THE World Sikh Organization of Canada kicked off a series of national human rights events with their annual inter-community dinner in Surrey on Monday night. Several hundred guests were in attendance, including several MLAs and representatives from Simon Fraser University, Fraser Health Authority, and RCMP, amongst others.

The night included the performance of classical Sikh music from students of the Naad Academy and a performance by artist Saint Soldier who presented songs about current social issues and challenges facing Punjab.

The World Sikh Organization of Canada has taken up the cause of LaSalle youths told in May they can't play soccer if they wear turbans.

“The risk of the kirpan being used as a weapon has been virtually eliminated,” Balpreet Singh, legal counsel for the World Sikh Organization of Canada, told the Star.

Balpreet Singh, the legal counsel for the World Sikh Organization of Canada, said his association held town halls in Surrey, B.C. and Brampton, Ont., to discuss the reforms and found general opposition. The Conservatives’ bill is “not helpful,” “punishing” and “draconian,” he said. Sikhs fled India because of human rights concerns in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Singh said, so they are also sensitive to another measure in the bill that would give the minister the authority to list any nation a “safe” country, thereby limiting the rights of asylum seekers from that region. “A country can be safe for one group but for certain minorities it might not be safe, and to deny (those citizens) a fair hearing and the right to appeal is unfair,” Singh said.

Balpreet Singh, legal counsel and acting executive director for the World Sikh Association of Canada, says the numbers are not surprising.

“The Indian culture no doubt has a preference for male children, it has been a long-standing issue in India, so it's not a surprise to me that trend is showing up here among immigrant women."

Sometimes I think Sikhs are a little like ink blots. What people see when they spot a bearded man in a turban says more about them than it does about members of my faith, which probably explains the number of media commentators anxious to revive the myth that Sikhs are extremists, after a recent rally in Ottawa.

Toronto Police College unit commander Supt. Debra Preston thanked the World Sikh Organization (WSO) of Canada for playing a vital role in the development of the module.

Balpreet Singh of the World Sikh Organization said he knows sex selection is an issue in Asia and suspects it exists in Canada as well.

“Telling young people they cannot play soccer with their peers because they choose to practise their religion creates an atmosphere of intolerance and inequity. Hijabs and turbans are worn and accepted in youth soccer leagues in every Canadian province and it has never been an issue elsewhere,” said Gian Singh Sandhu, the WSO’s policy advisor.

A great editorial on Sgt. at Arms Mr. Kevin Vickers' speech at WSO's Parliamentary Dinner