The martyrdom day of three iconic Indian revolutionaries, who were hung for waging war against the British Empire, was observed in a unique way on Sunday, March 23 in Surrey, British Columbia.
The members of Surdel Rock 4 Palestine, a pro-Palestine group, who gather at Holland Park here every Sunday, dedicated this week’s demonstration to Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru, who were executed in 1931.
Despite cold weather and heavy rain, the activists came together to show their support to the people of Gaza, who are under attack from Israeli forces, and to pay their respects to the Indian freedom fighters.
Bhagat Singh’s portrait was displayed at the event, where an audio message from his nephew Prof. Jagmohan Singh was also played.
Jagmohan Singh is a civil rights activist who lives in India. In his greetings, he congratulated the organizers and called their initiative a “fitting tribute”.
Some of the participants recited poems and songs dedicated to Bhagat Singh, and flyers with information about him were also distributed. Among those who read out poems were famous progressive Punjabi writer Amrit Diwana, and Anna Abbott.
The names of Palestinian children killed during the recent attack in Gaza were read out by Nora Volbek, while “free Palestine” slogans were raised. Palestinian flags were also waved as drivers passing by blew horns to express their solidarity.
The organizers made connections between the Indian liberation movement and the Palestinian struggle against occupation, and opened the event with a land acknowledgement to recognize the Indigenous territories on which the City of Surrey was built.
Those who addressed the gathering were the key organizer Larry Johnston, a young leftist activist Anjan Momi, and independent Punjabi TV broadcaster Kamaljit Singh Thind.
