Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Brooklyn resident Reverend Dr. Clarence Keaton. Reverend Dr. Keaton was born to parents Clarence Keaton Sr. and Mary F. Keaton. Dr. Keaton is the forth of seven children.

Reverend Dr. Keaton, affectionately known as Pastor of Pastors (POP) by his congregants and ``Pastor Teacher'' by his peers, has marked himself as a leader of change both in the clergy and throughout his community. The Reverend Dr. Kenton's path to the church was nearly derailed when during his youth, he became a gang leader. It was during that time Reverend Dr. Keaton received his divine calling going from leading gangs in the street to leading gangs to the church.

Reverend Dr. Keaton joined the ministry of Free Mission Apostolic Church under the tutelage of Pester Walter L. Dunlap. It was here Reverend Dr. Keaton taught for nearly a decade as a biblical instructor. In 1983, Reverend Dr. Keaton was ordained and blessed to establish the True Worship Church, and in 1985. Reverend Dr. Keaton's ministry grew at such a rapid pace that by September 21, 2001 he managed to build a new Cathedral on the property.

Reverend Dr. Keaton brings his divine wisdom to the community in a way which fosters growth and brotherhood. He is a leader who recognizes the plight of troubled youth and offers mentoring, guidance, and an outlet in prayer. His ministry truly meets the need of the people offering Computer Literacy classes, Deaf Ministry, Day Care Services, a Church news letter entitled, ``The Voice of worship'', and a Web site which keeps both the members and the community abroad informed of upcoming events and services.

Reverend Dr. Keaton has been recognized for his great contributions to the community, in an honorary doctorate of Divinity degree from Jesus Saves Bible Institute; citations for outstanding community service from former Councilwoman Pricilla Woolen, former Brooklyn borough president Howard Golden and current Borough president Marty Markowitz. Among his greatest honors are his wife Eartha Keaton, his four loving children; Tersha, Shawn, Tiffany, and Clearance III and amazing grandson, Kamari.

Reverend Dr. Clarence Keaton continues to serve as pastor and overseer of True Worship Church as the Presiding Bishop and founder of the True Worship Church Worldwide Ministries.

Madam Speaker, I would like to recognize Reverend Dr. Keaton's tremendous contribution to his congregants and the community.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in paying tribute to this wonderful man and his tireless contribution which is a testament to the American spirit.

Thank you very much for yielding time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 964, the SPY Act, which would greatly improve the privacy of consumers' online computer use. The time has come for this bill to pass.

A lot of hard work has been put into this legislation. First and foremost, I

would like to commend Congresswoman Mary Bono, the Republican sponsor of the bill. Of course, without her hard work, insight and persistence on this issue, we would not be where we are today. I have been proud to work with her on this bill, and I salute her for all of her efforts.

Of course, we have been down this road a few times now with several hearings; and, of course, we passed it before. But this time I think that people realize how important this legislation is, and I do feel that it should go all the way.

I also want to commend Chairman Dingell and Ranking Member Barton for their strong commitment to this issue and leadership in getting our bill to the floor. I would like to thank my very good friend, the subcommittee chairman, Chairman Rush of Chicago, Illinois, Ranking Member Stearns, who has been a friend for many, many years as well, for their hard work on this legislation. They have stayed with it and gone through the process over and over again because they recognize how important this legislation is to our country.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge all of the staff for their hard work, especially Consuela Washington and David Cavicke for their hard work and, of course, their suggestions and ideas and recommendations. I would like to just take this opportunity to thank them.

There is no question that spyware is a serious problem. Spyware software, which is downloaded without a computer owner's knowledge, invades one's privacy by recording and transmitting personal information, monitoring the Web site someone visits, or even stealing documents from an individual's computer. Other programs hijack a computer by changing home pages or forcing a person to click through multiple screens until a spyware program is downloaded.

In fact, problems related to spyware have become so widespread that I cannot run into someone who hasn't been negatively affected by it. This is a big change from when we first began this effort a few years ago. There were only a few people complaining, but now we have a lot of people complaining. Now we know the seriousness of the problem and that we need Federal legislation to safeguard privacy, as well as to ensure the long-term integrity of e-commerce.

Today's legislation provides consumers with new tools to protect themselves from unwanted, harmful software. Under the bill, consumers would have to receive a clear and concise warning about the spyware program. Second, consumers would have to provide their affirmative consent before the program could operate on their computer. Finally, Mr. Speaker, consumers must have the option to easily disable any harmful spyware programs to their computer. While some consumers may want to share their information to receive free games other discount offers, all consumers have the right to make that choice.

Finally, Mr. Speaker, and this time I really mean finally, any time we legislate on highly technical matters there is always a danger of stifling innovation and making the use of legitimate software too burdensome. It is a very difficult tightrope to walk. But I think we have done an excellent job in walking that tightrope.

This bill addresses many of the concerns raised, while at the same time retaining a meaningful notice and consent regime to protect consumer privacy.

Through much hard work, we have carefully crafted a strong bipartisan consumer protection bill, and I would urge my colleagues to support this. This is a quality piece of legislation, and I hope that we are able to move it through both Houses very quickly and that the President would sign it into law.

Madam Speaker, recently a Canadian writer and editor named Dr. Awatar Singh Sekhon, Managing Editor of the International Journal of Sikh Affairs, wrote a detailed response to an article about the 1985 Air India bombings. As you know, those bombings continue to be controversial more than 20 years later and the Canadian government is launching yet another inquiry into the matter.

Dr. Sekhon's quite comprehensive letter, which was written in response to an Edmonton Sun article, is very detailed. It makes a very strong argument and brings up a lot of very important information on the case. Before I put it into the Record, I will attempt to summarize the highlights.

Dr. Sekhon points out that Indian diplomat Mani Shankar says that in 1984, the year before the bombing, the Indira Gandhi government in India commissioned him ``to portray Sikhs as terrorists.'' This directive occurred before Operation Bluestar, the June 1984 attack on the golden Temple in amritsar (the seat of Sikhism) and several other Sikh Gurdwaras around Punjab, in which 20,000 Sikhs, including over 100 Sikh youth ages 8 to 13, were killed and the Sikh holy scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib, was desecrated by being shot with Indian Army bullets. The orders for that operation were given in January 1984, according to the Sikh Bulletin, October-November 1985. The Air India operation was part of that campaign. In addition, the newspaper Hitavada reported that the Indian government paid the late governor of Punajb, Surendra Nath, the equivalent of $1.5 billion to foment terrorist activity in Punjab and Kashmir.

Dr. Sekhon refers to the first hijacking of an Air India plane by two Brahmin brothers named Pandey to secure Indira Gandhi's release from jail. He notes the penetration of Canada by Indian intelligence in the 1980s.

The letter cites both Zuhajr Kashmeri and Brian McAndrew's excellent book Soft Target and former Canadian Member of Parliament David Kilgour's book Betrayal: The Spy That Canada Forgot. Both show India's responsibility for the bombing. Kashmeri and McAndrew cite the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), which said, ``if you really want to clear the incidents quickly, take vans to the Indian High Commission and the consulates in Toronto and Vancouver, load up everybody and take them down for questioning. We know it and they know it that they are involved.''

Kilgour writes that a Canadian-Polish double agent was approached by an East German named Udo Ulbrecht, who was working with people affiliated with the Indian government, to participate in a second bombing, but he declined to be part of it and the plot never came off. Dr. Sekhon rightly asks why neither Kashmeri, McAndrew, nor Kilgour has been asked to testify in the current inquiry. He also requests that the Indian diplomatic and intelligence personnel who were declared persona non grata in Canada in the wake of the Air India bombing be summoned back to testify before the inquiry.

He notes the mass killings of Sikhs, Christians, Muslims, Assamese, Tamils, and other non-Brahmin minorities by the Indian government Their effort to portray the Sikhs, especially those who speak out peacefully and democratically for an independent Khalistan, as terrorists is a pretext for this ``ethnic cleansing.''

