The latest assault on the Golden Temple by India’s security forces exposed the inability of the Congress leadership at the Union level, the Barnala government in the Punjab and the moderate Sikhs to evolve a satisfactory political solution to the Sikh problem. The militant Sikhs who often resort to violence in pursuance of their demands may not be in a position to dislodge the state apparatus in the Punjab but these groups appear to have organization, resources and, above all, determination to keep the government in a state of virtual siege and increase the human and material cost of implementation of any solution that does not accommodate their demands.

The Sikh problem is an internal problem of India. However, the experience of a large number of the Third World states suggest that if civil strife persists and intensifies over time, it has a tendency to shape into an event of interest for the international community. There are several instances of religious, ethnic, tribal and linguistic conflicts in states like Ethiopia, Yemen the Philippines and Sri Lanka which attracted the attention of other states and international organizations, notwithstanding the doctrine of domestic jurisdiction and non-interference in internal affairs.

A local conflict has a tendency to assume international character if it defies an early solution and it becomes intense and pervasive, The international community finds it difficult to stay indifferent from the stepped-up local conflicts because of the growing interdependence in the international system. What happens in one part of the world has direct or indirect ramifications for the rest of the world. The issue of ethnicity and subnational movements has gained importance in international politics and, once an ethnic, tribal or any other sub-national conflict gains momentum; it becomes a subject of study and analysis.

RAMIFICATIONS

Moreover, the linkages and connections between the dissident groups and the external environment and the ramification of an internal conflict, especially the spillover, of the civil strife on other states, contribute to internationalize the problem. At times, the parties in a civil conflict wage their “struggle” in foreign lands or specifically adopt measures to attract the attention of the international community. For example, the supporters of the sub-national movement often resort to violence against the property of their country in other states, i.e raids on Embassies, at tempts on the lives of their diplomats, A standard technique adopted by such groups is the hijacking Of a commercial aircraft, preferably belonging to their national airline.

Massive propaganda campaign is also launched by the supporters of such movements to mobilize international public opinion. Sometimes the civil strife spills over to the neighboring states when, either the strife spreads to the border regions of the neighboring state or the refugees from the strife ridden polity cross the industrial borders,

If we apply the above criteria to the Sikh problem, it is not difficult to understand why it is acquiring an international character. Though the Sikh issue has been regularly figuring in the media for the last couple of years, its roots go back to the late fifties and the sixties when the Sikhs launched a ‘movement for the establishment of Punjabi Suba under the leadership of Master Tara Singh and later Sant Fateh Singh, The Sikhs were partly pacified by the establishment of the present Punjab in 1966, However, it soon became clear that the 1966 solution could not adequately protect their rights and identity which kept the problem simmering for several years. It was in the early eighties that the problem resurfaced in an intense form because of a strong feeling of deprivation and the gradual erosion of their socio-economic status in the polity.

The revival of religious fundamentalism amongst the Sikh youths and especially the influence of Sant Bhindranwale gave fillip militancy and gradually escalated the conflict. The two major operations by the security forces against the freedom fighting Sikhs in the Golden Temple in 1984 and 1986 and the killing and arrest of hundreds of them could not eliminate the Sikh challenge to the Indian polity. In fact, the movement has become more violent and intense than was the case in the seventies,

IMPORTANT ROLE

The persistence and intensification of the Sikh problem has been mainly responsible for evoking interest in it in India and elsewhere. Moreover, the Sikhs are an important community in India. Unlike the Nagas and the Mizos who are marginal to the national mainstream, the Sikhs rave been playing important role in the body-politic and have held key civil and military positions independence they constitute the single largest group in the Army, although their proportion nas declined during the last two three decades. In the economic held, they are better off than some of the ethnic/linguistic/religious groups, The Punjab is a prosperous state which is known for its agricultural wealth and it was the major beneficiary of the “Green Revolution”. The eruption of trouble in such a well-known state is bound to attract attention.

The Sikhs living in India maintain multifaceted linkages with the outside world which serve as channels for two way communication between the Sikhs and the international system. Their introduction with the rest of the world goes back to the British period on two. scores, First, they served in the British Indian Army which took part in military expeditions outside India, Second, they began to settle down in England, Canada, the USS., Southeast Asia and East Africa with the tum of the present century (in certain cases earlier too). Their migration to these and other parts of the world increased after India attained independence.

