Story number 2 for 9 Dec 2002

(India)–Meanwhile, police in India are getting in the way of thousand of Dalits rejecting Hinduism. 10-thousand of India’s so called “untouchables” were expected to gather for a mass conversion last week in Tamil Nadu State, but authorities harassed and beat some participants. Because of centuries of oppression, the Dalits are rejecting Hinduism and joining Buddhism and Christianity to free them of the caste system. Some Hindu leaders accuse evangelical Christians of bribing the poor to become Christians. Many Christians say new laws to prevent conversion compromise the right to religious freedom.