He quotes my colleague, the gentleman from California, who said in this chamber that for Sikhs and Kashmiris, ``India might as well be Nazi Germany.'' The late General Narinder Singh said that Punjab was a police state. This has been an extension of the India government's strategy that was outlined in a memo in 1947 in which India's first Home Minister V.B. Patel described the Sikhs as ``a lawless people'' and ``a criminal tribe.'' In other words, the Indian government was trying to discredit and destroy the Sikhs almost from the moment of independence.

Madam Speaker, the time has come to stop our aid and trade with this repressive regime and to demand self-determination for the Sikhs of Punjab, Khalistan, the Muslims of Kashmir, the Christians of Nagalim, and all the people seeking freedom in South Asia. The essence of democracy is the right to self-determination, not an ongoing half- century effort to kill your minority citizens.

I would like to place Dr. Sekhon's letter into the Record at this time for the information of my colleagues.

The Sikh Educational Trust, International Journal of Sikh

Affairs,

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, May 9, 2007.

Ret Air India Flight 182 (Toronto--Montreal--London--Delhi),

June, 23 1985: Enquiry of Justice John Major

Dear Sir, My writing to you relates with some minor and

major comments related to the subject, and also on ``Air

India's Shared Tragedy Lost in the `SILOS' between two

nations by George Abraham (The Edmonton Journal, 8th May,

2007).''

I would like to comment on Abraham's writing ``Prime

Minister (Brian) Mulroney had telephoned his condolences to

his Indian counterpart, Rajiv Gandhi--an act that was based

on a fundamental misunderstanding of who, exactly, had been

victimized, and who, in fact, was to blame.'' Mr. Abraham

seems to be in the grip of part of the problem. As a Canadian

national and belonging to the Canadian Sikh community, it

appears to me that `telephoning to the prime minister of a

country, which had betrayed Canada and the international

community in 1974 (explosion of a nuclear device prepared

from the by-product of a Candu reactor technology for

peaceful and medical purposes) by the Right Hon. Prime

Minister of Canada' was far more important than about 90

percent of the Canadian passengers of the ill-fated aircraft.

It, certainly, is new information that has come out in

Justice Major's enquiry. What a pity our Canadian prime

minister, who put Rajiv Gandhi first rather than thinking and

offering his condolences to the Canadian Sikhs and the

victimized families. This act of Prime Minister Mulroney will

never be forgotten by the Canadian Sikhs. Earlier, his

predecessor, Charles Joseph Clark, had said to the

journalists that ``if you want more information about Sikhs,

go and call these numbers (of the Indian Consulate Toronto

and High Commission in Ottawa):'' What an unacceptable act of

the prime minister, who hands out the telephone numbers of a

foreign mission to get information about Canadian Sikhs.

Should we, the Canadian Sikhs who have been in Canada over a

century, imply that our Canadian administration has no idea

of its Sikh Canadians; or, a foreign mission in Canada has

more information about the Canadian Sikhs, especially when

the Indian Constitution 1950, Article 25, has eliminated the

`Sikh Identity and Sikh Faith'. The latter is one of the

six major faiths of our world.

Does George Abraham know that Mani Shanker Iyer, an Indian

diplomat, said, ``In early 1984, to the hearing of all,

mentioned that at the instance of Indira Gandhi, he was given

an unpleasant job of portraying Sikhs as terrorists.'' A few

days later, Iyer stated that, ``against his wishes he had

done the job?'' This was before ``Operation Bluestar, the

orders for which had been delivered in January 1984'' (The

Sikh Bulletin, October-November 2005, p. 11;

[email protected]).

Based on the two previous enquiries and the present one

which is going on, it appears to me that nothing

extraordinary will come from these enquiries, because the

major things which might yield substantial information and

which might reveal the real cause of the `Air India Explosion

of Flight 182' will never find a place in the enquiry that is

going on. Some of the points that, as I believe, have not

been discussed so far, are summarized below:

1. Why Mr. Zuhaire Kashmeri and Mr. Brian McAndrew, two

Canadian journalists, who gave their views in their title,

Soft Target India's Intelligence Service and its Role in The

Air India Disaster 1989 first ed. and 2005 second ed. ISBN

10:1-55028-904-7 and 13: 978-1-55028-904-6, have not been

called to testify before the enquiry commission?

2. Why Hon. David Kilgour, former member of parliament,

Speaker of the House of Commons, former Secretary of State

for Asia and Africa, and the author of the title BETRAYAL THE

SPY CANADA ABANDONED 1994 Prentice Hall Canada Inc.,

Scarborough, ON ISBNO-13-325697-9, the title that contained

Chapter 9 and 10, A Bizarre Episode in Rome and A Battle For

Canada, pp.129-163, has not been asked to testify? Hon.

Kilgour writes ``One day, while reading a German newspaper, I

spotted the photograph and description of a wanted terrorist.

I would have known that face anywhere. It was the man who had

conducted the meeting in Rome, plotting to bomb some Air

India flight. I was quite positive it was him; his name was

Udo Ulbrecht or Albrecht, wanted for many terrorist attacks

and kidnappings in West Germany and Western Europe. I was

upset by the whole thing and decided I wanted out of West

Germany as soon as I had done my time.'' In Hon. Kilgour's

title, he further writes ``He was greeted in English, heavily

accented with German, and led into a larger room where a

number of men were already seated and smoking. There were two

Sikhs wearing traditional turbans, another pair who looked

Italian, Paszkowski and the German, who chaired and greeted

them in English as all of them spoke the language with

differing levels of fluency. The German spoke of the need for

international co-operation and how important the mission was

for each of their respective governments. He stressed that

the group must work closely together. ``Some of the tasks,''

he said, ``might appear strange or even incomprehensible to

you. Don't worry about that. Let it be the concern of those

who sent you here. Your role is to carry out orders to the

letter without asking questions.'' Everyone sat quietly and

listened intently. ``The job at hand is, with the use of

explosives, to blow up an Air India plane in Europe. Lives

will be lost but we must not think about it . . . Each of you

will be supplied with documents allowing you to move freely

in Europe, weapons, explosives, money and detailed

instructions. I will meet with each of you personally to

supply you with all these. Wait for me and be prepared for

action at any time.''

3. Under the guise of `Democracy', the Indian

administrations of post-15th of August, 1947 era ((JL Nehru

to Manmohan Sinh) and before becoming the political masters

of the British Empire later known as the British India

Empire, the Brahmins/Hindus (neither a religion nor a

culture; see Dalit Voice, Dalit Sahitya Akademy, Bangore, and

other Sikh and non-Sikh academics), betrayed the

international community and the Sikhs of Punjab, now the

State of Punjab (under the occupation of the alleged Indian

democracy, since the 15th of August, 1947). It must be noted

that the Sikh Raj of monarch Ranjit Singh, 1799 to 14th

March, 1849, was the first Secular and Sovereign country of

South Asia. The Sikhs lost to the British Empire's forces led

by General Gilbert on the 14th of March, 1849. As such, the

``Struggle To Regain Their Lost Sovereignty, Independence and

Political Power of the Sikhs began, by peaceful means taught

by their 10 Masters/Gurus (from Guru Nanak Sahib to Guru

Gobind Singh ji) right on the day they lost to the British

Empire's forces.'' ``The new territory of the British Empire

remained `status less' but on the 29th of March, 1849, the

British agent made a proclamation that the newly conquered

`Sikh Raj' is ``annexed'' but not ``amalgamated'' to the

British Empire for the `administration purpose only'. It

should be noted that the status of the Sovereign and Secular

Sikh Raj of Monarch Ranjit Singh remained as ``annexed''

territory and `not' the art of India under British Empire or

the time British exit from India on the 15th of August, 1947.

It should also be noted that there did not exist the word

`India' in any dictionary or Encyclopedia of the English

language until the British agent made the annexation of The

Sikh Raj to the British Empire on the 29th of March, 1849. As

such, the existence of the `Indian nationality' until the

29th of March, 1849, was out of question. The Sikhs were

`never' Indian nationals, as evident from the Indian

Constitution 1950, Article 25. The Constitution which Sikhs'

elected representatives `rejected' in its draft and final

forms in the Indian parliament in 1948, the 26th of November,

1949, 1950 and more recently on the 6th of September, 1966.

