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11/03/2006: "Debate, a must on imkong’s statement- Nagaland Post Opinion"


Debate, a must on imkong’s statement- Nagaland Post Opinion
NSCN/GPRN reacts to the daunting statement of Imkong Imchen, Nagaland puppet state Minister for Education, published in the local dailies of 1.11.2006 issue wherein he stated that they (State Govt.) would not remain silent on the issue of affiliating the Schools of Manipur to NBSE, but pursue the matter aggressively. It is an open challenge and daunts of Imkong to different sections of Naga people who oppose the move.
The issue of affiliating the schools in the four districts of Manipur to Nagaland Board of school Education is not a political one, but is a socio-economic issue. Hence, in the socio-economic interests of the Nagas, the NSCN/GPRN had already registered its strong opposition to the move.
Now, the hill students of Manipur state as per official informations have started getting admitted to Nagaland School to sit in the forth coming examinations. This move will certainly culminate into questions of scholarships, selections to technical branches like Medical, Engineering, etc, etc. Then which district or tribe or community of the Nagas will share or spare their chances or opportunities to the students of Manipur? Again, which tribe or community in Nagaland will sacrifice their employment opportunities for the Manipur people? Nagas! If this selfish ambition of the Neiphiu Rio led state Puppet Govt. and opportunist NGOs get materialized, only those tainted Govt. bureaucrats, NGO leaders and politicians like Imkong Imchen, Minister for Education, who got embroiled himself, as a minister by creating a furore on the process of selection to technical education through Joint Entrance Examination, 2006, will roast the toast and students from Manipur state will be facilitated at the expense of the talented Naga students.
Therefore, this statement has to be treated seriously as a matter of 'great concern' by the young Nagas of Nagaland, especially the students' community and this issue is debated thoroughly at their own 'appropriate' platforms. The Naga students' community must accept this challenge and make use of this opportuniy to decide their own future. However, Nagas in general also should not remain as mute spectators on this issue. Because it will have a far reaching adverse consequences for the common man for generations to come. It is a socio-economic issue, and as such, Nagaland state politician should not think on partisan lines. But, Naga people in all strata of Society should think seriously on this big issue.The NSCN/GPRN place on record that Neiphiu Rio and Imkong Imchen and even their children must be answerable for this blatant sell-out of Naga rights and opportunities to those people who are not entitled or deserved.
Secretary, MIP/GPRN, NSCN (K)
Ukhrul students rush to Dimapur to enroll for HSLC exam under NBSE The Imphal Free Press

UKHRUL, Nov 2: With IISLC exams knocking at the door, 900 Ukhrul students from 30 private schools which have changed over to NBSE syllabus, have rushed to Dimapur to enroll themselves for the 2007 HSLC exam. The students were accompanied by their guardians and teachers.

According to Christina Shingnaisui, Joint Secretary, Tangkhul Katamnuo Saklong (TKS), eight buses carrying 656 students had already left Ukhrul for Dimapur last night and three more buses with the remaining students and guardians along with TKS executives led by its President Mr. Worthington Mahung also left Ukhrul for the same destination. A source disclosed that no Security wits provided for these buses carrying students to Dimapur. However, from Senapati or Mao Gate; Naga Students' Federation (NSF) will escort the students till Nagaland Gate where Nagaland Security is expected to escort the buses for the onward journey to Dimapur. The actual number of enrollment list of students from Ukhrul in the 15 allotted exam centres in Dimapur is 1225. Some of the students in private schools in Ukhrul have also enrolled themselves in government schools. Meanwhile, some of the parents have expressed their deep concern over the prevailing security situation in Nagaland to the TKS office bearers. On the other hand, the general public have also expressed uneasiness over the diversion of almost all the Ukhrul-lmphal plying buses to Dimapur by the TKS volunteers.

Meet on joint strategy to combat northeast insurgency Nagarealm.com KOHIMA, NOV01 [IANS] : Security heads in India's northeast as well as West Bengal and Sikkim Wednesday called for a coordinated strategy to combat the twin threats of separatist insurgencies and Islamist terror in the region. 'There is need for an effective counter-insurgency operation having full synergy between all security forces to deal with the many insurgencies in the region, besides the serious threat from fundamentalist pan-Islamic groups,' Assam police chief Dipak Narayan Dutt said.

