fortnight, over 1,000 innocent men, women and children have been tortured, burned alive, raped or massacred; over 350 Mosques as well as some Christian missions and churches have been vandalized or burned down; over 100,000 people have been rendered homeless; and tens of thousands are struggling for survival in make-shift camps. Muslim Americans all over Chicago and the United States also unequivocally condemn the atrocious actions of some Muslims-albeit provoked by hooliganism, pulling of headscarves off Muslim women, brutal beating of an elderly Muslim and abduction of his teenage daughter-in violently retaliating against Hindu militants and setting their train on fire in the town of Ghodra in Gujarat. We deplore these unjustifiable actions and the resultant loss of lives. Outrageously, this tragic incident is being used by Hindu militant groups in India as an excuse to escalate their national agenda of religious cleansing and terrorism against Muslim, Christian, Sikh and other religious minorities. Chicago's Muslim Americans and the Council's congregations are deeply concerned about the fate of their families, friends and loved ones in India who have been victimized by the riots. Muslim Americans are particularly shocked and saddened by the wide disregard for human life displayed by the Indian government and law enforcement officials. The Council appeals to the Indian authorities and urges President Bush to act on these concerns of Americans and ensure that the Indian Government assumes immediate responsibility to: (1) actively safeguard all citizens, regardless of religious affiliation, against further terrorist attacks and communal violence, (2) swiftly prosecute the responsible criminals and shut down the terrorist groups masterminding this communal violence, and (3) promptly issue just compensation to the victims' families for their loss of life and property. The Council also urges the U.S. to push for an independent commission of inquiry, possibly under guidance of the United Nations and/or international human rights organizations, to thoroughly investigate and document the tragic loss of lives and property and the ongoing terrorism aimed at religious cleansing of Muslims and other minorities in India, and propose means to avoid such communal violence in the future. ********************************************************* |
