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03/10/2007: "Zeliangrong students call for respect of traditional boundaries The Morung Express"

Zeliangrong students call for respect of traditional boundaries The Morung Express
DIMAPUR, MARCH 9 (MExN): The Zeliangrong Students’ Union Nagaland and All Zeliangrong Students’ Union have expressed gratitude to the people of Peren District, particularly the student community, the district administration, NGOs, GPRN, news media, all well-wishers and general public for extending their cooperation during the 12-hour Peren District bandh called by the union in protest against the “encroachment of Ntangki National Park and forceful establishment of villages in Zeliangrong areas of Dhansiripar Sub-Division and Peren District by land encroachers.”
The Union has however strongly condemned the kidnapping of 3 Jalukielo villagers, namely Alinglung, R Kamson and their mother, by “Shikuto villagers to create tension and to disturb the bandh called by the union.”
A release issued by presidents of ZSUN and AZSU, Lungchui and T Mirhu respectively, termed as unfortunate the excessive advantage taken by “certain group of people” in grabbing land, “by using arms and the good name of Naga National Workers” which threatens peaceful co-existence of the Naga family. Reacting to an earlier statement made by the Head GB of “newly encroached” Shikuto Village, which had said that armed miscreants hired by Jalukielo from Manipur entered and destroyed his plantations on March 6, the students said the claim was “false and baseless to cover up their crimes committed upon the innocent villagers of the real landowners.”
“The Head GB also had no moral right to question the identity of Zeliangrong brothers whether we are from Assam, Manipur or Nagaland. Zeliangrong people have the rights to settle and live in any parts of our land be it in Assam, Manipur or Nagaland if the land owners of our own people so desires.”
The Union has called upon the Nagaland Government and the ‘Naga National Govt.’ to separate the real landowners from land encroachers “and immediately book those culprits and evict the villages of those land mongers from Zeliangrong land.”
In conclusion, the release stated, “We make an ardent appeal to all Nagas that if we fail to respect and honour the rights and traditional boundaries of each other’s land, we may be heading towards a big misunderstanding within our Naga family which can even destroy the Naga National Movement, a cause dear to all of us for ‘our land is our freedom.’”
Suspected rebels abduct, kill 5 migrants in India Shanghai Daily News
SUSPECTED separatist rebels kidnapped five migrant workers from a bakery in India's remote northeast, drove them to a secluded spot and killed them, police said today, according to The Associated Press.

The bodies of the five men, who worked at a bakery in the Bishenpur region of the volatile state of Manipur, were discovered riddled with bullets from automatic weapons, leading police to believe that a rebel group was behind the killings, said Bishenpur police chief Jayanta Singh.

Some 17 militant groups have been fighting for decades for independent homelands in Manipur and the neighboring state of Nagaland. Bishenpur is some 30 kilometers southwest of Imphal, the capital of Manipur. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the killings.

Singh said it was not clear what the motive was. However, migrant workers were targeted in a spate of killings in January in the neighboring state of Assam.

The migrants are resented as outsiders representing the federal government in New Delhi -- 1,600 kilometers to the west. The militants say New Delhi exploits the northeast's rich natural resources while doing little for the indigenous people.

Violence rocks Manipur, Assam Six killed, 18 injured in blasts The Morung Express
Guwahati, March 9 (Agencies): Six people were killed and 18 wounded in two different separatist attacks, including a powerful bomb explosion, in India’s northeastern states of Manipur and Assam, officials said on Friday.
Five people were killed in Manipur when armed militants entered a bakery at Ningthoukhong village, about 40 km south of Imphal, and opened fire at the workers late on Thursday. “The militants fired indiscriminately on a group of workers, killing five on the spot,” A Singh, a police official, said by telephone. The provocation for the attack was not known, he added. “Investigations are on and security forces have since launched a hunt to nab the rebels.”
In Assam, one person was killed and 18 wounded in a powerful bomb explosion at a marketplace late on Thursday. Police said the bomb went off outside a hardware shop in Kakopathar village in Tinsukia district, about 530 km east of Guwahati. “The shopkeeper was preparing to down his shutters when the explosion took place,” Sadhani Dar, a police official, said by telephone. Police suspect the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) to be behind the blast although no group has claimed responsibility.