Dutt was addressing a two-day conference of police chiefs of the seven northeastern states of Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh. The meeting, which opened Wednesday in Assam's main city Guwahati, also saw participation of the police chiefs of West Bengal and Sikkim, besides top army, paramilitary, intelligence and home ministry officials.

'Smuggling of arms and explosives, narcotics and counterfeit currency notes is another area of serious concern,' the Assam police chief said. India's northeast, wedged between Bangladesh, Bhutan, China and Myanmar, is home to more than 30 odd rebel groups with demands ranging from secession to greater autonomy. More than 50,000 people have died in violence since 1947.

'The need of the hour is to have a joint approach among regional states to fight insurgency, besides sharing intelligence and other vital inputs,' Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said inaugurating the meet. Most rebel groups network among themselves in the northeast and take shelter in adjoining states to escape security offensives in their area of operation. 'If we are to make a dent in the insurgency front, it should have to be a joint fight rather than individual states trying to combat the problem,' Assam's chief secretary S.K. Kabilan said. At present different state governments in the region are dealing with insurgency without much coordination. 'The idea of this conference is to work out a comprehensive strategy to fight insurgency and other issues,' Amod Kant, police chief of Arunachal Pradesh, told IANS. The two-day meeting is expected to come up with a strategy where security forces in the states share intelligence inputs and jointly carry out offensives as and when required. 'Of late we have noticed that northeastern militant groups are using Sikkim and West Bengal as transit or to cool their heels. So we need better coordination with security forces in these two states,' a home ministry official said.

Vigilance welcomes NSF demand Nagarealm.com
Kohima, OCT31 [NPN] : State Vigilance Commission on Tuesday welcomed NSF's demand for CBI probe into the NPSC scam and expressed its willingness to extend all possible cooperation if the central agency was invited to probe. "For us, we're the happiest persons if CBI is invited to probe the NPSC scam because we have stood against the test of time," State Vigilance Commission officials led by its Commissioner Metongmeren said while interacting with media persons on the sidelines of Vigilance Awareness Week.

However, the Vigilance officials wondered on whether the CBI would be able to make much breakthrough in the case. Reacting to queries, the Commissioner revealed the Commission was presently understaffed in terms of the workload. The NSF has been persistently demanding the handing over the scam to the CBI for a long time. The Commission is presently investigating altogether eighty eight different cases in the State. It has recently conducted enquiries into thirteen other cases and charge-sheeted seventy one government employees. They are presently undergoing trial at the Court of DC (Judicial) & Special Judge, Dimapur.

At the present rate, we require equal amount of the existing manpower, the Commissioner said. "In other investigating agencies, an investigating officer handles only one case, but here we are handling ten to twelve cases," said another officer. This often resulted in delay in some other cases as the Commission is required to work on priority basis depending on the nature of the case, he added. Presently, the Commission has only eleven active investigating officers in the Anti-Corruption Police Station. These include two-SPs, five-Deputy SPs and four-Inspectors, who are looking after the entire State. Of the two posts of Additional SPs, one is lying vacant and the other had been left physically non-operational owing to health problem.

