Church no longer in lead,yet Catholic feel persists

Protesters against Koodankulam plant are largely Catholic fishermen,once led by church

It was on the premises of a Catholic church that the agitation against the Koodankulam nuclear plant began. The issue has since been given a religious tinge and the church has withdrawn from the foreground,yet the movement remains undeniably Catholic in character.

The fishermen who are the face of the protest are all Catholics,and had launched their agitation on the premises of St Lourdes Mary Church at Idinthikarai,near Koodankulam. Some 2,000 families under the St Lourdes Mary parish are at the heart of the movement,though activists from elsewhere join them every now and then.

The agitators prime fear is about the harm the plant can do to the fish of the ocean. Father Jayakumar of their church says the government has not addressed these fears; nuclear authorities now admit that had they done so,the confrontation could have been avoided.

Last September,when fishermen went to the Tuticorin bishop seeking the clergys support to their cause,Bishop Yvon Ambroise gave it. The diocese was brought into the picture by the people,not the other way round. When the people said it was a matter of their safety and livelihood,the bishop had no option but to share their concern. Now,the agitators are able to go ahead with their plan without church support, says Father William Santhanam,spokesperson for the Tuticorin diocese.

A large number of priests and nuns took part in the indefinite fast held in September,while the bishop shared the stage with leaders of the movement. The bishop was also part of the delegation that met the Chief Minister and the Prime Minister.

The Catholic Church could not,however,win the support of the CSI and Pentecostal churches. While the dominant Catholics are represented entirely by fishermen of the region,members of the other two churches are spread across a wider spectrum including agriculture.

Father Ravi Mohanraj,CSI priest at Chettikulam near Koodankulam,said his community goes by the version of scientists that the project is safe. Many of our people live in the coastal area,but they do not share the concern of the Catholic fishermen. We look at the project from the development point of view, Mohanraj said.

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And a representative of the Pentecostal Mission in Koodankulam said,We dont want to take part in the struggle on religious grounds. We have reposed everything in God.

A Catholic priest,who wished not to be named,said that with the Home Ministry having cracked the whip on NGOs associated with the Catholic church,it was natural that others would remain aloof from the agitation. All churches have social wings that receive foreign funds. Although no NGO funds has gone into the running of the agitation,he said,no one wants to face the problems associated with such allegations.

Father Jayakumar of St Lourdes Mary Church questioned why government authorities have not tried to convince local fishermen that the plant is safe. He said the hot run last year and the loud noise it caused had frightened the people,who had been kept in the dark about it.

Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd director-technical S A Bhardwaj too has said,We started the hot run without informing the people. Also,in our anxiety to commission the plant,we worked round the clock and went to the plant at odd hours of the night8230; We should have gone from door to door and explained to the public. There was certainly a lack of communication. We are addressing it now.

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Father Jayakumar said the fear is that the plant would reduce the fish wealth of the region and affect fishermens livelihood. Personal safety does not seem to be as high a concern,though the makeshift venue of the agitation,erected in front of the church,carries gruesome images of nuclear tragedies from across the world. Not a single parishioner has been scared away from the region,and young men in the village still find brides from Catholic families elsewhere in the state. Construction is going on as usual,confirms Father Jayakumar.

This is the second time in recent times that the Catholic Church finds itself on the opposition side against a project. In 2007,a Rs-2,500-crore titanium dioxide plant proposed by the Tatas on the Sathankulam coast was abandoned after the church opposed the acquisition of 11,000 acres from 400 villages. The agitation was backed by the AIADMK,then in opposition.

In Tamil Nadu,the Christian population is mainly concentrated in the southern districts of Kanyakumari,Tiruvenlveli and Tutricorin. The Catholic community has a significant presence in the coastal belt of these districts. Of the 235 NGOs that get annual foreign contributions above Rs 1 crore,31 belong to these three districts. More than 90 per cent of them belong to various Christian denominations.