Among the many arguments within and about the controversial UN review conference on racism, one that has attracted less media coverage is the overlooking of the struggles of 260 million so-called 'untouchables' in South Asia.

Caste-based discrimination in India may be 3,500 years old, but something new is unfolding, says Maurice Melanes. That is a new movement for change with a theological twist.

Speakers at the Global Ecumenical Conference on Justice for Dalits last weekend gave a human face to the 3,500-year-old system of institutional caste-based discrimination.

A Global Ecumenical Conference on Justice for Dalits is taking place from 21 to 24 March 2009 in Bangkok, Thailand, at the joint initiative of the World Council and the Lutheran World Federation.

According to Indian government documents, Christians account for less than 10 percent of the population of the southern Karnataka state. But the proportion may be much higher because of the impact of caste and categorisation, research shows.

Defying perceptions of widening division between the two faiths, Muslims have joined an Indian sit-in organized by Christians.

Catholic Bishops in India have appealed for justice for the country's Muslim population as it faces increasing pressure from nationalists, alongside Christians. They have also highlighted the plight of Dalits (formerly known as 'untouchables') and other minority communities.