Afghan Sikh Hindu refugee families received by defence minister Harjit Sajjan at Calgary airport
The Canadian Bazaar
TORONTO: Two privately sponsored Afghan Sikh Hindu refugee families from Kabul arrived in Canada on Tuesday.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan was among those who welcomed these families at Calgary airport.
“The late Manmeet S. Bhullar’s vision became a reality today. Thanks to the perseverance & dedication of the Bhullar Foundation, the first group of Afghan Sikh and Hindu families fleeing persecution arrived in their new home. They will be supported by those in the local community,’’ Sajjan tweeted after receiving the refugee families.
There were over 200,000 Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan before the Taliban took over in the 1990s and subjected minorities to subjugation and forced conversions. Most of Sikhs and Hindus have fled to India and elsewhere.
The late Alberta minister Manmeet Singh Bhullar, who died in a road accident in 2015 at the young age of 35, had taken the initiative to help the persecuted Sikh and Hindu minorities come to Canada as refugees in 2014.
The Manmeet Singh Bhullar Foundation is now carrying on his mission by asking Canadian families to sponsor Afghan Sikh and Hindu families.
Sajjan said, “We are proud to honour the legacy of my good friend Manmeet Singh Bhullar by welcoming members of this vulnerable population to Canada to offer them a new life and home, while ensuring they have the support they need to thrive.’’
Acccording to Manmeet Bhullar’s sister Tarjinder Bhullar, the foundation is working to bring 65 privately-sponsored Sikh and Hindu families to Canada. The remaining 63 families too will land in Canada in the coming months, she said.
In a statement, the Manmeet Singh Bhullar Foundation said, “Today marks an important step in fulfilling Manmeet’s vision for this project. We hope to continue welcoming other families as they complete the private sponsorship journey. Minister Sajjan’s stalwart leadership, assistance from the Government of Canada, bi-partisan support, and the sheer will of community members throughout Canada to share in this work; brings us to this point. These families can now move from not only surviving, but thriving while living the Canadian dream.”
The World Sikh Organization (WSO), which approached Bhullar when Afghan Sikh Hindu refugee families from Helmand province contacted them for help in 2014, said, “He (Manmeet) single-handedly oversaw the safe exit of each Sikh and Hindu family from Helmand to India and helped find local organizations to assist with their basic needs. As refugees in India have no legal status, receive no government assistance and often live in poverty, Bhullar strongly advocated for steps to help bring these families to Canada.”
The WSO, which is now working with the Manmeet Singh Bhullar Foundation to help Afghan Sikh and Hindu refugees, added, “Sikhs and Hindus have endured increasing religious persecution and today face a difficult, if not unliveable situation in many parts of Afghanistan. The Sikh and Hindu communities that have lived in Afghanistan for hundreds of years, now number less than 1,000 individuals. Prior to 1992, their population numbered over 200,000, however due to persecution and discrimination, most have been forced to flee to other countries. The Afghan Sikh and Hindus remaining in Afghanistan are the most vulnerable who do not have the resources or ability to relocate.’’
