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08/07/2006: "Asian Human Rights Commission backs repealing AFSPA Newmai News Network"

Asian Human Rights Commission backs repealing AFSPA Newmai News NetworkFear psychosis prevails amongst the common people due to rights abuse by law enforcing agencies, poster campaign launched against AFSPA in Manipur
Imphal: Asia Human Rights Commission, a Hong Kong based rights group extended support to the demand for repeal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act and urged New Delhi to repeal the act. “Imposition of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in Manipur and other parts of the Northeastern region of India has become counter productive and failed to control militancy. The act should be reviewed and repealed,” Bijo Francis, a representative of the rights commission told a media conference in Imphal today.
Bijo who came to Manipur on August 3 to assess the human rights condition in Manipur after human rights groups of the state submitted its reports of rights abuse by security forces in the state in the name of tackling militants left Imphal this afternoon.
Babloo Loitongbam, the Executive Director of the Human Rights Alert, an Imphal based group said Bijo is the first representative from any international human rights body to visit Manipur to see the situation personally. Babloo welcomed the visit and hoped that the assessment of the situation by the commission’s representative would help improve the situation in the state.
Army Chief to visit Nagaland tomorrow The Hindu
Kohima, Aug. 6 (UNI): Chief of the Army Staff General J J Singh will come to Nagaland on a two-day visit from tomorrow.
According to Defence sources here today General Singh would arrive at Dimapur tomorrow, where he would be received by III Corps GOC Lt. Gen. Z U Shah, and Inspector General of Assam Rifles (N) Maj. Gen. S S Kumar.
Both the Commanders would also brief the General about the latest situation of the State under their command. The General would lay the foundation stone of Army Goodwill School and inaugurate a Library at Dimapur, sources said.
Nagaland bandh called off Source: The Sangai Express / Newmai News Network
Kohima, Aug 06: The proposed 12-hour bandh on National Highway-39 by the Highway Area Sumi Students' Union (HASSU) on August 7, to protest alleged "unfair means" by Education Minister, Imkong L Imchen, has been called off following a ruling by the Guwahati High Court.

The decision to call of the bandh came in the wake of an order passed by the Guwahati High Court wherein it mentioned that it would take up the case.

The agitation was sparked off by the recent Joint Entrance Examinations (JEE) wherein a Sumi student was allegedly deprived off an MBBS seat, which went in favour of the Education Minister's son, who was placed much below the Sumi student in terms of merit. The Education Minister is currently under public scrutiny with some organizations including the opposition Congress demanding that Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio immediately drop Imchen from the Council of Ministers.
Defection of 9 NSCN-IM men Sangso Mongzar Nagaland Post
TUENSANG, AUG 6 (NPN): Nine NSCN-IM activists have reportedly surrendered to the rival NSCN-K faction.
Speaking to Nagaland Post over phone from an undisclosed base somewhere in Myanmar, the NSCN-K defence secretary Joseph Patton said that on Saturday last, six NSCN-IM men led by one Sgt Maj Konyak surrendered with huge arms and ammunition including LMG, GI Rifle, SLR, US carbine, 4 Thailand hand grenades, grenade launching rifles Mark rifles AK-56 and Sniper rifle.
Patton also claimed that another three NSCN-IM activists from Hebron Camp belonging to the Sumi community surrendered with arms and ammunition on Sunday.
While welcoming them to the national mainstream, Patton asserted that the rival activists, even after knowing about the extension of ceasefire between GoI and NSCN-IM for a period of one year, decided to join mainstream for Naga cause.
The reason behind the defection was that they were against the autocracy and dominance of "one tribe" in the NSCN-IM set up.
"We want to firmly stand for Naga cause. Hence we decided to join NSCN-K to stand and fight for our national cause," said the "home comers" according to the defence secretary.
Seven CRPF men, businessman injured in ULFA attack Zee News Guwahati, Aug 06: ULFA-sponsored violence in the run up Independence Day celebrations continued on Sunday with the banned group carrying out several attacks in Sibsagar district that left seven CRPF personnel and a businessman injured.

According to police, men from the 168 battalion of CRPF were on a routine patrol at Sonari and Jaji areas on the Assam-Nagaland border when a group of armed ULFA militants lobbed hand grenades at their vehicles.

Four CRPF men were injured at Sonari while three were hurt in Jaji. In yet another incident at Gouri Sagar in Sibsagar town, ULFA militants shot at and seriously injured a businessman named Manoj Agrawalla. Agrawalla, a rice mill owner, had failed to meet an extortion demand from ULFA for Rs 50 lakh. He was admitted in a critical condition to the Assam Medical College Hospital in Dibrugarh. Bureau Report
Naga MLAs hail truce extension By Our Staff Reporter Sangai Express
IMPHAL, Aug 6: Elected representatives of Naga inhabited areas have welcomed the extension of the ceasefire agreement between the NSCN (I-M) and the Government of India for one year from August 1, 2006 to August 1, 2007. In a joint statement, MLA of 41-Chandel (ST) A/C BD Behring, MLA of 43 Phungyar (ST) A/C Wungnaoshang Keishing, MLA of 44 Ukhrul (ST) A/C Dany Shaiza, MLA of 47 Karong (ST) A/C PS Henry Paotei and MLA of 53-Tamenglong (ST) A/C Samuel Jendai urged both the parties to ensure that the peace process is expedited to bring a fruitful and peaceful solution to the age-old Naga problem in the larger interest of the involved parties and the people of the country as a whole.
Peace talk or piece talk? By Oinam Anand Sangai Express article
When the agreement of cease-fire was signed between the Government of India and NSCN(IM) in 1997, there was a surge of optimism about the prospects of peace in the North-East India more particularly in Nagaland. The fire from the barrel of the guns had been ceased, no doubt but about the implementation of the terms and conditions put forward by the NSCN(IM) at the time of signing the truce pact, it is still a puzzle.
The perpetual extension of the terms of the cease-fire on the pretext of proper implementation of the agreements through periodic reviews is taken by many including the Nagas themselves as a ploy of the GOI to buy time in order to bury the peace process under the wrap of time.
The NSCN(IM) willingly put forward some demands to the GOI for which they know that it is unacceptable for the Indian Government under the Indian Constitution. These include a separate Constitution of the Nagas under the proposed Nagalim with their own representative to UN, the federal relationship with India only in defence, communication, currency etc. These demands are not palpable to the GOI.
What the Indian Government want most is to solve the Naga problem as that of the Mizoram, Darjeeling or Punjab accord because the country's integrity is paramount and it cannot be compromised. However for a permanent solution to the Naga problem it is indispensable to look beyond the Mizoram or Punjab models. So the GOI instead of giving a point by point answer to the demands of the NSCN(IM), it says that it is willing to resolve the crisis. But this does not satisfy the NSCN(IM).
But why do the two party go into an agreement of ceasefire? The answers are many. A ceasefire at this stage will give the NSCN(IM) an opportunity to end the long drawn struggle with head held high, who are tired of war and facing a tough time because of India's gaining of the status of a super power and at the same time tired of wearing jungle fatigues and living in the camps or caves in the rain infested NE India. For the Indian Government, a truce with NSCN(IM) will convey a message to the citizens and other insurgent groups that the State is serious about resolving any crisis.
As the talks progress, it is now clear that NSCN(IM) has given up the demand for a sovereign independent state. They have stuck to their stand that the agenda of discussion with the Centre must be on the unification of all Naga inhabited territories beyond the present State of Nagaland.
In the latest round of talks the NSCN(IM) is understood to have pressed the Indian negotiator that if there are problems to alter the maps of the Present Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh, that can be left for a later date. But for the present the importance is that India should recognise the desire of the Nagas to live under one roof as legitimate.
However, New Delhi is reluctant to make such commitment because of the serious problems associated with the integration of Naga inhabited areas beyond Nagaland. None of these three States would accept the NSCN(IM)'s demand for the unification of Naga-inhabited areas that fall within their territories.
Then critics are bound to ask 'Why'? After having fought for independence for more than 50 years the sudden volte-face to talk with India and demand for a greater Nagaland under the Indian Constitution causes a considerable loss to the credibility of the NSCN(IM).
If the NSCN(IM) are prepared to live under Indian federation now why they were not prepared to do so decades ago? That would have saved many lives. What is more, a unification of Naga areas which is also Nagas living only in Indian territory (not those living in Myanmar and China) means loyalty to the Indian Constitution. This would mean that NSCN(IM) has given up the demand of independence.
This is a difficult question to answer for the NSCN(IM) at the moment. But the reality is that they have fought for more than 50 years and got nowhere. They may now realise that India cannot concede such a demand of independence because such favour might trigger in the rest of the country. Their bullets have not served their purpose and from their point of view the unification of the Naga-inhabited areas will be a second best solution.
But here, the NSCN(IM) leaders are not doing their home-works well in order to reach a respectable solution in their right. Unless the GOI concedes the NSCN(IM)'s demand for a Greater Nagaland there is little chance of a solution. the GOI has the least authority to diminish even by an inch of the territory of an illegally annexed State like Manipur. Then the only motive of the GOI is to extend the term of the cease fire for another 6 months or 1 year or another 50 years. In the overall assessment of the peace talks so far, it becomes difficult to claim the process success or failure. No figure directly shows us whether the Nagas get their aspiration under the repeatedly extended ceasefire agreement. But one fact which is required to remind the Nagas is that the Indo-Naga peace talk is only a tool of the GOI to hammer out an effective strategy to keep the NSCN(IM) in check in the name of peace talk which has been divided into piece talk or periodic talk.
Westoxification of Nagas By R S Mayori Sangai Express
Today’s fast paced world, hardly enables students and youths to sit together under one platform and discuss issues that holds weightage to their own lives and people are turning more and more into techno and cyber savvy. It comes in with many tag of “fast” like fast food, fast car, fast life and fast people.
We have witnessed that Nagas strive dauntlessly to generate awareness of the indigenous peoples’ right to cultural development and advan-cement based on the international human rights and humanitarian laws, through the institution they try to set up to provide a platform where Nagas can learn to be Nagas ourselves again.
The Nagas’ way of life has been transformed to a great extent through the walk of life in history from the coming of Christianity to the Indian military crackdown on the Nagas resulting in innumerable violation of human rights, huge loss of innocent lives and most of all the veiled attempt to de-establish the complete identity and integrity of the Nagas’ by sheer military might.
Our narratives have been interrupted by Colonialism till today and our ancestral and past linkages have been broken and lost. Our culture, our stories are getting lost and are fading away at a high rate.
The erosion of our identity, culture and values system is making most of the youth confused. The alienation of the traditional education system and breaking of oral culture is posing a great danger to the whole society of Nagas as a whole.
Myriad of confusion among the youths and some vested interested people are adding up again to the already confused society. The infiltration of western culture and its toxin starts off from the moment the white people appears into our life which is multiplied by Indian toxin.
The westoxification of Nagas is clearly visible even within the so-called learned and religious people of the Nagas. The corruption level has not spared the religious leader. One of the instances is the case which has been going on for more then five years.
The Reverend versus Reverend and Doctors in Indian court filed for robbing of innocent people’s money in a broad day light of Tangkhul areas. The United Team Leadership Ministry (UTLM) fund - Ukhrul Area Development Project’s Money (UADP) amounting to Rupees 40 lakh was robbed off and the signatory of the people who have drawn the money from behind the curtain on dt. 23/12/95 are two very prominent Church leaders.
If given a little more efforts by scholar and do research on all this cases 90 percent of the cases that is hanging on the thread have got to do with money and power. Nagas need to re-define themselves with the pair that need to go together a long way. The two terminologies which spin up the pair are Nagas and money. Another westoxification that is penetrating in our society is breaking down of our social traditional structures.
Jacob Shaiza wrote on 15/07/06 "Tussle for hegemony in Ukhrul" in the Nagaland Post. “Taking cue from Th. Muivah, they shared the emotional meeting they had with him who told them that the blood, tears, and sweat they had undergone for the all these years are all because of the unique custom of the Nagas that define the true meaning of the unique history of the Nagas. The present Indo-Naga talk is given importance based on this undeniable fact."
We have to keep alive our culture and traditions and cannot impose alien culture claiming ourselves to be educated. We cannot go back to the past but we have to move forward so we have to reclaim our culture and history.
Educated and civilized doesn’t mean copycatting other’s value and system which is not applicable to the Nagas. We need to re-affirm ourselves as a Naga again and again when Nagas are in the midst of Chaos and turmoil created by the Government of India.
The Naga nation consists of around 47 tribes, each with its own language and culture and yet they are united by their shared history against foreign domination and the dream of living as one people, one nation. The Nagas are the original settlers on their homeland and their territory has been well demarcated from time immemorial.
The uniqueness of the Naga people lies in the fact that they have continued to live as a united people despite the fact that its lands have been illegally divided by the British by an international boundary between India and Myanmar. Nagalim was never a part of India by consent or conquest. The uniqueness lies in the fact that we still own our land as community and we follow our customary laws unlike other tribals of India.
The Nagas have continued to evolve modern political institutions and organisations in consonance with the democratic principles of Nagas' society. Naga polity is based on equal representation for each tribe, large or small. It is the same principle on which the United Nations functions: one nation, one vote.
Thus the Naga Students' Federation is an apex body of our students and it has two representatives of each of the Naga tribes. so does the Naga Hoho. Some tribes are very large with more than 300 villages; each has an equal representation from each tribe.
Within each tribe also the same democratic principle is followed. And the polity is based on consensus and not election which promotes conflicts and power struggles to the detriment of the people. — to be contd
Exhibition on human origins evoke positive response Our Correspondent Kohima | August 6
The ongoing exhibition on “Human Origins, Genome and People of India” under the aegis of the Anthropological Survey of India (ASI) here in the State Library evoked deserving response from the visitors. So far, the exhibition registered around 700 visitors, ASI officials told The Morung Express.
The exhibition, which was inaugurated by Governor Shyamal Datta on July 26 last, will go on till September 2. Shyam Thapa of St. Joseph School termed the exhibition as “informative, educative and inspiring.”
“It was amazing. I have learned something new and hope that I will be back someday. Very nice,” commented Taiching of Alderville School. Another student from the same school, Kipito said “It was quite nice. It has increased by knowledge about earliest civilization.”
“The visual supplements are so informative,” said Tongpang L Jamir of Kohima Law College and hoped that the ASI would organize similar events in the coming days as well. Vengota from Nagaland University said “It is nice and good collection of materials.”
Rakholu of MHBHSS termed the exhibition as excellent and thanked the ASI “for leading us to know about the ancient times.”
Medovito of Dainty Buds opined that the exhibition is full of amazing facts while Nungsang from the same institute stated that it was an ‘eye-opening’ step to Nagaland.
According to ASI, the exhibition attempts to present very interesting glimpses into what the scholars have been doing for years, most of the time away from the public eyes, “and help us to appreciate their efforts as well as the uniqueness of our human species.”
The exhibition presents a panorama of activities of some of the hunter-gatherers, nomads and pastoralists, who have retained age-old knowledge on local ecology.Another interesting section of the exhibition presents glances of recent research projects undertaken by the ASI; the projects have often offered some notable leads for biological and cultural changes that are sweeping the human surface of India.
ASI’s publication containing findings have been kept on display and sale. This exhibition has been specially designed for students and laymen , it was informed and hoped that the exhibition would play an important role in understanding the past and the present of human species, with special reference to India, and “inspire all of us to think about the future of human beings and the space they occupy in the vast universe.” The exhibition time has been set at 10:00 am - 5:00 pm.
Nagaland peace talks still elusive Nagarealm.com
The National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Issac-Muivah) has once again announced the extension of the ceasefire for one year following three days parleys with the Indian negotiators at Bangkok on July 31, 2006. Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist, based in Chennai, India. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba@yahoo.com
Speculation were rife that the customary extension of the ceasefire done every year since it was first signed in 1997 may not be made because the rebels in January had extended the truce only for six months, instead of a year.

The theory gained currency because a day before the talks were to commence, NSCN-IM leaders, Isak Chishi Swu and Thuingaleng Muivah, threatened not to extend the truce, accusing the Indian Army of covertly supplying weapons to a rival outfit to provoke a ‘fratricidal war.’ However, better sense prevailed in the end and the rebels agreed to continue with peace talks even tough complaining that little progress has been made on their core demands.

The main demand of NSCN-IM is to create a ‘Greater Nagaland’ by uniting 1.2 million Nagas through the unification of Naga-dominated areas in northeast of India. They also want a separate Naga Constitution, independent of the Indian constitution but are not totally opposed to incorporating some important sections of the Indian constitution.

Indian states of Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh that are going to be affected have already rejected the NSCN-IM demand. The Union government also has serious objections to the Naga’s rights to sovereignty and claim to redraw the boundaries of the northeast states for their territorial unification.

India and the NSCN-IM held at least 50 rounds of negotiations in the past nine years but has not made any substantial progress in a in a bid to solve this problem.

Nagaland is a mountainous state bordering Myanmar with a population of nearly two million people that are predominantly Christians. The Naga problem is one of the oldest disputers in South Asia and since the independence of India has claimed more than 25,000 lives.

The genesis of the Naga insurgency dates back a day before India's freedom. The Nagas were the first ethnic group in the northeast to revolt against New Delhi’s rule. Legendary Naga leader Angami Zapu Phizo and his Naga National Council (NNC) on August 14, 1947, had asserted that the Nagas were never a part of India.

By 1950 the NNC formally announced its desire to form a sovereign or independent Naga nation, marking the beginning of the armed struggle in Nagaland.

The NNC in May 1951 claimed that 99 percent of the Naga tribals and Christians have supported a referendum to determine their future as a free nation. This was summarily rejected by New Delhi.

By 1952, the NNC launched a guerrilla movement, attacking villages and security posts to ignite a violent chapter in the history of Nagaland.

In 1956, Phizo formed a parallel government called the Naga federal government (NFG) and its armed wing, Naga federal army (NFA). The Indian government in April 1956 launched a military crackdown in the erstwhile Naga hill districts in the undivided Assam. Phizo sneaked into then East Pakistan and then to London. Since then, until his death in 1990, he led the NNC from London.

In 1963, Nagaland attained statehood and India made efforts to broker peace with the NNC. People like Jayaprakash Narayan and Rev. Michael Scott were then involved in the Naga peace process.

On Sep 6, 1964, a ceasefire was signed between the Indian government and the NNC. Six rounds of talks were held but despite the truce, the Naga rebels continued their offensives that made the government to abrogate the truce in 1969.

By then chinks had appeared in the Naga struggle. Members of the powerful Sema tribe broke away and in 1968 formed the revolutionary government of Nagaland (RGN) led by self-styled ‘General Kaito’.

In 1971, India banned three prominent Naga groups; the NNC, NFG and NFA. Indian troops also launched a massive anti-insurgency operation in 1973 and for the first time were able to force the guerrillas to surrender. On August 14, 1973, the RGN, under the leadership of General Zuheto Swu, joined the Indian mainstream with a number of its cadres inducted into the Border Security Force.

Apart from surrender, the army operations forced the NNC to talk peace with the government. As a result, Shillong Accord was signed on November 11, 1975, with the Naga rebels led by Kevi Yally, the younger brother of Phizo, accepting the Indian constitution.

But some people within the NNC opposed the accord and prominent among them were T. Muivah, Isak Swu and S. Khaplang.

Muivah was then NNC general secretary and Swu a senior minister. Khaplang, a Burmese Naga, was president of the Eastern Nagaland Revolutionary Council, a wing of the NNC formed to protect Naga interests in Burma.

There was another twist in the Naga tale when the trio of Muivah, Swu and Khaplang decided to sever ties with their parent body and formed the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) in 1980.

Swu was made the chairman, Khaplang the vice-chairman and Muivah the general secretary.

The NSCN emerged as the most powerful and radical rebel army in Nagaland, sidelining the NNC and NFG.

The NSCN-led insurgency became bloody over the years. But soon the NSCN was mired in internal problems, with leaders differing on major policy issues on clan and tribal lines.

The NSCN split in 1988 with Khaplang forming a parallel NSCN (Khaplang). By 1992, the two NSCN factions were engaged in a fratricidal war over territorial supremacy.

This provided New Delhi the much-needed weapon to tackle insurgency by forcing the NSCN (Isak-Muivah) to come to the negotiating table. A ceasefire accord was signed August 1, 1997.

Since then the NSCN-IM and New Delhi have held at least 50 rounds of peace talks at Switzerland, France, Italy, Netherlands, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia and elsewhere.

A similar truce was also signed with the NSCN (Khaplang) faction in April 2001 but formal peace talks with that outfit are yet to begin. Now, after prolonged twists and turns in the Naga rigmarole, the mood is one of guarded optimism. The Nagas want 'honorable settlement' to end their long drawn struggle and to establish an enduring peace.

However, the slow progress of the peace talks has brought a mood of 'belligerency’ in the NSCN-IM camp. The joint statement issued by Muivah and New Delhi’s chief peace negotiator K. Padmanabhaiah has catapulted this feeling since the talks early this year. The statement says that both sides recognized that ‘there has been insufficient progress in the talks’ and to carry the political negotiations forward what is required is ‘new initiatives.’

The NSCN-IM cadre in Nagaland wants to know what are the ‘new initiatives’ New Delhi is taking to solve their problem. Some openly have expressed dissatisfaction with the commitments made by the Indian government.

Indian government says it’s aware of the 'impatient mood’ of the Naga but at the same time has little option than to adopt a cautious approach to handle this sensitive issue.

With little progress in the Naga peace talks being made and the ceasefire getting repeated extension, the signs of another chapter of internecine struggle breaking loose, looms large over the horizon of Nagaland.

However, hammering out 'honorable' settlement with the Nagas is a major challenge that’s faced by India today. At the same time, truce with the Nagas is crucial for the peace in the seven northeast states that connects India by a thin strip of land called ‘chicken’s neck.’ Added to it is the northeast region of India is home to dozens of insurgent groups.

If India really wants to address the problem of insurgency in its northeast region, it has to rework on the solutions to the Naga problem. Its casual approach may always elude any permanent tranquility in its northeast region that’s so important for its development. It may also have a telling impact on India’s look east policies.

Gogoi insists on direct talks Nagaland Post
GUWAHATI, AUG 6 (PTI): Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today insisted on holding direct talks with the banned ULFA and regretted that the outfit had not abjured violence so far. The chief minister told a "meet the press" programme here that the ULFA had not shown a "positive attitude" towards the talks process and had engaged in violence.
"They (ULFA) are insisting on release of top five leaders but have you ever heard them saying they will sit for talks after that?" he asked. "Is there any assurance that after releasing them, they will sit... they are only saying release the leaders and then they will have discussion among themselves whether or not to sit for talks", Gogoi said. Citing figures during the programme, the chief minister claimed that 22 civilians were killed before the talks process with the Peoples Consultative Group begun in October 2005.
But after that as many as 41 people were killed by the militants, he said.
"This counters the reported claim that the ULFA has shown restraint and stopped violent activities", he said. The chief minister regretted that the ULFA till now had not said anything about holding negotiations to solve the vexed problem for which both the Centre and the state government were eager. Gogoi said for the last ten months, parleys were only held with the ULFA's appointed group, the PCG, but it was time that the outfit said "we want talks".
The chief minister said all such efforts should" be two-way traffic and it is not that only one side has to relent."
On the demand to halt Army operation, voiced by the Peoples Committee for Peace Initiative (PCPI), a conglomerate of various organisations sympathetic to the ULFA cause and the PCG, Gogoi said it would not be possible unless violence was stopped.
"The ULFA is continuing with its violence activities and how can one stop security operations... government has to provide security to the people", he said. The chief minister during the marathon question hour session answered various queries regarding his ups and downs and even memorable moments in his personal life.
Stop Mayek debate or else face death : KYKL By Our Staff Reporter Sangai Express
IMPHAL, Aug 6 : Asserting that the present debate over which Meitei Mayek should be followed, the 27 letter script or the 36 letter script, is detrimental to the efforts to revive the indigenous script and amounts to paving the way for the Bengali script to stage a come back, the proscribed KYKL today said that it has banned all debates over this issue till August 31, 2016.
In a statement, general secretary of the outfit N Oken today said that the State Government finally buckled to the pressure mounted by MEELAL last year to introduce Meitei Mayek in Class I and II with the understanding that it would be introduced in the upper classes in phases.
However the arguments posed by the proponents of the 36 letter script, Meitei Yelhou Mayek Inat Sandokpa Lup, has threatened to derail the process of introducing the indigenous script of the people, said KYKL and added that such arguments and debates at this juncture will prove counter productive.
Admitting that changes, alterations and improvisation in languages and scripts are needed, KYKL said that there is no language or script which cannot be improved.
There is a move to improvise the spellings in English and French to sync with the pronunciation, said KYKL and added that process is also underway to simplify the Chinese language.
Efforts are also on to drop the unnecessary letters of Sanskrit used in Bengali script, said the statement and added that even in Hindi some alphabets were changed.
However the case with Meitei Mayek is a bit different at this juncture, said KYKL and added that the changes, the debates and improvisations can be discussed when the script is fully in use.
Needless debates and arguments at this moment will only amount to paving the way back for Bengali script, it maintained.
Hence the KYKL has decided to ban all debates on Meitei Mayek till August 31, 2016. By then the students studying in Class II would be in Class XII and it will then be right to initiate any debates or discussions.
No meetings to debate over Meitei Mayek will be allowed henceforth, said KYKL and added that no statements should be given to newspapers over the issue. No pamphlets will also be allowed to be used. Anyone found violating this will be awarded the capital punishment, warned the outfit.
No newspapers should entertain any news items on the debates over Meitei Mayek without verifying the identity of the people issuing the statement as well as their designations within the organisation which they represent. In case any newspaper publishes news items which are issued by people using fictitious names then the “officials” concerned of the newspapers will be awarded the death sentence, on charge of complicity said KYKL.
On using Meitei Mayek on sign boards, the statement decreed that all shops and institutes should adorn their sign boards with Meitei Mayek which should be at least twice the size of the words written in English. The words in Meitei Mayek should also be placed on top. The change should be effected by September 15, said the outfit.
All newspapers published in Manipuri should carry the name of the paper in Meitei Mayek and it should be at least twice the size of the words written in English. The change should be effected by September 15.
KYKL said that there are laws in other countries which enforce such strictures.
In Russia it is mandatory for all sign boards to be written prominently in Russian. Even in Quebec, which is a province of Canada where the official language is English, all sign boards should be written in French and not in any other language.
The decree in Quebec was challenged before the Human Rights Commission of UNO at Geneva, said the statement and added that though the UN ruled that the rule infringes upon the right of the people, Quebec ruled that the rulings of the UNO cannot be applied there.
The people of Manipur may think that awarding the death sentence on anyone found paving the way for Bengali script to return is harsh, said KYKL. However the outfit recalled how president of the Bodo Sahitya Sabha was killed over the usage of script.
Since the Bodos do not have their own indigenous script they are now using the Hindi script. However there is a strong movement to replace Hindi with the Roman script, said KYKL. The president of Bodo Sahitya Parishad was killed because of his stiff resistance to switch to the Roman script.
If the Bodos can kill a learned man over the usage of a script which is not theirs then there should be no hesitation in adopting the same method when it comes to our own indigenous script, reasoned KYKL.
(Tomorrow : A brief history of the debates over Meitei Mayek)
Anti-AFSPA campaign kicks off By Our Staff Reporter Sangai Express
IMPHAL, Aug 6: With the primary objective of repealing Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 and spreading legal awareness among the people of Manipur, Human Rights Alert (HRA), Imphal and Manipur Unit of Human Rights Law Network (HRLN) began a poster campaign from today.
Kicking off the campaign, Bijo Francis of South Asian Desk of the Asian Human Rights Commission, a prominent human rights organisation with its headquarters at Hong Kong released a life sized colour poster of hunger striker Irom Chanu Sharmila during a function at Manipur Press Club here today.
The poster of Sharmila with ‘Restore right to life. Repeal AFSPA’ printed on the upper portion also has a number of names of arbitrary killings, torture, enforced disappearances, massacres and rapes perpetrated by security forces.
The 36-year old gutsy girl from Kongpal Khong-kham Leikai of Imphal East District has been fasting since a day after Assam Rifles troops mowed down ten innocent civilians at Malom in Greater Imphal area on November 1, 2000. She is presently being kept nose-fed at the security ward of JN Hospital, Porompat.
Speaking at the occasion advocate Meihoubam Rakesh of HRLN said apart from spreading legal awareness and pointing out the draconian provisions given in the repressive Act to the people living in the remote areas of the State, consultation programme particularly for the victims of AFSPA would also be conducted during the 3 month long campaign.
Francis, who has conducted a three-day study on the ground realities and impact of the excesses committed on the people by the security forces with immunity granted under AFSPA, said he is in support of the people’s long standing demand of scrapping AFSPA as it is counter productive in all spheres.
Based on his studies, the prominent rights activist, who has gained the UN special consultative status on the subject matter, observed that besides giving unrestrained power to the armed forces, AFSPA has caused tremendous fear psychosis among the innocent public.
‘What is the use of retaining such draconian Act, when it has helped nothing but mushrooming up of a number of underground organisations and severe human rights violation by the armed forces’, Francis said.
While pointing out that there is lack of legal awareness among the people in challenging the excesses of the State forces, he noted that this might be caused by either the withdrawal of the cases by the litigants after reaching an understanding with the opposite party or under coercion.
No positive indications from ULFA: Gogoi By A Staff Reporter Assam Tribune
GUWAHATI, Aug 6 – Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today said there are still no “positive indications” from the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) that it would sit for direct talks with the Centre. The outfit is still indulging in killings and extortions, he said while talking to newspersons in the city today. “The ULFA has still not committed itself to direct talks,” Gogoi stated while pointing out that the outfit is insisting that its five jailed leaders be released first before its final decision is conveyed. The release is necessary, ostensibly to enable the entire top leadership to meet and take the final stand on peace negotiations.

Expressing disappointment that the peace talks have not made much headway even after almost 11 months since the formation of the ULFA-nominated People’s Consultative Group (PCG), the Chief Minister said civilian killings have, in fact, increased during this time. On the contrary, the killing of militants has decreased. Citing figures, the Chief Minister said there have been 41 civilian killings by the ULFA, since the PCG was formed, compared to 27 killings during the same period earlier. On the other hand, there have been 31 militant deaths compared to 43 earlier.

“There are no positive indications from the ULFA,” Gogoi said, stating that government cannot take decisions without a firm commitment for talks by the outfit. He said it is impossible for the government to let its guard down, as it is answerable to the people if any violent incident takes place.
AFSP Act and the Centre — Dwaipayan Assam Tribune editorial
Barely a couple of days ago, quite an amazing story appeared in a section of the print media across the northeastern part of our country. It is quoted here as saying that a committee set up to review the xenophobic Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in the North East has recommended its repeal and suggested incorporation of some of its provisions in another piece of legislation but the Centre is yet to take a decision on the panel’s report one year after its submission.

It further says that Justice (Retd) BP Jeevan Reddy who headed the five-member committee constituted in the wake of the widespread protests in Manipur over the rape and killing of Manorama Devi allegedly by Assam Rifles in 2004 submitted his report to Home Minister Shivraj Patil in June last year and it has since been under the government’s consideration.

If the newsreport is to be believed, it is certainly going to be a source of discontent to all those who have been longing for an enduring peace in the violence-weary region, and may without rhyme or reason only serve to add to the sense of alineation among the people, in the states of the Northeast, particularly in Manipur, Asom, Nagaland and Tripura where the AFSPA is in force. It has already been a year now ever since the panel has recommended the scrapping of the Act; but, surprisingly, the government is still considering, as the report says. The delay does rarely reflect its serious concern over the issue. Admittedly, there is so far no report from any of the four States where the AFSPA is in operation of the people staging any protest demonstrations or march against the Centre’s going slow on taking a decision vis-a-vis the review committee’s report submitted to Home Minister Shivraj Patil. But it will seldom taken anyone by utter surprise if in the approaching days there builds up a mass popular movement in the entire Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley, which has been a witness to many a struggle against hunger and deprivation in the recent past, in particular, if no beyond it, to press for its immediate repeal and the inclusion of some of its provisions in another Act. After all, a section of the Meiteis also known as Manipuris, are unhappy over what they conceive to be ‘‘the inordinate delay’’ the Centre is making in taking a decision on it. A seasoned politician from Manipur who wants to remain anonymous has also voiced his sorrow and concern over the matter.

But then, there is in fact no reason to feel sorry or annoyed over the delay because all those who are aware or have profound and thorough knowledge of the North East and its problems, are also mindful that the Centre has rarely been prompt and proactive when it comes to addressing the basic needs of the region. To be more specific, there are innumerable instances on records, in the recent past when the Centre is soon procrastinating in resolving various intractable and pressing problems of the regional States which it should do with all earnestness and sincerity on priority basis.

Of the seven States in the region, Asom seems to be the most telling example of the victim of the Centre’s apathy towards its fundamental needs. Think of the State’s flood problem. Having been chronic and intriguing in character its economy is still far from vibrant because every year it costs the State’s exchequer enormously when it undertakes restoration works during the post-flood period. Destruction of wealth to the tune of crores of rupees by floods is therefore a recurring problem which can be cited as one of the major hindrances to the State’s development.

Tackling it on a long-term basis has been long-over-due, and is the business of the Centre; and, significantly, acknowledging it as a national problem, though after years of pleadings by the State leaders with the Centre, Prime Minister Dr Mamohon Singh, during his first official visit to Asom soon after his assumption of office in 2004 constituted the task force to study the flood problem and recommend measures to resolve it. The task force has already submitted its reports. But, it is unfortunate that the Centre is silient about the matter.

Inordinate delay will only add to Asom’s financial crisis. That the Centre is seldom serious about its other commitments is also reflected in its North East Industrial Policy of 1997. The whole of the region wanted from it an exclusive, attractive policy that can ensure free flow of large-scale capital investment from outside for an accelerated industrial development of the North East. But what is revealed at the end of the day is that the flow of investment is no near expectation. After the initial years of the announcement of the policy for the region when the entrepreneurs showed enough of interest in opening up business, evidently being attracted to the incentives offered under it, it gradually began plunging thanks to its dilution caused by the Centre’s announcement of another industrial package meant for several other States including Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Jammu and Kashmir, akin to the North East’s. As a result, while the entire North East received investments of Rs 1,268 crore in the last seven years, it was, quite amazingly, Himachal pradesh alone got Rs 7,019 crore in a single year.

However, the demand for withdrawal of the AFSPA from Nagaland, Manipur, Asom and Tripura is old. The people of Manipur have been demanding its repeal ever since it was reimposed in the State on September 9, 1980 by the RK Dorendro ruling establishment. It is alleged that the security personnel deployed in the terrorist-infested areas of the State have committed excesses and atrocities on the civilians in the name of the dealing with the militants by misusing the provisions of the Act, especially its Clause 4(a).

It needs recollect here that of all other clauses of 4(a) in the Act can be considered to be the most provocative in tone and tenor as it has given a commissioned or warrant or any other officer in the armed forces what may be called ‘‘carte blanche’’ to perform to defuse a dangerously volatile situation in a disturbed area.

The leading citizens, therefore, feared that the provisions of the Act, particularly its stated clause might be misused by the security agencies. They vehemently opposed its proclamation in the State, but it fell on the deaf ears of the authorities. The net result: the growing incidence of ‘‘excesses and atrocities’’ on the innocent people in subsequent years. This was well demonstrated through one of the most sensational and agonising reports of the Amnesty International, a London-based human rights organisation. It told a story, a tragic story of Th Stephen, a 28-year old school teacher from Ngamju village in Senapati district of Manipur. He was tortured by the members of the Assam Rifles after being arrested on December 19, 1988 on the charge of having testified in a court in defence of his sister and other victims of alleged rape.

The tragic incident sent shook waves across the State. The people intensified the movement in protest against the alleged atrocities by the security agencies. Sharmila Devi’s continuous fast since November 2, 200o triggered off strong emotional sentiments, particularly in the Imphal Valley., followed by a mass anti-AFSPA stir. The situation, however, soon began snowballing when it took almost a violent turn following the alleged tourture and custodial death of Manorama Devi, by Assam Rifles.

Sensing a possible spurt in violence, the review committee was established. It will be worthwhile on the part of the Centre to immediately take its decision on the panel report pertaining to the controversial Act. In the event of its further delay in deciding on it, there may, who knows develop a similar situation in Manipur as its political history is one of sacrifice and turbulen
Fear psychosis writ large among the Manipuris: AHRC The Imphal Free Press

IMPHAL, Aug 6: "What I find quite strange in Manipur from the rest of the country is that when a law enforcing officer picks up someone or tortures him, it is done without any formal complaint.

"People are not willing to talk and cases are withdrawn mysteriously. I think there is a fear psychosis writ large among the people. People are afraid to express and are not willing to speak. In the last four days I met about 12-14 individuals and some families out of which 50 percent have concerns approaching court. "Who is a law enforcing officer? At the end of the day a law enforcing officer is a paid servant of the government and should not enjoy extra impunity. If they enjoy `abnormal` impunity, then there must be something fundamentally wrong with the legal provision of the state."

Visiting Asian Human Rights Commission India Desk in-charge Bijo Francis, who is on his maiden visit to Manipur, conveyed the above to mediapersons today at the Press Club while inaugurating the worldwide poster campaign on Irom Sharmila, who is fasting for the last 5 years demanding the complete scrapping of Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958.

The poster campaign with the message "restore right to life, repeal Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act" will conclude on November 3, 2006 to commemorate 6 years of Sharmila`s fast. It may be mentioned that Sharmila has been surviving on nasal feeding for more than half a decade.

Observing that the frequent blatant human rights violations carried out in Manipur in the name of AFSPA and suppression of the insurgency movement is not broadcast in national and international media, he said that AHRC is willing to extend help to Manipuri media to do the same. He said that if the particular law which was framed to curb insurgency problem for the last 50 years could only instead provoke the problem further, it is obvious that the law needs to be reviewed and if necessary repealed. He asserted that time and again it has been proven that violence will not curb violence and said that the government of India "should not forget that you are not waging a war against an enemy, it is your own people".

AHRC is an NGO based in Hong Kong which enjoys special consultative status of United Nations. Francis said that AHRC will expose what is happening in Manipur and put pressure on government of India and concerned stakeholders. The campaign launch was also attended by L Babloo of Human Rights Law Network and M Rakesh of Human Rights Law Network.

KYKL announces stern measures on Mayek issue The Imphal Free Press

IMPHAL, Aug 6: In the wake of criticism being raised in connection with implementation of the Meetei Mayek and the circumstances brought about by conflict between organizations working towards promotion of the indigenous script, the underground Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup has imposed a blanket ban on convening of any open discussion on the issue.

The outfit has also imposed ban on publication of any press statement or distribution of leaflets criticizing the already approved script and the Meetei Mayek script issue. Anyone found violating the ban will be treated as anti-people and such people will be given capital punishment straightway, a KYKL statement issued by its general secretary, N Oken said. Observing that all the criticism being raised against the already approved Meetei Mayek (27 script) is nothing but only a gambit to pave the way for a return to Bengali script in school curriculum in the state, the KYKL supremo also said all the criticism being raised with regard to implementation of the already approved indigenous script are destructive. The criticism by some sections of the society is not for the 27 script but rather aiding the Bengali script, Oken said in a lengthy statement in which he also recalled the chain of events, discussions, deliberation and circumstances on how the 27 script Meetei Mayek reached the current position and was approved.

Regarding the harsh decision taken by the outfit on the issue, the KYKL leader said the outfit was compelled to take up the extreme step due to the compelling situation brought about by continued criticism raised against the Meetei Mayek script which had already been implemented in the school curricula. Any open discussion for development or promotion of the indigenous script could be taken up at a time when people of Manipur could totally chuck out Bengali script i.e. when Meetei Mayek become a language for study in class - XII in 2016, Oken said appealing to the organizations working for development of the Meetei Mayek to wait till 2016 for any open discussion for promotion and propagation of the indigenous script.

The KYKL leader also appealed to all the concerned organizations to wait for another ten years after which any modification or development of the script could be taken up or renewed, adding the step is being taken up in the general interest of the people. Making a fervent appeal to the newspaper organizations not to publish any unauthorized press statement/releases on the issue of Meetei Mayek, the KYKL also cautioned that any scribes found violating the restrictions would be given capital punishment with the charge of helping in the conspiracy to destroy the state.

On the matter of writing Meetei Mayek script on sign boards, the KYKL leader said every shop, organization or institution in the four valley districts of the state must inscribe the indigenous script at least twice the size of English language script. All concerned should perform this exercise latest by September 15, 2006 and anyone found violating will be given appropriate punishment, Oken announced adding all the Manipuri vernaculars should also perform this exercise on the masthead of the paper.