EVENT | PENANG, MALAYSIA | Sri Guru Ramdaas Ji Youth Semagam 2018 (2.0)
Naujawan of Gurdwara Sahib Bayan Baru, PenanG will be hosting Sri Guru Ramdaas Ji Youth Semagam 2018 (2.0) in conjunction with Sri Guru Ramdaas Ji birth anniversary. All are invited to attend the Diwan and enjoy the blissful Kirtan by our local and Invited Raggi Jatha.
Date: 13 October 2018 (Saturday) | 4.30pm to 8.30pm | Venue: Gurdwara Sahib Bayan Baru
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Sukhveer Kaur and Daljit Singh – Photo: Jalebi Studio
COUPLE Daljit Singh, 54, and Sukhveer Kaur, 53, are counting the days to this year’s Relay For Life Penang, an event which symbolises the ongoing battle against cancer.
The two cancer survivors are excited because they will be meeting other survivors of all ages as well as the public who support the cause.
They have been actively involved in the event since 2005, even before they were diagnosed with cancer.
Sukhveer said she was initially attracted to the T-shirt given to the participants, which motivated her to sign up for the event back then.
“We became volunteers and eventually committee members of the event. In 2008, I was diagnosed with stomach cancer but I decided to carry on with my volunteer work nevertheless,” she said, adding that staying positive played an important role in her recovery.
Then in 2011, Daljit, was shocked when doctors told him that he had kidney cancer.
“It was not easy because I was also a carer to someone who has cancer,” said the former design engineer, adding that he also suffered from depression at the time.
He said he had come a long way since then through greater understanding of the illness.
In January this year, Daljit was recognised as an International Hero of Hope by the American Cancer Society. Sukhveer received the same award in 2013.
Meet the duo during the Relay for Life Penang, which they believe is “an amazing event to promote empowerment and awareness”.
They will be among 2,000 participants and 200 cancer survivors during Relay For Life Penang 2018 which will be held at Stadium Olahraga Universiti Sains Malaysia on Sunday from 3pm to 10pm.
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Air Marshal Harjit Singh Arora took over as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C), South Western Air Command at Gandhinagar on 01 Oct 18.
Harjit, who succeeds Air Mshl RK Dhir who retired last month, was commissioned in the Indian Air Force as a fighter pilot in Dec 1981, according to a statement released by India’s Press Information Bureau yesterday (2 Oct 2018).
He has rich and diverse experience of accident free operational flying which includes MiG 21, MiG 29 and other aircraft in IAF inventory, including helicopters. He is a meritorious graduate of Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment, Defence Services Staff College and National Defence College. He is also Master of Philosophy in Defence and Strategic Studies, according to the statement.
Air Officer commanded a MiG-21 Bis Sqn in the South Western sector and later was Commander of Air Defence Direction Centre in the same sector. He went on to command a premier MiG-29 Base on the western border and as an Air Vice Marshal he was Air Defence Commander at Headquarters of Western Air Command as well as Eastern Air Command. As an Air Marshal he has held the appointments of Director General (Inspection and Safety) and was Director General Air (Operations) at Air HQ before taking over as the AOC-in-C.
He has also served as Directing Staff at ‘Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment’ and as a Flying Inspector in the ‘Directorate of Air Staff Inspection’. He was Defence Attache in the Embassy of India, Bangkok, Thailand from 2006 to 2009.
For his distinguished service, he was awarded ‘Ati Vishisht Seva Medal’ by the President of India on 26 Jan 2011.
The Air Marshal is married to Baljeet Kaur Arora. In a simultaneous function Baljeet Arora took over as President of the Air Force Wives Welfare Association (Regional).
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond.Facebook | WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 | Email: editor@asiasamachar.com | Twitter | Instagram | Obituary announcements, click here |
Dr Rajwant Singh with the experts roped in to produce the documentary on Guru Nanak in conjunction with the 550th celebration of Guru Nanak’s birth – Photo: Photo grab from video shared by Dr Rajwant SIngh on LinkedIn
By Dr Rajwant Singh | U.S. |
The United States-based (US) National Sikh Campaign has engaged top documentarians to capture the message of Guru Nanak for the American audience.
