US embassy cable - 05VATICAN444

UNCLAS  VATICAN 000444 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
EUR/WE FOR JLEVIN, 
DRL/IRF FOR JMORALES, 
NEA/SA/INS FOR JSEEVERS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: VT, IN, KIRF, PGOV 
SUBJECT: INDIA: JESUITS SEE RISING HINDU FUNDAMENTALISM 
 
REF: VATICAN 1299 
 
1. (U) SUMMARY: Father Lisbert D'Souza, South Asia Regional 
Director at the Jesuit Curia in Rome said February 16 that 
recent attacks against Christians in India were motivated by 
increasing Hindu fundamentalism.  D'Souza distinguished between 
simple banditry and religiously motivated attacks, and also 
highlighted the dangers of aggressive proselytism on the part of 
some Christian denominations.  End Summary. 
 
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Hindu Fundamentalists behind Anti-Christian attacks 
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2. (SBU) According to Father D'Souza, Catholics in India are 
experiencing greater problems now than in the past, in part due 
to the attitude of Indian authorities.  In the past, Catholics 
had often found allies among Indian police and government 
officials, many of whom had been educated in Jesuit or other 
Catholic institutions.  "If we called the police and said, these 
guys are harassing us, they'd respond."  Today, D'Souza said, 
fewer of those in power have these Christian connections, so 
past sensitivity to concerns of Christian minorities has given 
way in many cases to resentment and suspicion.  When it comes to 
protecting religious minorities, D'Souza claimed, "the local 
governments do nothing." 
 
3. (SBU) Despite his concerns about increasing violence against 
Christians, D'Souza said it is important to recognize that some 
of the attacks against Christians that are often perceived as 
religiously motivated are actually simple banditry.  Convents 
and religious institutions are known as soft targets, he 
explained.  In the North of India where banditry is a problem, 
everyone is a target regardless of religious affiliation. 
However, D'Souza said that in the more stable South of the 
country, attacks on Christians are more likely to have a 
religious motivation. In fact, Bombay's Auxiliary Bishop, 
Percival Fernandez, in a recent interview with Catholic media, 
supported D'Souza's contention that recent anti-Christian 
attacks have been coordinated by fundamentalist Hindu groups. 
 
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Provocative Proselytism? 
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4. (SBU) D'Souza recognized that some attacks on Christians may 
be a by-product of aggressive proselytism on the part of some 
Christian groups.  "Evangelical Christian groups have not always 
been prudent," he observed, and have evangelized aggressively. 
D'Souza pointed out that the February 13 attack in Kerala on 
Pentecostal seminarians was likely due to the students' 
distributing Christian literature and proselytizing. 
 
5. (SBU) While not downplaying reports of violence against 
Catholics and other Christians, D'Souza cautioned that Christian 
religious freedom watchdogs should not ignore persecution of 
other minorities.  "Perhaps we have been too energetic in our 
own cause," highlighting abuses against Christians rather than 
keeping a broader watch on violations of the liberty of all 
religious minorities, he said. 
 
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Privatization of Education Raises Tuition 
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6. (SBU) Turning to Jesuit schools, D'Souza discussed challenges 
his order is facing due to the privatization of education in 
India.  He blamed this trend for sapping government funding from 
religious schools.  If Jesuit institutions want to attract elite 
students and continue to provide top-level education, they must 
increase investment in infrastructure and technology, D'Souza 
reasoned. Unfortunately this investment requires higher tuition 
costs that shut out poorer applicants, a group the Jesuits have 
traditionally regarded as their main constituency. 
 
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Comment 
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7. (SBU) As the South Asian Section Assistant at the Jesuit 
Curia in Rome, D'Souza advises Jesuit Father General Peter-Hans 
Kolvenbach -- the so-called "Jesuit Pope" -- on both 
administrative and political aspects of Jesuit presence in 
Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.  Although raised in 
Mumbai, D'Souza's family is Goan.  Before moving to the Jesuit 
Curia in Rome D'Souza was Provincial of India and president of 
the Jesuit Conference of South Asia.  There are currently 3,900 
 
Jesuits in India. 
 
HARDT 
 
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 2005VATICA00444 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED