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Caste discrimination: MPs to vote on ban Caste discrimination: Campaigners vow to fight for legislation
(about 11 hours later)
The House of Commons is set to vote on whether to ban caste discrimination in the UK. Campaigners have vowed to continue their fight for legislation after MPs voted against banning caste discrimination.
Victims say legislation is badly needed as thousands of people are suffering abuse and prejudice. Hundreds protested outside Parliament on Tuesday afternoon as the House of Commons debated the issue.
Campaigners say caste divides society unfairly, with those at the bottom - often called untouchables - expected to do dirty, poorly paid work. They said legislation was badly needed as thousands suffer abuse and prejudice because they are considered low caste.
But ministers said there were concerns in the Hindu and Sikh communities that legislation could increase the stigma.
MPs voted against adding caste discrimination to the Equality Act by 307 to 243, a majority 64.
Meena Varma of the Dalit Solidarity Network said: "I am very disappointed. But we'll keep going until we get this legislation."
'Demanding equality'
Campaigners say current laws offer no protection from discrimination.
They say caste divides society unfairly, with those at the bottom - often called untouchables - expected to do dirty, poorly paid work.
They complain they are also expected to - and forced to - look up to and respect higher castes.They complain they are also expected to - and forced to - look up to and respect higher castes.
Those arguing for action say such discrimination is outlawed in India and they want similar protection in Britain too.Those arguing for action say such discrimination is outlawed in India and they want similar protection in Britain too.
A young mother from the Midlands called Harjit (not her real name) told the BBC she regularly faced problems from higher castes. One of the protestors, Ravi Kumar of Anti Caste Discrimination Alliance, said: "We are here today because we are demanding equality, respect and dignity in the United Kingdom.
She said: "On one occasion there were a load of young guys, They had such yobbish thuggish behaviour and it was so intimidating. "Caste discrimination has been going on for decades (in Britain). What we have found is that it has actually increased over the last decade or so because of social media and people have gone back to their previous caste identities."
"They did a hand gesture of a gun. They pointed it to my sister. They threatened to kill her and they said, 'All of yous are on the list.'" In the House of Commons the government acknowledged the existence of caste discrimination in Britain. But it said it does not think legislation will help to stamp it out.
Harjit says she has had to put up with such treatment from a very young age. 'Sub-human'
"Soon as they found out who you were, they used to ask you what temple you go to. What your surname is. Who you were. Equalities minister Jo Swinson told MPs: "This is an issue that is contained in the Hindu and Sikh communities.
"Then the taunting would start. Even as young as six or seven," she said. "That's why we are working with those communities to address these problems."
Harjit has reported some of the incidents to the authorities, but she claims she was not taken seriously. She warned of concern that legislation could increase stigma rather than ease the problem. That's why the government was planning to tackle caste prejudice through an education programme instead.
She thinks they struggled to understand what was going on and why. There are thought to be around 400,000 low caste people in Britain.
Two years ago, her 17-year-old sister Ranbir (not her real name) was confronted by a man in the street who demanded she remove a religious necklace. Campaigner Davinder Prasad of Castewatch UK said many of them had experienced some form of discrimination.
When she refused he said he knew her name and where she lived. It terrified her because she had never seen the man before. He called it an invisible disease" that non-Asians were only starting to become aware of in Britain.
"He said to me, 'You need to be careful. Just watch yourself' and then mentioned my name. It was frightening," she said. "The caste system is absolutely horrible for the victims. It makes you feel sub-human. There is no description for the pain that victims feel," he said.
Meena Varma, of the Dalit Solidarity Network, thinks only a new law would protect Harjit, Ranbir and others like her. During the debate many MPs backed the protestors.
The group is planning to hold a rally outside Parliament on Tuesday as MPs debate and vote on the issue. Conservative MP Richard Fuller said: "This is a straightforward issue, caste discrimination in the work place is wrong and the people who suffer from it deserve legal protection. That's it. Beginning and end."
"Why on earth are we allowing discrimination on this basis? We don't allow it on any other basis. But we are allowing this because there is no legal provision," she said. Lords vote
Last month, the House of Lords voted by a majority of 103 to amend the Equality Act 2010 to include caste discrimination. Shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna said that caste discrimination was "completely unacceptable".
Liberal Democrat peer Lord Avebury, who helped put together the UK's original race relations laws, said it was hard to understand why it was not already on the statute books. "Every community group, every faith group we have spoken to, on each side of this debate in recent days has been united in the belief that caste discrimination has no place in our country," he said.
Critics say caste is a hereditary hierarchy which leads to the exploitation and abuse of untouchables, or dalits. Last month, the House of Lords voted by a majority of 103 to amend the Equality Act to include caste discrimination.
'Handful of cases' That raised the hopes of campaigners. Meena Varma said protestors had come from all over the country to back the call for a ban on caste discrimination.
But many Hindu and Sikh groups think the problem has been overplayed. "I think there is in excess of a thousand people here today," she said.
Swaminathan Vaidyanathan, of the Hindu Forum of Britain, thinks there are probably only a handful of genuine cases of caste discrimination in the UK. "We've had coaches from Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Coventry, Southall and Bedford. People from across the country have come here to demand justice today."
He believes a new law to specifically tackle the problem is unnecessary and could even end up backfiring. The government has asked the Equality and Human Rights Commission to examine the nature of caste prejudice and harassment, and consider what other action might be helpful.
"By legislation Members of Parliament intend to eradicate caste discrimination. In fact, it would be creating more caste consciousness in this society," he said.
"On this basis we oppose legislation measures to address the caste issue in this country."
Education programme
The government acknowledges there is a problem with caste prejudice in Britain.
Minister for Women and Equalities Helen Grant said last month: "Absolutely no-one should suffer prejudice because of caste."
But the government also does not think that a new law is the answer.
It has asked the charity Talk for a Change to draw up an education programme for employers, schools, colleges and community groups after consultations with Hindu, Sikh and dalit groups.
The government has also asked the Equality and Human Rights Commission to examine the nature of caste prejudice and harassment, and consider what other action might be helpful.
The commission will publish its findings later in 2013.The commission will publish its findings later in 2013.