The Canadian news media, along with the international news

media and major democratic administrations like the United

Kingdom., Canada, United States, Australia, etc., never paid

any attention on the ``Sikhs'' Struggle for Independence''

for the reason only known to themselves. Volumes of books and

tens of tons news dispatches have been made by the

journalists virtually `devoid' of the Sikhs' Struggle for

Sovereignty and Sikhs' status in the Indian Constitution 1950

Article 25. which proclaimed the alleged Indian state as the

Republic of India.

Under the umbrella of democracy (or Brahmins autocracy),

India has killed more than 2.3 to 3.2 million Sikhs; over

500,000 Muslims in general; more than 100,000 Muslims of the

Internationally Disputed Areas of Jammu and Kashmir; over

300,000 Christians; tens of thousands of Dalits; 15,000

Tamils, thousands of Assamese and other non-Brahmin, non-

Hindu minorities, since 15th August, 1947. What kind of

democracy in India is this which kills its own citizens?

There are other democracies in our world, like the United

States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and others. Has

anyone of these countries killed its own citizen(s)? How many

Brahmins, Hindus or pro-Brahmins India and its armed forces

killed since its inception?

I would like to hear from the journalists like Madam Kim

Bolan on the genocides of the Sikhs, Muslims, Christians,

Kashmiris and other non-Brahmin and non-Hindu minorities

carried out by the Indian democracy? Does she have any

information or has she written even a single word on India

carrying out genocides of non-Brahmin and non-Hindus since

the 15th of August, 1947? Or, else she loves writing against

the Sikhs.

For Madam Kim Bolan and her national and international

colleagues written specifically or generally on the `fake

hijacking' carried out by the RAW of India (they must examine

the archives of the All India Radio, if they pretend to be

unaware of the activities of the Indian personnel of RAW and

other agencies).

The author was wondering if Madam Kim Bolan and her

journalistic colleagues know that the `first hijacking' of

South Asia' was carried out by two `Brahmin' brothers (the

Pandey brothers), to secure the release of their Congress

leader Indira Gandhi from a jail. Indira Gandhi awarded them,

the Brahmins, with her Congress' nominations to the UP

Legislative Assembly. These criminals were made the `law

makers'. When criminals are made the law makers

intentionally, then what could be expected in a democratic

country, so to speak?

Madam Kim Bolan and other journalists must read Congressman

Dan Rohrabacher of California's remarks appeared in the

United States Congressional Records of the House of

Representatives that ``For the Sikhs, Christians, Muslims and

other non-Hindu minorities, India might as well be a Nazi

Germany.''

4. A community, which is less than 15 percent of the total

population of India, i.e., the Brahmins, Hindus and pro-

Brahmins (3+12=15 percent), deceived and betrayed the Sikhs

of the Sikh Raj of monarch Ranjit Singh, robbed them from

their land (partitioned on the 15th of August, 1947) in the

day light, along with the Sovereign people of states like

Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Hyderabad, Faridkot (now in

Punjab), Bikaner (now in Rajasthan), Dalits (who are still

used to remove the human waste from the households and public

places of India), Adivaasis, etc.

5. The journalists and writers like Kim Bolan, George

Abraham, Martin Collacott, Ian Mulgrew, Bharti Mukeherjee,

Clark Blaise, Bill Moyer, etc., are virtually devoid of the

`Sikhs' history from the Sikhs' point of view'. They are

known as staunchly anti-Sikh writers and do not get along

with the Canadian and/or American Sikhs, simply because they

are `devoid' of the Sikh history. Indeed, they are well known

anti-Sikh writers. Why are they anti-Sikhs and write against

the Sikhs, it is only known to them. They cannot exonerate

themselves from the `anti-Sikh' renowned journalists or

writers for the reasons only known to them.

6. Madam Kim Bolan and other Canadian journalists, with the

exception of well respected Zuhaire Kashmeri and Brian

McAndrew, never understood the Canadian Sikh psyche. Why is

it so? Only Madam Kim Bolan, other journalists and one Narula

of the Asia Watch may explain their position, if they so

desire.

7. It goes without doubt that Indian intelligence

penetrated Canada in 1980s. This was done to provide cover

for the Indian administration's intended `attack on the

Sikhs' Darbar Sahib Complex (mistakenly known as the Golden

Temple Complex), which includes the Supreme Seat of Sikh

Polity, The Akal Takht Sahib, Amritsar, in the name of a

brutal Indian military ``Operation Bluestar'' of June, 1984.

This was not only an `undeclared' war on the Sikh Nation,

Punjab, but it was carried out to `Exterminate The Sikh

Identity and The Sikh Faith'. One may ask the question did

Indian administration succeed? The answer is `No'; it failed

miserably. Their penetration made the life of the Sikhs of

Canada no less than a hell. Did anybody, especially the

Canadian journalists, with two exceptions, pay any attention

to Sikh nationals of Canada? Every Sikh, who is the follower

of the Sikh religion, believes in the Canadian way of life,

Canadian law, Canadian policy of multiculturalism provided by

the administration of the Right Honourable Pierre Elliot

Trudeau and Canadian values. Whereas, the Indian

administration deliberately made the Sikhs as `terrorists';

on the 10th of October, 1947, just 7-weeks post of the 15th

of August, 1947; the Indian administration of JL Nehu and VB

Patel and their man, Chandulal Trivedi in Punjab `declared'

the ``Sikhs as lawless people'' in a secret memo. The writer

is citing only a few major points out of numerous.

8. Considering the penetration of Indian intelligence in

1980s, not only the RAW personnel (Research and Analysis

Wing), but the Indian administration made use of Sikhs,

especially Akalis like Gurcharan Singh Tohra, Harchand

Longowal, Balwant Ramoowalia, Prakash Singh Badal, Balwant

Singh, Dr Jagjit Singh Chohan (now deceased), Maj-Gen Jaswant

Bhullar, M S Sidhu, Didar Singh Bains of the United States,

Prabhu Dayal Singh, Harjinderpal Singh Nagra and Akalis

(correspondence between R K Dhawan of 1, Safdarjang Road, New

Delhi; the 30th of January--April 25, 1984; please see

Chakravyuh Web of Indian Secularism by Gurtej Singh 2000

Madam Speaker, Indian policeman in temple with revolver is not the solution to a game of Clue, it's the latest outrage out of India. As we approach the 23rd anniversary of India's brutal military attack on the Golden Temple, the center of the Sikh culture and religion, an undercover Indian policeman was found carrying a revolver into the Golden Temple, where these kinds of weapons are prohibited. It was discovered when the gun fell out of his pocket. I shudder to think what he may have been intending to do with it.

The chief minister of Punjab, Paraksh Singh Badal, did nothing about this outrage because he is in bed with the Indian Government and in opposition to his Sikh constituents. This desecration of the Golden Temple is outrageous and a reminder that India remains an occupying power in the Sikh homeland, Punjab, Khalistan, which declared its independence on October 7, 1987.

The Council of Khalistan has published an open letter deploring this desecration of the Sikh nation's most sacred site. It notes that this is part of the Indian Government's ongoing effort to destroy the Sikh religion and demands that the jathedar of the Akal Takht, Joginder Singh Vedanti, censure chief Minister Badal for his part in allowing this to occur.

We cannot continue to support such actions. They violate the fundamental religious freedom that all free people enjoy. We must take strong action. Cutting off aid and trade until these kinds of atrocities end would be a good first step. And we should demand a free and fair vote in Khalistan, in Kashmir, in Nagaland, and wherever the people seek freedom on the subject of independence. Self-determination is the essence of democracy.

Indian Policeman Caught at Akal Takht Sahib With Revolver

Just a few days ago, the Tribune of Chandigarh reported

that an Indian policeman was caught with a revolver at the

Akal Takht Sahib. His revolver fell on the ground. He was

manhandled by the Sikhs there.

No one is allowed to take firearms inside the Golden

Temple. By doing so, this policeman violated the Maryada of

the Golden Temple. The shameful Akali government has allowed

undercover policemen to desecrate the Golden Temple. The

Khalsa Panth condemns this with full force.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal should be removed from

his position and the Akal Takht Jathedar should censure him

for his sacrilege and violating the Rehat Maryada of the Akal

Takht.