On the other hand, though the officers of the Anti-Corruption branch are being trained by the CBI, the state's only Anti-Corruption police station is left with almost no modern investigation facilities and technologies. "We are handicapped even in terms of mobility with no sufficient vehicles at our disposal," rued the Commission official.
Security tops NE concern: Datta Staff Reporter Nagaland Post
CHUMUKEDIMA, NOV 2 (NPN): In an oblique reference to the all-pervading influence of militancy that has made Northeast India to live under the shadow of fear, Nagaland Governor Shyamal Datta today regretted that all aspects of life in this region, including governance, had to be seen through the "prism of security."
"Issues that need to be tackled get characterized with the issue of internal security," he said. numerating on problems faced by the region including isolation, alienation, low economic growth and income, poor infrastructure and marketing network, Datta who inaugurated the two-day regional conference on 'Fostering good governance' Thursday here at Chumukedima Police Training Complex, urged politicians to frame citizen-friendly policies. He also wanted policy makers to ensure that there was no casualty whenever change of government took place.
Datta said in developed countries where the art of good governance had reached near perfection, public policies were not held hostages to the whims and fancies of pressure groups and vested interests. He also said these countries had drawn a fine distinction between state and governance and that nothing was done to undermine governance. On the Look East Policy, Datta said the East would look towards Northeast with trust and confidence only if the region had proper infrastructures, good work culture and work force and sound institutions.
Underscoring the need to take part in the present globalization without which a society would move backward, the governor urged the people of Northeast to develop knowledge, skills and competence to effectively compete in the global economy. Datta further said the need of the hour was men and women with dreams, rather than memories, as people with dreams were futuristic and capable of generating hope, while people with memories only created despair.
Secretary, DOPT, Government of India, LK Joshi in his keynote address said good governance was the exercise of economic, political and administrative authority in a manner essentially free of abuse and corruption, and with due regard for the rule of law. On the other hand, Joshi said poor governance, which affected the most vulnerable people with least power in the society, "reinforces poverty and thwarts efforts to reduce it."
He also said government policies should not just depend of few charismatic officers- rather there should be a system in place based on policy of incentives, transparency, accountability and punishment, which should enhance the service delivery system.
In the technical session, which also included panel discussion, Additional Secretary, Administrative Reforms and PG, Government of India, Rahul Sarin gave an overview on fostering good governance while Secretary, Inter State Council, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, Amitabh Pandey, who was also the moderator of the panel discussion, said the challenge for ahead was to support, accelerate and empower the creation of a social environment in which village level organisations could assume full responsibilities in administration. The panelists included Nagaland Home minister Thenucho, deputy chairman, State Planning Board and MLA Deo Nukhu, state chief secretary Lalhuma, editor, Nagaland Page, Monalisa Changkija and advocate K Savi. Earlier, welcoming the participants, Rahul Sarin, urged the bureaucrats to be very effective and sensitive towards fulfilling the need of people.
State chief secretary Lalhuma who chaired the inaugural session also gave vote of thanks.
Representatives of state governments of West Bengal, Orissa and all northeastern states, NGOs and World Bank executives are participating in the conference. The inaugural session was also attended by Opposition Congress leader I Imkong and state BJP president and parliamentary secretary MC Konyak. Various departments of the state also highlighted their activities through an exhibition. Meanwhile, Media & Communication officer of the Government of India Rajesh Sinha revealed that the choice of holding such an important conference in Nagaland was decided on the basis of providing an opportunity for other states to learn from Nagaland experience of "Communitization" of government roles which was initiated by Gokhle, the former Chief Secretary of Nagaland. "Because of his efforts Nagaland has the success stories of Village Development Boards," Sinha said.
Remand for UNLF cadres Sangai Express
IMPHAL, Nov 1: Four UNLF cadres arrested by Meghalaya Police on September 27 from View Land, Shillong were produced before the Court today and remanded to police custody till November 8. They were brought to Imphal by a team of Manipur police yesterday. According to information received from police, the four UNLF cadres were brought to Imphal by the Manipur Police team led by Lamphel PS SDPO Md Zalil after the expiry of judicial custody period granted to Meghalaya Police on October 30. The UNLF cadres brought to Imphal were 2nd Lt Sarangthem Loken alias Niken alias Benjamin alias Manoj (29), Sergeant Major Sinam Somen alias Somorendro alias Pankhei (29), Sergeant Khundra-kpam Langamba alias Nongthrei alias Tomba Meitei and Moirangthem Premjit alias Naoba (26). Meanwhile, it is reported that the other UNLF cadres nabbed by Delhi Police from Delhi airport before departing for Kathmandu would also be brought to Imphal from Shillong soon.

NESO seeks constitutional safeguards By A Staff Reporter Assam Tribune
GUWAHATI, Nov 2 – The North East Students’ Organization (NESO) has demanded special constitutional status for the North East region and said that the people of the region must have the right over land and natural resources. The four-day annual conference of the NESO, an umbrella organization of the students’ bodies of the NE states, which concluded in Agartala this morning, expressed the view that over the years, the region only faced political injustice and economic exploitation from the Government of India and demanded that the natural resources available in the region must be processed in North East only.

