Are Indo Canadians Cheaters?

Are Chinese people 'more objective'?
By Ken Herar NEWS columnist
While many candidates prepare for a federal election this year, the excitement builds. The blood sport of politics can create interesting moments. The nomination battle in Richmond between current Liberal MP Joe Peschisolido and former Liberal MP Raymond Chan will be interesting to watch.The heat was really turned on when Chan was quoted by a Vancouver daily newspaper, saying "the Chinese community is quite different from the Indo-Canadian community. The Chinese are much more objective. No one can force them or lure them or cheat them into signing a membership form.''Some members of the Indo-Canadian community responded, saying the comments are purely racist by Chan. As a member of the Indo-Canadian community, I think many are taking Chan's comments out of context and adding fuel to the fire. I don't believe Chan was being racist through his comments. He was simply stating his personal view on the matter.Chan does raise a valid point. There are many concerns regarding Liberal memberships. Currently, both the Liberal party and the Indo-Canadian community are working very hard to clear this matter and bring validity back into the process. I applaud all the people who are involved fixing this membership mess and bringing honesty and dignity back to democracy. We can't ignore or hide the fact that there has been concerns in the past regarding some members of the Indo-Canadian community signing Liberal members. People and candidates need to re-focus their energies on social issues that are important to our country. Side tracking and bringing racism into a political campaign is not a beneficial cause for no one.I believe Chan's comments have no racial intentions and should be viewed as honourable advice how we can correct some of the irregularities within the Liberal membership. Candidates who clearly can't identify with this should judge their integrity before entering into politics. A similar incident where two individuals from Victoria used the media to cry racism over the media coverage of the legislative raid raised some eyebrows. Again, this is another case where people are trying to use racial leverage to gain political points. In the modern day of political democracy, racism has no room in the political forum These tactics are not good because the real cries of racism get lost or drowned out by fabricated headlines.Half-way around the world a real issue of racism is happening and receiving little publicity. The announcement by French President Chirac banning all conspicuous religious symbols from government schools has created quite a stir. This is all being done in the name of separating religion from the state. Religious groups are concerned. It is a direct invasion on their religious rights.France is poised to pass a law banning religious symbols such as Muslim veils, scarf, Jewish yarmulkes and large Christian crosses from public schools and work places. This is likely to include the Sikh turban and scarf or shawls worn by Sikh women. The proposed law will tantamount to banning Sikhs from wearing turbans and therefore infringing on their religious rights. This is a true case of racism where the government is taking away the freedoms of the people and their dignity. Since we live in a global community, we must be careful with our remarks and show sensitivity for the people around us, regardless of race or religion.Ken Herar is a Mission resident of Sikh ancestry.
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