Features / sikh
‘I want to make sure the Sikh community at a local level have a voice’
Following the recent opening of the Sikh War Memorial Garden in Castle Park, several members of the Sikh community in Bristol are visiting parliament on Monday, April 15 to join the appeal from the wider Sikh faith for a formal apology for the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.
It would be timely and appropriate for a full apology to be made around the 100th anniversary, which falls on Saturday, April 13. In light of this, Dilawer Potiwal, a Bristolian Sikh activist, is visiting parliament to make the opinion and voice of the Sikh community in the city known. Meeting with Dilawer, he said that he’s going “for the good of the faith” as it’s “hot news in the Sikh community”.
Dilawer Potiwal is visiting parliament on April 15 to ensure the Bristol Sikh community is heard
The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre took place in Amritsar, Punjab nearly 100 years ago on April 13, 1919 under orders of British commander General Dyer. Under his orders, British troops opened fire on thousands of predominantly Sikh, as well as Hindu and Muslim, civilians who were celebrating the Vasakhi Festival. This crime was described as “one of the worst of the colonial period” by foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt.
is needed now More than ever
Following the massacre, it was quickly condemned by British politicians, including Winston Churchill, who called it “monstrous”, but a formal apology has never been received.
The UK Government has agreed that an apology to the people of Punjab and the worldwide Sikh community is very overdue, with Baroness Goldie saying: “The massacre of Jallianwala Bagh was an appalling tragedy for the Sikh community of Amritsar, and a deeply shameful episode in British history. The British Government of the day rightly condemned the incident.”
However, an apology is still forthcoming, many in the Sikh community are asking how long the Government needs to reflect on the massacre. This is why many in the Sikh community, including Bristolian Dilawer, is visiting parliament on Monday to ensure an apology is made.
Dilawer says that it’s “a national and international issue, but I want to make sure the Sikh community at a local level have a voice.”
Main image of the massacre supplied by Dilawer Potiwal
Read more: Sikh War Memorial & Remembrance Garden officially opened
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