|
Sindhi-Americans Gathered in Houston to Pay Tribute to their National Leader
January 22, 2006, HOUSTON, TEXAS, USA : Hundreds of Sindhi-Americans gathered on Saturday January 21, 2006, in Houston to commemorate the 102nd birthday of Mr. G. M. Syed, a national leader of the Sindhi people who waged a nonviolent struggle against Islamic fundamentalism, and for the freedom of Sindh. Sindh is home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilization and is now a province in Pakistan. A vibrant Sindhi-American community numbering in the tens of thousands lives in various cities of USA. More than 30 million Sindhis live in Sindh today. Sindhis are supportive of democracy and secularism and have been marginalized by Pakistan's military dictatorship and its Islamist ideology. Texas Governor Rick Perry sent his greetings for the occasion through phone. Bill White, Mayor of Houston, Texas, proclaimed the January 21st, 2006 as "G M Syed Day for the City of Houston." Two scholars Dr Lester Kurtz and Dr Yvette Rosser presented seminars on the topics of Non-Violence and Self-determination. Seminars highlighted the work of Ghandi and Bachaa Khan, two great anti-colonial leaders of South Asia, who remained a great inspiration to Mr Syed. Several prominent community leaders, Jamil Daudi of Sindhi Association of North America (SANA), Noorunissa Ghangro, Manzoor Memon, President Chamber of Commerce and Advisor to Mayor on Business Council, Dr Zia Shah, of G M Syed Memorial Committee, and Dr Saghir Shaikh, Chairman of the World Sindhi Congress attended and addressed the meeting. Other notables who attended the event are: Zafar Agha, Zeb Agha, Talat Talpur, Nicolita Talpur of Sarfraz Abbass, Umed Laghari, Amber Laghari, Khalil Memon, Manzoor Shah, Amanullah Turk, Akhtar Shah, Abhiman and Mr Shahani. "Mr. Syed's message of non-violence, tolerance, and peace has a universal appeal, and the core principles of non-violence and conflict resolution are applicable to all the struggles for self-determination at individual, communal or national levels," said Dr. Zia Shah, President of G M Syed Memorial Committee. This annual event is organized to create a global awareness about the plight of Sindh and Sindhis around the world. "At this critical juncture of history, when civilization faces the continued threat of terrorism from religious extremists, the Houston gathering lent the voice of Sindhi-Americans in support of the Sindhi nation’s peaceful struggle against a military dictatorship which continues to promote Islamic fundamentalists, impose medieval laws against women and minorities, and teach religious intolerance and anti-Semitism in schools," said, Dr Shaikh of WSC in his concluding remarks. The meeting resolved that the Pakistan government has been systematically violating human rights of the secular minded people of Sindh and Baluchistan. Pakistan has propped up Islamic fundamentalists, encouraged migration to reduce the indigenous people to a minority and exploited the natural resources of the two provinces. More recently, it has been bombing and strafing Baluch villages with military equipment provided by the USA to fight Al-Qaeda and remnants of the Taliban. Pakistan is also threatening to build mega-dams which would enable it to divert the flow of rivers that are the lifeline of otherwise arid Sindh. Meeting participants signed petitions addressed to US Senate and House of Representative to impress upon the government of Pakistan to respect the human rights of ethnic and religious minorities and show that the US does not endorse persecution of indigenous people. A dinner and Sufi music session concluded the meeting. World Sindhi Congress also organized a similar event in London on Jan 21st, 2006. The G. M. Syed Memorial Committee is a Houston, TX-based educational group organized to promote G. M. Syed's message of non-violence, democracy, secularism and the right to self-determination for Sindhis and other oppressed nations within the international community. For more information, visit http://www.gmsyed.org The World Sindhi Congress (WSC) is one of the most prominent human rights advocacy organizations for Sindh and Sindhis. The main objective of WSC is to create a better understanding among the international community about the persecuted status of Sindhis in Pakistan and about the Sindhi people's struggles for their human rights, including the right to self-determination. WSC is a registered company in England and Wales, and California, USA, organized to carry out non-profit activities only. For more information, visit http://www.worldsindhicongress.org |