Forest land under triple jeopardy ‘Intangki National Park has gone out of department’s hand’ Karaiba Chawang The Morung Express
Dimapur The 202 sq km, ‘Intangki National park’ appears to be grappling for survival amidst a three cornered tussle between the State government, the NSCN-IM and ‘encroachers’, over this vast forest land. Although, the State government has declared the forest as a National Park some years back, a high level official of the forest department has admitted that the ‘Park’ has completely gone out of the control of the State government and that it may not be able to do anything unless a strong ‘political will’ is adopted. While the State government wants to protect the ‘National Park’ under the Indian law, the NSCN-IM has reportedly objected to the idea, asserting that Indian laws cannot be taken into cognizance, when it comes to natural resource of the Nagas. This tussle is one of the main hurdles for the state government in carrying out various activities in the park, a source said.
The NSCN-IM has also earlier issued ‘shoot-at-sight’ order inside the forest; however, this order became a dead letter due to some differences amongst their own functionaries. Various reports and sources revealed that almost all the logging inside Intanki Forest has been carried out by NSCN-IM officials, with the exception of few private individuals. The organization has also imposed total ban on logging from the forest, but some ‘self-interest’ officials flouted this order and there has been heavy felling of trees still now, a source revealed.
Even as a total bandh was called in Peren district on Thursday by All Zeliangrong Students’ Union (Assam, Manipur and Nagaland) and Zeliangrong Students’ Union Nagaland to protest against the encroachment into the forest area, about ten truckloads of logs, which was being hauled from Intanki to Dimapur, was seized by members of the Zeliangrong Baudi while crossing Jalukie and has been unloaded. The logs belong to one high official of the NSCN-IM, source said.
The Supreme Court of India has made partial relaxation on logging in areas where ‘work scheme and management plan’ are being implemented. However, Intangki National Park does not come under the purview of this relaxation, said L. Kire, Forest Secretary, as such logging of any kind is illegal. Apart from the heavy logging, the ‘encroachers’ have also started a settlement inside the park, despite the two - authorities, the Nagaland government and the NSCN-IM - assurance that the encroachers will be evicted and the park protected, illegal activities are still rampant in the forest, source also said. The state government has also adopted several policies and guidelines, but this could not be implemented due to the presence of NSCN-IM cadres, a Forest official said.
Earlier, the State government has struck a land exchange deal with Besumpuikam village, but this deal has not been carried out till today. Hocto Sema, Wild Life Warden and in-charge of Intangki National Park disclosed that the Forest Colony and all the staff quarter has been occupied by the NSCN-cadres, and often Forest guard and officials were prevented from entering the forest.
Intangki Forest, besides being home to numerous flora and fauna is a natural habitat of Mithun and a corridor of wild elephants. The Forest department has declared it as ‘Elephant Reserve’ and an ‘Elephants Project’ has been launched, but this project has been stalled. The park is under Peren district and is 111 km away from state capital Kohima. “In the presence of underground cadres, Forest personnel are handicapped”, said Hocto. Now, because of the human presence and massive devastation of forest, the Mithun has been forced to migrate for Assam”, said Hocto.

About sixty percent of the forest area has been destroyed by illegal logging. Besides, heavy hunting and fishing are also rampant, which has forced mass emigration of animals and birds from the Park, sources said. Initially, it was a reserved forest, then promoted to Wild Life Sanctuary and in 2003 the state government has recognized it as a national Park. While recounting his argument with underground cadres, Hocto, ruefully admitted that the Park has gone out of the hand of the department. But, still the state government can revive if they want to, however, it will require strong political will and firm policy.
“It has gone out of the hand the department. But still the government can revive provided they have a strong political will and policy”, Hocto asserted. Civil societies can also contribute their bits in preservation and conservation of the Park. Most importantly, Hocto, opined that the Minister in-charge of the Forest department should have a knowledge of flora and Fauna and natural interest in preservation and conservation. “Otherwise, our future generation will not see those Mithun”, he added.
Meanwhile, the Zeliangrong Students’ Union has threatened to intensify its agitation if the state government fails to respond to their demand in time. It said that the Union may stage dharna in the state capital Kohima in case their Wednesday bandh failed to evoke any response from the Nagaland government as the second phase of agitation. The students also cautioned that Zeliangrong people, who are the sole owner of the Forest, will move to own it back if the state government cannot live up to its promise of preservation and conservation of the park.
