Poor Christian Liberation Movement (PCLM) Office:- IIIA/145, Rachana, Vashali – 201010 (NCR) India Telefax 0120, 4569131 Cell. 9810108046 Email:-francisp...@yahoo.com www.Dalitchristian.org PRESS RELEASE Five Points Election Demand by Dalit Christians New Delhi: March 27, 2009:- The Poor Christian Liberation Movement (PCLM) strongly condemns interference by the Church in the Lok Sabha election process by declaring that it will field Church candidates. It urges all the political parties to take note of the statement issued by the Kerala Bishop‘s. The PCLM is shocked at the statement and demands that the election commission should issue show cause notice in this matter. The PCLM makes the following demands to the political parties: - In view of lot of controversy on conversion the PCLM urges the political parties to commit to bring an all India level Freedom of Religion Bill to check fraudulent and allurement conversion. All political parties must make their stand clear on this point before the elections. - That the political parties in India should include formation of a Waqf like board for the protection of mission property of heritage nature in India. - The PCLM urges that no ordained priest or nun should be appointed member of a government commission. Instead lay Christian must be appointed in such bodies. Currently the bishops are appointed by the Vatican and can be removed by the Vatican only. The local bodies or Christians have no say in it. This is undemocratic process. This must be changed. - Several reports have indicated that large section of poor Christians of Dalit and tribal backgrounds are still suffering from the discrimination, outside and within the Church. So the PCLM demands that a development board for financial and social upliftment of Christians be formed after the elections. The political parties in their manifestoes must indicate their position on this issue. - The Church in India owns large number of educational and health institutions under minority status. The Church is demanding reservation from the Government for the Dalit Christians .The PCLM demands that the Church must reserve 60 per cent of jobs for the poor Christians in the Christian institutions. It further urges the political parties that in case in any Christian institution the number of Christian’s beneficiaries are less than 50 percent the minority status of such institutions should be cancelled and it must be put “other Charitable Institutions” category. It has been observed that some individuals are secretly negotiating with the political parties on behalf of the community. The PCLM wants such elements to refrains from nefarious activities. Issued R.L. Francis, President, PCLM
