Divisions in Sikh community derail Komagata Maru redress

by Actual News Geezer | August 7, 2007 at 02:26 pm

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I've just received a press release that requires one or more of our crowd-sorcerers to make sense of it.

Apparently, a citizen group that has been campaigning for a historical redress to the racist actions of the Canadian government over 90 years ago seems to have become mired in internal dissention.

The history of the acknowledged human rights violations are fairly clear:

In May 1914, a group of 376 passengers - 340 Sikhs, 12 Hindus, and 24 Muslims, organized specifically to test Canada's “colour bar” of exclusionary immigration policies, sailed from the Orient for Vancouver on the freighter Komagata Maru. The ship, chartered for the voyage, had been specially fitted out to accommodate passengers instead of her usual coal cargoes. Arriving in English Bay on May 23, 1914, Komagata Maru and her passengers were caught in a tug-of-war between the vessel's organizers and the Canadian government, who refused to let them land.

Komagata Maru Heritage Foundation

Here is the text of the press release as I have received it. There are contact numbers at the bottom, which I will provide to members who want to take this on as a journalistic project.

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PRESS RELEASE

There are rumors in some sections of our community that Komagata Maru Foundation is being set up as yet another divisive venture; yet another organization in addition to the many that already exist which make claims on the Komagata Maru heritage.

These ill-founded rumors oblige us to publicly state some pertinent facts.

1. At the time the Federal Government's Heritage Ministry held town-hall meetings last fall on the issue of redress for the Komagata Maru episode, an unpleasant reality in our community came out in the open. Ours has been a ivided house. There were several "stake-holders", expressing a vast diversity of interests and views about Komagata Maru heritage. The government also let it be known, publicly, that the community needed to come together on the basis of consensus in order to collectively represent its interests and vision.

2. It is in this context that several concerned members of the community came together. They held many meetings and on December 30, 2006 produced a Mission Statement Remembering Komagata Maru "Guru Nanak Jahaaz" for widest possible dissemination in the community.

3. This Mission Statement stated at the very outset that the people who took this initiative "were not trying to set up a new organization or a Committee", that "it would remain an ad Hoc Working Group, with the sole purpose of bringing together the vastly diverse elements of the South Asian people living in the lower Mainland, and across Canada, to address the question of Komagata Maru heritage in a collective and wholly unified voice".

4. The Mission Statement respectfully "acknowledged the heroic work done by the pioneer organization of our community, the Khalsa Diwan Society, in uniting the entire community of Indians living here in 1914 in order to provide support to the passengers of Komagata Maru, and for keeping alive the memory of that shameful racist event in Canada's history". It also "respectfully acknowledged the work of very many other organizations and individuals in our community who have kept alive the memory of Komagata Maru over the decades". It also "honoured and paid homage to the hardships faced and sacrifices made by the 376 passengers of Komagata Maru, and by extension to the many descendants of those passengers living here, in India, or elsewhere"

5. The Mission Statement stipulated that the ad Hoc Group "would reach out to the "stake-holders" and all community-based organizations among South Asians, regardless of their religious identity and the language group they came from, and regardless of age and gender, to come together and form a Foundation to commemorate KOMAGATA MARU".

6. During the following months, members of the ad Hoc group reached out to many people, individuals and organizations, seeking their endorsements and support. After receiving widespread positive responses, a meeting was called on June 20, inviting all the "stake-holders", all the major Gurdwaras, representatives of Hindu and Muslim communities, as well as various social and cultural organizations, and other community leaders. At this meeting, thirty organizations and community leaders, including stakeholder organizations, resolved with overwhelming majority to create "Komagata Maru Foundation" to serve the need for unity and inclusiveness. An ad Hoc Coordinating Committee was formed to implement the three resolutions adopted at this meeting. (Copy of the Resolutions adopted are enclosed)

7. The only reservation to this resolution of June 20 was from the representative of Khalsa Diwan Society (Ross Street). It should be pointed that delegations from the ad Hoc group - both before and after the June 20 meeting - have visited the Ross Street Gurdwara and have had extended discussions with the leadership there. But KDS (Ross Street) have continued have to be done under their leadership and direction. This position, we found, was not acceptable to very many organizations, including Gurdwaras under the banner of Khalsa Diwan Society, as well as to representatives of other religious communities. We will continue to seek the participation of KDS (Ross Street) in our effort to create a united voice for our diverse community.

8. As decided at the June 20 meeting, the newly formed Komagata Maru Foundation is currently in the process of getting it registered as a non-profit and charitable organization. It is also in the process of preparing a Constitution for the Foundation.

9. A letter containing all these developments has been sent (on July 6, 2007) to Hon. Bev Oda, Heritage Minister, Government of Canada. It was sent on behalf of the ad Hoc Coordinating Committee, Komagata Maru Foundation. (copy enclosed)

10. The purpose of Komagata Maru Foundation is not to compete with any existing organization but to facilitate the achievement of our common goals. We define our purpose as honouring the passengers on Komagata Maru ("Guru Nanak Jahaaz"). We want to realize this purpose by asking the Government of Canada to apologize to the victim families and the community and to give just compensation for all claims arising from the incident, by ensuring that the incident is included in school curricula, and by creating a community-funded institution for the social, cultural, and intellectual development of our community.