Brits finally deem Gurkhas worthy of residency.

[Fr. Dougal McGuire]

Only a nation of scum would allow people to die for them without giving them the right to reside in their country.

The Gurkhas have wipespread support with most people agreeing with your point above. It is the UK Government who oppose this and I think only they deserve to be called scum.

However this issue has not yet been settled as the vote is not binding on the Government. It remains to be seen how they will respond, another u-turn would be very embarrassing for Gordon Brown.

[PaulMeyer]

Please do not drag the thread off topic by being a spelling Nazi. I am sure Paul will agree with me that it was absolutely
Only a nation of scum would allow people to die for them without giving them the right to reside in their country.

Wouldn't you agree Paul?

I personally wouldn't describe any nation as "Scum" as it would be not only illogical and grossly offensive but racist as well, I'm aware you don't share my scruples however.
Anyway, I'm not sure what exactly you are referring to when you say it's "disgraceful the way the Brits treated the Gurkha people", there are no such people or race, "Gurkhas" is the name given (from "Gorkha", a town in Nepal) collectively to Nepalese hillmen recruited into first the Indian, (pre-1947) and later the British armies and I fail to see what element of their treatment was or is disgraceful.

A brief history lesson for you. Recruitment of Gurkhas started in 1815 and they were a prominent part of the old Indian Army until a decision had to be taken about their future in the wake of Indian Independence in 1947. Many in the UK simply assumed that they would remain as part of the new Indian Army after that, like the Sikhs, Rajputs, Dogras and Garwalhis for that matter. It appears though, that such were the bonds of affection and respect for them, that a campaign to transfer at least some of them to the British Army started amongst senior Army officers in Whitehall and a srong case ws made for their retention. They were unique amongst the Indian Army in this respect.
After a lot of politicking and bean-counting it was agreed that four regiments, the Second, Sixth, Seventh and Tenth Gurkha Rifles, along with yet-to-be-formed Signals, Transport and Engineer components would form a new British Brigade of Gurkhas based not in India but in Malaya, at Sungei Pattani if I remember correctly.
The thing to remember here, before emotion and the red mist of righteous anti-Brit. indignation takes over, is that there was never any question then (or before,) of soldiers in the new Brigade being entitled to live in the UK, these guys are Nepalese citizens remember, and Nepal has never been part of the Empire or even the Commonwealth. Indeed there was no expectation of or demand for such a right or entitlement, it simply wasn't an issue. Their terms of service were clear and transparent and every man was a volunteer.

In those days the vast majority of Gurkhas could expect to serve their full career without setting foot in the UK, there wasn't even a role for them in the UK or North West Europe. They were of course employed extensively alongside British and Commonwealth troops in the Malayan Emergency, Brunei Revolt and Indonesion Confrontation where the most recent Gurkha VC was won in 1965 By L/Cpl. (later Major) Rambahadur Limbu of 10GR.
In the late sixties the Brigade left Malaya and set up in a new home in Hong Kong which would henceforth be their HQ and Training Depot. There was obviously some uncertainty as to what would become of them once HK was handed back to the Chinese in 1997. By this time of course it was usual for one battalion to be based in the UK at Church Crookham in Hampshire and another in Brunei. Like the rest of the Infantry, they suffered reductions in size until the remaining battalions were finally amalgamated into a new Gurkha regiment, The Royal Gurkha Rifles with a battalion in the UK and one in Brunei (paid for by the Sultan incidentally!). Once again, at this time there was no demand for or thoughts of, giving retired Gurkhas, most of whom had never set foot in the UK, a right to settle here. It was only after the hand-over of HK that all Gurkha recruits would for the first time since 1815 be trained in the UK and since then demands started, primarly from ex-Gurkha officers, to be allowed to settle in the UK. These demands have become increasingly vociferous in the past few years and public support has swung behind it, helped by the redoubtable Miss Lumley. So to get from there to here with the Govt losing a vote in the commons on it, in about 12 years, is not bad going and hardly evidence of "disgraceful" treatment by the British nation.

