Members of the Okanagan Valley乌鸦传媒檚 Punjabi community gathered at Prospera Place in Kelowna Sunday afternoon (Dec. 6) in support of Indian farmers.
The demonstration took to the road, with a kilometres-long line of sign-donning, honking vehicles taking over the centre lane of Highway 97 as they made their way to Prospera Place. The protest 乌鸦传媒� comprised of several local farmers of Indian heritage 乌鸦传媒� is one of many that have taken place across Canada in recent weeks against several new agricultural laws imposed in September by the Indian government.
Those laws, in part, allow farmers to sell products directly to private buyers, rather than middlemen adhering to the state-controlled minimum support price (MSP), which since 2009 has safeguarded farmers乌鸦传媒� profits. While Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stated the laws will allow farmers to earn more money by opening new streams of revenue, farmers have expressed fears that private buyers won乌鸦传媒檛 adhere to government-set minimum prices.
Several local farmers and members of Kelowna's Punjabi diaspora gathered at Prospera Place in Kelowna today, protesting what they called anti-farmer bills put in place by the Indian government.
乌鸦传媒� Michael Rodriguez (@MichaelRdrguez)
Organizers estimated around 300 participated, in a COVID-safe manner.
More to come.
The new bills, protesters said, upend decades of business practices for Indian farmers, putting their livelihoods at risk.
乌鸦传媒淚f we do not bring attention to what乌鸦传媒檚 happening in India right now, it乌鸦传媒檚 going to end in bloodshed,乌鸦传媒� said protester Amarjit Singh Lalli. 乌鸦传媒淎ll three [bills] favour corporations 乌鸦传媒� they will wipe out the small farmers in India.乌鸦传媒�
In India, the farmers乌鸦传媒� protests near the country乌鸦传媒檚 capital city, Delhi, have been met with tear gas and water cannons. This prompted what Indian officials called interference in its affairs by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who said Canada would always support the right of farmers to be heard.
乌鸦传媒淐anada will always stand up for the right of peaceful protest anywhere around the world. And we乌鸦传媒檙e pleased to see moves towards de-escalation and dialogue,乌鸦传媒� Trudeau said Friday when asked about India乌鸦传媒檚 criticism of his remarks.
READ MORE: Trudeau brushes off India乌鸦传媒檚 criticism for standing with farmers in anti-Modi protests
The protesters in Canada stated their Indian counterparts 乌鸦传媒� largely from the state of Punjab 乌鸦传媒� are not being allowed their right to peaceful protest, and as such, the demonstrations have made their way across the globe.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 been more than two months 乌鸦传媒� the Indian government is not listening to them,乌鸦传媒� said protest organizer Harpreet Marwaha. 乌鸦传媒淚f that bill is applied 乌鸦传媒� I don乌鸦传媒檛 think they will be able to survive.乌鸦传媒�
Organizers estimated that roughly 300 people took part in the protest, with all adhering to COVID-19 precautions they had set out.
The Kelowna protest followed a similar one .
-With files from the Canadian Press
Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email: michael.rodriguez@kelownacapnews.com
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