Buddhist Extremists Beat, Take Christians Captive
Buddhist members of an armed rebel group and their sympathizers are holding three tribal Christians captive in a pagoda in southeastern Bangladesh after severely beating them in an attempt to force them to return to Buddhism. Held captive since April 16 are Pastor Shushil Jibon Talukder, 55; Bimol Kanti Chakma, 50; and Laksmi Bilas Chakma, 40, of Maddha Lemuchari Baptist Church in the mountainous Khagrachari district. After taking the Christians captive on April 16, the sources said, the next day the armed Buddhist extremists forced other Christians of Maddha Lemuchari Baptist Church to demolish their church building by their own hands. The extremists first seized all blankets, Bibles and song books from the church building. The three Christians are being kept in a pagoda for 15 to 20 days as punishment for having left the Buddhist religion. “The pastor was beaten so seriously that he could not walk to the nearby pagoda,” said one source. Full Story