First Global Sikh Civil Rights Conference – Part I

March 4, 2009

Author: Staff Writer

Source: Global Sikh News

http://sikhsangat.org/1469/2009/03/first-global-sikh-civil-rights-conference-–-part-i/

Two weeks ago, the Global Sikhs News (SikhSangat.org) was approached by UNITED SIKHS for participation in a Sikh Civil Rights Forum telephone conference call. After having observed the output from the First Global Sikh Civil Rights Conference from December 13-December 15, 2008, we gladly joined the call. In a previous report by the Global Sikh News, we covered the happenings of the Conference on December 13th; in this article we’ll cover the filing of the Right to Turban Cases and Conference that was held on December 15th, and why we think the Sikh Civil Rights Forum is another step forward for the greater Sikh community.

The December 15th filing of the Right to Turban (RTT) cases before the United Nations Human Rights Committee was an impressive one. Attended by some of the finest lawyers in the country, it was filled with interesting information about the RTT cases in France, international legal procedures for hearing civil rights cases, and thoughtful advice for larger civil rights engagement on an international scale by the Sikh community as a whole.

Covering the actual filing of the Right to Turban school-boys cases before the United Nations Human Rights Committee, Stephen Grosz, Head of Public Law & Human Rights at Bindmans LLP, spoke via teleconference from London, answering questions posed by panelists, lawyers, journalists, and audience participants. This was followed by a teleconference with Stephanie M. Sarzana of O’Melveny & Myers LLP, on the filing of the Right to Turban photograph identification cases, wherein Sikhs are not being allowed the right to wear the turban on their photograph identification documents. Mejindarpal Kaur, Director, UNITED SIKHS, led the discussion on the filing, presenting the factual issues of the cases, and asking both attorneys common community questions as well as focusing on complicated legal issues around the filings and the European Court of Human Right’s negative decision.