DEEP INTEREST

Most of these Sikhs may never return to India but they maintain a deep interest in India and especially in their home state Punjab because of their desire not to be completely cut off from their “roots” and also because some of their blood relations and family and friends are there. A large part ‘of the migrant Sikhs has also been influenced by the cultural and religious revivalism of Sikhism. Their desire to maintain their cultural-cum-religious identity has reinvigorated their ties with the Sikh tradition and created a natural sympathy for the movement to preserve and promote the rights and interests of their community in India.

The presence of a large Sikh ‘community in several countries and especially in England, U.S and Canada has contributed to focusing attention of international community on the Sikh predicament in India. These Sikhs were perturbed by the military action in the Golden Temple in 1984 and several Sikh groups in these states raised the issue in the mass media ‘and with the official and un-official circles. Currently, several Sikh organizations are working hard for the cause of Khalistan in the Western countries because they are emotionally and politically committed to the movement.

These groups are performing three major functions for the Sikh movement. First, mobilization o} the Sikhs in favor of freedom fighting approach to their problems. Second propaganda through press radio and television which not only aims at the Sikh community but also endeavors to mobilize support of the local media leaders of public opinion and the intellectuals. Third, collection Of funds to undertake these campaigns and if possible, extend financial assistance to the freedom fighting Sikhs in India, Their devotion to the cause can be appreciated from the fact that a North American Sikh group which wanted to make a full length film on the life of Sant Bhindranwale approached a leading Pakistani film start to play the role of Bhindranwale. They were prepared to pay him as much as he wanted but the Pakistani artist declined because he thought that the acceptance of such an offer might adversely affect Pakistan’s relations with India.

Another important international dimension of the Sikh problem is its spillover to other states. The anti-India demonstrations staged by the Sikhs in other countries are the leading examples of the spillover. There were a couple of instances of India’s embassy staff being assaulted by the Sikhs. The clashes between the pro-Khalistan and anti-Khalistan groups and especially with the pre-dominantly Hindu groups were also reported from Canada and England.

The India-based freedom fighting Sikh groups have also resorted to hijacking of India’s aircraft with the objective of focusing the attention of the international community on their problems. All the successful and un-successful hijacking attempts attracted the attention of the international media and enabled them to project their cause. Though the hijacking was condemned by the international community, it provided an opportunity to the freedom fighting Sikhs to internationalize their problem.

The repeated allegations of the Indian Government that Pakistan is aiding and abetting the Sikh insurgency in the Punjab has also transformed this into an international issue. The strategy of dragging Pakistan in India’s internal problems was designed to discredit the Sikh freedom fighters. However, in the absence of any concrete evidence of Pakistan’s involvement the effort proved counterproductive both domestically and externally, The Sikhs rejected the charge and on the international level, not much credence was given to this charge. The exchange between India and Pakistan on this issue at the bilateral and multilateral levels made this an issue of interest for other actors in the international system.

ALLEGATIONS

From Pakistan’s standpoint, the intensification of the Sikh agitation is a matter of concern because it is taking place so close to its borders. If the Indian authorities or the Sikhs further escalate violence in the Punjab, the prospects of its spillover on Pakistan’s border areas cannot be ruled out. What causes greater distress is India’s persistence in implicating Pakistan in the trouble in the Punjab without providing any substantial supporting evidence. Such an approach will give a blinkered view of the problem to the Indian authorities and obscure the root-cause of the Sikh problem that is, the Sikh grievances and political alienation. It will also adversely affect Indo-Pakistan relations which will in turn, weaker the SAARC because if the relations between the two major states of South Asia are strained, regional co-operation cannot flourish.

Unnecessary delay in solving the problem or any attempt to settle the dispute by the employment of brute force will bring its international dimensions into sharp focus. The longer the problem is allowed to drag on, the greater are the prospects of the Sikhs consolidating and expanding the existing linkage with the international environment. They will also develop new external ties and support which will make it difficult to treat Sikh problem as an exclusively domestic problem of India. The sooner the Sikh-Indian polity dispute is settled, the better.

Courtesy, The Muslim, Islamabad Pakistan.

Article extracted from this publication >> July 18, 1986