Inside This Newsletter

HAF SUES CALIFORNIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION

HAF CALLS FOR GREATER PROTECTION OF INDONESIAN HINDUS AFTER TEMPLE BOMBING

HAF APPLAUDS PRESIDENT BUSH'S INDIA VISIT

HINDU AMERICANS DISTRESSED BY SERIAL BOMB BLASTS IN HOLY CITY OF VARANASI
 

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HAF Sues California State Board of Education

SACRAMENTO, Ca (Mar. 17, 2006) – The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) filed suit against the California State Board of Education (SBE) in California Superior Court in Sacramento yesterday. After months of repeated correspondence with the SBE and California Department of Education (CDE), HAF filed suit as the foundation contends that a fair and open process was not followed in adopting textbooks that introduce Hinduism to sixth grade students. HAF sued the SBE for failure to perform those duties required by the California Education Code and the Standards of Evaluation of Instructional Materials with respect to Social Content.

"Today Hindu Americans have taken a stand against not only the illegal machinations of the SBE and unfair treatment Hindus received during the textbook adoption process, but also the inaccurate and unequal portrayal of their religious tradition in school textbooks," said Nikhil Joshi, Esq., member of the HAF Board of Directors. "This is about treating Hindus in America and their religion with the same level of sensitivity and balance afforded to other religious traditions and their practitioners," continued Joshi.

The HAF complaint alleges that the SBE violated the law when it approved textbooks for sixth grade history-social science that tend to demean, stereotype, and reflect adversely upon Hindus; that portray Hinduism as undesirable; that hold Hindu beliefs and practices up to ridicule or as inferior; that inaccurately describe and characterize Hinduism; and discourage belief in that religious tradition. HAF identified five areas where the foundation holds that the staff recommended edits were not only inadequate, but also inconsistent.

HAF asks in the lawsuit that 1) the description of the role and status of women in Hinduism be neutral and consistent with the treatment accorded this issue in the context of other religions; 2) the description of the caste system and the social practice of "untouchability" be historically accurate and consistent with descriptions of social inequities in other societies that are falsely perpetrated by some in the name of religion; 3) description of Hindu theology and its understanding of divinity be consistent with the understanding of practicing Hindus; 4) Hinduism not be unfavourably compared with other religions or made to appear as a more regressive or archaic belief system; and 5) the text present the Aryan Invasion or Aryan Migration Theory as one possibility, along with the prevailing view among Hindus that Hinduism is indigenous to India.

On December 2, 2005, SBE's Curriculum Commission initially approved several Hindu edits that addressed these issues. The SBE decided to ignore the Curriculum Commission only in regards to the edits suggested by Hindu groups. HAF further argues that the SBE violated the California Open Meeting Act among other procedural violations when it made numerous private determinations that effectively subverted the public process. The Bagley- Keene Open Meeting Act requires that certain state agency meetings be conducted openly so that the public may remain informed.

HAF is seeking a temporary restraining order to halt the publishing of the textbooks until the issue of whether the textbooks meet the state standards have been resolved by a court of law.

"We’re dealing with hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars here," stated Suhag Shukla, Esq. HAF Legal Counsel. "We need to ensure that the suggested edits by the Hindu American community are given due consideration and that ultimately the text is fair and accurate before it goes to the print."

An emergency hearing for injunctive relief will be scheduled within the next week. A copy of the complaint and exhibits are available on www.hinduamericanfoundation.org

Related Documents:

• Complaint

• Exhibits

For further information: Please contact HAF.
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HAF Calls for Greater Protection of Indonesian Hindus after Temple Bombing

TAMPA, Fl (Mar. 11, 2006) - A Hindu temple was partly destroyed and a devotee was seriously injured when a homemade pipe-bomb exploded in Poso, Indonesia on March 10, 2006. When 40-year-old Nengiah Sugiarta opened a door, the bomb detonated collapsing the walls and roof of the temple. Sugiarta, who has been a guard at the temple for 15 years, was seriously injured in the legs and waist by wood and nail shrapnel. Officials have not yet identified the culprits of Friday's attack but suspect Islamic militants based on a recent history of attacks, including bombings and beheadings, against the local Christian population.

Though the attack was the first to target Hindus on the island, Islamic militants in other parts of Muslim-majority Indonesia have been behind several other high-profile bombings, especially in the predominantly Hindu island of Bali. In 2002, three serial bomb blasts claimed the lives of 202 people and injured another 209. In October of 2005, three suicide bombers killed 20 and injured 129. Many of the victims of the blasts were Western tourists and local Balinese, most of whom are Hindu. Both attacks were believed to have been the work of Jemaah Islamiah, an Islamic radical group organization linked to Al-Qaeda.

