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Pallavi BHATTE* Agora: Journal of International Center for Regional Studies, No.7, 2010 81 【Article】 Sikhs in Britain: A Brief Discussion on Succession of Culture and Spirit Pallavi BHATTE* Introduction 1. Geographical background and brief history of Sikhism 2. Sikh Emigration and phases of settlement of Sikhs in UK 3. Application of the terminology of diaspora 4. Identity Politics 5. Succession of Spirit and Culture Conclusion Keywords: Sikh; diaspora; Migrant networks; Ethno-religious Identity; Community; Transnational Introduction Concepts of diaspora and transnationalism are a comparatively modern phenomenon eliciting natural questions such as “origin,” “homeland,” “lands of settlement,” and “networks” of people. The Sikh diasporic community is dominant in Canada, the United Sates and the United Kingdom. This paper will explain the capacity, role and complexities of understanding the Sikhs as a community in the multicultural society of UK and common misunderstanding of their “mixed nationalistic loyalties.” Foremost, this paper deals with the problems of the term ‘diaspora’ and the need for interpreting it in the case of Sikhs in UK through the lens of the contemporary context of globalization. Elaborating on the formation of the Sikh community in UK it aims at demonstrating the life of Sikhs as an ethnic identity having an attachment to their land of settlement. This paper will be focused exclusively on the ‘diaspora’ narrative and given that other narratives exist, this does not discount or reject them or treat the Sikh community as a monolith. 1. Geographical background and brief history of Sikhism In order to understand the Sikh Diaspora in UK it is of prime importance to look into their history of emigration and geographical background. Sikhs are a religious community hailing from the region of Punjab. The area currently known as the Greater Punjab comprises what were once vast territories of eastern Pakistan and north western India.1） Today this area has been divided by a distinct border which separates the two nations of India and Pakistan, which were one prior to August 15, 1947. This date marked the unfortunate partition of India and the Islamic * Human and Environmental Studies Department, Kyoto University 1）See Imperial Gazetteer of India, (Vol.20, p.245) published by Clarendon Press in 24 volumes from1908-1931. 82 Agora: Journal of International Center for Regional Studies state of Pakistan and also the disintegration of the region of Punjab.2） The founder Guru Nanak (1469-1539) expounded the Sikh philosophy and it was the last human guru of the Sikh lineage of the ten, Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) who gave Sikhs their symbolic appearance3） and militancy. Owing to which most of their historic shrines4） are found in the territory on either side of the border separating India from Pakistan, an area that was, prior to partition, considered part of Punjab. This paper will look at the Sikh community from the perspective of India as their home society. 2. Sikh Emigration and phases of settlement of Sikhs in UK Punjab was annexed by the British in 1849 5） and the political fate of the Sikh Empire was sealed. In the years to follow the predominantly rural Punjab developed into a major wheat- producing region whose export market included Great Britain. With the expansion of the rail system, the communication systems became a channel for the exchange of goods and people. The partition of Punjab in 1947 was another major breakdown which added to the disillusionments of the Sikhs. Between the years 1849 to 1947, the Sikh community spread across various countries around the world namely USA, Canada, parts of East Africa and the Hong Kong and the Malaya States.6） Most of the early emigrations were as soldiers recruited in the British Army who chose to settle down abroad after their retirement. Also there were those who returned back home to tell the tales of the distant lands. Political tensions back home and the stories of freedom enjoyed by their kin abroad gave birth to the Push factor and they were tempted to seek out. Moreover financial leverage acted as a catalyst in the Push factor. From Sojourners to Settlers Maharaja Duleep Singh was the last heir of the Sikh Empire and was exiled to Britain in 1856. He was lived on a Suffolk estate under the affection of Queen and died in 1893. The 1930s marked a wave of small emigrant community from Punjab most of whom worked as pedlars, settling around the Midlands and the North. The next wave was seen in the 1950s, when Britain began importing labor from its current and ex-colonies. It was the voucher system that enabled numerous Sikhs who were ex-servicemen, to migrate. Their intention was short term financial gains which they hope to take back home. However to their dismay the restrictive immigration 2）The name Punjab also spelt as Panja¯b is derived from the five rivers namely, Jhelum, the Chenab, the Ravi, the Sutlej and the Indus that flow through the region and hence the name Punjab refers to as the “Land of the five rivers.” Therefore Punjabi is an adjectival form of Punjab and corresponds to the ethno-linguistic cultural group who has roots in this region including the diaspora. 