REMEMBERENCE MARCH 1984

[anjaan]

BE THERE!

LET'S MAKE IT BETTER THAN LAST YEAR!

HYDEPARK05.bmp

[Guest SScom]

EVERYONE, its on 12th June this year... the second Sunday of the month. Normally its the first Sunday so this year, dont get confused.

And DEFINITELY be there. This is not only a rememberance march. It to raise awareness, its to fight for Human Rights which as Sikhs we are being deprived of around the world and its a rally to gain support because WE WANT JUSTICE FOR WHAT THE INDIAN GOVERNMENT HAVE TRIED TO DO TO THE SIKHS.

[Guest SScom]

[anjaan]

poster

[anjaan]

21st Anniversary of the Attack on the Golden Temple

Sikh Holocaust Remembrance Day for Justice & Freedom

12th June 2005

Over 10,000 Sikhs from throughout the United Kingdom will march through London on 12 June 2005

The biggest remembrance rally for over 15 years

1000 black balloons will be released to commemorate the thousands dead and those who continue to languish in India’s prisons after 20 years without trial

Many people marching on Sunday have lost family and friends in the continuing human rights violations against civil rights activists.

On Sunday 12th June Sikhs from throughout the UK will converge on Hyde Park London for a rally to mark the 20th anniversary of the 1984 genocide of Sikhs in India.

On 3rd June 1984 a 25,000 strong contingent of the Indian armed forces attacked the Golden Temple complex with heavy artillery and tanks. The attack was not only illegal and unconstitutional, but was aimed to coincide with services to mark the anniversary of the first martyr of the Sikh faith, when in the scorching heat of the Punjabi summer thousands were thronging to pay their respects inside the precincts of the Golden Temple.

With a resonance to that first sacrifice in the 17th century, the newly appointed Prime Minister of India Dr Manmohan Singh in 1986 describes the attack during his tenure at Sidney Sussex College Camridge. He points to ‘the civil-rights movement which was initiated in 1982’ and ‘the brutal way in which it was suppressed’ and ‘the aftermath of the destruction of the Sikhs’ holiest shrine, the Akal Takhat, and the barbaric violence against Sikhs outside Punjab.’[1]

It is estimated the army invasion of the Golden Temple left 15,000 pilgrims dead and 30,000 people homeless. The attack was simultaneously carried out on 40 other historical shrines throughout Punjab to suppress the civil rights movement that had developed as a result of decades of discriminatory laws and actions by the Indian state against the Punjab region and the Sikhs.

Reports spoke of eye-witness accounts to the massacre and the killing of women and children in cold-blood and of Sikh prisoners being tied with their own turbans and then shot in the head. Medical staff were threatened, and some killed, if they gave food or water to pilgrims injured during the army onslaught.

Later in the winter of 1984, after the assassination of Indira Gandhi, mobs lead by Congress leaders committed murder, looting, arson and rape across India for over a week. The looting and murder centered on Delhi but spanned most of India left over 5000 Sikhs dead and over 60,000 homeless in Delhi alone: thousands more were left ‘missing’ and unaccounted for.

The fear and trauma for the people of Punjab hasn’t ended. Thousands are still languishing in prisons. Soldiers who left their barracks in protest of the attack on the Golden Temple are still held in jail. Families who lost relatives haven’t received any justice or compensation, whilst thousands of bounties have been paid to police and army officers for controlling a self-propelled cycle of killing and kidnap.

The thousands of Sikh lives and billions of rupees worth of Sikh property that were lost in Delhi in the Congress organised riots of November 1984 haven’t yet been accounted for, nor justice done or compensation given and property returned to the Sikh community. The only people to return to their status have been the supposed protectors of the people in the form of MP’s. Those same Congress leaders, Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar who have been accused of masterminding and leading the riots in Delhi in 1984 only last month were re-elected MPs and given Ministerial appointments brining further anguish and heartache to the Sikh community throughout the world.

Whilst no apology or independent inquiry has been forthcoming from India, the Sikh community in the United Kingdom will be making their displeasure clear on Sunday 6 June in London

Kiran Kaur from the West Midlands will be at the demonstration. ‘Two of my cousins disappeared in the summer of 1984. They had just finished school and were out playing on their bicycles. We know that the reason they were taken was because they wore orange turbans and so were seen as associated with the struggle. Their parents haven’t heard of or seen them since.’

“My brother was a qualified engineer and we haven’t seen him since 1986. He had only just returned home after completing his degree.’ Said Shindo who will not be joining the rally because she like thousands of others is afraid of repercussions against her family in Punjab. (Real name not given to protect anonymity).

