Hindu ‘Untouchables’ Convert to Buddhism
From Times Wire Reports
About 6,000 Dalits, often segregated as “untouchables” in India’s Hindu caste hierarchy, converted to Buddhism in Kanpur, 240 miles southeast of New Delhi.
Leaders of the ritual said they were protesting caste discrimination and India’s failure to raise the issue at the U.N. conference on racism that concluded in South Africa over the weekend.
Hundreds of monks arrived from Nepal, Japan and other countries to witness the ceremony Saturday, which was presided over by a Japanese Buddhist priest.
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