Amnesty International organized a vigil in Porto on May 6 evening to “illuminate the darkness seen in India today” and that “silences dissent and the repression of human rights defenders”.

Instead of people, the vigil featured a candle for each of the nearly 1,000 people who signed an online petition asking for coherence from European leaders – who will meet on May 8 in Porto with the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi who will participate by video conference.

Pedro Neto, executive director of Amnesty International Portugal, asked European leaders not to forget human rights at the talks.

He said he hoped European leaders would apply the same principles they have followed with China but stressed that it would be incoherent for the EU to approach India and not put human rights on the table.

The vigil served to draw attention to the situation of 16 dissidents imprisoned in India, including human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers, and even religious leaders”, but who symbolise the hundreds, if not thousands, of people who are being persecuted and repressed in India, Pedro Neto said.

In common, summed up Jesuit Father José Maria Brito, present at the vigil, the dissidents have “a voice” that challenges “the interests of a clearly nationalist vision of the Indian State at this time”.

The Jesuits have been following the case of an elderly and ill detained priest “falsely accused of terrorist links” for defending the Adivasi (tribal ethnic group in India).

“We would like the issue of human rights to be present at this meeting,” he said.

We must not let this cease to be an issue, which is uncomfortable for India, he insisted, also mentioning the case of a comedian who was arrested before a stand-up show. “He didn’t even get to tell the jokes,” he remarked.

Amnesty International “has been forced to close operations” in India, and the organisation’s bank accounts have been frozen, Pedro Neto added.

He went on to say that there were no human resources or financial means to do the work of defending human rights at a time when human rights are under great attack. He appealed: “Don’t let either the founding dream of the European Union or Gandhi’s dream be left behind.”

https://www.macaubusiness.com/eu-presidency-amnesty-lights-candles-to-light-darkness-in-india/