In 2018, Public Safety Canada put out a Public Report on the Terrorism Threat to Canada which included “Sikh (Khalistani) Extremism” as one of the top threats in Canada during that time. It was apparent that this step was taken under pressure from the Government of India.
WSO worked hard with community partners to challenge this unfounded maligning of our community, with our first public statement responding to this disastrous report from the government - “the inclusion of Sikhs in the report seemed like a clear capitulation to the Indian government narrative”. We then followed up with direct advocacy with elected officials across the country in partnership with the Sikh community, gurdwaras and others.
After a four month advocacy campaign, the terms “Sikh” and “Khalistan” were removed from the report, and the Public Safety Minister asked officials to conduct a review and make the appropriate changes to the language used throughout the government to describe extremism.