Solutions lie in peace and development Morung Express News
Kohima For a person who was already tipped for a Governor’s posting, K. Sankaranarayanan knew what he had to do—to bring all his political skills into full play to manage a troubled State in a troubled region. As such, what will set Sankaranarayanan apart from his immediate predecessor is the political experience which he will bring to his new assignment. It has been over a decade since Kohima’s Garrison Hill has had an incumbent who is not a retired uniformed officer. And as a former politician, Sankaranarayanan knows what exactly he needs to do i.e. look for solutions and work on policies centered on people. Having just completed a month since assuming office as Nagaland’s 13th Governor, Sankaranarayanan is excited about taking forward his vision. Sharing his idea, the Governor in a one to one conversation with the Editor of The Morung Express clearly spells out his prime objective for the next five years. “For Nagaland the answer lies in peace and development”, Sankaranarayanan says sounding upbeat and confident about the State and its people whom he describes as ‘intelligent and adorable’.
On the development front, the immediate thought on his mind is establishing professional institutions and improving road, rail and air connectivity. He is surprised to learn that there are no medical and engineering colleges and that the state has only seven kilometers of railway tracks. “It is surprising. We will have to improve this”, he says. Sankaranarayanan, who met President A P J Abdul Kalam and other Central Ministers recently in the capital, says that education and connectivity will be the key to development of Nagaland. “It is essential to establish a medical and an engineering college in the state without any delay”, he says adding that money for this purpose should not be problem. “We can start off even in the current financial year itself. I have taken up the matter with Delhi and they extended total support for it. The Government of India has to support this”. He says that the private sector and cooperative institutions can play a role in taking up such projects.
This former Finance Minister of Kerala says that he would also work to ensure better connectivity to all corners of Nagaland and informs that the Centre has decided to invest Rs 50,000 crore for the development of surface transport infrastructure in the northeast in the 11th plan period.

“For the Northeast, Delhi has a master plan and even the concerned Union Minister has categorically assured on giving a boost to the region’s development”, Sankaranarayanan informs on the recent NEC meeting. Acknowledged as a staunch Congressman who guided the United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala through turbulent times for 16 long years and credited for successfully managing the UDF through the pulls and pressures of parties with diverse interests, the Governor expressed confidence in performing his role with the dignity that a gubernatorial assignment calls for. “I will support the State government without reservation as far as the overall development of Nagaland is concerned”, he says without hesitation.
To achieve his twin objective of peace and development, Sankaranarayanan says that public support will have to be more forthcoming. And for this he is prepared to step out into the public domain and meet people from all walks of life. “People are the ultimate masters and we should know the pulse of the people”, he says. After returning from a DONER meeting at Guwahati, which is scheduled over the weekend, the new Nagaland Governor will start his touring programme of visiting places across the State and meeting with people.
Ibobi Singh expands ministry, inducts 6 more Newmai News Network Imphal Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh has expanded his ministry with six senior MLAs swearing in as cabinet ministers today by Manipur Governor Dr SS Sidhu at state Raj Bhavan. The six appointed Cabinet ministers of Secular Progressive Front (SPF) are selected on the basis of seniority as part of the first phase minister expansion, said Chief Minister O. Ibobi Singh after the swearing in ceremony conducted by Governor SS. Sidhu at Raj Bhavan this afternoon. The six appointed Cabinet ministers are Th. Debendra Singh of the Congress,T. Phungzathang Tonsing (Congress), Ph. Parijat (CPI), Gaikhangam (Congress), TN Haokip (Congress) and Allaudin Khan Congress). Chief Minister of Manipur, O Ibobi also disclosed that the second phase of expansion along with their portfolios will be done before the beginning of Assembly session scheduled for March 16. In the second phase ministerial berth choice, preference will be given as per the district wise in which three appointed Cabinet ministers are from Imphal east district already, said the CM , adding unlike United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in the centre, RJD has not demanded for any ministerial post so far. Replying when asked by the media as to how he will manage two post of MPCC presidentship and as Cabinet minister, Gaikhangam opined that holding one or more post depend on the person capability to exercise his responsibility, confidently adding that responsibility are the same as for him. Regarding the rank wise Cabinet post, he replied that he has no problem with that. The Communist Party of India (CPI) Cabinet minister, a constituent of SPF government, Th Parijat contented that its party demanded two ministerial berths as earlier government, adding that the coalition SPF government will give full attention to unemployment and insurgency problems prevailing in the state among other things.