Expressing concern at the failure of the Government of India in dealing with the problem of infiltration of foreign nationals into the region, the NESO demanded a comprehensive policy to deal with the matter. The NESO demanded that Inner Line Permit system should be introduced in the entire North East and the National Register of Citizens of 1951 should be updated in all the states of the region. The NESO observed that because of the failure of the Government of India to solve the problem of infiltration of foreigners, the indigenous people of the region were facing identity crisis and fundamentalist elements managed to establish their roots in the NE, thereby posing a grave threat to the security of the entire country.

The NESO chairman Samujjal Bhattacharya, talking to The Assam Tribune from Agartala, said that the annual conference of the organization also discussed wide ranging issues concerning the people of the region, particularly the problems faced by the student and youths. The conference demanded a special education commission for the North East to study the problems faced by the students and to evolve measures to overcome the same. The NESO is of the view that more technical institutes including engineering and medical colleges and vocational training institutes should be established in the region and new courses should be introduced in the colleges and universities. The NESO called for establishment of a human resource centre and modern libraries for the benefit of the students. On the problem of insurgency, the NESO stressed the need for creating a violence-free atmosphere in the entire region and demanded that the Government should make sincere efforts for solving the problem of insurgency through political dialogues. “The Government must show sincerity in finding acceptable, honourable and beneficial solution to the problem of insurgency”, the NESO said. The students’ body also demanded scrapping of the “draconian laws” including the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act.

On the economic front, the NESO said that the North East should be treated as a special economic zone and the administrative office for implementing the Look East Policy of the Government of India should be located in the region. The Government must take effective steps or finding lasting solution to the problems of flood and erosion and the Stilwell road should be reopened, the NESO demanded. Expressing concern over the growing problem of unemployment in the region, the NESO demanded that the region should be treated as a special employment zone and the Government of India should establish a regional placement and employment exchange. The NESO demanded an economic package for creating self-employment avenues for the unemployed youths of the region and reiterated the demand for 100 percent job reservation in C and D category in all the central government offices. The NESO also called for forming a commission involving all the NE states to solve the boundary dispute among the states of the region. Bhattacharya and NESO general secretary NSN Lotha said that the organization would soon forward its demands to the Government of India. Though a new executive committee of the NESO was to be formed in the meeting, that has been postponed by three months and a new committee would be formed in a meeting to be held in Shillong in three months’ time.

NE ultra camps in Myanmar to top agenda From Raju Das Assam Tribune
SHILLONG, Nov 2 – Possibility of a Joint Indo-Myanmar military crackdown of North East-based militant camps holed inside Myanmar is one of the key agendas to figure in the Indo-Myanmar border talks slated for November 6. Defence officials told The Assam Tribune that apart from the ‘usual topics’ the two sides would discuss on possibility of conducting joint military operations to flush out North East-based ultras holed in that country.

The five-day meeting scheduled from November 6 to 10 would be held at the border town of Tamu in Myanmar, between top Army officials from the Indian and the Myanmarese side.

New Delhi of late has ruled out joint military crackdown of militants based inside Myanmar between the two neighbours. But, the Indian Army has been cooperating at ‘various levele’ with its Myanmarese counterpart. Union Home Secretary VK Duggal, recently, handed 15 locations of NE militants’ camp inside Myanmar, to General Swe of the Myanmarese army. Swe promised swift action on these militant bases.

Defence officials said today that Myanmar has not launched a full-scale operation on these militants’ camps. But, the Myanmarese Army’s (Tatmadaw) Light Infantry Battalions were zeroing into camps of the militants before launch of a full-scale operation.

NORTH by NORTH EAST Nagarealm.com [Sanjoy Hazarika, Statesman]
Roadmap for ManiAs Mani Shankar Aiyar takes over his new portfolio at the ministry for the development of the north eastern region (DoNER), we join others in wishing him well in his assignment and the knowledge that he will bring to his charge the energy, articulation, capacity and transparency which has characterised his life and work.

