Forty HSS Shakhas joined communities across the country getting involved in UK Parliament Week 2020 and encouraging people to play a vital role in their democracy. Over 2200 HSS UK participants said, “It starts with me”.
Scope and scale of engagement with UK Parliament exceeded the expectations in 2020 as 49 Shakhas registered for UKPW2020 activities and 41 MPs and councillors attended HSS UK’s virtual Parliament Week activities. MPs included Sir Graham Brady, Alex Chalk, Theresa Villiers, Bob Blackman, Matthew Offord, Holly Lynch, Navendu Mishra, Virendra Sharma, Fabian Hamilton to name but a few. They were unanimous in reiterating that Hindus must stand for political office. At Barnet Parliament Week event, councillor Roberto Weeden -Sanz said, “We need to see more Hindu youngsters in the council chambers.” From Edinburgh to Portsmouth, from Southend on sea to Cardiff there was genuine enthusiasm to engage in conversation with UK Parliament. Parliamentarian and Councillors shared experiences, praised participation and responded to intriguing questions from youngsters. It was a compelling experience which included quizzes, painting, drawing, debates, polling, mock parliament, drafting a petition, writing letter to MP, lobbying an MP, mock Prime Ministers Question time, being an MP for a week and much more. Activities were creative and educational.
Fourteen-year-old Yachna Dhir from Cheltenham Balagokulam said, “UK Parliament Week is a very important event. It highlights the importance of speaking up and getting your voice heard. Before Parliament Week I had no clue about how parliament is run but now I know about the different voting systems and different ways in which I can participate. I feel empowered and confident that together we can make a difference. After this event, I am motivated to join more debates at school and make my voice heard.”
This year marks ten years of UK Parliament Week. It was a great opportunity to be part of a thriving democracy and we look ahead to the next 10 years, thinking about what issues are important to us and how we can work with UK Parliament to bring about change. HSS UK lead for UK Parliament Week commented, “We believe the entire universe is one family, in Sanskrit we say ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ and we work towards this by teaching our youth the value of responsible citizenship”.