One hour high level documentary to highlight the major contributions of Guru Nanak. Major thinkers and figures will be interviewed. This will be shown on 250 Public TV stations all across America and the world.
A wonderful opportunity to spread the awareness about Guru Nanak and Sikhism in USA and the world.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond.Facebook | WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 | Email: editor@asiasamachar.com | Twitter | Instagram | Obituary announcements, click here |
TURBAN BEAUTY: A young lady tries on the turban at Sikh Youth New Zealand hosted turban and food stall at Silo Park, New Zealand – PHOTO / SUPPLIED
By Jaginder Singh Raipatti (Batu Gajah) | MALAYSIA | OPINION |
The turban has been and will always remain a very unique symbol of pride and honour to followers of the Sikh faith. Hence, when the turban is ridiculed and undermined, the faithful will rise and defend its sanctity. We all witnessed how the Sikh community, both local and international, rose to express their anger and frustration at a blogger who poked fun at the turban worn by a high ranking police officer. It was indeed a very welcome show of unity among Sikhs in Malaysia, who all stood together and did the needful to speak up and have their voices heard. It has ended well, at least for now, with the blogger offering apologies to the Sikh community.
Indeed, this unpleasant event has brought out the best among Sikhs. Not only did those who wore turbans expressed their sentiments, but even those who didn’t wear a turban stood in solidarity. There was even support from non-Sikhs, though it could have been stronger and louder, to send home the message that no individual should sow hatred and create animosity in a multi-racial and multi-religious society like ours, by ridiculing the tenets or practices of a religion.
The overwhelming support for the turban, as a sacred symbol of Sikh religion and its practices, is a good indicator of appreciation for Sikh culture and identity. This should encourage more Sikhs to wear the turban, even if you are not a Kesadhari, when going to school, to the Gurdwara, at social events and so on. As Sikhs, we should be proud of our identity and rich heritage. The turban is synonymous to the Sikhs and it stands out uniquely, even in crowds of millions.
Our response to the situation was prompt. Sikh organisations like Malaysian Gurdwara Council (MGC) and Khalsa Diwan Malaysia (KDM), and many others, lodged police reports and made press statements to express their displeasure. Our Sikh Federal Minister also took a swipe at the blogger for showing disrespect to the Sikh community. Some took to social media to vent their anger by making threats, using harsh words, even profanities, not only towards the blogger but his family as well.
The reaction is understandable. But pause for a moment. Did we react wisely and accordingly? Or did we also react ignorantly as the blogger did? Did some of us overreact? I leave that decision to you but we all need to do some serious reflection.
The blogger should have kept his debate with the police by arguing on the facts but he deviated, and erred by ridiculing the turban and befittingly, earned the wrath of Sikhs. Similarly, some of us responded to the blogger’s comments via social media by making remarks which deviated very far from the real issue. Our problem was with the blogger and his comments, and had nothing to do with his family, his race or religion. We could have exercised some restraint and showed composure when dealing with such sensitive issues by highlighting the facts and showing the blogger why his comments were deemed racist and derogatory.
In a nutshell, I view this unfortunate incident as an awakening call to all Sikhs. The show of unity and brotherhood in defending the tenets and practices of the Sikh religion should not be an isolated one. There is strength in unity, and our voices reach out far. It’s important that we preserve our identity, and be proud of it. If you haven’t been wearing a turban, it’s never too late!
Jaginder Singh, who hails from Batu Gajah, is a retired civil servant.
* This is the opinion of the writer, organisation or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Asia Samachar.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond.Facebook | WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 | Email: editor@asiasamachar.com | Twitter | Instagram | Obituary announcements, click here |
Joginder Kaur Sohi – Photo: South Asian Canadian Heritage
Date of Birth: 1946 | Birthplace: Maalpur, Punjab | Current City: Duncan, BC
Joginder Kaur Sohi was born in Maalpur, Punjab, India on November 1, 1946. Her paternal grandfather came to Canada in 1907. Through her grandfather, her uncle (mother’s brother), and Joginder’s brothers also immigrated to Canada about 50 years ago. After Joginder’s father’s death, her brothers made the decision to get Joginder to Canada.
