Sure, but India doesn’t have the same tradition of cultural assimilation and integration we* do; India has a number of political parties, particularly on the state level, whose mission is to defend the interests of specific religious minorities (and Hindus, for that matter), such as the Muslim League and the Shiv Sena.
The Indian Army regiments are largely based on the organizational structure put in place by the British Raj, in any case; the Sikh Regiment has existed since 1846, so it’s not like they created it out of whole cloth ten years ago (or even at independence).
Anyway, the real problem with a Sikh regiment that hasn’t been raised is the same one that eventually proved to be the undoing of segregation in the US - if it suffers unusually high casualties in a given conflict, how long will it be before someone starts asking questions about whether the theatre commander is using them for cannon fodder?
I think it is a great idea. I heard of the legends of fierce Gurkha regiments of the British Empire as a young boy, inspiring awe and respect on my part.
And how about the Royal 22e Régiment , the only francophone regiment in Canada. As a young boy I understood the Van Doos were exceptional soldiers. Hard to put down Quebeckers when you’re talking about them.
Rarely will a regiment be allowed to accumulate a bad reputation. But it certainly can develop a good one. One that can make an ethnic community, particularly a cohesive ethnic community proud to be part of their country, and a reputation that can only serve as ammunition against bigotry.
Think about the black American fighter pilots in WW II. The legends of the 99th Pursuit Squadron and the 332nd Fighter Group. Their glorious stories as all black fighting units certainly hastened the course of full acceptance of blacks in American society.
I’m totally against mandated segregation. But I think voluntary ethnic based military units are bound to be a positive force in the mainstream culture of a nation.
FTR, I totally regret agreeing with TFD about anything, but there you are.
Another annoying anecdote: I was at a different celebration when I stumbled into a reunion of the Tuskeegee Airmen. Some white light col pointed me to the black, full-bird, I should be thanking. As a kid steeped in WWII, I understood. Those guys deserved it ALL!
Well, not really. My unit (the 712 Communications Squadron, officially bilingual) routinely goes on exercises with 713 (Beauport) and 714 (Sherbrooke), both Franco (or at least as far as they can go while conforming to the standard Federal regulations that cover the entire Department of National Defense). The 713th is a Regiment.
The 22e is a famous Franco regiment, and the largest regiment of any type in the Canadian military, but it’s not the only one.
In essence, couldn’t you say most soldiers are ‘mercenaries’? There are not many that do it for free, are there? Or when they say they are prepared to lay their lives down for the good of their country and fellow man, do they have a price in mind for it?
You’re right. But let’s just say they could go on strike for higher pay; how much of a wage-hike would we deem acceptable, before we were labeling them ‘mercenaries’ again?
But soldiers can’t strike. They would be court-martialed if they did, for disobedience to lawful orders. A mercenary who tried to “strike” for higher pay (and I daresay some of them have tried) would either get more money from a desperate employer, walk away from his mission, or be killed for his gall, depending on the circumstances.
