Sukhdeep Kaur, hailing from a village in Tarn Taran, is the first ‘amritdhari’ Sikh woman to be appointed as a prison officer in Hong Kong.
At the ceremony earlier this month, the 20-year-old made history by becoming Hong Kong’s first female Sikh prison officer wearing a turban, in a Correctional Services Department (CSD) which has more than 6,500 officers but only 46 who are not Chinese.
To Kaur, an Indian Hongkonger and one of the city’s approximately 12,000 Sikhs, the religious garment has always been at the heart of her identity.
“Hair is sacred in Sikhism, because it symbolises naturality and how God made us. We don’t cut our hair and we wrap it inside the turban to keep it clean from dust,” Kaur said.
“I was baptised at 12 and after the ceremony I was fully integrated into Sikhism. To me, the turban represents my religion and culture, and it’s also easy for Sikh people to recognise and give solidarity to one another.”
Sukhdeep (24), said it was for the first time that a baptised Sikh woman was given recognition to be placed with the Correctional Services Department (CSD) in Hong Kong.
Sukhdeep said due to communication gap, as majority of people of Hong Kong origin speak Cantonese (a form of Chinese language), initially it was difficult for me to apprise the people about Sikhism.
“Now, I am fluent in Cantonese vocabulary, so no hassles. When I go out, they look at me and ask a lot of questions. But they actually respect and accept me for who I am.
During the interview, the CSD authorities were convinced with me and issued me four blue turbans as part of my uniform. As a prison officer, it’s my job to communicate with persons in custody. A turbaned Indian woman speaking Cantonese with them makes them more comfortable in opening up and the conversation occasionally starts with my religious look.”
Born in a farming family at Bhuchar Khurd village located on India-Pakistan border in Tarn Taran, Sukhdeep attained her early education at Sant Singh Sukha Singh School in Amritsar followed by procuring a bachelor’s degree in computer science from DAV College.
She moved to Hong Kong with the support of her relatives a few years back. She did some extensive course as per the Hong Kong curriculum. Thereafter, she underwent a 23-week special training that finished on December 6 and she was posted as Assistant Officer-2 in the CSD recently.
