Militancy and non-secularism

[Victor van Bijlert]

I think one should see communalism basically as a socio-economic phenomenon,
where the religious identities are significant as boundary-markers,
separating the outgroups from the in-group. But I do not believe
communalisms are really deeply religiously inspired forms of aggression. The
fact that the Christians in Gujerat were probably persecuted by militant
Hindus and the same happens in the Pakistan part of the Punjab where
Christians are persecuted by Muslims, whereas again the latter are the
victims of militant Hindu aggression in India and Hindus in Pakistan (if any
are still left) are at the receiving end of Muslim aggression, but Shi'ites
and Sunnis also fight each other in Pakistan; all these facts should make us
pause and reflect.

One needs historical and sociological on the spot research into these
matters, and preferably extract real facts from suppositions about religious
traditions. This is my thinking on this question

Yours truly

Victor A. van Bijlert