Steamship Komagata Maru is approached by officials at Vancouver port, Canada, in this undated handout photo. reuters
Toronto, May 18
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday tendered a formal apology in his country’s House of Commons, 102 years after the Komagata Maru incident where the government of the day turned away 376 Indians, mostly Sikhs, seeking a better life in Canada.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)“Mr Speaker, today I rise in this House to offer an apology on behalf of the Government of Canada, for our role in the Komagata Maru incident,” Trudeau said in the House, with descendants of the ship’s passengers in the galleries. “No words can fully erase the suffering of Komagata Maru victims. Today, we apologise and recommit to doing better.” The Komagata Maru, a Japanese steamship, arrived in Vancouver in mid-May 1914, after leaving Hong Kong in early April. The ship, however, was not allowed to dock. After an almost two-month standoff, which also involved feisty demonstrations by ethnic Indians on Vancouver’s shores, the ship was eventually turned away. When it reached Calcutta, British colonial authorities attempted to seize suspected radicals on board. The semi-riot that ensued saw security forces kill at least 19 passengers.A 1908 Canadian law at the time forbade arrivals of immigrants in the country who did not make a “continuous journey” from their nation of birth or citizenship. A painful chapter in the history of Sikhs in Canada, the incident also highlighted the discriminatory immigration policies Canada had followed against Asian immigrants in the 19th century.In 2008, then PM Stephen Harper had apologised to the Sikh community, but the Sikh-Canadians had demanded a formal apology in the House of Commons. Trudeau-led Liberal Party, which has four Sikh ministers in the Cabinet, had promised a formal apology during the election campaign last year. — Agencies
Canadian PM apologises for Komagata Maru in House
Canada’s government was, without question, responsible for the laws that prevented Komagata Maru passengers from immigrating peacefully and securely. For that, we are sorry. JUSTIN TRUDEAU, Canadian PM
OTTAWA/TORONTO: Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday offered a formal apology in the House of Commons for the infamous Komagata Maru incident that has been remembered as an example of Canada’s discriminatory immigration policies in the 19th century.
AP PHOTOCanadian prime minister Justin Trudeau apologising for the Komagata Maru incident, in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday.
In 1914, the Japanese steam ship Komagata Maru arrived in Vancouver’s harbour from Hong Kong with 376 passengers, mostly Sikhs. Almost all of its passengers were denied entry due to immigration laws at the time. The ship was eventually sent to Calcutta, and least 19 people were killed in a skirmish with British soldiers. Others were jailed.
“Today, I rise in this House to offer an apology on behalf of the Canadian government for our role in the Komagata Maru incident,” Trudeau said in the House, with nearly 20 descendants of the ship’s passengers in the galleries. The group had arrived in Ottawa at the invitation of the government. A member of the group Jaswinder Singh Toor — president of the Families of Komagata Maru Society and a resident of Vancouver — said he was elated that his struggle for a formal apology had culminated successfully.
“This is a proud moment for all Indians; their sacrifices were for us,” said Toor, whose grandfather Puran Singh, then just 24, was aboard the steamship. Toor said his grandfather harboured bitter memories of the episode and refused to emigrate to Canada.
His brother Raj Toor said he had met Trudeau, when he was an opposition leader, in front of the historic Khalsa Diwan Society gurdwara in Vancouver in 2014. “I had asked him about this and he said if he became PM, he would make an official apology. He has kept his promise.”