Hinduism was introduced to Indonesia, experts believe, as early as 400 CE. Several small Hindu kingdoms merged under King Sanjaya around 800 CE in central Java. Hinduism spread throughout the Indonesian archipelago peacefully, but has been on the wane since Islam and Christianity were introduced to the region. Indonesia is now predominantly Muslim, making Indonesia the largest Muslim country in the world. However, Hindu names, Hindu images, and Hindu ways and culture are deeply ingrained in Indonesian society which are now being sought to be wiped out by radical Islamists. The bombing in Poso, coming on the heels of the multiple bomb attack in the most holy of Hindu cities, Varanasi in India, by suspected Islamic radicals is a dangerous portent of the spread of radical Islam in South Asia and Southeast Asia.

The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) calls for the Indonesian government to better protect the Hindu minority population.

For further information: Please contact HAF.
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HAF Applauds President Bush's India Visit

TAMPA, Fl. (Mar. 10, 2006) - The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) lauded President George Bush for his visit to India and for initiatives the President introduced during his visit. HAF members appreciated especially the efforts of the President to recognize the pluralistic ethos of India, as well as the dangers the country faces from Islamist terrorism widely known to be abetted by governments in Pakistan and Bangladesh. The civilian nuclear initiative President Bush introduced in India recognized India’s history as a non-proliferator and mature democracy and essentially differentiated the U.S. relationship vis a vis India from that with Pakistan, HAF members held.

In a speech at the historic Purana Quila in Delhi on the evening of March 3, 2006, President Bush praised the tolerance and religious diversity of India. Beginning his address with a namaste, Bush said he was ‘dazzled’ by the ancient land and admired that "India has a Hindu majority, and . . . is home to millions from other religions . . . all [of whom] worship freely in temples and mosques and churches all across this great land. As a multi-ethnic, multi-religious democracy, India is showing the world that the best way to ensure fairness and tolerance is to establish the rule of law. The best way to counter resentment is to allow peaceful expression. The best way to honor human dignity is to protect human rights.”

“We are extremely pleased that President Bush recognizes India as the best engine for security, peace, religious tolerance and pluralism in Asia.” stated Nikhil N. Joshi, Esq., Member, HAF Board of Directors. “The President recognizes that India is the birthplace of great religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, that share the same spiritual inspirations and offer the world the path to a peaceful life along side neighbors of all faiths.”

President Bush stopped over in Pakistan on his return from India and affirmed that Pakistan will not get a nuclear deal similar to that for India. Reportedly, Bush expressed displeasure over Pakistan’s continued sponsorship of terrorism, both to Taliban forces in Afghanistan, and to Islamist groups that operate in India from Pakistani bases.

“With last week’s massacres by Pakistan sponsored terrorist groups in Hinduism’s most holy city, Varanasi, on the heels of several other recent attacks on holy places, we are pleased that our President was direct and unyielding in his meetings with the dictator President Musharraf,” said Joshi. “HAF congratulates President Bush for his remarkable success on many fronts during his India visit. HAF looks forward to ongoing dialogue with the White House in 2006 and beyond on matters of importance to Hindu Americans and Indian Americans.”

For further information: Please contact HAF.
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Hindu Americans Distressed by Serial Bomb Blasts in Holy City of Varanasi

TAMPA, Fl (Mar. 9, 2006) – A series of explosions on Tuesday in the holy city of Varanasi, India claimed the lives of at least 21 people and injured over 62. Two of the bombs were placed in the city’s main railway station while another bomb targeted worshippers at the famous Sankat Mochan temple. Officials believe the attackers specifically triggered the bomb at the temple on an auspicious day of the week during evening services to inflict the greatest casualties on Hindu devotees.

Intelligence officials currently suspect that the notorious Pakistan-based Islamist outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) was behind the attacks. The same group has been accused of masterminding dozens of major terrorist attacks in India over the past 16 years including three in the past year alone. In December 2005, gunmen stormed the campus of the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore killing and seriously injuring several professors and researchers. Last October, on the eve of the Hindu festival of Diwali/Deepavali, bomb blasts in a populated market killed 61 in the nation’s capital New Delhi. In July 2005, LeT militants opened fire on worshippers and security forces at the Ram Janmabhoomi complex in the holy city of Ayodhya.

Sheetal Shah, member of the Hindu American Foundation Executive Council said, “The continued attacks on worshippers at some of the most sacred Hindu sites reflect a lapse in the Indian government’s duty to adequately protect its citizens and a failure of the government of Pakistan to reign in Islamic militancy.”

The Hindu American Foundation asks for Hindus to remain calm, and demands a calibrated response from the state and central governments to these dastardly attacks. For too long, attacks on Hindu sacred places and on Hindus have either led to knee-jerk violent responses by some Hindu groups and/or an apathetic and band-aid response by the ruling governments. It is time to make everyone feel secure and safe in India.

For further information: Please contact HAF.
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