Kerala Government bans preaching
by foreign missionariesBy Mukundan C. Menon
The Kerala Chief Minister, A. K. Antony, told the Assembly on January 31 that his government would take "strict action" against foreign missionaries coming to Kerala on tourist visa and engaging in religious preaching. Terming it as "illegal", he said : "we are dutibound to prevent religious preaching by those missionaries in violation of the existing law". According to Antony those who come for missionary work should have proper visa for that purpose.
He was replying to a submission moved by Raju Abraham of CPI-M, on the recent attack on Pentacost churches at Bathery and Pallipad in Wayanad and Alappuzha districts respectively.
Notably, Antony avoided answering to the member's query whether the Government had probed on the visa status of those foreigners who stay for longer periods in Hindu religious Mutt like that of Mata Amrithanandamayi at Vallikavu in Kollam district.
Antony, however, quipped whether CPI-M supports such a query. Antony was, apparently, trying to remind the House an incident during the former Left Democratic Front Government led by E. K. Nayanar, when the Government's Chief whip and CPI-M leader, T. K. Hamza, was forced to tender an apology in the House for making a remark on Antony, then opposition leader, exhibiting open devotion to Matha Amrithanandamayi,
something which as Chief Minister now he still continues. On her part, in a later interview given to Asianet TV, Matha Amrithanandamayi, while detailing the statistics of party affiliation of her devotees, said that eight percent of them belonged to CPI-M.Ironically, almost at the same time when Antony was declaring in the Assembly the ban on foreign missionaries' religious preaching in the State, the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, I. D. Swamy, was making an identical statement at a press conference held at Kozhicode Press Club this morning. Referring to the Rev. Joseph Cooper incident mid this month, Swamy said that the Centre would take "strict measures" to prevent the misuse of visas by visitors from abroad, and added : "missionary work by those on tourist visa is also a clear violation of the rules".
Interestingly, Antony's and Swamy's statement followed the RSS Malayalam daily, "Janmabhoomi", carrying a Thiruvananthapuram dateline lead news by its correspondent this morning. With a screaming title, "Ban on Foreign Missionaries' Religious Preaching", the news item said: "The government had imposed a ban on foreign missionaries religious activities in the state. The Home Ministry issued orders in this regard to the police."
No other newspaper carried this advance story, which was in ditto contained both Antony's and Swamy's respective statements.Although Antony used future tense in the Assembly, reports reaching from different parts of the State said that the police have already started action preventing foreign Christian missionaries from addressing religious gathering.
At Punalur, Kollam district, police refused permission to Rev. David Ditt to address a religious gathering at the "Christ in You" festival being held on January 29 at the local Chemmannur Municipal grounds. Before reaching Punalur, the missionary was the main speaker at similar religious gathering at Kottarakara and Pathanapuram in the same district.
On January 28, an eight-member foreign missionary team led by Rev. Terrel David Hesse of USA faced a similar ban action from police at Punalur. Senior police officials of Kollam district reportedly informed the foreign missionaries that they would not be allowed to preach anywhere in the district.
Members of this missionary team were : John V. Goff, Tony Shields, Alfred William, Shert Marsine, Elaine, Richard Piarry (all from U.S.), besides Glaven Allander and Aquantileten from Netherlands. According to missionary circles, Rev. Hesse has been visiting Kerala for the past many years.
Meanwhile, the Sangh Parivar are applying pressure on Harippad police in Alappuzha district to ban the speech of Rev. Rey Hope Home from USA at a forthcoming religious conclave to be held here. This follows posters carrying Rev. Home's picture displayed in and around Harippad as part of the publicity campaign launched by organizers of the convention.
(January 31, 2003)