Sikh Refugee Story is Incomplete
The problem with the story about the paralyzed illegal immigrant who is seeking sanctuary in a Sikh temple is that we haven't been given enough real information to make a sound judgement.
Why did he enter Canada on a fake passport? From what, if anything is he running? What might reasonably be his fate if he returned to India? Does he have friends and relatives to care for him in India?
His paralysis, while compelling is not the issue here. Has he been falsely accused?
Until the media can shed some light on these dark corners of the story we can only stand by and wonder where lies the truth?
3 comments:
Those are very good questions, thanks for asking them (and I hope they get answered!)
Everyone has a story pertaining as the why for their actions. Mr. Laiber Singh who was previously in a care unit (after his brain aneurysm) has taken sanctuary in an Abbotsford Sikh temple stating that if he was deported back to his homeland of India that he would most certainly die. I'm not the one to argue about the validity of Mr Singh's claim, but I am here to point out his successful attempt in entering the country illegally. Yes illegally, like the Chinese migrants that paid off their life-savings and enlisted in a month long boat ride across the Pacific Ocean for a chance at freedom or to escape social/political problems/oppression (sound familiar?). The notion of immigrating to another country usually implies that the person had entered the country while adhering to a set of binded legalities such as proper paperwork and proof of identification to ensure that they will not be deported after settling in Canada for a few years while working illegally (Yes Canada is still that slow after being a country for 140 years mind you). If Mr. Singh had entered Canada through the prescribed legal channels then we wouldn't have to see another person seek sanctuary or suffer a debilitating illness on the day that their deportation papers arrive. Earlier this evening I was listening to Christie Clark on Nightline BC and listened as Harsha Walia (the spokeswoman for No One is Illegal)tag on the notion that Canada should accept Mr. Singh on the notorious Compassionate and Humanitarian grounds. The problem with that school of thought is that anyone that can, will claim the same status as Mr. Singh and expect the same outcome whatever that may be.
On a side note, if you recall Irene Thorpe and her senseless death by a street racer, you'd know that the offender Sukhvir Singh Khosa is still here in Canada having repealed his deportation. When you know that an illegal immigrant has killed someone yet still has the right to stay in the very same country, you know something is terribly wrong.
I see your point Nick,
But Laiber Singh hasn't killed anyone.
Sukhvir Khosa should have been deported - I am a Punjabi Sikh saying that - yes he should have been sent back.
However Laiber Singh is an innocent refugee who would not be able to survive in India.
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