It’s bad that Amu has been censored in India. On the contrary Parzania, a film based on Gujarat riots, has won many accolades. I wish Amu could be uploaded to YouTube. I think Sikhs should purchase the copyright of the movie and then distribute it freely over the Internet if the Indian government doesn’t lift the censorship.

I personally believe – although my libertarian stance on this often gets me into trouble – freedom of expression, short of violence – ought to be permitted. I do not believe in government censorship whether in India or my home country of Canada. Certainly in any country that calls itself a ‘free democracy’ people should be able to express what’s on their minds, even if it is offensive to some groups. Before I’m asked, yes, I do include speech and ideas that I deplore, whether the racism of the Ku Klux Klan and such groups in the States, the ramblings of Osama bin Laden (wherever he is) or those ridiculous Sardar jokes in India that so offend my own community. They offend me as well. But I would rather be offended and free than limit my expression or that of others. I let others know, politely, I hope, when they offend me rather than run to the courts to shut them up. If courtesy doesn’t work, I can get loud and nasty, but by limiting their free speech, I must of necessity limit my own, as well, so I leave the government, which is, at best, corrupt, out of the picture.

I insist on being free to express my own controversial beliefs – I specifically speak here of Khalistan – so how could I possibly deny that same right to others?

As a kind of an aside, I am still seething over the Indian censorship of the movie Amu. What are they afraid of? Don’t they realise that such moves make India look like a guilty, cringing, cowardly criminal in the eyes of the rest of the world? Are they really so frightened of a little bit of light being shed on a difficult topic? I guess the answer is YES. Ostrich government. *snickers*

In short, I think government trying to control the thoughts of their citizens through censorship is stupid, short-sighted and WRONG.

Thanks for letting me have my say.