[hopi watcher]

So to get from there to here with the Govt losing a vote in the commons on it, in about 12 years, is not bad going and hardly evidence of "disgraceful" treatment by the British nation.

The 'disgrace' is the exploitation of people in poverty to use as cannon fodder and then discard them when not needed. This fits very well with the general racism that resides within the British establishment.

[sandar]

And who elects the MP's? A bunch of magic fairys who live at the bottom of the Garden?

Politicians represent the people. I have not heard too many British people fighting for the rights of the Gurkha.

tyhe ghurkas have widespread public support, from ordianry people right through to senior establishment figures in the militrary, the tory party and the labour party

[merle haggard]

Some 27 Labour rebels joined opposition parties to vote for a Liberal Democrat motion to give all Gurkhas who have served in the British armed forces equal rights to settle in the UK.

The 21-vote defeat was a humiliating reverse for Prime Minister Gordon Brown and a boost for the troops from the Himalayan kingdom of Nepal, who have pursued their demand for the right to settle through the courts over several years.

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said: "People who are willing to die for our country should be allowed to live in our country. The Government must listen to Parliament and scrap these shameful rules immediately and grant justice without conditions to all retired Gurkhas."

The Home Office announced last week that strict criteria would be applied to settlement claims for ex-Gurkhas discharged before July 1997. Applicants are to be judged according to length of service, bravery medals and service-related medical conditions.

Campaigners argued this would allow only around 100 veterans out of a total 36,000, most of them officers, to settle.

Mr Brown warned that the UK could not afford the £1.4 billion annual cost of an open-door policy.

"We have got to balance our responsibilities to those who have served our country with the finance that we need to be able to meet these obligations and not therefore base our offer on money we cannot afford," he said.
Gurkhas celebrate Commons victory - Yahoo! News UK
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It only took them 100s of years of service to the crown to be deemed worthy of residency. This is a clear indication of, not only how little the Brits think of the foreign mercenaries that they recruit but also, how much trouble they are having recruiting new native soldiers and foreign mercenaries.

Deluded Paddies thinking about signing up as imperial mercenaries should take note.

just to make it clear they still arent entited to residency . The vote is non binding upon the British governemnt . British democracy doesnt work like that

personally ive feck all sympathy for them . Its not like they only found out these were the rules of the massas they were fighting for for centuries . There were more laws passed on animal welfare than Gurkha welfare over the decades and centuries but still they all took the queens shilling anyway . I dont believe there should be any reward for utter stupidity in this world . As far as Im aware the Nepalese governemnt these days is banning British army recruitment anyway as a colonial hangover . Pity this country wasnt taking the same progressive attitude .

[Risteard]

I thought Joanna Luley did an excellent campaigning job for the Gurkhas and did a lot to focus and express the public support for them that exists there in the UK.

Yet more proof that factual loves British Crown Forces, perhaps even physically.

[sandar]

your correct merle, the vote was a lib dem motion rejecting the current situation, so that is essentially binidng, whats not binding is the ghurkhas wish to stay, thats the next test.....

[merle haggard]

Public Opinion was behind this move, senior military figures ewanted it amjority of parliamentarians wanted it, and both the conservatives and lib dems wanted it, the militray havent decided the policy, parlaiment has. thats democarcy.
And fair play to the Lib Dems on this, a third party punching above thwir wirght and actually driving legislative change, rather than merely speaking for a set interest group which is what happens in ireland.

what move ? they still arent entitled to residency regardless of the vote . This is British democracy remember .

[lostexpectation]

let these guys stay but then stop this whole gurkhas project

[merle haggard]

your correct merle, the vote was a lib dem motion rejecting the current situation, so that is essentially binidng, whats not binding is the ghurkhas wish to stay, thats the next test.....

its not binding . The British cabinet isnt required to pay any heed to it .