On Sunday 12th July, members of the Indian diaspora gathered outside the Chinese consulate in London to protest against China in the wake of the recent Indo-China clashes which resulted in the death of dozens of soldiers on either side of the border in the Galwan valley.
Demonstrating against the expansionist policies of China, Indians came together despite fears of coronavirus infection with posters and placards reading, “Say no to expansion”, “China back off", “Tibet is not part of China” and “Boycott China” among others. Instrumental in the protest, Bharat Shah, President of the Friends of India Society UK said,
“I have been viewing news of the recent past when it became apparent that China had moved its armed forces and begun to occupy Indian territory in Galwan Valley. This has cost lives of Indian armed forces and angered us all. Quite clearly this is totally unacceptable and India has stood up to the Chinese intrusions. It has become a matter of importance since Indians living away from India want to show their support to India.
“Consequently when a few people from the Diaspora decided to hold demonstrations outside the Chinese Consulate it gave me an opportunity to join them in London and from around UK to express our support to India.”
Besides, the Indian diaspora, some human rights activists from Pakistan also joined in calling for China to “Free Tibet, Free Hong-Kong and Free Uighurs". Besides these protests, the placards were also stuck on the Chinese consulate building.
According to Kuldeep Shekhawat, President of the Oversees Friends of BJP, “This protest is the Indian diaspora’s effort to draw attention to the expansionist policies of China and express solidarity with our armed forces on the Chinese border.”