Nagaland by-poll peaceful Assam Tribune
KOHIMA, March 9 – By-elections to two Assembly constituencies in Nagaland passed off peacefully on Thursday, with over a 70 per cent voter turnout, except for a few minor stray incidents in Dimapur town, reports PTI.

The returning officers in Dimapur 1 and Tuensang Sadar 2 constituencies said that the polling was by and large peaceful throughout the day and there was much enthusiasm among the young electorate at polling stations in both the constituencies. The by-polls were necessitated by the demise of BJP MLAs Hokishe Sema in Dimapur and Lakiumong in Tuensang.

In Dimapur, bursting of firecrackers by some miscreants near a polling station created panic among the voters for sometime. However, the poll process was not disrupted, election officials said. In both the constituencies the main battle for the ballot was fought between the ruling Nagaland People's Front and Congress. The counting of votes will be taken up on March 12.
Women Take Brunt of Ethnic Minorities’ Struggles in Burma Marwaan Macan-Markar Inter Press Agency
At 17 she was in Geneva, not as a tourist but as an invitee speaker at the annual sessions of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. In 2005, aged 24, she had a celebrated hour-long meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush Charm Tong has been showered with honours such as sports goods manufacturer Reebok’s Human Rights Award and figured among the ‘Marie Claire’ magazine’s ‘Women of the World’ in 2004. And she is on the ‘Time’ magazine’s list of ‘Asian heroes’. This year Charm Tong, now 25, flew to Europe to receive her latest accolade: winner of the 2007 Student Peace Prize at the International Student Festival in Trondheim, Norway. Those who know this champion of human rights, in particular for victims of her own Shan ethnic community from Burma, do not wonder at the praise being showered on her. ‘‘She was born to become what she is now - one of our leading activists,’’ Khuensai Jaiyen, editor of the Shan Herald Agency for News, told IPS. ‘‘She amazes me with her commitment, talent and dedication. She is unique.’’
Charm Tong was born in Burma’s north-eastern Shan state, but was sent away when only six to an orphanage on the Thai-Burmese border. Touched by the suffering of other Shan exiles like her in Thailand, she began working with human rights groups. By the time she was 20, she had helped set up a school on the Thai-Burma border for Shan refugees to learn politics, human rights and communication skills. Her extraordinary feats have also helped shed light on a pattern that has taken root along the Thai-Burma border, where women from Burma who have been forced to live as refugees or exiles have converted uncertainty and fear into opportunity. They have emerged as leading voices for political change, confidently stepping into an area, once the sole preserve of men. The Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) is typical of female collectives that have succeeded in exposing the cruelty of Burma’s ruling military generals. In 2002, it published ‘License To Rape,’ a chilling account of the systematic way in which the Burmese troops had raped over 600 girls and women from the Shan community. This report by SWAN, of which Charm Tong is a leading member, triggered international outrage. Two years later, the Burmese junta was under pressure for even more numbing revelations from women on the Thai-Burma border belonging to another beleaguered ethnic community, the Karens. That report, ‘Shattering Silence,’ by the Karen Women’s Organisation (KWO), documented the Burmese junta’s use of rape as a weapon of war over an 18-month period. Over 120 cases of sexual violence were reported in areas where Burmese troops were locked in a battle for territory with Karen rebels. The Karen and the Shan are two of Burma’s many ethnic communities that have suffered at the hands of the military regime that has ruled the South-east Asian country since a 1962 coup. Torture, forced relocation, forced labour, torching villages, jailing political opponents and killings are among the charges levelled at the regime dominated by the country’s majority Burmans.
‘‘Women living along the border are finding new ways of using the space they have to expose the sexual crimes and abuses by the military regime,’’ says Nang Lao Liang Won, coordinator of the women against violence programme at the Women’s League of Burma (WLB), a collective of 11 women’s organisations, which includes those from the Burman, Karen, Shan, Kachin and Karenni communities. ‘‘Inside Burma, the space is limited for us.’’
