Why Bishop Joseph And His Roman Catholic Clergy Have Been Targeted
June 11, 2012
By Brian Senewiratne -
Dr. Brian Senewiratne
In an extensive article, now expanded into a booklet and sent to the Pope, and others, I drew attention to the threats to Bishop Rayappu Joseph, the (Tamil) Roman Catholic Bishop of Mannar, members of his clergy (Tamils), members of (Tamil) ‘Civil Society’, and even Sinhalese human rights activists and journalists in the Sinhalese South, by the Government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, and some of his very violent Ministers.
The ‘crime’ committed by Bishop Joseph
For those who have not read the earlier article, I will summarise the reasons why Bishop Joseph and his Roman Catholic clergy in Mannar have been targeted. What have they done?
1. Bishop Joseph has looked after his flock – not just Catholic Christians, but Christians of all denominations, non-Christians, and others. The Bible says that they are all God’s children – which Bishop Joseph has applied absolutely.
As one of his clergy (Fr Jeyabalan Croos), in an appeal to the local people has put it, “…the Bishop of Mannar who in the spirit of the Prophets of the Bible and following the footsteps of our Great Master Jesus Christ acted as the “voice of the voiceless” people of Mannar and in the whole of North and East, and also in the whole island of Sri Lanka.”
He is not only the leader of the Catholic diocese in Mannar, but a humanitarian, which is why his ‘elimination’ will affect us all.
2. Bishop Joseph, his clergy and members of ‘civil society’ have committed four ‘crimes’, in the eyes of the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL).
- Made a Submission to the LLRC (the so-called Lessons Learnt and Rehabilitation Commission of the GoSL).
- Contacted the US Officials from the State Department who arrived in Sri Lanka in February 2012 and apprised them of the humanitarian problems of the Tamil people in the North and East, and the expectations (and responsibilities) of the UN Human Rights Council (UN HRC).
- Made a direct Submission to the UN HRC in March 2012, with 31 Christian clergy in the Sri Lankan North.
- Sent a response to the UN HRC, setting out the downright lies presented to the UN HRC by the GoSL (Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe), and the real situation on the ground in the Tamil North and East.
I have dealt with these in detail in my earlier publication. Here is a summary:
