ABSTRACT

The Philippines, being a protectorate of the USA in the early twentieth century, was used by Sikhs as a base to migrate to America. Migration to the Philippines was low, but picked up somewhat post Indian independence in 1947 and much more from 1990s onwards till now. The Sikhs, who were watchmen in old times, are now moneylenders, famously called ‘Bumbay 5-6’. Over the last decade or more, they have been the target of several murder plots, and hence their safety has become a matter of concern. The Indian population in the Philippines is anywhere around 30,000 to 1,00,000 and the Punjabis are in a majority.