Stories about Religion from April, 2013
Anti-Hate Rally Attempts to Tackle Emerging Racism in Sri Lanka
Anti hate activists in Sri Lanka plan to gather in the capital city of Colombo on the 28th of April. The country has recently seen a spate of isolated violent attacks and broad based hate rhetoric against minorities.
‘Poor’ Coverage of Boston Marathon Bombing in Media
...[M]uch information has been misunderstood due to lack of knowledge about the Caucasus or Russia and a desire to present the suspects in a framework easily understandable to the American public.
Ahmadis Boycott Upcoming Elections in Pakistan
The Ahmadi community in Pakistan, comprising of 200,000 members, has decided to boycott the upcoming elections. The decision has been taken to protest the state's discrimination towards the community.
Spain: The Bishop and the Global Conspiracy Against Humanity
José Antonio Reig Pla, bishop of the Spanish city of Alcalá de Henares, refers to abortion as an "international conspiracy to reduce the population." The news has spread quickly on social media sites.
Chinese and Western Media Bias Claims in Xinjiang “Terrorist Attack”
A terror incident took place in Bachu County of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region on April 23 2013, in which 15 police officers and community workers were killed and 6 suspects were shot dead. Chinese media outlets depicted the incident as a terrorist attack and criticized western media for not using the term "terrorists" to describe the suspects.
RuNet: What Does Boston Mean for Chechen Cause?
A Chechen blogger analyses her fears of what the Boston Marathon bombings hold in store for the North Caucasus.
Documenting Cases Of Discrimination To End Untouchability
Video Volunteers, an international media and human rights NGO, launched the ARTICLE 17 campaign last year which involves taking actions on testimonies of different forms of untouchability documented on video by Community Correspondents. So far 30 videos are available which documents untouchability practices across India.
Egypt's Jewish Community Leader Laid to Rest
Carmen Weinstein, Egypt's Jewish community leader, has died at the age of 82. Zeinobia, at Egyptian Chronicles, collects reactions from the funeral service, which gathered a lot of media attention: There is a huge surprising media presence as well security presence where those invited to the funeral have to show...
Children Back in Guinea Bissau After Senegal Fire
The blog of the Association of Friends of Children (AMIC) reported [fr] that 20 ‘talib’ children from Guinea-Bissau who had been caught in a raging fire at an Islamic school in the capital of Senegal, Dakar, in early March, have now been handed back to their families. As Rising Voices reported back in...
Christian Colony Attacked In Pakistan
Raza Habib Raja at Pak Tea House describes how another Christian colony had been attacked in Gujranwala, Punjab in Pakistan using the same rhetoric – revenge for alleged “Insult to Islam”.
Sri Lanka's Buddhists Question Extremist Sinhala-Buddhists
A number of Sinhala Buddhists are standing up against the recent violence against Muslim and hateful speech initiated by the Bodu Bala Sena (Buddhist Power Force), an extremist Sinhala-Buddhist organisation based in Colombo.
Argentine Pope: Bergoglio and the ‘Slum Priests’
In Argentina, former cardinal Bergoglio - now pope Francis- is remembered for his work at "villas miseria", slums located in big cities around the country.
Turning Point for Sri Lanka's Muslims?
Sunanda Deshapriya at Groundviews opines that “the judicial case related to the violent attack on Muslim owned Fashion Bug head office and warehouse in Pepiliyana, 10 km away from Colombo, is destined to be a turning point in Muslim Rights in Sri Lanka.”
Bahrain Anti-Government Protests for Equality
From Bahrain, where the ongoing anti-government protests are portrayed in mainstream media as a Sunni/Shia sectarian clash, blogger Nader AbdulEman writes [ar]: أنا الطائفي الذي اريد حكومة منتخبة أنا الطائفي الذي ارفض التمييز وأطلب العدل والمساواة أنا الطائفي أطلب برلمان كامل الصلاحيات @NaderAbdulEmam: I am the sectarian who wants an...
Hardline Buddhists Rise in Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan blogger Indi Samarajiva explains why Bodu Bala Sena, a hardline Buddhist organization, is gaining popularity in Sri Lanka.
Protests Against Arrest of Bloggers Charged with Blasphemy in Bangladesh
Bangladesh Police have detained four bloggers for their posts which allegedly "hurt religious feelings" and the hunt is on for seven more bloggers. Many popular Bangladeshi blogging platforms and blogs have blacked out their websites in protest.
The Islamic Caliphate of North Korea
A tweet [ko] directing people to this fake blog post received quite some attention on April Fools’ day. Looking like a legit news article, the post says that North Korea announced that it is now an Islamic state and it includes detailed claims such as: Kim Jong-un ‘asserted ‘every previous leader of North...
Bangladesh Authorities Go After Bloggers, Claim They Are ‘Anti-Muslim’
As deadly clashes between Islamist activists and authorities continue to escalate religious tensions in Bangladesh, the country's telecommunications authority is making moves to silence bloggers deemed anti-Muslim or anti-state. Award-winning blogger Asif Mohiuddin has become the latest target.
