OTTAWA: About two dozen Indo- Canadian delegates to the Liberal Party biennial convention in Ottawa recently went home puzzled and disappointed.

Many were seen merely strolling in the hallways and not participating in the policy discussions. The same, however, could not be said of the Indo-Canadian youth who were active in policy debates.

Most Indo-Canadian delegates complained about the procedure and con- tent of the 4-day convention.

One delegate suggested he would have been better prepared to debate the resolutions had he received them in advance instead of on arrival in Ottawa. Others were disappointed that policy sessions were held only on issues such as foreign affairs, trade, the economy and justice at the expense of discussing employment equity. Even in forum on foreign affairs, the situation in Haiti dominated at the expense of discussion on human rights in various parts of the world.

Vancouver South Liberal MP Harbance Singh Dhaliwal, who is also the Parliamentary Secretary to the Fisheries Minister, pointed out that delegates should have been aware of the process which allows them to pro- pose resolutions at the constituency level. The resolutions are them discussed at the provincial level and finally selected for discussion at the I national convention.

Apart from lack of discussion of issues affecting the Indo-Canadian community at the convention, Jesse Randhawa from York Center, ex- pressed concern about the absence of a stronger commitment from the Liberal government on the establishment of a Canadian consulate office in the Punjab. According to Randhawa,such a commitment had been made by Jean Chretien prior to him becoming Prime Minister and by Finance Minister Paul Martin. Randhawa stated that he is aware of efforts by Liberal MP Gurbax Singh Malhi to persuade the government to set up a in the Punjab but wanted “proof of action” but is worried that the issue is being put on the back-burner.”

One delegate expressed surprise at the poor attendance of visible minority delegates and attributed this to the high registration fee of $575.00. But Balbir Singh Muti, a delegate from Calgary observed that the this lack of excitement and urge to attend the convention might be due to lack of leadership contest and the fact that Liberals are still savoring the rewards of the comfortable victory only six months ago when they won 177 seats out of 295 seats in the House of Commons. According to one Indo-Canadian delegate from Ontario, the Liberal ministers and MPs are not responding to the visible minorities, who played a significant role in Liberals last October election victory.

“We are realizing that this Party is not yet open,” complained one delegate, but quickly added that there are encouraging signs, especially the election of a record number of visible minority MPs, especially the first turbaned Sikh MP Gurbax Singh Malhi, Jag Bhaduria, and Harbance Singh. Dhaliwal.

In one case a delegate told of having helped raise $500.000 for the coffers of the Liberal Party by selling memberships during the last federal election. Yet today, he cannot even get a single cabinet minister to respond to an invitation to the 500-person Indo- Canadian Chamber of Commerce annual dinner in Toronto in June. There were some good moments too. For instance, the delegates were delighted to have an opportunity to interact with each other at a dinner- reception hosted by Liberal MP Gurbax Singh Malhi.

Among those who attending the convention were Liberal provincial hopeful Balkar Singh, who a few years ago attracted much attention from Canadian parliamentarians and Amnesty International for being wrongfully tortured in an Indian jail.

In its report to the convention the Liberal Party’s Committee on Multiculturalism observed that “The House of Commons is more reflective of the people of this country with a wider spectrum of Members of Parliament consisting not only of different ethnic groups including visible minority Canadians but age groups, professions, and a record number of women.”

However, the report adds that, Now that Parliament has evolved, we need to change the public service. The bureaucracy must be more reflective of the population it is meant to serve.” The report recognizes that “employment equity is not only a matter of fairness but good economic practice.” Kris Parthiban summed up the feeling of most Indo-Canadian delegates, “I am going home disappointed but will try to change the system for next time.”

Article extracted from this publication >> May 27, 1994