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Archbishop defends peace talks in wake of blasts

Published : November 24 2009

GUWAHATI, India : The archbishop of Guwahati has defended his peace initiative from critics who say it has failed after two bombs killed seven people and wounded more than 50 over the weekend.

Some people had "cynically" asked him what his Joint Peace Team of Northeast India, an ecumenical initiative, had achieved. But Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil said he would not give up.

"When we go for peace meetings we are going with the readiness to fail," said the archbishop, who launched the group more than a decade ago.

"But we will never give up our efforts if we can save even a few lives, or if we can instill hope into even a small section of people."

The blasts on Nov. 22 are believed to be the work of the banned secessionist group, the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFP), one of several ethnic groups in the state seeking autonomy. It has denied responsibility.

The bombs were placed on bicycles near the police station at Nalbari, 70 kilometers northwest of Guwahati. The first blast occurred at 9:30 a.m. and the second 45 minutes later as people gathered to help the injured.

The attack tells the world that there are unresolved problems in Assam, said Salesian Archbishop Menamparampil, who heads the Catholic Church in the state. "I feel deeply pained and profoundly distressed at these instances of violence rocking our state."

Other Christians also condemned the blasts.

Reverend Michael Henry, a pastor of the Church of North India and a member of the archbishop's peace team, said: "Any kind of violence has to be condemned. We have to join together and fight violence as a society."

Reverend Aziz Haque, a pastor of the Lutheran Church in Guwahati, described the attack as an "inhuman" act.

Courtesy : UCAN