This Diwali, the light of the diya will overpower darkness

NEWS RELEASE

OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA

*************************** Prime Minister Stephen Harper yesterday made the following remarks at a celebration in Ottawa marking Diwali:

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

Namaskar. Sat sri akal.

Thank you, Deepak, for your kind introduction.

Thank you as well for once again hosting tonight’s Diwali celebration, the tenth annual Festival of Lights gathering here in Ottawa.

It is just one of so many things you have done over the course of your eventful and productive life to bring people, communities, and even countries, together.

As the founding president of the Canada-India Parliamentary Friendship Group, for example, you have made tremendous contributions to strengthening relations between Canada and India.

Since coming to Canada more than 30 years ago, you have succeeded at everything you put your hand to in business and in politics.

You and your wife Neena have also raised a lovely family, which now includes third-generation-Canadian Ohbrais.

And through all this you have blazed a trail into the mainstream of Canadian life that has become a well-worn path for hundreds of thousands of Indo-Canadians.

I know there are many other community leaders here tonight who have also followed that path.

You should all be very proud of what you’ve done to make the Indo-Canadian community such an integral part of our peaceful and pluralistic society.

And I suspect you are as excited as I am about the future of Canada and your place in it, especially as our country builds deeper and stronger political, trade and cultural relations with India, South Asia’s fast-rising economic star.

I believe I had a glimpse of the future during my visit to India last year.

Under the leadership of Prime Minister Singh, India has embraced the principles of democracy and free markets with a zeal unmatched in the developing world.

It has paid off with robust economic growth, rising living standards – even during the global recession – and thus growing influence in the great councils of the world.

What I also saw, though, in visits to the Swaminarayan Akshardham in New Delhi, the great Sikh Golden Temple in Amritsar, the Chabad House in Mumbai, and even on the set of the Dance Premier League, was a nation of extraordinary ethno-cultural diversity.

A nation with a stable parliamentary government committed to the principles of freed om, democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

And a nation with a billion people yearning for peace and prosperity.

In the long term, their will cannot be denied by small groups of extremists who live in the past and lust for vengeance.

Instead, I am confident the spirit of Diwali will prevail.

The Festival of Lights illuminates the universal hope of all peoples for the renewal of life and the triumph of good over evil.

The light of the diya will overpower the darkness of intolerance and extremism, and guide India to its destiny as one of the great powers of the world.

This summer, a statue of Mahatma Gandhi was unveiled at the site of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg.

A gift of the Indian government, the bronze Bapu perfectly symbolizes the sturdy bonds between our countries.

We are linked by our shared devotion to human rights, our common aspiration to build harmonious pluralistic societies, our determination to develop our immense, untapped potential as trade partners, and the ancient family ties of a million Canadians of Indian descent.

Our Government has re-engaged with India like no other since at least the 1970s.

We have made an unprecedented number of ministerial visits, including reciprocal prime ministerial trips.

We have opened new trade missions and resolved the issues that hobbled Canada-India relations under our predecessors, enabling a historic nuclear cooperation agreement that will benefit both our countries.

And we have launched negotiations aimed at producing a comprehensive trade and economic partnership agreement.

In fact, the opening session of those negotiations was held this morning. Which makes this a proud day for our entire team.

A day that we have been patiently working towards, ever since 2005, when the idea was first raised in the House of Commons, by Deepak Obhrai.

All these efforts reflect two countries, destined by their shared history, values and peoples to march into the future together, a future of unbounded opportunities for both of us.

Thank you for everything you do to bring that future closer and thank you for the opportunity to share in your celebration of Diwali.

Thank you.

Namaste.

Sat sri akal.

*************************** Pictured: Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Deepak Obrhai, Member of Parliament, light the traditional lamp in celebration of Diwali while Dr. Doobay, Pandit from the Vishnu Mandir, conducts the ceremony.

Photo by Jason Ransom, office of the prime minister.