On March 6, 200,000 Christians peacefully protested against an anti-conversion law that remained dormant for 45 years, at the Borum Village, in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.
The Arunachal Pradesh Christian Forum (ACF), the state’s largest Christian organisation, led the protest. The protest represents the culmination of weeks of opposition to the Arunachal Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act. The law requires individuals seeking religious conversion to obtain prior approval from district authorities.
The Arunachal Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act (APFRA) was enacted in October 1978 to safeguard the traditional religious practices of indigenous communities from external influence or coercion. But it was never implemented.
The Christian community, which comprises over 30% of Arunachal Pradesh’s population, argues that the law infringes upon their constitutional right to freedom of religion.
They contend that the legislation disproportionately targets Christians while leaving other religious groups, such as Buddhists and followers of indigenous faiths, unaffected.
The state of Arunachal is comprised of 26 tribal cultures. Proponents of anti-conversion laws claim that the spread of Christianity will erase tribal practices.
Tahr Miri said: “The other tribal religions are protected – but not Christianity. We have the same practices even after converting to Christianity. We have only stopped practices of animism.”
Animism is the belief that plants, rocks, and inanimate objects have spiritual power
CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: “As we have seen in eleven other states in India, anti-conversion laws are unconstitutional. We call on the government of Arunachal Pradesh to heed the concerns of the state’s Christian community and not to implement the APFRA, and urge the governments of all states in which anti-conversion laws are already in place to repeal these laws and acquit anyone currently facing charges under them as a matter of urgency.”
The push for this law was initiated by a Public Interest Litigation filed by Tambo Tamin, a former general secretary of the Indigenous Faith and Cultural Society of Arunachal Pradesh, which advocates for the preservation of traditional tribal religions.
During a meeting with the state’s interior minister in February, Christian leaders requested the repeal of the law but were told that the government must comply with the court’s directive. In light of this, the Forum has vowed to escalate its protests, including plans for a “referendum rally” if the law is not repealed by the end of March.
(Agencies)
