Toronto, Canada - From a small incident in Quebec the debate to ban the ceremonial dagger worn by Sikhs has landed on Canada's National stage. It all started on Jan-18 when a delegation of Sikhs was barred from entering Quebec's National Assembly after refusing to surrender their kirpans.
Safety was the official reason given by the Assembly's security service for forbidding the Sikhs to wear their kirpans. Ironically, the members of the Sikh community were trying to get in to present their views on Bill 94, anti-niqab and anti-burka legislation that would require anyone dispensing or receiving a government-paid service in places like hospitals and schools to show their faces.
In applauding the exclusion of the Sikh delegation, Louise Beaudoin of the Parti Quebecois expressed disagreement with the Supreme Court's decision. "Multiculturalism might be a Canadian value," she said. "But it is not a Quebec one." The Action democratique du Quebec went a step further by asking the Sikh community living in Quebec to obey their duty of reasonable accommodation for the majority. "It's part of the accommodation. If you come here, you put your kirpan aside," said the ADQ leader, Gerard Deltell.
At the federal level the Bloc Quebecois want to push for the ban of kirpans in the House of Commons. "It was a well-founded decision [in Quebec] and it is perhaps time that Parliament adopt similar rules," the Bloc's whip, Claude DeBellefeuille, said in a statement."It's not a debate about religious symbols or a social debate above and beyond that," she later told The Canadian Press. "It is really a security question and we have to look again at our practices."
Liberal Party leader Michael Ignatieff said kirpan should be allowed in every legislature in Canada. Liberal MP Navdeep Bains who wears the kirpan in the Canadian Parliament reacted strongly "I'm upset and disappointed that this is an issue at all. The kirpan is not a weapon, its an article of faith. I wear my kirpan in the House of Commons, on Monday I wore it in the Newfoundland legislature and I've worn it in the halls of the US Congress. It has never been a problem" Mr. Bains further added " I am especially concerned with the Bloc's incendiary remarks which seem designed to continue to sow the seeds of confusion and mistrust between Canadians. Canada is about acceptance and mutual respect not fear-mongering."
MP for Bramalea-Gore-Malton Gurbax Singh Malhi unequivocally condemned Bloc Quebecois's (BQ). "As a Sikh and turban wearing Member of Parliament, I take Bloc Quebecois' initiative as an affront to Canadian values of tolerance, inclusivity and multiculturalism. Bloc Quebecois and the National Assembly should work with Sikhs rather than throw blame at their colleagues or at Sikhs simply because they are Sikhs" stated MP Gurbax in a statement.
In support of his arguments, MP Malhi also pointed out to the 2006 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada that ruled in favour of the Sikh faith because total ban of kirpan is 'un-Canadian' as it infringes on religious freedoms enshrined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, Honourable Jason Kenney provided the Conservative Government's denouncement of the recent decision by the Bloc Quebecois to refuse Sikh's to carry the Kirpan within the Quebec National Assembly.
The Conservative Party has openly accepted the Five K's of Sikhism and the religious beliefs that are deeply embodied within them. This has been a long ago settled issue, evidenced by the Supreme Court of Canada's ruling on the right for Sikhs to carry the Kirpan in certain public institutions. The Conservative Party unanimously supported this decision, including several other motions to allow Sikhs to freely practice their religion without being targeted.
"This is a non-issue," said Parm Gill, Conservative MP candidate for Brampton-Springdale, "I firmly stand behind the right of Canadians to freely practice their religion and I fully support the Five K's practiced by Canadians of Sikh faith"."The Canadian and Brampton Sikh community should not be targeted and marginalized because of their religious beliefs and practices – this issue has been selfishly used to play political games."
It is not just the Political parties or mainstream media which is debating the Kirpan issue, the ethnic media or we can say the punjabi media in Canada has also joined the debate. Bikram Lamba, who is a guest speaker on a radio show, said at a live TV debate "Kirpan is a weapon and so it should be banned in the Canadian Parliament." On the same TV show Yudhvir Jaswal, Chief Editor of Midweek Newspaper said "I don't think Kirpan is a security issue, I see this as vote bank politics by the Bloc party." Mr Jaswal further added "Yes in my opinion safety does trump reasonable accommodation but as of now picking Kirpan as a safety issues is just fear mongering done by parties to gain political advantage.