Seven lawmakers in the United States, including Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to address the ongoing farmers’ protest in Delhi with his Indian counterpart, PTI reported Friday.
In a letter dated Dec. 23, US lawmakers told Pompeo that while the upheaval is of particular concern to Sikh-Americans with ties to Punjab, it also hit other Indian-Americans in various Indian states strongly.
“Many Indian Americans are directly affected because they have family and ancestral lands in Punjab and are concerned about the well-being of their families in India,” the letter added. “In view of this dire situation, we urge you to contact your Indian counterpart to reinforce the United States’ commitment to freedom of political expression abroad.”
Lawmakers said that since the United States, as a nation, is familiar with political protests, it could offer advice to India “during its current period of social unrest.” “As national legislators, we respect the right of the Government of India to determine national policy, in accordance with existing law,” they wrote. But, “we also recognize the rights of those in India and abroad who are currently protesting peacefully against agricultural laws that many Indian farmers see as an attack on their economic security.”
In addition to Jayapal, the letter has been signed by Congressmen Donald Norcross, Brendan F Boyle, Brian Fitzpatrick, Mary Gay Scanlon, Debbie Dingell, and David Trone.
Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, have been camping on the Delhi borders for 30 days, blocking roads in giant demonstrations against the new legislation that they say will pave the way for corporate exploitation. They have been hiding with supplies that can last for months and have said they will not leave until the government repeals the “black laws.”
The government, which maintains that the new policies provide reforms in the agricultural sector, has tried to placate angry farmers by offering to make amendments to the laws, but several rounds of talks have failed.
Follow today’s live updates of the farmers’ protests here
Over the past few weeks, more than a dozen US lawmakers have expressed concern for farmers. Earlier this month, Congressman and Co-Chair of the American Sikh Caucus John Garamendi, along with Congressman Jim Costa and Congresswoman Shelia Jackson Lee, also members of the American Sikh Caucus, sent a letter to the Ambassador of India to the United States, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, expressing solidarity with the protesters and defending their right to peaceful protest.
Democratic lawmaker David Trone on Tuesday urged the Indian government to provide security for farmers and welcomed the proposal made by India’s Supreme Court to establish a mediation panel.
In Britain too, lawmakers have expressed solidarity with the unrest. On December 5, thirty-six British MPs wrote to UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, urging him to raise concerns with India about the protests. MPs, from various parties but mostly made up of Labor members, had also asked Raab to convene an urgent meeting to discuss the “deterioration” of the situation in Punjab and “his relationship with the Center.”
On December 1, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also spoke out in support of farmers, saying that his country will always defend the rights of peaceful protesters.
India, however, strongly opposed comments from international leaders and politicians. He responded to Trudeau’s comments, saying that the Canadian leader’s comments were “unwarranted and misinformed”, especially when they referred to the “internal affairs of a democratic country.”
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