3）Members are required to wear five symbols or Kalars (5K’s) to mark their Sikh identity: kesh- “covered hair,” kachcha- “shorts for underwear,” kara- “steel bangle,” kirpan- “steel dagger,” and kanga- “comb.” 4）India: Five Takhts Harmandir Sahib or commonly known as the Golden Temple of Amritsar. Pakistan: Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of the founder Guru Nanak. 5）Second Anglo-Sikh War took place in 1848 and 1849, between the independent Sikh Empire and the British Empire. The victory of the British East India Company resulted in the subjugation of the Sikh kingdom, and the annexation of Punjab and what subsequently became the North-West Frontier Province. 6）D. S. Tatla. The Sikh Diaspora: The Search for Statehood. London: UCL Press, 1999. Pallavi BHATTE：Sikhs in Britain: A Brief Discussion on Succession of Culture and Spirit 83 laws along with a new lease of life induced their families to join them for permanent settlement.7） Gradually more and more Sikhs with similar intentions joined in from Punjab. Towards the end of the 1960’s the numbers swelled to its maximum. An entirely new wave of Sikhs began migrating to the UK in the 1970’s. This time however, it was form East Africa. This period also marked the movement of a migrant Sikh community from Hong Kong which was yet under the control of the British. According to Tatla, estimates of Sikh population in the United Kingdom vary from 300,000 in 1981 to over 500,000 in the 1990s. The Sikhs may have migrated in circumstances that may vary. It should be noted that whether it be the initial groups directly from Punjab or the “twice migrants” from East African countries such as Kenya due to the Africanisation policies8） and Hong Kong, the common factor which binds them irrespective of their caste and migration pattern is their place of origin and belonging to the greater Punjab. The Khalistan Problem post 1984: In June 1984, the Indira Gandhi led government sent nearly a quarter million troops to Punjab, sealed the state from the rest of the world including foreign press, and conducted ‘Operation Bluestar,’ in order to vacate the Golden Temple where militants sought refuge. According to the White Paper on the Punjab agitation released by the Government of India their aim was to “remove terrorists, criminals and their weapons from sacred place of worship.” Under the leadership of Jarnail Singh Bindranwale, head of Damdami Taksaal9） who had gained large following as a popular Saint, the militants claimed their desire for a separate state.10） Moreover the Indian government’s treatment of the issue, the destruction of the Golden Temple, the so- called martyrdom of Jarnail Singh Bindranwale drew a vigorous reaction which shook the emotional bonds that linked Sikhs to India, leading to a cry for a Sikh homeland. Large numbers of Sikh adherents were under tremendous pressure and pushed them to flee from threat of life arising from the repercussions reverberated by the subsequent assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. This event forced large numbers of Sikhs to seek shelter abroad. UK was one of the several destinations. In this context several authors linked this aspect of migration of the Sikh community worldwide as having direct interpretation of the classical diaspora of dispersion. (Take this to application of diaspora) 3. Application of the terminology of diaspora Broad debates taking place over the abundant usages of, and references to, the word “diaspora” in the contemporary world need no introduction. Whether the attribution of the 7）For further account on this period See Arthur Helweg, Sikhs in England (New Delhi: oxford University Press, 1986.) 8）See, Parminder Bhachu, Twice Migrants: East African Sikh settlers in Britain. London: Tavistock Publications, 1985. 9） Taksaal is a school for Sikh religious instruction with its headquarters in Amritsar. 10）Pashaura Singh and N. Gerald Barrier, eds., Sikhism and history. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2004. 84 Agora: Journal of International Center for Regional Studies diaspora concept to the case of the Sikhs is appropriate, is a prime question which demands scrutiny. Until the 1960’s the term was confined to the Jewish and Christian histories of religions.11） It was only in the 1960’s that this term had widened and applied to every group of dispersed people, from expatriates to refugees and from immigrants to activists in exile. According to the Israeli sociologist Judith Shuval (2003), “before the 1969’s, immigrant groups were generally expected to shed their ethnic identity and assimilate to local norms.
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