The Indan government is determined to destroy the Sikh

religion by any and all means. They are trying to create

sects in the Sikh religion, such as Dera Sucha (Jhutha)

Sauda, Nirankari, Radswami, and other such cults. After Guru

Gobind Singh there is no living guru, as the heads of these

sects claim to be. That is contrary to the Sikh religion. It

is blasphemous. These Deras are a cancer on the Sikh

religion. They must not be allowed to spread their cancer and

the violence that they bring among the Sikhs.

Guru Gobind Singh Sahib bestowed the guruship on the Guru

Granth Sahib and for political decisions transferred power to

the Panj Piaras (the Five Chosen Ones.) This desecration of

Sikhism cannot be allowed to continue. It will only stop when

we free Khalistan from Indian occupation.

Badal blames Captain Amarinder Singh for this situation. He

cannot shirk his own responsibility. As Chief Minister, he is

responsible for law and order. He should prosecute this baba

and such cult leaders and close all Deras in Punjab. If he

won't do it, the Khalsa Panth will and we will find new

leaders who can serve the interests of the Khalsa Panth, not

the Indian government.

Sikhs should have known better. In 1984, it was this Akali

party and this Akali leadership of Badal, Tohra, and Longowal

who invited the Indian army into the Golden Temple. If anyone

attacks the Golden Temple, Sikhs can never forgive or forget

it. The Congress Party attacked the Golden Temple; they

should not be supported by the Khalsa Panth. It was the

Akalis who invited them in. They should also be rejected. We

need new Sikh leadership which can deliver a sovereign,

independent Khalistan to the Sikh Nation.

Power resides in the Khalsa Panth. Sikhs in Punjab must

shoulder their responsibility. Get rid of the present Akali

leadership and establish a new Sikh leadership. If we do not,

if we let this leadership linger, our misery is prolonged and

the Sikh Nation suffers more. It is time to stand up and free

the Sikh homeland, Punjab, Khalistan.

In 1986, the Sarbat Khalsa was called. The Sarbat Khalsa

formed the Panthic Committee under the leadership of Baba

Gurcharan Singh Manochahal (who was later murdered by the

Indian government.) It passed a resolution for Khalistan on

April 29, 1986. The Panthic Committee formally declared

independence on October 7, 1987. It established the Council

of Khalistan at that time to serve as the government pro

tempore of Khalistan and appointed this humble sewadar as

President of the Council of Khalistan.

For the past 20 years, I have worked very hard, along with

all the advisors and supporters of the Council of Khalistan,

to achieve our objective of sovereignty for Khalistan. Any

major event in Punjab since 1984 has been documented in the

Congressional Record in statements by various Members of

Congress. We thank them for their support for the

independence of Khalistan. Congressional hearings were held

in the U.S. Congress by Rep. Ben Blaz, Rep. Dan Burton,

and others on human-rights violations and the independence of

Khalistan. Special orders of the U.S. Congress on human-

rights violations and the independence of Khalistan have been

conducted. The Indian government is trying to alter the Sikh

history in Punjab since 1984. They will not succeed because

it is preserved in the library of the U.S. Congress. It will

lie there safely for a long time. Students of history will

find the true story of what happened to the Sikh Nation since

1984.

Khalsa Ji, the time has come for Sikhs to unite and free

Khalistan. Remember the words of Guru Gobind Singh, ``I grant

sovereignty to the humble Sikhs.'' Freedom is the birthright

of all people and nations. It is also granted by our Gurus.

The Indian government is so afraid that it is planting agents

in Gurdwara committees and organizations that fight for

Khalistan. It is creating Deras and planting agents in the

Golden Temple to try to stoke violence. It is arresting Sikh

activists for protesting a statue of the repressive,

murderous Beant Singh, who was responsible for the murder of

over 50,000 Sikhs and the secret cremation of their bodies by

declaring them ``unidentified'', as well as the murders of

Sardar Jaswant Singh Khalra, who exposed that brutal policy,

and Jathedar Gurdev Singh Kaunke, or for making pro-

Khalistani speeches and raising the flag of Khalistan. Beware

of Sikh leaders who do the bidding of the Indian government.

Just the other day in the Southall Gurdwara in the United

Kingdom, Sikh youth took control of the stage when the

present management, which is under the control of the Indian

Embassy, refused to do Ardas for Shaheed Bhai Kanwaljit

Singh, who was killed by followers of the cult leader Ram

Rahim when he went to confront them. We must replace these

management committees with pro-Sikh, pro-Khalistani

managements.

Khalsa Ji, the time has come. Take responsibility and rise

to the occasion. Work for the freedom of Khalistan so that

the Sikh religion can flourish and the Sikh Nation can live

with honor and dignity. Only then can the future of the

Khalsa Panth be bright. Remember the words of the former

Jathedar of the Akal Takht Sahib, Professor Darshan Singh,

that ``If a Sikh is not a Khalistani, he is not a Sikh.'' Let

us show true Sikh spirit. We must rise up and free Khalistan

now.

Madam Speaker, the beginning of June marks the 23rd anniversary of India's military attack on the Golden Temple in Amritsar, which is the seat of the Sikh religion. It occurred from June 3 through June 6, 1984. Many other Sikh Gurdwaras were attacked at the same time in what was known as Operation Bluestar, which killed over 20,000 Sikhs. That was the beginning of a genocide in which over 250,000 Sikhs were killed.

During the attack, young Sikh boys, ranging in age from 8 to 13 years old, were taken outside and shot to death. Other soldiers bravely shot bullets into the Sikh holy scriptures. As Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, who was killed in the attack, predicted, it laid the foundation for the liberation of the Sikh homeland, Khalistan.

This brutal attack was a desecration of the Sikh religion and culture and a bitter reminder that there is no place for Sikhs or other minorities in Hindu India. They are simply used for the greater glory of the Brahmins.

The Council of Khalistan, which will be leading a commemorative demonstration across from the White House on June 2, has published an excellent open letter on the massacre.

If we want to put an end to ongoing repression, Madam Speaker, we should support independence for all the nations of South Asia. We should go on record in support of a free and fair plebiscite, monitored, on the question of independence for Khalistan, Kashmir, Nagaland, and all the nations of the subcontinent. We should stop trading with India and providing it aid until it respects the basic right to self-determination and all human rights for all its people, whether Brahmin or Dalit, whether Hindu, Sikh, Christian, Muslim, or whatever. We send India development aid, Madam Speaker, and it puts just 2 percent of its development budget to education and just 2 percent to health, but 25 percent to nuclear development! Remember that India began the nuclear escalation in South Asia.

23rd Anniversary of Golden Temple Attack

Dear Khalsa Panth: Next month marks the 23rd anniversary of

the Indian government's brutal attack and desecration of

Darbar Sahib, the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar. Sikhs

must never forget or forgive this atrocity. Remember that the

Indian troops shot bullet holes into an original copy of the

Guru Granth Sahib, written in the time of the Gurus. They

took over 100 young Sikh boys, ages 8 to 13, out into the

courtyard of the complex and asked them if they supported

Khalistan. When they answered ``Bole So Nihar'', they were

shot to death. Thirty seven (37) other Gurdwaras were

simultaneously attacked. In all, more than 20,000 Sikhs were

killed in that operation. This kind of brutality makes it

clear that there is no place for Sikhs in India.

Since that horrible four-day operation, which took place

from June 3 through 6, 1984, over a quarter of a million

Sikhs have been murdered at the hands of the Indian

government, according to figures compiled by the Punjab State

magistracy and human-rights groups. More than 52,000 are

being held as political prisoners, according to a report by

the Movement Against State Repression. They are held without

charge or trail, many since 1984. We demand the immediate

release of all political prisoners and a full accounting for

those who may have died in custody.

Instead, our highest institutions--the Golden Temple, the

Punjab government, the Akali Dal, and others--remain under

Indian control. Our homeland, Khalistan, remains under Indian

occupation 20 years after declaring its independence from

India. Half a million Indian troops continue to enforce the

peace of the bayonet in Punjab, Khalistan.

