Dalit issue cannot be avoided, says Nobel laureate Abp Desmond Tutu

Bangalore – Nobel laureate, anti–apartheid crusader and champion of the poor, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has joined in the campaign in support of equal rights for the Dalit community and has urged human rights organizations and pro–Dalit advocacy groups to “focus their efforts on removing the scurf.”

"Obviously one of the issues the country is facing is that of Dalits," the Nobel Peace Prize winner said. “You don't need to wait for the government participation."

Recalling that India had helped the people of his nation, South Africa, in supporting their struggle in fighting apartheid, Archbishop Tutu expressed his gratitude towards the world’s biggest democratic nation for “standing firm against apartheid and placing the agenda in the international community.”

“I thank India for its significant support which enabled us to set the un–free people free,” he said.

However, the archbishop noted that though India has many reasons to celebrate on account of its successes in enjoying unity in diversity and contributing to world culture, the Dalit issue still remained a cause for concern.

Emphasizing that the problem of caste discrimination in India cannot be avoided anymore and like–minded social organizations should become the voice of the Dalits in solving the problems faced by the country, the archbishop said, “The world is divided between the rich and the poor and between the powerful and the powerless…The war on terror would never end as long as the disparities among people remained.”

“Wars against terrorism will never be won as long as the conditions that make people desperate change… as long as poverty de–humanises people,” he added.

Speaking for the Dalits who have been oppressed for ages by the higher castes in India, Archbishop Tutu said, “God is found among those who are poor and treated as rubbish. The world will be transformed by our gentleness, laughter and sharing.”

“God is the same yesterday, today and forever,” the prelate continued, “today God comes in disguise – with no glory, no blinding light around him. He comes in the poor, the beggars, in the despised, untouchables, refugees, drug addicts and even in whom we regard as our enemy. When we accept them, we welcome God in our homes, into the inns of our hearts.”

Speaking about the meaning of Christmas, he said, “Christmas is a feast celebrated all over the world. God the Infinite, Sublime and all Holy was born fragile… as a human baby. It is now we recognise Jesus with a halo in the pictures, but when he really came, no one recognised him because God was hidden.”

“God has no one except you and me to realise his dream. He believes in you to make the world a better place and when the Lord comes, He will find a place,” he concluded.

Archbishop Tutu was in Bangalore recently on a private visit. He gave a “homily”address at the Ecumenical Advent Prayer Service on the eve of the Christmas celebrations organized at Soukya Healing Centre, Whitefield, near Bangalore. He also addressed the concluding session of the Round Table conference on 'Building Peace through Dialogue–Reconciling Difference.’ The Round Table conference, which addressed several issues like status of women, muslim minorities and dalits, was organized by the Singamma Sreenivasan Foundation and Indian Council for Cultural Relations.