Farmers Protests in India
Photo taken by: Ravi Choudhary, a photojournalist with Press Trust of India (PTI).
Section 2 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects every Canadian’s fundamental freedoms such as the freedom of thought, belief, opinion, expression, and the freedom of peaceful assembly.
These freedoms are fundamental rights in any democracy. That is why we were disturbed but not surprised, to see images out of India where Indian authorities attacked peacefully marching farmers on their protest journey to the capital, New Delhi. Although the farmers are from all over India, including the states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh, the protest has been mostly described as a Punjab led one by the news media. Although lacking complete context, the misconception that this is a Punjab centric protest is still better than the national pundits in India who openly decry the protestors as terrorists. As Sikh Canadians, the Indian national media’s pivot to the terrorist trope whenever a Sikh dissents, is increasingly making the diasporic community irritated. Thankfully we have the ability to turn that irritation into tangible action by sharing with our fellow Canadians the plight of farmers in India at the hands of the state.
Fortunately for us, the plea of the farmers can be witnessed through the live streams that come from locals and reporters on the ground sharing their firsthand accounts through social media posts which in turn are viewed millions of times. Sorry to disappoint but you will not see any terrorists, instead you will see the farmer feeding the very state authorities that he or she is up against when the tear gas settles, and everyone sits to enjoy a meal on the frontlines of the protest. Still however, you will see state authorities using batons to beat protestors, employing tear gas and spraying them with high power water cannons to disperse the crowd. Authorities also dug up trenches in the road and used cargo storage containers to stop the marching protestors from making their way to New Delhi. All in order to prevent the central government from confronting the concerns of the protestors.
The farmers in India are protesting three pieces of legislation which intend to deregulate the farming system and open up farmers to predatory pricing, hence why the farmers chose to march to New Delhi to make their voices heard with lawmakers in the capital.
Farmers feed our families, whether that’s in Canada, India or anywhere around the world. Legislation and public policy in Canada is geared towards ensuring that farmers are able to remain competitive and provide for their families.
Similarly, farmers in India are fighting to protect their livelihood and ability to provide for their families. A notable tweet that has since been deleted by a progressive social media influencer in India stated the following “Can the NRI’s (Non-Resident Indians) stay out of this please, we don’t need your victim commentary on things. Just shut up and drink your maple syrup.”
The arrogance in this tweet may be why it has since been deleted. Many Canadians have family on the front lines in New Delhi marching in these protests; we cannot and will not shut up. We are thankful for the power of social media to be able to shine a light on the state authorities in India.
Protests in support of India's farmers have occurred in major cities across Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand via vehicle rallies to show their support and solidarity with the farmers on the front lines in New Delhi who have begun negotiations with the central government.
Through a grassroots campaign of political engagement, many Canadians from the Indian diaspora reached out to their local Member of Parliament (MP) to express their concerns about the way protesting farmers were being treated in India.
The MPs listened and this showed with the leaders of all major federal political parties, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Erin O’Toole, and Jagmeet Singh releasing statements in support of the farmers’ right to peacefully protest and assemble.
These remarks by our federal political leaders have not gone unnoticed in India. They have caused an uproar and sparked a national dialogue in a nation that has only been an independent democracy for 73 years on their own government’s approach to fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of expression and freedom of assembly.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs reacted to our federal leader’s weighing in on the ongoing farmers protests with the following statement. "Such comments are unwarranted, especially when pertaining to the internal affairs of a democratic country." As we have seen with images and videos on social media of state authorities attacking peaceful farmers as they protested that these comments from our federal leaders were most certainly warranted.
Political leaders in India have been put on notice that the diaspora is always keeping a close eye on their loved ones and we will not hesitate to speak up when the Indian state, the self-proclaimed largest democracy on Earth acts in a way that violates its citizens fundamental freedoms.
Sincerely,
Sikh Heritage Manitoba
contact@sikhheritagemanitoba.ca