On July 9 Sikhs from the UK lobbied their Members of Parliament against the proscription of the International Sikh Youth Federation by the British Labour government. I am not a member of any Sikh political organisation and am not a supporter of the idea of Khalistan as proposed by the various Khalistani outfits.

As someone who tries to be a Gursikh, I have no sympathy for any form of terrorism. However, I do strongly believe in Human Rights. I believe that we all have a right to our political opinions and that we have the right to organise ourselves with fellow 'believers' in these opinions. Also I think a government cannot just issue a blanket ban, without having to go to the courts and prove their case.

So, in spite of not being a 'member' of the ISYF, I have been in touch with campaigners Sukhvinder Singh and Dabinderjit Singh since the Home Secretary imposed his ban.

Last year I joined the Liberal Democrat party, and campaigned during the June general election in the UK. On the Sikh Lobby Day I went to the House of Commons with our local Liberal Democrat candidate, Andy Darley, Parliamentary Candidate in Feltham and Heston, who lost against Labour in the June general elections. And in the committee room where we met was the Liberal Democrat MP, Vincent Cable, Liberal Democrat MP for Twickenham, for whom I campaigned and a Labour MP, John McDonnell, Labour MP for Hayes and Harlington and president of the Punjabis in Britain All Parties Parliamentary group. Later, Lord Navnit Singh (Dholakia), a man of Sikh background and president of the Liberal Democrat party, joined us in the main lobby of parliament.

I think we did a good job and I have to give credit to Dabinderjit Singh, as he argued the case for the ISYF based on facts, without the ranting and raving which is typical for radical Sikh politics.

I was satisfied about my own contribution. I have from the moment that I joined taken an active part in the local Liberal Democrat party and was very busy during the June election campaign. Because of this, in spite of my blue chola, mybeard, my kirpan and the un-English (and un-Punjabi) habit of non-drinking, people take me seriously and are willing to support me, just like I support them.

I joined the Liberal Democrats because I broadly agree with their philosophy and policies. But also I think that we Sikhs, and especially Amritdhari Sikhs, should not live in a ghetto, but be active members of society, and be seen to work for the benefit of both the public at large, and our own community.

And it was a wonderful sight to see Keshdhari and Amritdharis Sikhs in the House of Commons. We do stand out, we stood for our case, and we did it in a dignified manner.

Born Cornelis Heule in 1947 in the Netherlands, Harjinder Singh arrived in Delhi January 9, 1996, in Amritsar about a week later and took amrit on July 14, 1996. During a four year stay in Punjab, Harjinder first did seva in Harmandir Sahib and then spent one and a half years at the Institute of Sikh Studies in Chandigarh.

Since February 2000 Harjinder is in London where he worked with the Sikh Human Rights Group and continues to volunteer for it's affiliate, Gurseva. Active in the United Kingdom's Liberal Democrat party, Harjinder was involved in the party's recent general election campaign.