Peter Deutsch: “Mr. Chairman, last year India held the world's largest democratic elections. This election, called epic by the New York…”

“Mr. Chairman, last year India held the world's largest democratic elections. This election, called epic by the New York Times and extraordinary by the Washington Times, resulted in a peaceful change in government with nearly 300 million people going to the polls. The government in the state of Punjab, a region the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Burton] claims is government repression of a Sikh minority, a Sikh-dominated government, replaced the ruling party in open, democratic elections. Voter turnout was actually over 67 percent. Several Members of Congress were invited to observe these elections. Like all developing countries, India has experienced human rights problems. However, as the world's largest democracy, it is taking steps to remedy them. India's free press, independent judiciary and vigorous NGO's have been recognized as models for other developing countries. Last year more than 200 security force personnel were punished for their involvement in human rights violations. The most recent United States human rights report praised the commission's independence and noted that India has made substantial progress in the area of human rights.”