Sikh Lobby & Candlelit Vigil - Houses Of Parliament, London

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

Slough and Windsor Observer

A GROUP of 15 Sikhs from Slough joined 150 others lobbying 25 politicians, including Slough MP Fiona Mactaggart, at the houses of Parliament on Tuesday.

The group raised issues concerning human rights in Punjab and a possible code of practice covering Sikh articles of faith to ensure their rights in public places.

The group also held a candlelit vigil for the 20,000 Sikh victims of the pogroms of November 1984 in Parliament Square.

http://www.thisisslough.com/live/stories/s...p?story_id=2835

The write up in the newspaper is likely to be much longer.

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

A few photos of politicians that attended:

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

A few more photos . . .

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

A few photos of Sikhs present . . .

[lsingh]

Virinder Sharma the Bhaman won't go i can assure you.

He has been contacted by Sikh constituents as he is an MP from a constituency with many Sikhs. We will have to wait to see if he turns up. I do not think his predecessor (Piara Khabra) ever turned up to any of the Sikh lobbies.

It appears Sharma is only interested in Hindu Human rights, despite Europes largest Gurdwara giving him their support.

'The human rights abuse against Kazakh Hindus is shocking,” said Virendra Sharma MP, who was one of the hosts of the event. “It is important that international institutions and world governments begin to understand the scale of abuse against minorities like Hindus and Baptists that is taking place in this country.”

The Defend Kazakh Hindus campaign is supported by the Hindu Forum of Europe, Hindu Forum of Britain, Hindu American Foundation, Hindu Forum of Belgium, Hindu Council of Holland, Italian Hindu Union, Federation of Hindu Temples in France, Hindu Council of Africa, Hindu Council of Australia, Hindu Conference of Canada, National Council of Hindu Temples UK, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.'

http://www.clickwalla.com/home/index.php?o...0&Itemid=48

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

Sikh Federation(UK) prepares database of human rights violators in India

Punjab newsline Network

Friday, 02 November 2007

LONDON: On the 23rd anniversary of the anti-Sikh pogroms of November 1984 the Sikh Federation (UK), working with leading Sikh organisations in the USA, Canada, Australia and other parts of Europe has started work on the setting up of a database of wanted human rights violators.

At the lobby in the UK Parliament this week the Federation pledged that in the first 12 months relevant information and witness statements are to be collected for up to 500 Indian politicians, police officers, army personnel and police ‘cats’. Those that will be identified will be those involved in torture, genocide and crimes against humanity and police ‘cats’ that were used by the police to kill innocent people to both discredit the Sikh freedom movement and justify extrajudicial killings by the Indian authorities.

A coalition of Sikh lawyers from the UK, USA, Canada and other countries will be tasked with analysing the evidence collected and select cases where prosecutions may be an option. At the lobby in the UK Parliament it was suggested by Brad Adams, the Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, that the level of proof required to successfully prosecute individuals from India when they travel abroad would require considerable evidence and resources.

It was suggested by leading politicians, several ex-Ministers, that the strategy should involve diplomatic pressure on the Indian Government to put its own house in order with respect to human rights violations by governments in the UK and the rest of Europe. This could be combined with the second element of the strategy. Namely, in the first 12 months to provide Governments across the globe with details of 500 Indian politicians, police officers, police ‘cats’ and army personnel involved in torture, genocide and crimes against humanity, that could be used to prevent those individuals leaving India. This was likely to prove the most effective method of bringing about pressure for change.

Human Rights Watch has agreed to work with the Sikh Federation (UK) to assist with providing guidance on the type of information that should be collected for both prosecutions and to provide to governments so the 500 to be targeted can be successfully excluded from Europe and other parts of the world. Amnesty International and other leading human rights groups are being approached to assist with this process.

It is hoped that a number of Indian politicians and hundreds of police officers, army personnel and police ‘cats’ will either be prevented from travelling abroad or will fear that if they travel abroad they could face the prospect of arrest, prosecution and imprisonment when they leave India. In a letter by a Home Office Minister, received on the eve of the Sikh lobby by Rob Marris MP, the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for UK Sikhs, it was confirmed that certain individuals involved in torture and other human rights violations could either be excluded from entering the UK or could asked to leave if they have entered.

http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/view/6350/92/

[Harmeet1]

Some specail Videos and photos will be up on SikhRoots soon.

Maybe tonight or tommorow morning.

Will keep you up to date.

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

Sikh Federation(UK) honour Human Rights Watch in UK Parliament

Punjab Newsline Network

Thursday, 01 November 2007

LONDON: Bhai Amrik Singh, the Chair of the Sikh Federation (UK) presented Brad Adams, the Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, with a silver plate which the Federation reserve for those that make a significant contribution on behalf of the Sikh community.

Former Foreign Secretary, Rt. Hon Margaret Beckett MP along with a number of other former and current Ministers as well as numerous MPs came to listen to Brad Adams, the Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, who on 18 October 2007 released a 123-page report titled: 'India: Time to Deliver Justice for Atrocities in Punjab - Investigate and Prosecute Perpetrators of ‘Disappearances’ and Killings'.

Ministers that attended the meeting included, Ben Bradshaw, the Minister of State (Health Services); Minister for the South West; Pat McFadden - Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform; Claire Ward – a Treasury Minister and Paramjit Singh Dhanda the Minister for Community Cohesion.

Other former Ministers that attended the meeting included: Rt. Hon Elliot Morley MP, Minister for Fisheries, Water & Nature Protection and later, Minister for Environment & Climate Change; Rt. Hon John Spellar MP, former Minister for the Armed Forces, Minister for Transport and later, Minister for Northern Ireland; and Fiona Mactaggart MP, former Minister at the Home Office.

Other prominent MPs, that attended the meeting included Simon Hughes MP, the President of the Liberal Democrats and Rob Marris MP the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for UK Sikhs.

http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/view/6330/92/

ANOTHER PHOTO FROM A DIFFERENT ANGLE . . .

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

SEE NEXT PHOTO AND TRY AND SPOT THE POPPIES

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

A FEW MORE PHOTOS . . .