South Asia

The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council today released its annual report on the persecution of ethnic-religious minorities in the country. About 1,045 incidents of violence were recorded in the past year, with 45 deaths. For lawyer Rana Dasgupta, “The environment for free religious practice has been completely narrowed.”

In Trieste for the Social Week of Italian Catholics, the brother of Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan’s Minorities Minister killed in 2011, spoke about a recent trial that has reopened wounds for the country’s Christian community over its blasphemy rules. For Paul Bhatti, the government must ensure that “no one can teach a person to kill or die in the name of religion.”

An evangelical community that prayed in a private home battered and detained after Hindu extremists accused them of 'forced conversions'. In the district of Jabalpur, an investigation into book prices inflated by a publisher sent to prison only the leaders of the most renowned Christian schools, including a Protestant bishop and a Catholic priest.

Although Sri Lanka does not produce products containing mercury or persistent organic pollutants, it imports a lot of them from abroad. The United Nations Development Programme will implement the activities, which will last five years and have been financed by the Global Environment Facility.

At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit dozens of cooperation agreements were signed in the fields of energy, trade and defence at the external borders. But - beyond the proclamations on the rejection of the dollar - China, India, Pakistan and the Central Asian countries remain well integrated in the world economy, taking care not to be dragged into the abyss of sanctions against Russia.

Despite the defeat of Conservative leader Rishi Sunak (who kept his seat), the British House of Commons now has 26 MPs with roots in India. Many new faces can be found among the ranks of the Labour Party which focused heavily on this community. One of the new MPs is Sojan Joseph, a Catholic nurse from Kerala who works with the mentally ill in Ashford.

Floods are a normal occurrence in the north-eastern Indian state, but the greater volatility and intensity of rainfall has become a problem for farmers. Tea production, a sector that employs a large chunk of the population, has been particularly affected. For experts, a centralised government approach should be dropped in favour of one based on local communities.

In the village of Iyankerney, in the troubled eastern province, an initiative that creates wealth and strengthens the sense of community through organic farming. The gratitude of the 31 women involved: 'We will continue this work and invite others to do the same'.

An OECD-FAO report expects ice output to rise worldwide by 11 per cent with robust growth in exports from Cambodia and Myanmar. After the peak triggered by drought fears, prices are still 14 per cent higher than 12 months ago.

A 'temporary' agreement came into force yesterday on the Feast of St Thomas, which had been indicated as an ultimatum by the Major Archbishop. On Sundays and feast days, at least one liturgy must be celebrated according to the unified rite decided by the Synod. But it will also be allowed to maintain the mode in which the celebrant is facing the people throughout the rite, as requested by the clergy and laity of the archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly

On the journey towards the October Assembly, the dioceses of Bangladesh held a seminar with the undersecretary of the Vatican department Sr. Nathalie Becquart. Participants: 'A revival for the Catholic Church in the country'. Archbishop Bejoy N. D'Cruze: "The laity want to participate in decisions and expect to see their dignity more recognised".

Many women and children among the victims. There were more than 10,000 at the event of Bhole Baba, a former policeman turned preacher who gathers large crowds. At the origin of the chaos was a sandstorm but - according to witnesses - also the behaviour of the cleric's security service. Lucknow Bishop Gerard Mathias: "I pray for the victims and that such tragedies will not be repeated".