Remember the words of Narinder Singh, a spokesman for the

Golden Temple, to America's National Public Radio: ``The

Indian government, all the time they boast that they are

democratic, that they are secular, that they have nothing to

do with a democracy, nothing to do with a secularism. They

just kill Sikhs just to please the majority.''

Sant Bhindranwale told us that the attack would ``lay the

foundation of Khalistan.'' Indeed, it did. On October 7,

1987, Khalistan declared its independence. We must use this

anniversary to rededicate ourselves to reclaiming that

freedom that is our birthright.

In 1986, Harcharan Singh Longowal struck the Rajiv-Longowal

Accord, in which India promised to return the capital city of

Chandigarh, which Sikhs built, and the Punjabi-speaking areas

of Himachal Pradesh and Haryana, which were kept out of

Punjab in 1965. Twenty-one years later, India has not kept

that promise.

India has a long history of not keeping its promises. It

promised the people of Kashmir a plebiscite on their status

in 1948 and the vote has never been held. Nor has it kept its

promises to the people of Nagaland. Instead, Nehru said that

even if he had to put a soldier under every tree, he would

never allow a free Nagaland. The Indian government has killed

over 90,000 Kashmiri Muslims, over 300,000 Christians in

Nagaland, tens of thousands of Muslims and Christians

elsewhere in the country, and tens of thousands of Assamese,

Bodos, Dalits, Manipuris, Tamils, and other minorities. Tens

of thousands more of them continue to be held as politica1

prisoners, according to Amnesty International. Is that a

democracy? These facts underline the necessity to free our

homeland, Khalistan, now, and to support freedom for all the

people of South Asia.

Remember the words of Guru Gobind Singh, ``In grieb Sikhin

ko deon Patshahi.'' (``I grant sovereignty to the humble

Sikhs.'') Freedom is the birthright of all people and

nations. It is also granted by our Gurus.

When I visited Pakistan in November for Guru Nanak's

birthday, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shaukat Aziz,

offered to build a road from Kartarpur (where Guru Nanak left

this world) to the border if India will build their portion.

They even offered to build a fence if India wants one. With

this road, Sikhs could go, and visit this holy site with no

visa. The Akalis could build this road themselves, but they

have not done it so far. The spineless Akalis continue to be

lapdogs of Delhi. How could the Akalis join with the BJP (the

political arm of the RSS) to form a government when the BJP

is determined to destroy the Sikh religion by any and all

means at their disposal? We must end Indian control of our

government, society, and institutions. That control is what

the Golden Temple attack was designed to cement. We must

stand up and say no. Remember Maharajah Ranjit Singh, who led

a powerful, secular Sikh state that was independent from 1765

to 1849. Let us have a new birth of freedom, in our homeland,

Khalistan.

The Indian government is scared of the Sikh Nation's

aspiration for freedom. Recently, it set off an incident in

which Baba Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh dressed up as Guru Gobind

Singh and advertised in the newspaper, offering to give Amrit

to anyone, a function reserved for the Panj Piaras after Guru

Gobind Singh baptized them. In addition, it recently put up a

statue of Beant Singh, former Chief Minister of Punjab, who

presided over the killing of a majority of the 250,000-plus

Sikhs who have been murdered. Simranjit Singh Mann and Wassan

Singh Zaffarwal were arrested for peacefully protesting the

statue. In 2005, 35 Sikhs were arrested for making speeches

and raising the flag of Khalistan. All these repressive acts

are in the spirit of the Golden Temple attack and continue

the repression. They are evidence that we must free Khalistan

now.

Let us remind the Indian government that we have not

forgotten the atrocities committed against the Khalsa panth

at the Golden Temple and from then on. It is time to reclaim

our freedom. India must act like the democracy it claims to

be and grant a free and fair plebiscite on the issue of

Khalistan under international supervision. It must stop

arresting Sikh activists for peaceful political activity. And

we must honor the spirits of Bhindranwale and all the others

killed at the Golden Temple and the 37 other Gurdwaras by

launching a Shantmai Morcha to liberate our homeland,

Khalistan, once and for all. Until then, we will continue to

suffer under India's brutal repression. Let's see to it that

our Sikh brothers and sisters finally enjoy the glow of

freedom. I ask Sikhs of all shades and political affiliations

to join hands to free Khalistan. Remember the words of the

former Jathedar of the akal Takht Sahib, Professor Darshan

Singh, that ``If a Sikh is not a Khalistani, he is not a

Sikh.''

Sincerely,

Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh,

President,

Council of Khalistan.

Madam Speaker, India is again promoting sectarian violence in pursuit of its continued control of the Sikhs and other minorities. A fake baba named Baba Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh, who is sponsored by the Indian government, created a sect called Dera Sacha Sauda, one of many sects set up to divide the Sikh people. He took out a newspaper ad in which he dressed up as Guru Gobind Singh and offered to perform the rite of Amrit, which not anyone can perform, for anyone who contacted him. Performing this rite is reserved for specific religious leaders.

This ad caused massive protests, as it was an insult to the Sikh religion. Those demonstrations turned violent. A man named Kanwaljit Singh was murdered by the followers of the Dera when he went there to confront them about Ram Rahim's behavior.

This marks an ongoing practice of promoting violence in the minority communities so as to divide and rule them. As they did in Gujarat a few years ago, the Hindu government set in motion bloodshed to keep the minority community--Muslims then, Sikhs now--divided.

Madam Speaker, this is reprehensible, unacceptable, and undemocratic. It is outrageous behavior for any government and it should not be supported by countries like ours. We must stop aid and trade with India and we must support freedom for Khalistan and the other nations seeking their freedom from Indian rule.

The Council of Khalistan put out a good press release condemning the Indian government's incitement of sectarian violence.

Council of Khalistan Condemns Promotion of Sectarian Violence by India

Washington, DC, May 16, 2007.--The Council of Khalistan

condemned the recent violence in Punjab, sparked by an

advertisement in the newspaper by Baba Gurmit Ram Rahim

Singh, the head of Dera Sacha Sauda, in which Baba Gurmit Ram

Rahim Singh dressed as Guru Gobind Singh and advertised that

he would give Amrit to anyone who asked. This is reserved

only for the Panj Plaras. This is an insult to the Sikh

religion and clearly backed by the Indian government, said

Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh, President of the Council of

Khalistan, the government pro tempore of Khalistan, which

leads the struggle for Khalistan's independence.

``There are no Deras or sects in the Sikh religion. There

is only one Sikh religion and Sikh Nation,'' said Dr. Aulakh.

``Fake Babas like Baba Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh are part of the

Indian government's ongoing effort to weaken the Sikh

religion and prevent Sikhs from achieving freedom,'' he said,

Next month marks the anniversary of the Golden Temple

massacre, Dr. Aulakh noted. During that attack, young boys

ages 8 to 13 were taken outside and asked if they supported

Khalistan, the independent Sikh country. When they answered

with the Sikh religious phrase ``Bole So Nihal,'' they were

shot to death. The Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy

scriptures, written in the time of the Sikh Gurus, were shot

full of bullet holes and burned by the Indian forces.

Former President Bill Clinton wrote in the foreword to

Madeleine Albright's book that Indian forces were responsible

for the massacre of 38 Sikhs in 2000 in the village of

Chithisinghpora. Recently, two leading Sikh activists were

arrested for peacefully protesting the construction of a

statue to honor Beant Singh, the late Chief Minister who

presided over the murder of tens of thousands of Sikhs. In

2005, 35 Sikhs were arrested for making speeches and raising

the flag of Khalistan. Sikh farmers are forced by the

government to buy supplies and seeds for unaffordably high

prices and forced to sell their crops well below market

prices.

``These incidents show that we need to free our homeland,

Khalistan,'' said Dr. Aulakh. ``Remember what former Akal

Takht Jathedar Professor Darshan Singh said: `If a Sikh is

not a Khalistani, he is not a Sikh.' ''

A report issued by the Movement Against State Repression

(MASR) shows that India admitted that it held 52,268

political prisoners under the repressive ``Terrorist and

Disruptive Activities Act'' (TADA) even though it expired in

1995. Many have been in illegal custody since 1984. There has

been no list published of those who were acquitted under TADA

and those who are still rotting in Indian jails.