On April 13, 1970, Joginder and her sisters landed in Vancouver and came to Victoria to join their brothers. Although Joginder was still in college in India, her brothers made the decision to get her to Canada as quickly as possible because there was no one to look after her since her father passed away.
During her initial days in Canada, she used to feel very lost. She used to miss her mother and friends a lot. But, with time and with the support of her brothers and their wives, she was able to settle in and adapt to her new life in Canada. Within a year of coming to Canada, she got married to a person from India. The marriage took place in the Sikh Temple in Victoria.
Her husband was born, raised and educated in Delhi, India. But when he immigrated to Canada, his educational degrees from Delhi University were not recognized here and had no choice but to do labour work. For the first five years, they had to struggle a lot, but they were lucky enough to get a lot of help and support from Joginder’s brothers.
Few years into her marriage, Joginder started working in the hospital as a nurse’s aide. In her workplace, she was known as Joy. The nurse she worked for was from England, and gave Joginder a really hard time at work, often making her a victim of racial discrimination. But on the positive side, the director and all the other nurses at the hospital saw Joginder as a really valuable employee and appreciated the hard work she put in. She shares that although her shift used to start at 7am, but she was always there at the workplace at precisely 6.30am.
Joginder shares that in those days, the South-Asian community was not that involved as they are now. Indian festivals like Diwali were not celebrated. Still, Joginder and her family tried to be involved in the community and led a very social life. This is also because since her grandfather moved to Canada in 1907, their family had been here for long and knew a lot of people in the community.
Joginder shares that her grandfather played a very prominent role in the community. After coming to Canada, he settled in Duncan and owned a mill where a lot of people from Paldi and Maalpur regions in India, used to work at his mill. He was 6 feet and 4 inches tall and used to carry a cane along with.
In the early 1900s, there was a trend to go to the pub to drink beer after work. One day, her grandfather went to the pub and was refused by the server as they said that they don’t serve to colored people. Angered by this, he got up from his seat, took the cane and broke every bottle in the pub. Since he was a big and tall person, no one dared to stop him and he continued to do this not caring about the possibility of getting arrested and going to jail. After this event, the pubs started serving to brown people. Joginder’s cousin still owns 500 acres of her grandfather’s land in Duncan.
Joginder is now settled in Victoria and does not visit India that often. She went back to India in 1996, after twenty years of being in Canada. The next time she went was 15 years ago for her daughter`s marriage, who now lives in Mumbai. Joginder and her husband made sure that their daughters receive good education, who went on to study accounting and are now married and well settled with children.
See original entry here. The South Asian Canadian Heritage website project is dedicated to highlighting the many projects, research, and databases which have been undertaken by the South Asian Studies Institute and/or through its partnerships.
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Blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin has apologised to the Sikh community for the turban remarks tat did not sit well with Skhs in Malaysia and abroad as well.
“I was told a Sikh’s turban is a very sacred item and they do not take too kindly to anyone making fun of it. For that I would like to sincerely apologise,” the blogger said in an entry entitled ‘My Apology To The Sikh Community’ at his blog today (1 Oct 2018).
RPK, as the once popular blogger is popularly known, had made disparaging remarks on the Sikh turban in his salvos against Malaysia’s Federal Commercial Crime Investigation Department Director Amar Singh Ishar Singh.
In an article on 28 Sept, Raja Petra had said said that ‘Amar Singh Ishar Singh’s turban must be too tight that it is restricting the flow of blood to his brain’ and that ‘Amar Singh needs to remove his turban to clear his brain once in a while’.
In response, Amar, the highest ranking police officer hailing from the Sikh community and a third-generation policemen, had slammed the remarks as “demeaning and racist”.
Separately, the Malaysian Gurdwaras Council (MGC), a body representing more than 120 gurdwaras in Malaysia, had warned that the remarks by the blogger had the potential to create ‘hate and disrespect’ for the Sikh turban.
Here is the full text of Raja Petra’s apology:
Police reports have been made against me. I have also received numerous threats. But that is not why I am apologising for my quip that Amar Singh Ishar Singh’s turban may be too tight.
