Over 100 UK MPs Agree Sikhs Separate Ethnic Group For Census

Image: Martin Argles for the Guardian

LONDON, UK—Over a 115 MPs have signed a letter calling for the change of the categorization of Sikhs currently listed as a religion, to an ethnic group, for the next census form, which is released in 2021.

The previous census saw over 83,000 Sikhs refusing to categorize themselves as Indian, and chose to write Sikh, under the ‘other’ category. Sikhs have been campaigning for this recognition in the census for many years, even though the race relations act of 1976 recognizes Sikhs as a distinct ethnic group.

Gurjeet Singh, press secretary for the Sikh Federation UK said that by Monday night, 113 MPs had signed the letter.

In an open letter, they stated, “15 years ago the opposition Conservatives working with the leadership of the Sikh Federation (UK) tabled Early Day Motion 1464 on the same subject that had the signature of an amazing 174 MPs and these included the current Prime Minister Theresa May and David Cameron the former PM,” he said.

“Sikhs are a legally recognized ethnic group and Sikhs have been protected under UK law following a House of Lords ruling in 1983. A number of issues faced by Sikhs ranging from the reporting of hate crimes through to accessing healthcare provision in the UK are not receiving appropriate attention by public bodies as they often only monitor ethnic group categories specified in the Census. The minority Sikh community has therefore been campaigning in the last two census for inclusion of a separate Sikh ethnic tick box for the compulsory ethnicity question,”.

 

16 COMMENTS

  1. Mr IsI “singh”. It is you that is not a true Sikh but instead a troll just out to create problems. As is suspected you are an ISI troll you would want to create such a situation. Your language is abhorrent and not one a a true believer of our Gurus.

  2. Two diaper hindus praising each others diaper while listening to their diaper Bollywood music , l love india the land of shit holes used as a golfing hole ?yank
    Now you two hindustians get back to your shit hole hindustian temples stop breathing from air from your rice and curry , it could give u hindustian retardedness
    Lol
    Now reality says
    Sikhs will be great sikh leaders and hinds will be hindus running behind a sikh shadow reading their sikh blogs and sikh news .
    Sikh culture ia and alway will be superior in every way then those cow dung hara rama hindu culture lol just an opinion lol
    I hear sikhs are creating many young sikhs leaders strong personalities like bindrawale , what a wonderfull day for Hindustan lol ha ha take care

  3. That is very selfish because they are trying to make out their chosen cultural practice is something they were born with but in actual fact they developed it in from their families or chose to be indoctrinated in it.
    Its also something they could choose not to follow and follow another religion instead. That option is always open to them, and I have known this to happen to someone.

    I’ve also seen white Sikhs (with pale skin) as well as asian (brown skin). They associate themselves from Punjab India/Pakistan where there are other religions including Muslims living there.

    Sikhism is a modern religion and is only a few hundred years old! Its just another type of India!

  4. Christians,Muslims, Buddhist, Hindus are not races but religions just as Sikhism is now but once as all of these religions was a passway to something higher. I wish we can go and teach the world the beauty of Bani.

  5. As is said in a Bob Marley song “Divide and Rule will only tear us apart. In every man’s chest there beats a heart”

    The west has tried to divide India and Indians for years.

  6. I think it is all open to interpretation. I truly believe in oneness as stated by our Gurus. This is article though is pigeon holing.

  7. Sikhs are the

    1) Chosen people
    2)Exceptional people.
    3) with manifest destiny.

    That is why I think we need an seperate ethnic grouping.

  8. This is not about ‘pigeon holing’, it is about due and empowering recognition. Those who oppose the labelling, then they need to consider then that we should do away with all manner of categorisation – ‘black’, ‘white’, ‘Indian’, ‘Asian’, ‘European’, and all be part of one happy, utopian family where there are no even-ness, inconsistencies, no discrimination, all equal, all in the same jobs, same income, same life opportunities, etc. There is a mischievous and duplicitous attempt to deny the historically evolved and grounded Sikh population, its place and space in official system. This has been an enduring injustice across the globe. And furthermore! For those who regularly display an ignorance about the legal term ‘ETHNIC’, I recommend you look it up in Mandla v Dowell Lee. It is not about colour, physical appearance, etc. It is about the collective cohesion and features – history, common language. common origin, common values, common religion, common geographical origin, sense of community – that make a people a particular social collective. Indeed, people can join and leave this collective, as this major legal judgement beautifully identifies. Indian is not an ETHNIC identity, nor is ASIAN, nor is PAKISTANI and nor many other state driven, state imposed identities. ETHNIC is from bottom up, historically evolved and organic.

  9. Does that mean if a Black African, a Korean, or a White Russian who covert to Sikhism then they become a different ethnicity? No obviously not they have changed their religion not their race or ethnicity.

    Be careful. The British are good at pigeon holing people which will only be restrictive in the future.

  10. Yeah for the sikhs , we sikhs learned a major lesson in 1984 including the attack on our holy place the golden temple.
    Its time our young sikh leaders roar like lions and lioness.
    The sikhs are moving and thinking like the new age leaders baptism under fire ??Yeah for the sikhs

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