" RECOGNIZE YE ALL THE HUMAN RACE AS ONE "
GURU GOBIND SINGH, THE TENTH MASTERDr.Gurmit Singh Aulakh
As a Khalistani American, I was deeply offended by Rajeshwar Kadian's error-filled
letter on the political situation in Punjab, Khalistan. ("Separatist movement in
India is more smoke than fire," March 20)
Mr. Kadian claims that there is no support for an independent Khalistan and that the idea
was massively rejected at the polls last month. The truth is that Sikh voters have never
been given that opportunity to vote for Khalistan.
At Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal's swearing-in last month, the crowd riased chants of
"Raj Kare Ga Khalsa" ("the Sikh Nation shall have its independence").
Even the supposedly pro-Khalistan "splinter group" that Mr. Kadian cites was
rejected not becuase it is pro-Khalistan, but because it backed off of its pro-Khalistan
position. This is understandable. Its leader, S.S. Mann, had been imprisoned and brutally
tortured.
As if to confirm his fears, the punjab police death squads kidnapped and murdered Kashmir
Singh, publicity secretary of Mr. Mann's Akali Dal (Amritsar) on March 15. Every major
newspaper in India has condemned this as a police murder. The Indian Express, a
pro-government newspaper, described it as a "cold-blooded killing." All
opposition members of the Punjab Legislative Assembly walked out when their demand for an
independent investigation of this incident was not met.
Mr. Kadian states the Amnesty International found only one incident of human rights
violations. Even if that were true, Amnesty International has not been allowed into Punjab
by the Indian State regime since 1978. The Punjab State Magistracy, which represents all
the local judges in Punjab, found that the Indian regime had murdered more than 200,00
Sikhs from 1984 to 1993. Since then. according to the Punjab Human Rights Organization,
more than 50,000 have been murdered.
One such case stands out. It was recently reported that a 3-year-old boy, his father and
his uncle were murdered by the police and labeled as "terrorists." Now the
Punjab and Haryana High Court have asked, "How can a 3-year-old child child be a
terrorist?"
The murders of Kashmir Singh and of the little 3-year-old boy are just two recent examples
of the kind of tyranny and terrorism that Sikhs in Punjab face on a daily basis. It is in
this light that increasing numbers of Americans, as well as Khalistanis, are coming to
realize that the only way to end the terror in Punjab is to liberate Khalistan.
The Indian regime is so afraid of this movement that it will not allow a real human rights
investigation, and it is strongly opposing a resolution recently introduced in Congress
that asks that the Sikhs of Khalistan be allowed to have a free and fair vote on the
Khalistan issue.
Mr. Kadian admits that the regime has been guilty of "excesses." A quarter of a
million murders are more than "excesses." As the Indian Supreme court said last
July, they are "worse than a genocide."
PARAMJIT SINGH AJRAWAT
Potomac
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
Expressing the sense of Congress that the Sikh Nation should be allowed
to exercise the right of national self-determination in their homeland, Punjab, Khalistan.
______________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Mr. CONDIT of California, for himself and
______________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of Congress that the Sikh Nation should be allowed to exercise the
right of national self-determination in their homeland, Punjab, Khalistan.
Whereas the Sikh Nation developed a national consciousness in the 17th century and
established an independent and sovereign state in 1765;
Whereas the independent and sovereign Sikh state was recognized by other European and
Asian states until conquest by the British in 1849;
Whereas the Sikh Nation was the last nation to fall to British conquest in the Indian
subcontinent;
Whereas the Sikh Nation was denied resumption of its independent state when the British
divided the their conquered territory between India and Pakistan;
Whereas no Sikh has ever signed, and therefore ever ratified, the Indian constitution;
Whereas the Sikh Nation reasserted the independence of its state, known as Khalistan, on
October 7, 1987 and formed the Council of Khalistan naming Washington DC-based Dr. Gurmit
Singh Aulakh as its President to serve as government pro tempore pending the end of
Indian government occupation of Khalistan;
Whereas freedom is universally recognized as the birthright of all nations;
Whereas national self-determination is enshrined in Article 1 of the United Nations
Charter;
Whereas an independent and sovereign Sikh homeland has been in the past and is now
economically, militarily, and politically viable;
Whereas Khalistan remains under Indian occupation;
Whereas an independent and sovereign Khalistan will be a force for peace, leading India
and Pakistan to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty;
Whereas an independent and sovereign Khalistan will serve as a buffer state between India
and Pakistan;
Whereas the struggle to liberate Khalistan known as Shantmai Morcha is a peaceful
and democratic one;
Whereas Sikhs are committed to the principles of freedom, justice, and democracy;
Whereas an independent and sovereign Sikh nation will help spread democracy and economic
prosperity throughout all of South Asia;
Whereas an independent and sovereign Khalistan, nurtured by the Sikh tradition of
democracy and justice, would be a natural ally of the United States;
and Whereas the struggle of the Sikh Nation to establish an independent Khalistan closely
mirrors America's struggle for independence and democracy:
Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That it is the sense of the Congress that the Sikhs of Khalistan have the right to
national self-determination in their homeland, Punjab, Khalistan;
and That it is the sense of Congress that a plebiscite should be held in Punjab, Khalistan
on the question of independence, under international supervision, so that the Sikhs of
Khalistan can determine their political future in a free and fair vote in accordance with
international law.
| Release instructions: Immediate, March 7, 1997 | Contact: B. Singh (202) 833-3262 |
NEWS RELEASE
WASHINGTON, D.C., March 7 -- Representatives Gary Condit (D-Cal.) and Dana Rohrabacher
(R-Cal.) yesterday introduced a bipartisan resolution, H. Con. Res. 37, "expressing
the sense of the Congress that the Sikh nation should be allowed to exercise the right of
national self-determination in their homeland, Punjab, Khalistan." The resolution
also states, "an internationally-supervised plebiscite should be held in Punjab,
Khalistan, on the question of independence...so that the Sikhs of Khalistan can determine
their political future in a free and fair vote in accordance with international law."
