VIENNA: The World Sikh organization has been invited to attend the United Nation’s, World Human Rights conference on Human Rights. At this conference, representatives of WSO. from the USA and Canada will take part in the NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) activities, which is related to the World conference to be held in Vienna, Austria [rom June 925,1993, In 1469, the first Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Nanak Sahib described the situation of Punjab at that time, saying: “The age is a knife Kings are butchers In this dark night of falsehood No moon of truth is sentries. In this so called civilized world, modem methods of barbaric to rule arc used by the very governments who are expected 16 be the guardians of Human Rights. On paper, the evil of torture may be eliminated while in practice, the brave Sikhs of Punjab and India “are victims of torture by the cowardly authorities in whose dictionary the words Human Dignity have no meaning, Cases of human rights violations in India have been documented by internationally respected organizations such as” Amnesty International and Asia Watch. Such cases occur with alarming regularity and are not limited to “troubled” states, For Instance, Amnesty International, in its 1992 report on India notes, “torture 1s pervasive: and a daily routine in every one of India’s 25 states.”

A Canadian Parliamentary Delegation on a visit to India 11 1992 suggested that the “Terrorist and Disruptive Act” (TADA) and other such repressive acts should be abolished.

The time has come for the international community, and especially the Western countries, to hold India accountable for these human rights violations. As a first step, Aid India Consortium should stop all aid to India unless it allows organizations like Amnesty Interactional and Asia Watch to freely enter the country and document cases of all forms of torture and human rights violations in the country.

The Western Democrats should take up India’s record on human rights at the World Human Rights Conference in Vienna (Austria).

Article extracted from this publication >>  June 11, 1993