wel france has NEVER been a "full of freedom". I lived and studied for 10 years in France (Paris), and beleive me i had some very very tough difficulties to come accross. I was not allowed to wear Dastar at school, forget about kirpan. But i was lucky because my father was a very influencing person. He had some friends who were french-sikhs and they helped me go through my graduate studies. It early 90s, when a guard on the road would see you and you do not look like a black or white person, they would ask for your ID card-passport. Meaning you had to have your passport with you all the time, And I liket he rest of my familly were french citizen. My father and another singh (P. Singh) were the very first dastar dharee-amritdharee sikhs who received french citizenship after years and years of stuggle because the interior minitser would not allow them to keep dastar for passport pictures. After that many indians-punjabi started coming to France, and had no problem of such but of course would be stopped in public to verify Identity. Recently, since the european coutries got together, The ministry, again, does not allows sikhs to have their picture on passport to be with head covered. You have to uncover your head in order to have your french passport, otherwise, forget it. Most people living in france took off their dastar for a couple of minutes to be photographed for their passport, there are only about 2 singhs who have filed lawsuits over lawsuits, to let them have their photos with covered head, but nothing is happening, no changes. And now this. French are very stubborn people. Its their way or the high way. Situation of sikhs living in france is very bad.
I have been living in Quebec
city (french city)for the last 7 years now. I retured over there, last month for business. and i went to the gurdwara. And guess what you could count on your fingers how many dastar dharee people there were. Not many. Most are monay-clean shaven. So sikh society needs to get together and help the "SIKH CAUSE".
thank you.
Kampreet Kaur