The events planned for International Women’s Day, marked on Mar. 8, convey the popularity of the view. ‘‘Women’s groups along the border Burma shares with Thailand, China, Bangladesh and India will be observing this day with many activities,’’ Nang Lao Liang Won said in an interview. ‘‘Our theme this year is to stand up together to end discrimination and violence.’’
The triumphs these women activists have achieved since fleeing Burma - some over 15 to 20 years ago - reveal the dual struggle they had to wage, unlike the men in their midst. In addition to facing the common enemy - the repressive arm of the Burmese regime - the women had also to deal with restraints placed by customs and social conventions that circumscribe the role of women in politics.
“The majority of the men thought we were not capable of taking on leadership roles when it came to politics, national issues,’’ Khin Omar, head of the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD), a coalition of Burmese political activists in exile, told IPS. ‘‘Even now, you find few women in decision-making roles among the major opposition groups in exile.”
Her life on the run, first away from Rangoon to the forests east of Burma, and then to a town in northern Thailand, tells a tale of the discrimination women endure as they stake a claim to be political leaders.
‘‘All of us constantly face situations of men having doubts about a woman’s capacity to make sound decisions,’’ says the former chemistry student from Rangoon University who emerged as a leader in 1988 when students led a pro-democracy uprising in 1988 that was brutally crushed by the military regime, killing thousands. The Burmese regime, however, has taken another route to attack the outspoken women massing along the country’s borders. KWO, which released its second report of Burmese troops raping Karen women in February, has been labelled a ‘terrorist’ organisation. ‘‘The military regime has called us a terrorist group and accused us of wanting to breakdown any hope for peace,’’ Blooming Night Zar, joint secretary general of the KWO, which has a 30,000-strong membership, told IPS. Such broadsides from a powerful symbol of male dominance in Burma have only encouraged the women along the border to soldier on with their mission, as one said, ‘‘to work for women at risk in the country, because if we don’t, who will?’’
At other times, the activists draw inspiration from the one female figure who dominates the political landscape inside Burma, Nobel Peace laureate and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent over 11 years as a prisoner of the junta. ‘‘She is charismatic,’’ says Khin Omar, of NDD. Source: Inter Press Agency
Beyond the Ballot Editorial The Morung Express
Much before even poll dates for the elections to the Manipur State Assembly was announced, it was mentioned in these columns that that it will be one of the most crucial elections that Manipur will undoubtedly undertake. There were valid reasons why the election would determine the future of several burning issues both within the State and also outside of it. It was also mentioned that the Manipur elections will be a referendum of sorts on the integration issue and therefore it was suggested that the United Naga Council as the apex body of the Nagas in Manipur should plan for the election in a manner that will effectively address the Naga issue and that it was important for the Nagas of Manipur to work in unison if at all they desired to achieve their stated political objective. It will now be in the fitness of things to study the end result after the hustle and bustle of electioneering has ended.
Of the eleven seats contested by the United Naga Council (UNC) consensus candidates, one seat each from Tamenglong, Senapati and Chandel districts have been won while all the three Assembly Constituencies in Ukhrul district have been swept by the UNC consensus candidates. The other five UNC-backed candidates lost to their rivals. Nevertheless what should come as a bonus for the UNC and the new political organization under the banner of United Naga Democratic Alliance is that two other newly elected Naga independent MLAs have vouched their support to the United Naga Council common agenda. Eight out of the eleven seats under its kitty is a clear enough indication of the overwhelming support for the issues raised by the UNC. And it is now the responsibility of the Government of India to duly recognize the will of the people, which has been expressed in a peaceful and democratic manner.
The election result in the four hill district also reinforces the argument made earlier that one needs to distinguish the aspiration of the Nagas from the every day bread and butter issue. While there exists grievances of lop sided development, today the issue is no more an equation of majority-minority but one in which the Naga people inhabiting the four hills districts are seeking their identity rooted in the strong belief that their destiny is one of political affiliation with the larger Naga homeland and not political subjugation under the present dispensation at Imphal. And since India prides itself as the world’s largest democracy, the verdict of the Naga people must be honoured and respected in whatever agreement the Government of India works out through the Naga peace process. Delhi must be cautioned that after having taken the democratic route of expression, failure to address the aspirations of the people will destroy whatever little goodwill that exists while spawning extreme elements that will seek to resort to arms and violence to achieve their stated objectives. Hopefully the Government of India’s political wisdom will prevent such a disturbing thing from happening. And now that people in the Naga Hills districts have voted overwhelming in support of the UNC consensus candidates, this mandate must now be translated into tangible political action at the highest policy decision making level in Delhi.
