[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 94 (Friday, June 9, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1221]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


       ELEVENTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MASSACRE AT THE GOLDEN TEMPLE

                                 ______


                            HON. DAN BURTON

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 8, 1995
  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, this past Saturday, June 3, 
marked the 11th anniversary of a very dark day in India's history--the 
Indian Army's assault on the Sikhs' Golden Temple in Amritsar. On that 
date in 1984, the Golden Temple in Amristar, the holiest shrine of the 
Sikh nation, was brutally attacked by 15,000 Indian troops.
  The brutal assault on the temple was timed to occur on a Sikh 
holiday. Simultaneously, 38 other Sikh temples throughout Punjab were 
attacked. Over 20,000 Sikhs, mostly civilians, were killed during the 
month of June.
  At the Golen Temple, hundreds of people were herded into tiny rooms, 
where many died of asphyxiation. Many Sikh women were raped and then 
murdered. One hundred Sikh students between the ages of 8 to 12 were 
lined up in front of the temple's sacred pool and asked one by one to 
denounce the movement for an independent Sikh nation named Khalistan. 
One by one the children refused to do so and were shot in the head.
  These types of horrible atrocities have become routine in Punjab, in 
Kashmir, and in other areas under India's control. India has over a 
half-a-million troops in Punjab and another half-a-million in Kashmir 
who are brutalizing those people--raping women, torturing prisoners, 
murdering civilians. Countless thousands of Sikhs, Moslems, and 
Christians have been murdered by Indian soldiers and paramilitary 
forces. This brutality has led the Sikhs of Punjab to seek independence 
so that they can enjoy the blessings of life, liberty, and the pursuit 
of happiness. The Indian Government should understand that its brutal 
campaign of terror will not wipe out this movement, it will only add 
fuel to the fire.
  The Indian Government must be called to account for its crimes and 
human rights violations. It has become notorious for its disrespect for 
sacred religious sites. In 1992, Hindu mobs sacked the Mosque at 
Ayodhya. Just last month, Indian forces in Kashmir gutted the ancient 
Moslem shrine at Charar-e-Sharies on a Moslem holiday. The democracies 
of the world must not turn a blind eye on these heinous acts.
  I hope all of my colleagues will join me in making the 11th 
anniversary of the attack on the Golden Temple by calling on India to 
begin to respect the human rights of all people.


                          ____________________