I was told a Sikh’s turban is a very sacred item and they do not take too kindly to anyone making fun of it. For that I would like to sincerely apologise.
I also sent personal apologies to Gobind Singh Deo and Amarjit Sidhu. These two, plus Manjeet Singh Dhillon and the late Karpal Singh, acted as my lawyers during my various trials and ISA detention ten years ago back in 2008. They also helped me in other ways, which I am not at liberty to mention, and which helped me to settle down in the UK after I left Malaysia in February 2009.
And they all did this without me asking (they volunteered their services), and without asking for a single sen in payment. I will be eternally grateful to Gobind, Amarjit, Manjeet and the late Karpal. So would I want to repay them by insulting their Sikh faith?
Kenang budi is supposed to be a Malay trait and virtue. To insult the faith of those who did so much for you and asked for nothing in return is not kenang budi. It is the opposite of kenang budi.
I can argue that I did not consider my quip an insult to the Sikh faith or that this was not my intention. But it is not what I intended that matters but how what I said was received. And I also apologise to Amar Singh Ishar Singh because, as much as I may disagree with him, that disagreement should not be reduced to the level of insulting his religion.
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By Surinder Kaur Sohan Singh |SIKHI STUDY | OPINION
Aisaa Dheeva baalae koey Nanak so paarangath hoey. (SGGS 878)
Paarangath come from 2 words: Paar means to cross. Langna means over.
Meaning: O Nanak, if there is anyone desiring to cross this world ocean successfully and reach to the other side safely, he will have to to light his own dheeva before he embarks on this journey back to the Creator.
Why did Guruji said this?
Guruji said this because lighting of dheevas in the name of ancestors was a ritual that was practiced widely since the olden days and is still in practice to this day in India. Little dheevas that are made of clay are floated at the river banks to guide the ancestors who have passed on to reach heaven safely.
Guruji said this is a futile effort because these small dheevas do not have the capacity to travel to the other shore. Furthermore, these tiny lamps are easily extinguished by the strong winds in the ocean and sink due to the huge waves. In addition to that, the little oil in it is soon used up and the flame gets extinguished after a short while.
Guruji says the reality is that no one is able to light a dheeva for the other person. The only way for us is to light our own dheeva while we are still strong and healthy. If we succeed then we can to take it along with us when it is time for us to leave this world. It will light up our path in our journey forward.
Otherwise the journey back can be quite harrowing as we have read in the Sukhmani Sahibji.
Jih paidai mahaa andh gubaara Har ka NAAM sang ujeeaaraa. (SGGS 264)
Paidai means journey. Andh gubaaraa means pitch darkness. Ujeeaaaraa means light.
Meaning: The journey back is quite a challenge because it is very long and it is pitch darkness there. A person who brings along a lighted dheeva can navigate easily but without the light of God, for many of us it will become extremely difficult to cross over safely.
How do we go about lighting this dheeva?
This dheeva cannot be made of matter because matter cannot cross over to the other shore. Nothing physical can cross over to the other side.
So how do we go about creating a non physical dheeva that we can take along with us?
Guruji shows us the way on page 878 of SGGS.
The first question is: Where is this dheeva? It has to be inside us.
The first step in making a good quality dheeva is to use good clay. Good clay here refers to a GOOD UNDERSTANDING of how this internal dheeva can be lighted.
Secondly to make the dheeva durable it has to be shaped well with GOOD ACTIONS.
Thirdly, the fire of desires need to be kept in check. To keep the desires in check the consciousness have to be focused on the DIVINE VIRTUES of the Lord.
If all the above is done on a daily basis, then soon the internal dheeva will be lighted.
Once this dheeva is lighted inside the heart, it cannot be extinguished by strong winds or huge waves in the water. It’s light will show you the path that leads to the divine throne of God.
Surinder Kaur Sohan Singh is a Malaysia-based Gurbani enthusiast. This is an edited version of her regular articles shared within a circle of fellow Sikhi seekers. The articles appear on Mondays and Thursdays.
