Protest by Catholic schools in India against violence and persecution

Clashes between Hindu groups and Christians over the conversion of poor tribes and low-caste Hindus have escalated after the shooting death on Saturday of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati.
Government officials have blamed Maoist rebels for the shooting, which precipitated the burning of Christians' homes, churches and monasteries. Thousands of Christians have fled their homes due to the burnings and violence in India and are now refugees, some in government relief camps, while others are in the jungle without food or water. Catholic officials are calling for government aid to assist them. The Catholic Bishops Conference of India stated all Catholic schools and colleges in India would stay closed on Friday as rallies were planned to protest the violence.

"I firmly condemn any attack on human life," Pope Benedict told a crowd of pilgrims on Wednesday.

"I express spiritual closeness and solidarity to the brothers and sisters in faith who are being so harshly tested."

He labelled the death of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati as "deplorable". via news.bbc.co.uk

Hindus claim Christians bribe low caste members to convert, while Christians say that they convert willingly to escape the caste system.

This article in the Catholic Herald states:

Attracted by the Church's emphasis on social service, equality and human dignity, many Dalits have converted in an effort to escape their impoverished state and abusive treatment under India's caste system. Most of the attacks against Christians have taken place in the country's "tribal belt", home to 81 million indigenous people whose ancestors inhabited India before 2,000 BC. Animists or spirit worshipers by nature, many tribal groups are neither Hindus nor practise Hinduism. Much like Dalits, they fall outside the Hindu fold. Dalits, constituting nearly 167 million people, continue to suffer from social discrimination, segregation and violence because of their rank at the bottom of India's caste system.

Human rights activists in India contend that tribal conversions to Christianity must be placed in the social context. The Citizens' Commission report, which studied anti-Christian violence in Gujarat in 1999, concluded: "The question of conversion cannot be considered without taking into account the background of the people involved, particularly tribals who live in abject poverty, illiteracy, and with no facility for healthcare and comfort."

Until recently Christians enjoyed a relatively peaceful coexistence with their Hindu neighbours. In the past few years, however, Christians have become the target of a campaign of violence and propaganda orchestrated by Hindu fundamentalist groups attempting to stem the tide of defecting Dalits. In 1996 two Catholic priests were killed in Bihar, their skulls crushed. In October 1997 the decapitated body of a third priest was found in a forest. Eight years ago a Catholic nun was stabbed to death in full view of the public for apparently aiding Dalits and tribal people.