The Prime Minister has taken a step which is bound to be welcomed across the North-east ~ and among its neighbours, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Bhutan and China, countries that Mani has visited and where he is held in esteem. As someone who has known Mani for over 23 years ~ we first met in his incarnation as Consul-General for India in Karachi and then when he took over as spokesman for the ministry for external affairs, a worthy successor to the late Mani Dixit ~ I can say that he is certainly among the sharpest minds that I have had the privilege of sparring with and he speaks his mind with a clarity and brilliance that has few peers. But he is now heading into a region where every step he takes, every move he makes, every word he speaks on any issue will be watched, analysed and scrutinised by scholars, pundits, media, government leaders and politicians. This is of course not a new situation for Mani; he enjoys the cut and thrust of politics but also, unlike many of his colleagues, of actually doing something on the ground, in the field, that makes a difference to the lives of people. For a situation as complex as the North-east, Mani will receive a lot of gratuitous advice from local and Delhi-based pundits, both from the media and elsewhere, who know little or nothing of ground conditions but think they have a God-given right to make a mess of things there. So, he will have to steer clear of such do-gooders. And since he’s “new” to the situation ~ although he did take care of Manipur and other states for the Congress until a few years ago ~ here is some more but very basic advice.

Ensure transparency at the top and through the ministry as well as the North Eastern Council: MPs and others had complained about this to the Prime Minister and the party leadership; As part of that process, develop review mechanisms to monitor ministry-funded projects, which would include stakeholders, community leaders and strong, independent NGOs and put out the findings on the ministry website regularly; Develop a time-chart on moving ahead on the “Look East Policy” in practical terms by focusing on two or three areas of natural advantage and strength for the region, such as tourism, international trade, organic fruit and vegetable processing, floriculture and environmental safety. The “Look East Policy” should be part of an overall foreign policy that enables India to develop strong economic and social relations with its neighbours, especially since the North-east shares 99 per cent of its borders with other countries: scholarly and cultural exchanges among cross-border communities (the Lisus are in Arunachal Pradesh, Myanmar and Yunnan Province), South East Asian and Chinese language training schools in the NER and develop strong research institutes which study and work on South East Asia and China. The latter can be done in collaboration with the ICSSR, ministry of human resource development and the University Grants Commission: Mani being Mani, he, if no one else, can bring this together. It is appalling surely that, given its historic and geographic location, not a single university of the region has a South East Asian department, barring a small unit on Myanmar studies in Manipur University and
oReview the NER Vision 2020 project which was based on interviews with 40,000 rural households and which flagged priorities sought by villagers, discuss it with members of the North Eastern Council (chief ministers, governors, among others) and see which segments can be implemented on a time-bound approach.

Where is our Mandela? Over the past days, I have been having discussions with a remarkable man from South Africa, Mac Maharaj, formerly a leader of the African National Congress who organised its armed revolutionary movement from within the country as well as from his bases in Lusaka, Zambia and elsewhere. He had many passports and many identities. He was imprisoned in Robben Island with Nelson Mandela, who described him as one of his closest advisers and aides. As one of two men who helped put the Constitution of South Africa together after Mr Mandela was freed and took office and headed the dismantling of the hated, oppressive apartheid regime, Mr Maharaj, who is now 71, spoke also to students at Tufts university in the Boston area about his life and work as also his experiences as a revolutionary and how it was working with Mr Mandela. In the conversations we had and the discussions where I was a listener, two things stood out: one was his acknowledgement that means were as important as ends ~ this is all the more remarkable for he believed in force to overthrow a hated regime but he acknowledged in those conversations that he felt that the bitterness and anger was getting to him and he himself was becoming brutalised in the process. The second was his insistence on restorative justice, moving away from retributive justice. As a personality who was associated with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and that process of change, Mr Maharaj said it was necessary in complex situations not to expect change in one go but to look at different avenues and processes of change, whenever one road appeared blocked. That was where, he said, restorative justice was critical: seeking not a vengeful, self-righteous change but one based on conciliation and compassion. This is so true for our region, for Nagaland and Manipur, Assam and Tripura where rivalries and contested claims as well as bitter campaigns based on ethnicity have raged and harmed individuals and communities. Men like him need to come to our region and share their experiences of restorative change, of bringing down oppressive regimes and how in the long run cooperation and a vision for the future can bring about transformation.

But where is our Mandela? Do you see him? Who is the figure who can rise above hatred and personal ambition, above trauma and tragedy, to embrace enemies and friends in an inclusive warmth that asserts dignity and demonstrates both magnanimity and grace. [Sanjoy Hazarika, Statesman]


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