Additionally, according to Amnesty International, there are

tens of thousands of other minorities being held as political

prisoners. MASR report quotes the Punjab Civil Magistracy as

writing ``if we add up the figures of the last few years the

number of innocent persons killed would run into lakhs

[hundreds of thousands.]'' The Indian government has murdered

over 250,000 Sikhs since 1984. more than 300,000 Christians

in Nagaland, over 90,000 Muslims in Kashmir, tens of

thousands of Christians and Muslims throughout the country,

and tens of thousands of Tamils, Assamese, Manipuris, and

others. The Indian Supreme Court called the Indian

government's murders of Sikhs ``worse than a genocide.''

``Only in a free Khalistan will the Sikh Nation prosper and

get justice,'' said Dr. Aulakh. ``When Khalistan is free, we

will have our own Ambassadors, our own representation in the

UN and other international bodies, and our own leaders to

keep this sort of thing from happening. We won't be at the

mercy of the brutal Indian regime and its Hindu militant

allies,'' he said. ``Democracies don't commit genocide. India

should act like a democracy and allow a plebiscite on

independence for Khalistan and all the nations of South

Asia,'' Dr. Aulakh said. ``We must continue to pray for and

work for our God-given birthright of freedom,'' he said.

``Without political power, religions cannot flourish and

nations perish.''

Madam Speaker, as you mow, the government of Canada has undertaken another investigation into the 1985 Air India bombing. Recently, the Council of Khalistan wrote to the Canadian Justice Minister about that investigation.

The letter states that ``the Indian government continues to try to blame Sikhs for this atrocity, despite the fact that Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri were acquitted by a Canadian judge, who said that the witnesses against them were not credible.'' In the letter, Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh, President of the Council of Khalistan, notes that the Canadian Security Investigation Service (CSIS) said at the time, ``if you really want to clear the incidents quickly, take vans down to the Indian High Commission and the consulates in Toronto and Vancouver, load up everybody and take them down for questioning. We know it and they know it that they were involved.''

The Indian Consul General in Toronto, Mr. Surinder Malik, pulled his wife and daughter off the flight at the last minute. A friend of his who was a car dealer also cancelled his reservation suddenly. Mr. Malik called in a lot of information about the case before the incident was even public knowledge, including a tip to look for an ``L. Singh'' on the passenger manifest. ``L. Singh'' was the name under which one of the bombers held his tickets. The other was ``M. Singh.'' Later, a man named Lal

Singh told the press that he was offered ``two million dollars and settlement in a nice country'' to give false testimony in the case--an offer that Mr. Singh declined. It seems that, as Zuhair Kashmeri and Brian McAndrew, the Canadian journalists who wrote the definitive book on the case, Soft Target, noted, ``[Consul General] Malik knew more details about the two blasts than did the police investigators.'' How did this Indian government official know so much so soon?

He also admitted that he fed information to the Toronto Globe and Mail to make a stronger case to blame the Sikhs for the bombing. This was part of a coordinated Indian government effort to paint the Sikh community as terrorists.

It is also worth noting that the Sikh group on whom India has placed the blame all these years is a group called Babbar Khalsa. It is heavily infiltrated by the Indian government. So by trying to blame Babbar Khalsa, the government is essentially taking the blame itself.

I recommend to all my colleagues that they read this informative letter.

This is just further proof, if any is needed, that India is a regime that will carry out acts of terror to promote its own political objectives. Remember that India has killed more than a quarter of a million Sikhs, according to the Punjab State Magistracy, and hold over 52,000 of them as political prisoners, according to the Movement Against State Repression. As I have asked before, why does a democracy need a Movement Against State Repression anyway? Amnesty International reports that tens of thousands of other minorities are held as political prisoners in India, and it has killed over 90,000 Kashmiri Muslims, over 300,000 Christians in Nagaland, and tens of thousands of other minorities as well.

Why should the American people and government support such a government, especially at a time when we are putting our young people on the front lines to fight against terrorism? The time has come to cut off our aid to Indian, end our trade with them, and put Congress on record in support of the freedom movements there. This is the way to peace, freedom, prosperity, and stability in South Asia, Madam Speaker.

Council of Khalistan,

Washington, DC, May 16, 2007.

Hon. Robert Douglas Nicholson,

Justice Minister of Canada,

House of Commons, Ottawa, Canada.

Dear Minister Nicholson: I am writing in regard to your new

inquiry into the Air India Flight 182 bombing of 1985. I see

no purpose for this ongoing inquiry. As you know, the Indian

government continues to try to blame Sikhs for this atrocity,

despite the fact that Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh

Bagri were acquitted by a Canadian judge, who said that the

witnesses against them were ``not credible.''

Shortly after the bombing occurred, two Canadian

journalists, Zuhair Kashmeri of the Toronto Globe and Mail

and Brian McAndrew of the Toronto Star, wrote an excellent

book on the case entitled Soft Target, which proves that the

Indian government itself carried out the bombing. This

finding is confirmed in a book by former Member of Parliament

David Kilgour entitled Betrayal: The Spy Canada Abandoned. I

urge you to call Mr. Kashmeri and Mr. Mcandrew as witnesses

in the inquiry.

Soft Target shows how the Indian regime bombed its own

airliner in 1985, killing 329 innocent people, to justify

further repression against the Sikhs. The book quotes an

investigator from the Canadian Security Investigation Service

as saying, ``If you really want to clear the incidents

quickly, take vans down to the Indian High Commission and the

consulates in Toronto and Vancouver, load up everybody and

take them down for questioning. We know it and they know it

that they are involved.''

Among many other things, they note that the Indian Consul

General in Toronto, Mr. Surinder Malik (no relation to

Ripudaman Singh Malik), called in a detailed description of

the disaster just hours later when it took the Canadian

investigators weeks to find that information. He told them

that they should check the passenger manifest for an ``L.

Singh'' because he was responsible--before there was any

public knowledge of the bombing!

According to Wikipedia, on June 20, 1985, two days before

the flight, ``at 1910 GMT, a man paid for the two tickets

with $3,005 in cash at a CP ticket office in Vancouver. The

names on the reservations were changed; `Jaswand Singh'

became `M. Singh' and `Mohinderbel Singh' became `L. Singh.'

''. Note that this is the same name that Consul General Malik

told investigators to look for--``L. Singh.''

It would later come out in newspaper reports that a Sikh

named Lal Singh told the press that he was offered ``two

m111ion dollars and settlement in a nice country'' by the

Indian regime to give false testimony in the case.

Consul General Malik had also pulled his wife and daughter

off the flight suddenly at the last minute, on the feeble

excuse that the daughter had a paper for school. A friend of

Consul General Malik's who was a Car dealer also cancelled at

the last minute.

According to Kashmeri and McAndrew, ``Curiously, [Consul

General] Malik knew more details about the two blasts than

did the police investigators. . . . Malik said that while one

of the suspects was booked to Japan, the other was booked to

Toronto and onwards to Bombay. He also said that the two

checked their bomb-laden bags but did not board the flight

themselves. In sum, Malik had painted a scenario of the

double sabotage operation that was a near perfect account of

what the Mounties would take weeks to fathom.

[Consul General] Malik continually fed the Globe

information pointing to Sikh terrorists as the source of the

bombs. He was behind another story six days after the crash,

this one headlined `Air-India pilot reported given parcel by

Sikh.'.'' Kashmeri and McAndrew also wrote, ``Malik pressured

the Globe to publish this story, adding that it could be used

to make a stronger case for blaming the Air-India and Narita

bombings on the Babbar Khalsa leader. Malik also decried the

Canadian system of justice for failing to come up with a

quick solution to the bombings. `In India we would have had a

confession by now. You people have too many civil and human-

rights laws,' he complained.''

The Sikh organization that the Indian government said was

responsible, Babbar Kahlsa, is and was then heavily

infiltrated by Indian government operatives at very high

levels of the organization. The main backer of the group had

received a $2 million loan from the State Bank of India just

before the plane was attacked, according to Soft Target. The

year after the bombing, three Indian consuls general were

asked to leave the country.

In his book, Kilgour wrote that Canadian-Polish double

agent Ryszard Paszkowski was approached to join a plot to

carry out a second bombing. The people who approached

Paszkowski were connected to the Indian government.

