Press Release

SIKHS FROM DERBY TO BE PART OF MASS LOBBY OF THE UK PARLIAMENT

One of the largest ever Sikh lobbies of the UK Parliament will take place on Tuesday 30 October. The lobby is expected to attract large numbers of Sikhs from across the UK. Over 100 MPs and Lords have been approached to take part.

Jaspal Singh, a local Sikh activist with the Sikh Federation said: 'a delegation of around fifteen Sikhs from in and around Slough is hoping to meet a number of local MPs, including Fiona Mactaggart, Theresa May, Dominic Grieve and Adam Afriyie.'

Bhai Amrik Singh, the Chair of the Sikh Federation (UK), the main organiser said: ‘there are several significant issues that are reaching a critical stage so Sikhs up and down the country are coming together to push for their rights.’

For example:

• separate monitoring of Sikhs in the Census 2011 to ensure Sikhs get a fair share of public services;



• a Code of Practice covering Sikh articles faith to ensure Sikhs have assurances on their rights over their articles of faith in public places; and



• to see how the UK Government could take up cases against those involved in the anti-Sikh pogroms in November 1984 who may visit the UK.

Bruce Kent, Britain’s best-known peace campaigner and former Chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and currently the President of the Coalition to Defend Freedom of Religious and Cultural Expression will be one of the guest speakers.

He will address Sikhs and politicians at 11.45am in Committee Room 18 and is expected to announce the Coalition will be writing to the UK Government expressing its concerns on how long it has taken to start to develop a Code of Practice for Sikh articles of faith. He will also raise the need for the Code to be comprehensive and introduced as soon as possible so Sikhs no longer face wide scale discrimination because of their articles of faith.

Brad Adams, the Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, is the other main guest speaker. He will be speaking at 12.30 pm about last week’s Human Rights Watch 123-page report titled: 'India: Time to Deliver Justice for Atrocities in Punjab - Investigate and Prosecute Perpetrators of ‘Disappearances’ and Killings'.

The report concluded that the Indian government must take concrete steps to hold accountable members of its security forces who killed, “disappeared,” and tortured thousands of Sikhs during its counterinsurgency campaign in the Punjab. It describes the impunity enjoyed by officials responsible for violations and the near total failure of India’s judicial and state institutions, from the National Human Rights Commission to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), to provide justice for victims’ families.

Following the Sikh lobby a large candlelit vigil will be held outside Parliament. The vigil will run from 3.30pm until 7.30pm. This will mark the 23rd anniversary of the November 1984 anti-Sikh pogroms. Many MPs and Lords are expected to join Sikhs in the vigil and call for justice for the victims.

Note: For further information ring Gurmel Singh of Derby on 07912 161564.

"British Leave India" Anniversary Rally

Our cry to India is to leave us alone. Yes, your answer to Khalistan is no - which we will continue to fight. Yes, your answer to give Sikhs greater autonomy is no - which we will continue to fight. Yes, your answer to give more of Panjab back to the Panjabis is no - which we will continue to fight. But what is the point in trying to degrade us into submission when you claim to be the "world's largest democracy." Sikhs are being captured left, right and centre, tortured, and in some cases killed. I don't want to give you the impression on 1984 again, where Sikhs were openly killed in false encounters. Now they are being a lot more secret about it. And something needs to be done.

I will hope that in future years these types of rallies to be abolished. Not due to the lack of support, but due to the fact that India has opened her eyes to the suffering of the Sikhs. But this does not yet seem to be the case - so we will continue to fight. And it is here my brothers and sisters, my mothers and fathers, my nephews and neices - I request that you help us fight - so that we can show everyone, that we are not asleep, that we will not take this lying down, and that we will always remember what was done to us and more importantly, what is still being done to us this very moment.

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh.

To see the photos of the day please click here.

Do You Want Snores With That?

Heavy breathing, as I know it to be, is a involuantary action where the person snoring is very tired thus he/she breathes heavily whilst sleeping. However, what I was hearing last night could not have been heavy breathing, it was no other than snoring!

This snore, coming to me in Dolby surround sound mind you, sounded like a chainsaw, or even a motorcycle. It was horrendous, I had my sister's iPod in my ears, kirtan blasting at full volume, and I could still hear this uncle snore, and he wasn't even sleeping next to me! Over the weekend I must have had, at most, 6 hours of kip! Which is quite hard especially when you have to go to school the next day from 8:30 am til 3:45 pm.

Anyway, the reason for this special post is the exclusive video clip I have aquired of the cursed snoring. For your listening displeasure, I present a sleeping uncle (someone a good few metres away).

The Haven Of Peace...

Among the concrete buildings of the Langerthal industrial site remains the haven of peace. The coldness of the air from the Swiss Alps blows on our skin as we walk away from the Gurdwara. Bhai sahib tells us about the location of the Gurdwara and how is is located near aura mountains where the Alps in the French, Italian and Swiss areas push together.

As you enter the Gurdwara the sound of paath echoes throughout the hall. The beauty of the words spoken by our gurus is not measurable. It is like a priceless jewel found in the dirt that is the present world. Sukhmani sahib ji paath is being recited and invested into ourselves.

Exits...

So its begun, after being asked on Wednesday to go to Switzerland for this conference at the UN, we are finally on the plane. I've just finished my peanut butter sandwich, which my sister was a genius in reminding me to pack. The flight to Switzerland is about 2 hours...

Now that I've no food left to eat to pass the time, I've taken up looking around the aircraft, where I've noticed a rather random exit sign, it is pointing to the correct exits however it is more to the left than the right... Does that mean the left exit is more of an exit than the right one? Or is it a cost-cutting ploy of one of easyjet's contractors? But most likely its the curse of boredom to my own logical mind!

Anyway, this weekend is not about exits or their orientation on a plane, its not even about the great country that is Switzerland. It is, infact, about the plight of the Sikhs in France and India.

Firstly those Sikhs in France. As you may know all religious headwear has been banned in French schools and government buildings, a ban that takes into account the Muslim scarf, the Jewish cap and of course the Sikh phag.

This issue is a very big one as the phag of the Sikhs traces its roots back to the days of the gurus, and therefore an item we cannot remove so how can the French government impose this upon its citizens?

The second issue to be raised at the united nations is that of the Sikhs in India. India having signed the UN's declaration of universal human rights, has failed to fulfil this in India, especially for the minority Sikh population.

The fact that human rights activist groups such as, amnesty international, have been denied entry to India to conduct surveys and general research into how the Sikhs are being treated, means they must have something to hide from the international community.

India, like other countries, such as Iraq, should be forced to allow a free-flow of information so the accounts of June and November 1984 can be clearly investigated and documented. Just because there is nothing to be gained from forcing India to do this should not stop the UN or other countries from putting pressure on prime minister Manmohan Singh to give justice to the Sikhs.

My hope is that the gathering at Geneva will show everybody how much the Sikhs are suffering and, lest we forget, require justice.