* This is the opinion of the writer, organisation or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Asia Samachar.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond.Facebook | WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 | Email: editor@asiasamachar.com | Twitter | Instagram | Obituary announcements, click here |
Malaysian federal government minister Gobind Singh Deo at the ground breaking of Jalan Loke Yew crematorium – Photo: Gobind Singh Deo Facebook page
“This is an uncalled for attack against Amar Singh and the Sikh community. It deserves nothing less than the highest degree of condemnation.”
Malaysian Minister of Communications and Multimedia Gobind Singh Deo made the statement in response to news of political commentator Raja Petra Kamaruddin attacking the turban of a senior Malaysian police officer Commissioner Amar Singh Ishar Singh.
“It undermines the most basic values we Malaysian’s uphold, which is mutual respect for each other. We are a multiracial and multireligious society. We cannot and must not allow such attacks against any one of us to go unnoticed,” he added in a statement shared via the social media.
He added that this was an example of why Malaysia needed to push ahead for laws which regulate hate speech.
“These laws must also focus on more effective and efficient extra-territorial reach so as to facilitate the prosecution of persons who commit such offences from overseas here in Malaysia,” he said.
In his article two days ago (28 Sept), Raja Petra had said said that ‘Amar Singh Ishar Singh’s turban must be too tight that it is restricting the flow of blood to his brain’ and that ‘Amar Singh needs to remove his turban to clear his brain once in a while’.
On his part, Amar, the highest ranking police officer hailing from the Sikh community and a third-generation policemen, has slammed Raja Petra’s reemarks as “demeaning and racist”.
Earlier today, the Malaysian Gurdwaras Council (MGC) had warned that the remarks by the blogger had the potential to create ‘hate and disrespect’ for the Sikh turban.
“These racially tinged remarks are likely to create hate and disrespect for the Sikh Turban as they have gone viral resulting in the Sikh community being greatly offended and has pressurised the MGC to take immediate steps to condemn this racial slurs,” MGC president Jagir Singh said in a statement emailed to the Asia Samachar.
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Ranjit Ajit Singh will be leaving the prestigious and powerful position at the Securities Commission Malaysia in the middle of this month.
Ranjit, who was promoted to executive chairman in April 2012, will be leaving mid-way of his current three year term which was extended last year, marking yet another high-profiled departure following the change of government in May.
He has served the regulatory body since 1994 in a variety of areas including market supervision and oversight, strategy and risk management, financial policy and economics. Prior to the latest promotion, he was the regulator’s managing director.
In a statement today (30 Sept 2018), Malaysia’s Prime Minister’s Office announced the appointment of Syed Zaid Albar as the new SC executive chairman effective 15 Oct.
With his extensive experience in the field of finance and securities market regulation, Ranjit had spearheaded many key initiatives in the development and reform of Malaysia’s capital market.
Ranjit is trained as a financial economist and accountant. He holds a Bachelor of Economics (Honours) degree and a Master of Economics degree in Finance from Monash University, Melbourne. He was also conferred the degree of Doctor of Laws honoris causa by Monash University Melbourne. He is a fellow of CPA Australia and has worked in academia, consulting and accounting in Australia and Malaysia, according to his profile at the SC website.
Ranjit, who holds the Federal state title of ‘Tan Sri’, is also active in various other initiatives, as listed out in his profile.
Ranjit Ajit Singh at the Royal Award for Islamic Finance in 2017, one of signature events of the SC – Photo: Asia Samachar
He was appointed the vice-chairman of the governing board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), the global body of capital market regulators and was elected as the chairman of IOSCO’s Growth and Emerging Markets Committee (GEM) which represents 94 countries.
In 2014, he was appointed chairman of the Asean Capital Markets Forum (ACMF), a body tasked to spearhead market integration efforts within the region and comprises capital market authorities from Asean, a regional block made up of 10 countries.
Ranjit also chairs the Securities Industry Development Corporation (SIDC), the Malaysian Venture Capital and Private Equity Development Council (MVCDC) and the Capital Market Development Fund (CMDF). He is also the vice-chairman of the Asian Institute of Finance and a member of the board of the Labuan Financial Services Authority and the Financial Reporting Foundation as well as a board member of the Malaysian Institute of Integrity (IIM).
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond.Facebook | WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 | Email: editor@asiasamachar.com | Twitter | Instagram | Obituary announcements, click here |