Charan Singh from the North of England will be unable to travel to the march due to ill health but his family will be joining the protest. ‘My nephews had never been in any trouble and were both good and worked hard on their farm. The police killed them and then said they found guns and ammunition. We weren’t alone most families in our village have lost someone. If there were so many militants with this many guns why is it that there was no civil war in Punjab with all these guns that the police keep saying they find whenever they kill someone after they have tortured and held them?’

Strong images and vibrant messages will be the order of the day.

Rally and march for Remembrance, Justice and Freedom

Assembly at Hyde Park 12 noon

Rally 1 pm

March sets off from Hyde Park 2 pm

March ends at Temple Place 4 pm

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

UN URGED TO HOLD INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION INTO SIKH GENOCIDE IN 1984

Following this week's UN call for an independent investigation into the killing of protestors by Uzbek troops the Sikh Federation (UK) has written to Louise Arbour, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights calling for greater consistency in the international approach to killings by troops. The letter has been copied to the UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and Benita Ferrero-Waldner the European Commissioner responsible for External Relations who have backed calls for an independent inquiry into the events in Uzbekistan.

The letter from Bhai Amrik Singh, the Chair of the Sikh Federation (UK), states: "We are pleased with the new found world order that allows the UN, EU and foreign governments such as the UK to legitimately call for an independent international inquiry when troops are used to kill protestors in countries like Uzbekistan. However, we are still waiting for international action against those responsible for the genocide of Sikhs in 1984."

The letter states: "We are fast approaching the 21st anniversary of the June 1984 assault by the Indian army on the Golden Temple complex, the Sikhs' holiest shrine, which resulted in sacred buildings and historic artefacts being destroyed or damaged beyond repair. The unprecedented action using artillery and tanks took place on one of the most important days in the Sikh calendar, when there were huge numbers of pilgrims in attendance. This was a well calculated and deliberate move by the Indian authorities that ended in thousands of innocent Sikhs being killed in cold blood, many with their hands and feet bound, including women and children. The genocide was not confined to the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar. Scores of other Sikh Gurdwaras were stormed by the Indian army throughout Panjab and tens of thousands of Sikhs were arrested, tortured, and killed."

In the letter the Sikh Federation (UK) has urged the international community to undertake an independent UN investigation to ensure the prosecution of those responsible for the killings and destruction. A Federation spokesman said: "There must be international proceedings as there has been a persistent failure of successive Indian Governments to take any action against those responsible for the Sikh genocide."

The letter also asks the UN to ensure that the families of the victims are compensated and if the Indian authorities refuse to abide by UN requirements for there to be appropriate UN sanctions - trade and diplomatic. In the letter to the UN the Sikh Federation (UK) has revealed that it is nearing an agreement in London that would see those responsible for genocide and gross human rights violations being either denied entry or facing prosecution under applicable local and international laws. The Federation has told the UN it would like to see this move extended to a world wide ban on the movement of those involved in genocide and gross human rights violations.

A Federation spokesman said: "We will be working with international human rights groups, such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other NGOs to produce an "exclusion-list" that we hope can be endorsed by the UN. This will send a direct message to Indian police officers and army personnel that have been involved in genocide and human rights violations - the international community will ensure justice for the Sikhs."

Gurjeet Singh

National Press Secretary

Sikh Federation (UK)

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

National Youth Raensabai Keertan in Remembrance of June 1984 - Supported by Young Sikhs (UK)

[Singh_Shiromani]

Lets all go make it better than ever, let the british and indian and other govt's know that we will never forget 1984 & we will always fight for justice and freedom!!

i think we should keep this topic at the top, this isnt a "one" jathebandi issue, it effects us all lets all take PART!!!

[tarunjeet singh]

OK PEOPLE..... WE NEED TO BE PREPARED WITH BIG BANNERS IN ENLGISH AND WITH LITRTURE ASWELL , AS USUALLY WHAT HAPENS IS THAT PEOPLE START SHOUTING SLOGANS IN PUNJABI AND THERE ARE VERY FEW BANNERS STATIGN WHY THE PROTEST IS TAKING PLACE. WE ARE GIVEN THE CHANCE TO MAKE CENTRAL LONDON COME TO A STAND STILL WITH THOUSANDS OF TOURIST AND NON SIKHS PASSING BY WITH NO IDEA WHAT OUR PROTEST IS ABOUT. THE PROSSESION OF COFFINS LAST YEAR WAS AGOOD IDEA AS IT IS SOMETHING THAT GETS PEOPLES ATTENTION. WE NEED HUGE PICTURES AND BANNERS SHOWING THE BRUTALITY OF THE INDIAN POLICE AND THE DESTRUCTION OF AKHAL TAKAHT

[sher_panjabi]

benti to sangat to think of some catchy slogans which the sangat can say when walking.... i agree that in previous years too many panjabi slogans being shouted and gore not having a clue what we are saying.