War of words N. Kaniya, Seithekima ‘A’ The Morung Express Perspective
When it comes to war, Nagas as people I guess, are the most fortunate to have experienced so many different types. From the primitive war of head hunting we were suddenly exposed to the two great World wars. The first, our great grandfathers experienced it in France, then the Second we have been told how our grandfathers and parents witnessed the ‘might’ of the East (Japan) clashing with the combined ‘might’ of the Allied Forces in our own lands, culminating with the decisive Battle of Kohima .Our people have also experienced the Indo- Pak war, the Sino- India war and the Bangladesh war. We have also experienced guerrilla tactics of warfare till the signing of Ceasefire with the GOI. Today it is altogether another warfare- it is war of words now.
Winning over the public is the main target in the war of words, if I’m not mistaken. But how far the contending parties are able to is the big question. Frankly, I don’t see anything positive coming out of it, so my appeal here is, enough! It is disgusting to see charges and counter charges everyday in the papers and that too not with our supposed enemy but among our own people who professed to be working for the cause of the Nagas. I’m sure the argument here is that, the public has to be told the truth and not allowed to be swayed away with lies. Good intention, but then, if this is the view, it tantamount to saying your people is not capable of discerning truth from lies. In other words, the contending parties seem to have assumed that the General Naga publics are as naive as to swallow everything that is written - ‘Lock, Stock and Barrel’. For God sake your people are simple folks no doubt, but not fools !Your people can very well understand who is doing what for the cause from ‘Action’ and not from the number of charges made against the rival factions while giving endless self justifications.
This outburst of indignation is due to what I call cheap publicity stunts, which will widen the existing rift and deepen the hatred even further. Now why I am writing this is because, my destiny and 1that of my whole family’s is entwined with this Naga issue of ours whether I like it or not. I also draw the authority to voice out my opinion from the fact that, I’m an equal victim of the freedom struggle like anybody else. The fact that I lost a big daddy much before my birth and seeing how his wife survived mentally affected as a result, till her death a few years back. The fact that I lost my maternal uncle to whom I was quite close as a child. The fact that as a child having to experienced the dread of being rudely and roughly woken up at Midnight countless of times by the Indian soldiers. The fact that I have experienced and witnessed my whole village being rounded up in the Indian army ground and beaten mercilessly where even the old and the sick, women and children were not spared. The fact that as a child I began to learn to rejoice whenever there was casualty among the Indian soldiers in an ambush or shoot out. These are some few pointers among many, which makes me very much a part of the movement and that’s the reason why I guess, I too have a right in having a say.
Now what I have to say here is this; why not turn your attention away from each other and concentrate more on the designs of our common foe - India. We are all aware of the fact that, the more Nagas become divided the happier India will be. At least the mandarins sitting in Delhi or shall we say, the modern day Chanakyas, will be grinning themselves silly seeing how well their ploy of breaking up the Naga family is working.
For a starter, in order to stop trading charges, both the NSCNs must stop encouraging defection from one side to the other by completely stopping the entry of defected cadre(s) into its’ fold. Another practical suggestion can be; to make it a must for background study of any person before being recruited or appointed. However disgusted I may be with the whole development, I still believe we have a future. How it will come about I don’t know, but I still believe in our future - you may call me a dreamer!
'Cultivate rubber, shun insurgency' is mantra for northeast By IANS
Guwahati, March 9 (IANS) The central government has come up with a new weapon to fight insurgency in the northeast - encouraging youths to take up rubber cultivation on a large scale, instead of arms, to be actors in the development of the region. 'Rubber cultivation could be a tool for fighting insurgency as people could be stopped from joining militant groups if they are engaged in productive farming,' Union Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh said here Friday. 'Now with several downstream rubber industries coming up in places like Tripura, the potential is tremendous,' the minister told journalists here.
