AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND: The Sikh and Kashmiri communities living in New Zealand staged a colorful, and well disciplined, joint rally and protest march against Indian policies in Occupied Punjab and Indian held Kashmir in front of the venue of the British Commonwealth Prime Minister’s Conference in Auckland Nov.10th.

Hundreds of Sikh men, women and children wearing saffron colored clothes waved Khalistani banners and carried scores of placards drawing attention to the Human Rights, economic, religious and cultural abuse being carried out by the minions of the fascist Indian Castocracy in Occupied Punjab and Indian held Kashmir. Some placards drew attention to the police kidnapping, subsequent disappearance and perhaps murder of respected Human Rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra who was abducted from his home in Amritsar in broad daylight, by Indian police, on September 6, 1995, Kashmiri demonstrators, demanding the promised UN plebiscite in their homeland of Kashmir, joined the Sikhs in shouting slogans as a gesture of solidarity, goodwill and brotherhood.

A memorandum, listing the demands of the protestors was submitted to the Honorable Jim Bolger, Prime Minister of New Zealand and host for the Commonwealth Prime Minister’s conference copies of which were distributed to scores of camera carrying members of the International media who asked a lot of questions about Khalistan, Kashmir and why the demonstrators did not want India to become a permanent member of the UN’s Security Council. Some South African and Australian officials and journalists came over during: their lunch break and thanked the demonstrators for shouting support for these two country’s bid for a permanent seat in the UN’s Security Council. Representatives of the Sikh communities of Canada, United States, England, Kenya, Malaysia and Australia participated. The Sikh representative from Canada brought along a camera crew and the film of this spectacular demonstration will be shown Coast is Coast next week.

Article extracted from this publication >> November 17, 1995