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The 1984 Sikh Genocide
Remember - Reflect
- Respond
Vaheguru ji ka Khalsa,
Vaheguru ji ki
Fateh!
It has been 30 years since
the 1984 Sikh Genocide in India but the wounds are
still fresh and the anguish and pain persists.
During this 30th anniversary year of the 1984 Sikh
Genocide, World Sikh Council - America Region
(WSC-AR) is working to complement local Gurdwara
events scheduled in this regard. WSC-AR plans to
provide educational and outreach resources, such
as presentations, posters, pictures, etc. as
needed to make local Gurdwara events more
effective. WSC-AR will continue to provide regular
updates as this project
progresses.
The effectiveness of
this project depends on the participation of
the Sangat in getting the word out. This project
needs your feedback and participation. Please
visit WSC-AR web site or contact WSC-AR
representatives. Please consider joining WSC-AR as
we work with you in commemorating the 1984 Sikh
Genocide.
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"The army went into Darbar
Sahib (Golden Temple Complex) not to eliminate a
political figure or a political movement but to
suppress the culture of a people, to attack their
heart, to strike a blow at their spirit and
self-confidence." (Joyce Pettigrew, The Sikhs
of Punjab, London: Zed Publishers,
1995) |
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 REMEMBER
WSC-AR plans to develop a
brief (10-15 minute) factual presentation on the
1984 Sikh Genocide. It will be available to
Gurdwara Sangat on the 30th anniversary of the
Indian Army attack of June
84.
In addition, WSC-AR is also
preparing other media content that will include
documentation of atrocities, interviews regarding
the June Army attack, the disappearances and fake
encounters that followed, the Sikh carnage in
Delhi and other Indian cities in November 84  and
the continued denial of the justice to the Sikh
community in India. This media is expected
to be made available online as well as in DVD
format in English for viewing by Sikh as well as
non-Sikh audiences. The hope is to share these
resources with our national, state, and local
elected officials, interfaith coalitions, the
public in
general.
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REFLECT
WSC-AR
is seeking Sangat input on what the Sikh
co mmunity
should do to prevent such incidents in the future.
- What
can the Sikh community learn from
past and how can it be better prepared in the
future?
- What
can the Sikh community do now to heal?
- How
can there be peace without
justice?
- How
can WSC-AR be of
assistance?
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"Almost as many Sikhs
died in a few days in India in 1984 than all the
deaths and disappearances in Chile during the
17-year military rule of Gen. Augusto Pinochet
between 1973 and 1990... India, is refusing to
confront its bloody recent history, stands in
glaring contrast to these nations." (Barbara
Crossette, The New York Times Bureau Chief in
Delhi from 1988 to 1991, in article "India's
Sikhs: Waiting for Justice", World Policy
Journal, Summer
2004) | | |
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"The pattern in each
village appears to be the same. The Army moves
in during the early evening, cordons a village,
and announces over loudspeakers that everyone
must come out. All males between the ages of 15
and 35 are trussed and blindfolded, then taken
away...Thousands have disappeared in the Punjab
since the Army Operation began. The government
has provided no lists of names; families don't
know if sons and husbands are arrested
underground or dead." (Mary Anne Weaver, The
Christian Science Monitor, October 15,
1984) | | |
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"...over a thousand
pilgrims including children and old people quite
unconnected with the separatists, were locked
into a courtyard and attacked with grenades and
machine guns. Those left alive were then
prevented from leaving the building, many
wounded were left to bleed to death...some 3,000
dead, including many who were only unconscious,
were piled high in trucks and removed." (Amrit
Wilson, New Statesman, November 16,
1984) | | | |
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"...over 100,000 (Sikh)
volunteers have been arrested. This high number
of arrests is undoubtedly, a national record and
so has been the peaceful nature in which the
Satyagrahas (protests) of this magnitude have
been handled by the Sikhs, with extreme
tolerance." (S.M. Sathananthan, et. a1.,
Hindu-Sikh Conflict in Punjab: Cause and Cure,
London: Transatlantic India Times, 1983, p.
15) | | |
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"When the agitation
began...it was led by reasonable men seeking a
reasonable settlement of reasonable demands. And
at least three times there were prospects of
agreement...but each time Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi sabotaged the agreements." (Kuldip Nayar,
India Abroad Weekly, New York, June 22,
1984)
"Proclaiming the primacy
of national union even over a religious shrine,
Mrs. Gandhi ordered a bloody assault last June,
and loosed the demons that apparently claimed
her life." (The New York Times, November 1,
1984) | | | |
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RESPOND
With input from Gurdwara
Sangat, WSC-AR will arrange for a final event to
effectively deliver the Sikh messages like:
a)
Independent UN inquiry into the 84 Sikh Genocide,
and
b) Release of innocent Sikhs held illegally
in Indian prisons for years without any
trials.
This may also need candle light vigils
in various cities, delivering the message to
various government officials, media agencies, and
public demonstration at the
UN. |
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The World Sikh Council -
America Region (WSC-AR) is the umbrella
organization representative of Sikhs in the United
States. It is an elected body of Sikh Gurdwaras
and institutions. Currently 57 Gurdwaras and other
Sikh institutions across the nation are members of
WSC-AR. The major governing purpose of the
organization is to represent the collective view
of Sikhs in the United States. WSC-AR works to
promote Sikh interests at the national and
international level focusing on issues of
advocacy, education, and well-being of
humankind.
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