Yet the Indian government continues to apply pressure to

find some Sikhs guilty of the bombing. I am sure that your

inquiry will be conducted with fairness and justice. I hope

that you will find the real culprits and put this matter to

rest. The bombing was an Indian government operation from the

beginning.

If there is anything I can do to assist you, please feel

free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh,

President, Council of Khalistan.

Madam Speaker, recently it has been discovered that the Chief Minister of Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal, went and met with a Punjabi cult leader named Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh, who claimed to be a baba and was recently in the news for dressing up as the last Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh, and offering Amrit to anyone who called. Amrit is a very sacred ceremony in the Sikh religion and it cannot be done by just anyone. Ram Rahim also has murder and rape charges pending against him. Yet Mr. Badal went to him and bowed, seeking votes. Ironically, Ram Rahim came out for Mr. Badal's political opponents, the Congress Party.

As Chief Minister, one of Mr. Badal's chief responsibilities is maintaining law and order. Yet he seeks support from this fake religious leader instead of prosecuting him for the damage he has done to the Sikh community and to Punjab.

Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh, President of the Council of Khalistan, has issued a press release condenming Badal's activities. It shows that chief Minister is allied with the Indian government against the Sikh people. Remember that when Badal was chief Minister before, he presided over the most corrupt government in Punjab's history. They even renamed bribery ``fee for service.'' His wife could tell the amount of money in a bag just by picking it up.

Only by freeing themselves of Indian rule will the Sikhs be able to rid themselves of this kind of anti-Sikh leadership. The U.S. government can help by stopping aid and trade with India until criminals such as Ram Rahim are prosecuted and all human rights are observed and by putting ourselves on record publicly in support of self-determination for the Sikhs of Punjab, Khalistan, the Muslims of Kashmir, the Christians of Nagalim, and all the people seeking freedom in South Asia in the form of a free and fair vote. Isn't that the democratic way? The people of Kashmir were promised a vote on their status in 1948. They're still waiting.

Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening to say farewell to a great friend and a great American, Jack Valenti, who passed away last Thursday.

When Jack spoke, people listened. His soaring eloquence and remarkable intellect made this town a better place and all of us better legislators. How lucky we were to know him and to have him as a resource and a friend.

Jack served in President Lyndon Johnson's administration, and made his name and reputation early. Jack quickly became known as a hard worker, making friends with both Democrats and Republicans alike. When Jack resigned his White House position and became president of the Motion Picture Association of America, his star really began to shine.

We are going to miss Jack Valenti, a person that had the ability to bring people together, a person that had the ability to let people understand that we all need each other.

Jack, we are going to miss you, but I am certain you will be screening pictures in heaven.

Madam Speaker, today, Washington welcomes Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan, a country that has been our good and trusted ally in Asia. The Prime Minister's visit promises to further cement this important and expanding U.S.-Japan relationship.

Our strong ties depend upon our shared values of democracy and human rights or as his Foreign Minister notes, a ``values oriented diplomacy.'' Unfortunately, the rhetoric does not consistently match Tokyo's actions towards its neighbors and allies. This is dramatically true in regard to the Comfort Women tragedy where possibly as many as 200,000 women and girls were pressed into sexual servitude for the Imperial Armed Forces of Japan.

My colleague, Mr. Honda, is the leader on this issue and introduced on January 31, 2007, H. Res. 121, legislation that calls upon Japan to ``acknowledge, apologize, and accept historical responsibility in a clear and unequivocal statement for Imperial Japan's Armed Force's maintenance of a system of sexual slavery, presently known to the world as `Comfort Women,' during its colonial and wartime occupation of Asia and the Pacific Islands.''

On February 15, 2007, Mr. Faleomavaega, chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and the Global Environment, held a moving hearing with three survivors of this abusive Imperial Japanese government sanctioned and maintained system. It was clear from their testimony that these women needed, but had not received an adequate apology for their suffering and humiliation from the Government of Japan.

Clearly their experience is neither new nor has this sort of violence against women stopped. The topic of sex slavery is not merely a historical footnote, but has relevance to today's world where human trafficking is exploding and rape is a feature of ethnic conflict. Thus, it should come as no surprise that H. Res. 121 has substantial bipartisan support, with nearly 100 cosponsors.

To date, a careful analysis of the Japanese political process shows that Japan has never provided an official governmental apology to the Comfort Women. This is incredible. Do the Japanese think we do not understand their political system, nor care to?

It is also a concern of Congress that Tokyo's apparent insensitivity, it's surprising and insistent focus on narrow definitions and self- seeking legalisms convincing to no one but a few, even in Japan, is harming U.S. relationships in Asia and adding instability to an already volatile region.

An unequivocal admission of past wrongdoing toward the Comfort Women would remove an outstanding moral issue weakening the ties between Japan and major U.S. allies in the region. But more important, it would demonstrate Japan's commitment to human rights, women's rights, and underscore its very new efforts to combat human trafficking. Officially apologizing to the surviving Comfort Women is ``value oriented diplomacy.''

Getting history right and taking formal responsibility for historical misdeeds are the marks of a great nation. An apology from Japan with respect to the Comfort Women would enhance Japan's over 60-year history of constructive and responsible membership in the today's world community and our alliance.

Madam Speaker, for all these reasons, I hope that my colleagues will join in co-sponsoring H. Res. 121 to signal that the U.S. is very concerned about this important request for social justice and human dignity from Japan.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute and honor to the work and achievements of Reverend Dr. Kevin Bond. Beginning at age 11, Dr. Bond began to gravitate toward the church. He studied the bible under Bishop Carl E. Williams, Sr. for whom he became an Associate Minister after orating his first sermon at the age of 18.

Dr. Bond enhanced his biblical knowledge by receiving a collegiate education. He earned High Honors at the Community Bible and Tabernacle Bible Institute and the New York School of the Bible. He also received a Masters of Divinity from the New York Theological Seminary and a Doctorate of Ministry from the United Theological Seminary in Dayton,

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day. I join the Jewish communities of my district in Brooklyn, the entire American Jewish community, and the State of Israel in recognizing this barbaric chapter of world history.

Over 60 years ago, the Nazi regime in Germany began the wholesale slaughter of the European Jewry. This occurred with little public outrage in the United States and the international community. The world, as well the American government under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, refused to act to save European Jewry and that silence undoubtedly contributed to the death of six million Jews, a million of whom were children.

When we hear the number six million, we shudder. The enormity of that number is paralyzing. Merely trying to count to six million would take months. Imagining the Nazi death machine executing so many human beings is daunting. Particularly for those of us who have not survived the Holocaust, absorbing the reality of that destruction from survivors is so essential to passing on the history of the Holocaust.

The moving museums and heart wrenching memorials dedicated to the Holocaust across the United States are vital in educating today's youth about the horrors of the Holocaust, and I want to commend all organizations and groups that are committed to this important work. It is additionally critical that European countries preserve the glaring remnants of the Holocaust that still exist today. Whether they are death camps, mass gravesites, cemeteries, synagogues or other holy sites from pre-Holocaust Europe, European governments have an obligation to preserve those sites for future generations. Sadly, numerous European countries including Lithuania, Ukraine and Romania have on occasion shirked their responsibilities in this regard.

While we remember the absolute devastation the Holocaust wrought on the Jewish community, we also mark the strength of those who heroically resisted the Nazis including those who fought in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and at the Sobibor extermination camp.

I am privileged to represent a large but dwindling population of Holocaust survivors in my district. Many of these survivors rebuilt their lives with nothing more than the shirt on their back. Today, based on the strong foundations of those Holocaust survivors, the beautiful Jewish communities of Williamsburg, Midwood and Canarsie have flourished. These communities represent the best of Jewish life and have been instrumental in resurrecting religious life in the aftermath of the Holocaust by creating synagogues, yeshivas, and other religious institutions.

Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize the efforts of organizations that have taken extraordinary steps in servicing and caring for the Holocaust survivor population in my district: The Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty; The United Jewish Organizations of Williamsburg; The Council of Jewish Organizations of Flatbush; The Jewish Community Council of Canarsie; The Conference of Jewish Material Claims Against Germany; Peasch Tikvah and all the Bikkur Cholim organizations. Their selfless work for Holocaust survivors continues to serve as an inspiration to me and I am honored to recognize their hard work.

