If you’re British have you read about the Gurkha who served with the British army during WW11 ?

Gurkha Pun was awarded the VC (the highest recognition for valour "in the face of the enemy" that can be awarded to members of the armed forces) and 10 other medals and served with the British army for 18 year. He lives at the foothills of the Himalayas and his home is precariously perched at 4,000 feet. Mr Pun VC's house has no proper roof, no electricity, and no running water.

He's now 84 and needs medical attention but some idiot (I'm feeling polite !) has refused him permission to enter the UK as he has "failed to demonstrate strong ties with the UK".

Personally this makes me feel ashamed to be a Brit. If you feel that you would like to support him please visit http://www.vchero.co.uk/ where you can read the full story, sign a petition to Downing St and also send an e-mail which will be put before an immigration Judge.

Unbelievable. I am deeply disturbed by the treatment of the Gurhkas in general by the UK government, particular recently in the failed attempt to get (historical) equal pay and conditions.

dave

Personally am pleased to see that commonsense has prevailed .... 1 down how many more to go .....

Good, thank god for that.

I've just heard the news. Justice ! But, what about the public servant that made the original decision ? With the current climate in the UK he will probably be awarded compensation for all the stress he has suffered ! ....and you think I'm joking ?

Another reason to be ashamed...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/e...ne/6714735.stm
And people laughed at me when I suggested ginger was an ethnic minority....

Boris, might be another reason to be ashamed but not a reason for another thread

Doh! I thought I'd get a ticking off for hijacking the thread!

Hi all,

I'm not sure that these sentiments are all justified. It's not as if the Gurkha serve with the Army because they think the UK is the greatest thing since white sliced bread but more like because it is a well paying job in an area scarce of them, they serve with the Indian army as well don't they? And probably think that they (the Indians) and the Brits are a bunch of pussies.
The Swiss were much more efficient, with parishes organising the immigration of young men already trained into foreign service AND getting monies for it, at least the Brits have the decency to keep a recruiting station in the mountains, train the soldiers themselves and actually pay them, even if the sums are small compared to that of the average squaddy.
Few armies allow the presence of foreigners in their immediate ranks, the US is a notable exception, most armies willing to recruit foreigners have specially regulated structures to hold them, the French and Spanish foreign legions are (were) obvious examples, the Gurkhas are another, the conditions of service in which are clearly defined. In the FFL you get French citizenship after your initial 5 years, in the US Marine Corps you get it after your first tour, in the Gurkhas you don’t, period. There used to a regiment in HK and there was (still is?) a regiment in Belize and there is one on home service (funny term isn't it?) but I'm not sure that a Gurkha will necessarily ever have been to the UK in the course of his service (15 years isn’t it?).
A VC is not awarded for acts of patriotism but for acts of bravery and any bets that an Italian seconded to British command is eligible to win it too ... could he (she) or any other VC carrying Australian, South African, Irishman or New Zealander demonstrate strong ties to the UK?

From a public relations point of view it is a pretty stupid blunder however.

Regards

Hans

Hans,
I take the points you made but this case has to be taken in the context of the current situation in the UK. You’ve not completed your profile so I can’t judge what you may know about life there at the moment.
Immigration is a big issue and a major talking point whenever I speak to anyone in the UK. They feel that it's got completely out of control and the government has lost all track of the situation. Local authority services (housing, schools, social benefits, unemployment, medical etc) are being overwhelmed and many of the immigrants cannot speak English. Merton council in South London proudly proclaims that it provides language services in more than 80 languages and local dialects all, of course, at the tax payers expense !
Even the governments own immigration minister has admitted that mass immigration into Britain in recent years has left the country "deeply unsettled”.
So, it seems that it’s an open door policy to everybody but this one old man, who could really do with our help. He would not even get his meager pension if he did not collect it personally and to do this he must be driven for 3 hours and then walk for one full day (being carried by 2 or 3 men in a wicker basket) to the Gurkha army camp.
He served in our army, won the VC and was invited to the Queens coronation. Among the lives he saved was that of Joanna Lumley’s father who said "I've known the name Bahadar Pun since I was four. He was an absolute hero in my house. Father was a chindit (soldier) alongside him in Burma. "I don't know exactly what happened on that battlefield in 1944 because war was so grim back then that few chindits ever spoke about what happened to them. But what I do know is that it was his bravery that saved so many lives, including my dad's”.
As a Brit (and one who still pays UK tax) I feel that this man should be at the top of the immigration list, not excluded from it !

Hi,

I take the point and in fact I am deeply sympathetic to the gentlemans plight and am strongly in favour for better treatment of the Gurhkas in general but the issues does require a little precision:

What precisely is it that bothers people?
a.) Is it the fact that a VC winner cannot gain entry into the UK?
b.) Is it the fact that a Gurhka cannot gain entry into the UK?
c.) Is it the fact that a sick man with a British connection cannot gain entry into the UK for health treatment?

I don't know how it is solved now but generations of British pensioners had to traipse down to the PO to collect their pensions every week or month or whatever, regardless of their state. He is unfortunate in that his 'PO' is at the bottom of a mountain and it is probably the only way to ensure that he actually receives his pension in the first place. Blame the Nepalese and not the Army, much less the Home Office

Regards

Hans

What's your angle on this ? Just curious.

dave

I think that people are concerned by the treatment of the Gurkhas in general, but that’s just my opinion. They have always been highly regarded, especially by the older generations.
Unfortunately, unless the media gets behind an issue there is little chance that the government will take any notice. When they started to take interest in Gurkha Pun, probably because he had the VC, did it create the situation where people could express their opinion in a way that the government would find hard to ignore. The e-mail campaign was specifically for Gurkha Pun to offer support before the immigration judge, but the Downing St. petition is for the Gurkhas in general.

PS. British pensioners can have their pension paid into a bank account now.

Speaking as a ginger, I've lost track of how many times I've had that particular discussion....