Sikhs march through London to protest Operation Bluestar
Monday, 09/06/2014
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140609/punjab.htm#23
Hundreds of British Sikhs today held a march in central London in protest against Operation Bluestar that took place 30 years ago. The march from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square involved sloganeering. "Thousands were killed or had disappeared," said Balvinder Kaur of the Sikh Council, UK.
The military raid on the Golden Temple in Amritsar in June 1984 was conducted to flush out Sikh militants led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
British Sikhs have also been angered over the recent revelations in de-classified documents published by the UK government in January, which showed that a British SAS officer was recruited to help plan the operation.
In New York, Sikh men, women and children held a demonstration outside the United Nations yesterday. They announced to hold a referendum among Sikh Diaspora in 2020 on the right to self-determination.
The Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), a rights group, submitted a complaint to the UN human rights body, urging it to set up a tribunal to investigate and prosecute the "crimes" related to the June 1984 military raid on the Golden Temple.
The group also asked the UN to "condemn" the use of force against the Sikh community during Operation Bluestar.
It said the UN should "recognize that the Sikhs have right to self-determination under the UN Charter, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights".
SFJ legal adviser attorney Gurpatwant Singh Pannun said a referendum in 2020 would be held around the world in which the Sikh Diaspora would be able to vote on the question of right to self-determination.
