01-26-2005, 09:25 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Stained Padma </b>
The Pioneer Edit Desk
A large number of foreigners have made India their home, empathised with its people and worked shoulder-to-shoulder with Indians because they fell in love with this land. Even during the freedom struggle, several Britons distinguished themselves by participating in the movement and rousing the conscience of their own countrymen against the injustices perpetrated on Indians by the colonial rulers.
A grateful India reciprocated by bestowing affection and honour on the countless foreign-born men and women who helped this country rediscover its self-esteem. In contemporary India, too, there are many examples of such selfless dedication. Therefore, the <b>conferring of the Padma Bhushan on William Mark Tully, for decades the BBC's voice in India and India's voice to the world deserves unstinted commendation.</b> <!--emo&:thumbdown--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbsdownsmileyanim.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='thumbsdownsmileyanim.gif' /><!--endemo-->
The same, sadly, cannot be said for the other foreign-born recipient of this year's Padma awards. The honouring of Ms Gladys Staines, widow of Australian missionary Graham Staines, brutally murdered by an irate mob in Orissa some years ago, defies all logic. A person selected for such awards should be distinguished in his/her field and bring glory to this country in some form. A bewildered nation needs to be enlightened on Ms Staines' contribution in this regard. Although her late husband's work in the tribal regions of Orissa was controversial on account of its alleged association with conversions to Christianity, it can still be argued that he brought succour to many diseased and disabled people, particularly leprosy patients.
Further, the manner in which he was murdered along with his young sons was gruesome and despicable. But, it is a measure of the strength of republican institutions in India and the independence of its judiciary that the killers were brought to book, tried and sentenced to severe punishment. In other words, the Indian state discharged its responsibility with impartiality and, in this case, sufficient alacrity. But, however tragic Graham Staines' killing, can it be official policy to honour the widow of every person who dies in mob violence?
There are hundreds of foreign missionaries active in different parts of the country, but controversy has always dogged their actions because of the wide suspicion that their final goal remains proselytisation, regardless of the camouflage. This may not be true in many instances, but the popular anger against conversion-related activities has often led the Government to ask many of them to leave the country. Curiously, Ms Staines too left India "on furlough" for her native Australia some time ago despite averring that Orissa would remain her place of work. That raises an additional question: <b>What were the compelling reasons for honouring an absentee missionary?</b>
What remarkable achievements has she notched up on behalf of India since leaving the country's shores? Arguably, however, Ms Staines acted with remarkable dignity and grace in the aftermath of the murder of her husband and sons. After the court passed severe sentences on the leaders of the murderous mob, she warmed many hearts by declaring in the true Christian spirit that she forgave the criminals. She will rise in the country's esteem if she were now to decline the politically motivated Padma Shri conferred upon her. <b>That will be an appropriate rebuff to the misconceived agenda of bleeding-heart jholawalas who have unfortunately come to dominate decision-making layers of this Government </b>
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The Pioneer Edit Desk
A large number of foreigners have made India their home, empathised with its people and worked shoulder-to-shoulder with Indians because they fell in love with this land. Even during the freedom struggle, several Britons distinguished themselves by participating in the movement and rousing the conscience of their own countrymen against the injustices perpetrated on Indians by the colonial rulers.
A grateful India reciprocated by bestowing affection and honour on the countless foreign-born men and women who helped this country rediscover its self-esteem. In contemporary India, too, there are many examples of such selfless dedication. Therefore, the <b>conferring of the Padma Bhushan on William Mark Tully, for decades the BBC's voice in India and India's voice to the world deserves unstinted commendation.</b> <!--emo&:thumbdown--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbsdownsmileyanim.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='thumbsdownsmileyanim.gif' /><!--endemo-->
The same, sadly, cannot be said for the other foreign-born recipient of this year's Padma awards. The honouring of Ms Gladys Staines, widow of Australian missionary Graham Staines, brutally murdered by an irate mob in Orissa some years ago, defies all logic. A person selected for such awards should be distinguished in his/her field and bring glory to this country in some form. A bewildered nation needs to be enlightened on Ms Staines' contribution in this regard. Although her late husband's work in the tribal regions of Orissa was controversial on account of its alleged association with conversions to Christianity, it can still be argued that he brought succour to many diseased and disabled people, particularly leprosy patients.
Further, the manner in which he was murdered along with his young sons was gruesome and despicable. But, it is a measure of the strength of republican institutions in India and the independence of its judiciary that the killers were brought to book, tried and sentenced to severe punishment. In other words, the Indian state discharged its responsibility with impartiality and, in this case, sufficient alacrity. But, however tragic Graham Staines' killing, can it be official policy to honour the widow of every person who dies in mob violence?
There are hundreds of foreign missionaries active in different parts of the country, but controversy has always dogged their actions because of the wide suspicion that their final goal remains proselytisation, regardless of the camouflage. This may not be true in many instances, but the popular anger against conversion-related activities has often led the Government to ask many of them to leave the country. Curiously, Ms Staines too left India "on furlough" for her native Australia some time ago despite averring that Orissa would remain her place of work. That raises an additional question: <b>What were the compelling reasons for honouring an absentee missionary?</b>
What remarkable achievements has she notched up on behalf of India since leaving the country's shores? Arguably, however, Ms Staines acted with remarkable dignity and grace in the aftermath of the murder of her husband and sons. After the court passed severe sentences on the leaders of the murderous mob, she warmed many hearts by declaring in the true Christian spirit that she forgave the criminals. She will rise in the country's esteem if she were now to decline the politically motivated Padma Shri conferred upon her. <b>That will be an appropriate rebuff to the misconceived agenda of bleeding-heart jholawalas who have unfortunately come to dominate decision-making layers of this Government </b>
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