The resolution is particularly well-timed in view of the recent letter from Vice President
Al Gore in which he expressed concern about "the ongoing civil conflict in
Khalistan." That letter has met with "overwhelmingly positive" reaction
throughout Punjab, Khalistan, according to Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh, President of the
Council of Khalistan, who has spoken to all the major political leaders there. The Sikh
Nation declared the independence of Khalistan on October 7, 1987, but Khalistan continues
to be occupied by half a million Indian troops. The Council of Khalistan is the government
pro tempore of Khalistan, leading the Sikh Nation's peaceful struggle for independence.
The Sikh Nation ruled Punjab from 1710 to 1716. Then, after the genocide against the Sikh
nation, Sikh rule was re-established in 1765, lasting until the British conquest of 1849.
It was recognized by all the major powers of the world at the time. Since then the Sikh
nation has been struggling to regain its sovereignty. No Sikh has ever signed the Indian
constitution.
The resolution points out that "national self-determination is enshrined in Article 1
of the United Nations charter," that "Khalistan remains under Indian
occupation," and that "the struggle to liberate Khalistan, known as Shantmai
Morcha, is a peaceful and democratic one."
"I thank these enlightened Congressmen for introducing this resolution," said
Dr. Aulakh. "They recognize that the principles of freedom are universal and that
under a democratic cloak, India is violating these principles," he said. "India
claims that the struggle for a free Khalistan is over. If that is the case, why doesn't
'the world's largest democracy' hold a plebiscite there to decide the issue?"
India has murdered over 200,000 Sikhs from 1984 through 1993, according to the Punjab
State Magistracy, which encompasses all the local judges in Punjab. Another 50,000 have
been killed since then, according to the Punjab Human Rights Organization. Tens of
thousands more are rotting in Indian jails without charge or trial, some since 1984.
"India's repression merely highlights their desperation," Dr. Aulakh noted.
"They know that their brutal, oppressive, theocratic empire is doomed to fall apart,
as many experts have predicted," he added. "Note the offensive, almost violent,
tone of India's reaction to the Gore letter," Dr. Aulakh said. "This just adds
fuel to the fire of Khalistani independence. We look forward to celebrating the three
hundredth anniversary of the Sikh Nation in 1999 in a sovereign, independent
Khalistan."
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| Release instructions: Immediate, February 25, 1997 | Contact: B. Singh (202) 833-3262 |
NEWS RELEASE
WASHINGTON, D.C., February 24 -- In a letter to Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh,
President of the Council of Khalistan, Vice President Al Gore wrote, "Thank you
for writing to me regarding the ongoing civil conflict in Khalistan."
By acknowledging "the civil conflict in Khalistan," the letter implies
recognition of Khalistan's independence. Khalistan is the Sikh homeland which was declared
independent on October 7, 1987. At that time, the Council of Khalistan was formed to lead
the struggle to liberate Khalistan as the government pro tempore of Khalistan.
"By this statement, the Vice President makes it clear that U.S. foreign policy
supports human rights, including the basic right to national self-determination which
underlies the Sikh struggle for an independent Khalistan," said Dr. Aulakh.
Punjab, Khalistan was independent from 1765 to 1849. It was the last part of the
subcontinent to be conquered by the British. Sikhs are two-thirds of thepopulation of
Punjab and own 95 percent of the land there. In the recent elections, the Sikhs of Punjab
overwhelmingly rejected Congress Party rule, which has brought about the murders of over
50,000 Sikhs in five years. This was a clear demand for an independent Khalistan.
When India was given its independence, the Sikhs were denied resumption of their
independent status. The Sikhs were promised autonomy and they were given the Congress
Party's solemn pledge that no law affecting Sikh rights would pass without the consent of
the Sikh Nation. But as soon as the ink was dry, the Indian regime broke these promises.
As a result, no Sikh has ever signed the Indian constitution, denying Sikh assent to
Indian rule.
Vice President Gore wrote that "civil conflict in any nation, and the inevitable
hardship and bloodshed that it inflicts on that nation's civilian population, offends our
sense of human dignity and our humanitarian ideals." The Indian regime has murdered
more than 200,000 Sikhs in Khalistan since 1984, according to the Punjab Civil Service
(PCS), the group which represents state magistrates across Punjab, Khalistan.
"The breakup of India is inevitable," said Dr. Aulakh. "Many experts, from
Dr. Jack Wheeler of the Freedom Research Foundation to Professor Stanley Wolpert of UCLA
to the authors of A Quick and Dirty History of War have predicted it," Dr. Aulakh
pointed out. "We are glad that the Administration, through Vice President Gore, has
acknowledged the Sikh Nation's status as a nation and its right to national
slf-determination. With the support of the Administration and our many friends in
Congress, the Sikh Nation will celebrate its three-hundredth anniversary in a sovereign,
independent Khalistan," he said.
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