It is the author's hypothesis that some Sikhs would have
decided to stay back in Europe (out of sheer tiredness
if not the tempting attractiveness of these countries)
when their ships anchored in French and Italian ports
en-route to say the Americas. Similarly, some Sikh
soldiers would have likely struck romantic alliances
with locals during their wartime stay in Europe and
decided to stay back or subsequently return to get
married. Scholars of Diaspora studies are encouraged to
follow these possible scenarios.
Appendices
Case studies of two immigrants are appended (NL1) Harjit
Singh - a globe trotter which shows how enterprising and
determined a Sikh migrant can be. He arrived in NL via a
circuitous route of New Zealand, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru,
Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Guatemala, (Belize) and
finally Amsterdam. This in known as "via via" travel
amongst the immigrant community. Read how these
adventures persevered and get visas where even the author
had problems despite the fact that he has travelled to
more than 70 countries and is now on his 23rd passport;
(NL2) Sucha Singh - a 1970s immigrant. Additionally
(NL3) is a brief note on www.sikhs.nl and (NL4) lists
out Sikh War Memorials in Europe.