Madam Speaker, I join my colleagues here today in remembering the Holocaust. Though there are still Holocaust deniers today, it is imperative that we never forget.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to express my sorrow and disbelief over the massacre at Virginia Tech. I join a country and Congress, especially my colleague from Virginia, that are still experiencing profound mourning and shock. I extend my deepest sympathies to the families and friends of all the Virginia Tech victims. We all continue to have the injured victims in our prayers.

I particularly want to recognize the heroism of Virginia Tech Professor, Liviu Librescu, who was gunned down while blocking his classroom door while he and his students were under attack, ultimately sacrificing his own life for those of his students.

Mr. Librescu, age seventy-six, was born in Romania and survived the Holocaust and his interment in a labor camp and Focsani ghetto. He and his family later survived the oppression of the Romanian dictator, Nicolae Ceaucescu, and ultimately left Romania for Israel after then Israeli Prime Minister, Menachem Begin, personally intervened for the family's release. He came to Virginia Tech to teach in 1986.

Liviu Librescu was a celebrated scientist who was an expert in composite structures and aeroelasticity, which worked earned him NASA grants and other prestigious awards for his impressive work.

Madam Speaker. Liviu Librescu is to be buried imminently in his native Israel.

Yesterday, the Jewish community, in my native Brooklyn, volunteered to hold a service for Mr. Librescu in Borough Park and hundreds of Brooklyn residents gathered to pay their respects to Mr. Librescu and his widow Marlena Librescu, before they returned to Israel. The care and concern shown by the Brooklyn community for the Librescus, was truly remarkable.

I think New York State Assemblyman, Dov Hikind, said it best when he remarked about Mr. Librescu that, ``not only was he a hero of the Jewish people, but a hero of all people''.

May his remembrance be a blessing.

Madam Speaker, on April 13 and 14, the Sikhs community celebrated Vaisakhi Day with events in Washington, New York, London, Canada, Australia, and wherever Sikhs live. It was a very proud day for them. The Washington, DC, event was led by Dr. Paramjit Singh Ajrawat, a well-known Sikh activist and supporter of a free Khalistan.

Large numbers of Sikhs showed up in these locations to celebrate the day. They called for freedom for the Sikh nation. They raised slogans in support of Khalistan, the Sikh homeland. Freedom is the birthright of all peoples and nations.

When America became independent, Punjab was already independent. Dr. Gunnit Singh Aulakh, president of the Council of Khalistan, has called on Sikhs to celebrate Vaisakhi Day by rededicating themselves to achieving the freedom that is their birthright.

Madam Speaker, we should put this Congress on record with a resolution in support of self-determination for Khalistan and throughout the subcontinent. Why is India opposed to a free and fair vote on the matter, in the democratic way? We should end our aid and trade with India until I the basic rights of all are allowed to be enjoyed, the way that democratic countries behave.

Vaisakhi Day Celebrated With Parades, Events

Washington, DC, Apr. 14, 2007.--Vaisakhi Day, the 308th

anniversary of the creation and consecration of the Khalsa

Panth by Guru Gobind Singh, is being celebrated with parades

and events in Washington, London, New York, Canada, England,

Australia, and around the world.

The Washington parade occurs on April 14 under the

leadership of Dr. Paramjit Singh

Ajrawat with the cooperation of the local Sikh Gurdwaras.

Later in April, the annual Sikh Day Parade in New York will

be held.

Guru Gobind baptized the first five baptized Sikhs, known

as the Panj Piaras, on Vaisakhi Day in 1699, then asked them

to baptize him. He declared, ``In grieb Sikhin ko deon

Patshahi (``I give sovereignty to the humble Sikhs'') Just

two years after his departure from this earthly plane in

1708, the Sikhs established their own independent state in

Punjab.

At the time that America became independent, Punjab was an

independent country already. It was independent from 1710 to

1716 and again from 1765 to 1849, when the British conquered

South Asia. Today Sikhs struggle to regain the sovereignty

that Guru Gobind Singh bestowed upon them over 300 years ago.

Vaisakhi Day is the anniversary of the founding of the

Khalsa. On Vaisakhi Day in 1699, Guru Gobind Singh baptized

the Sikhs and required them to keep the five Ks. He made the

Sikhs into saints and soldiers. That memory is celebrated on

Vaisakhi Day each year.

``I send Vaisakhi Day greetings to all Sikhs and I urge all

Sikhs to take this occasion to fulfill Guru Gobind Singh's

vision by working to liberate our homeland, Khalistan, from

Indian oppression,'' said Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh, President

of the Council of Khalistan, which leads the struggle to

achieve independence for Khalistan. Khalistan declared itself

independent on October 7, 1987. Over 250,000 Sikhs have been

killed since the Indian government attacked the Golden Temple

in Amritsar in June 1984. More than 52,000 are being held as

political prisoners, some for over 20 years.

``Vaisakhi Day should be a time to renew our commitment to

freedom for our Sikh brothers and sisters in Punjab,

Khalistan so they can live in prosperity, dignity, and

security. Only a free Khalistan can end the repression of the

Sikh Nation,'' Dr. Aulakh said. ``Always remember our

heritage: Raj Kare Ga Khalsa; Khalsa Bagi Van Badshah.

Freedom for Khalistan is closer than ever. Now is the time to

claim it''

Madam Speaker, April 13 is a very important day in the Sikh community. It is called Vaisakhi Day, the anniversary of the consecration or the Khalsa Panth in 1699 by Guru Gobind Singh. It is celebrated in Sikh families around the world. There is a parade here in DC and later one in New York. I rise today to offer Vaisakhi Day greetings to the Sikh community.

Recently, the Council of Khalistan issued Vaisakhi greetings to the Sikh Nation. In the letter, Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh, President of the Council of Khalistan urges the Sikh nation to work for the liberation of Khalistan, the Sikh homeland that declared its independence from India on October 7, 1987. The Indian govemment has subjected the Sikhs and other minorities, such as Christians, Muslims, and others, to major atrocities. Over a quarter of a million Sikhs have been murdered by the government since 1984. More than 90,000 Kashmiri Muslims, over 300,000 Christians in Nagaland, and lens of thousands of other minorities have lost their lives at the hands of the regime and its operatives. The Movement Against State Repression reports that more than 52,000 Sikhs are being held as political prisoners without charge or trial, as well as tens of thousands of other minorities.

Freedom is the birthright of all peoples and nations, and Dr. Aulakh points out that Guru Gobind Singh conferred sovereignty on the Sikh Nation. That birthright has been suppressed.

Dr. Aulakh also pointed out the ongoing activities in support of Khalistan in Punjab and elsewhere. On behalf of the Sikh nation, Dr. Awatar Singh Sekhon recently submitted a memorandum on the oppression of the Sikhs and the need for independence to the United Nations Human rights Commission in Geneva. Former Member of Parliament Atinder Pal Singh ran in the recent Punjab elections on a platform supporting Khalistan. He also organized a seminar on Khalistan. Sikh leaders were arrested on two separate occasions just for making speeches in support of Khalistan and raising the Khalistani flag. Jagjit Singh, President of Dal Khalsa, was quoted in the Deccan Herald as saying that ``the Indian goverument can never suppress the movement. Sikh aspirations can only be met when they have a separate state.'' Yet lndia prefers to continue its repression, stationing half a million troops in Punjab alone.

Only independence will allow the Sikhs and the other oppressed minorities to live in freedom, prosperity, security, and dignity, which is their birthright. It is clear that as long as they remain under India's rule, they cannot get just and fair treatment. The atrocities will continue. This is unacceptable, Madam Speaker.

We should be on record in support of self-determination for Khalistan and throughout the subcontinent. We should also stop our aid and trade with India until it learns to respect the human rights of all people. This is in accord with American principles and these are practical steps we can take to bring real freedom to South Asia.

[April 4, 2007]

Vaisakhi Day Message to the Sikh Nation

Dear Khalsa Ji: WAHEGURU JI KA KHALSA, WAHEGURU JI KI