Ramesh was earlier addressing a meeting in Guwahati along with Mani Shankar Aiyar, minister for development of northeastern region (DONER), with heads of the Coffee Board, the Rubber Board, the Tea Board, the Spices Board, and the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Exports Development Authority. The meeting was aimed at making the northeastern region a major economic zone by boosting the production of rubber, coffee, tea, spices and upgrading the food-processing sector. The northeast accounts for 9.5 percent of India's total rubber production.
According to estimates, the northeast has potential for rubber cultivation in about 450,000 hectares of land of which just about 13 percent is currently under natural rubber plantations.
'Our plan now is to double rubber production in the northeast within five to seven years time,' the commerce minister said. The region also has potential for coffee, with Nagaland and Mizoram growing the beans in about 5,000 hectares of land. 'We shall be opening by next month a coffee curing factory in Kolasib in Mizoram where five tonnes per month of processed coffee could be made,' the minister said. The government has also announced the setting up of four agricultural economic zones in the northeast - two in Sikkim, and one each in Assam and Tripura - besides opening cold storage facilities in five airports in the region.
UN body urges Delhi to repeal AFSPA By Our Staff Reporter Sangai Express
IMPHAL, Mar 9 : The United Nations' Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) in its 70th session has urged the Government of India to repeal the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958. During the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination which commenced on February 19 and concluded yesterday, eight different recommendations pertaining to India were suggested. The recommendations included repeal of AFSPA, informed Executive Director of Human Rights Alert Babloo Loitongbam who participated in the convention. Addressing the media today, Babloo said that the convention also recommended replacing AFSPA with a more humane Act in accordance with the recommendation of the Review Committee constituted by the Home Affairs Ministry, Government of India. Further, the report of the Review Committee should also be made known to the public, mentioned the recommendation. The convention attended by 10 Indian representatives including the Indian Ambassador to the UN and the Attorney General was also participated by general secretary of United NGOs Mission Manipur U Nobokishore. The CERD Convention gave its recommendations after confirming that the tribal peoples of the North East are being subjugated by security forces as no security personnel can be prosecuted without sanctions from the Union Government while security personnel can search, arrest and shoot any individual without warrant and on mere suspicion because of the immunity guaranteed to them under AFSPA. The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination also urged the State party (Government of India) to fully respect and implement the right of ownership, collective or individual, of the members of tribal communities over lands traditionally occupied by them in accordance with the ILO Convention 107 on Indigenous and Tribal Population, 1957.
Another recommendation of the CERD convention was that the State party should seek the prior consent of the indigenous peoples while constructing dams and similar projects in the North East States, said Babloo Loitongbam.
‘NSCN-K Zeliangrong region VC expelled’; VC refutes Newmai News Network
Imphal, Mar 9: There are contradictory press releases made from the Khaplang faction of the NSCN set up with its Home Secretary Lipomo Jami disclosing that M Ragongning has been expelled from the outfit with effect from March 10 for committing gross indiscipline and disloyalty to his superiors while M Ragongning said that he is the vice- chairman of the GPRN/NSCN-K, Zeliangrong Region. The Home Secretary of the NSCN-K while issuing press note from Mon district of Nagaland to NNN this evening said that Ragongning has been expelled from the membership of the GPRN/NSCN-K for a period of one year. On the other hand, M Ragoning informed NNN that the news reports of the denial with regard to the incident of the burning down of a Maruti Gypsy belonging to Zeliangrong Union (ZU) president Ningtangpou Kamei issued by infor- mation and publicity of the NSCN-K, Zeliangrong Region has been uncalled for and baseless. Vice-Chairman of the NSCN-K, Zeliangrong Region M Ragongning said that the ZU president’s Ma-ruti Gypsy was set ablaze by the cadres of the NSCN-K under Jiribam Town Command at Mahadev ground on the midnight of March 4. Ragongning while giving the reasons for the March 4 arson said that the incident reminded the outfit’s warning to the ZU president Ningtangpou Kamei who “has been collaborating with the United Naga Council (UNC) which in turn has been acting at the behest of the NSCN-IM.
M Ragongning further said that the NSCN-K is “maintaining regional autonomy that untimely interference from any quarters or individuals in internal matters of the Zeliangrong Region cannot be effective.”
The NSCN-K, Zeliangrong Region vice-chairman then said that the authorities concerned of the Zeliangrong Region while carrying out the common policies of the unified council of the GPRN/NSCN-K shall not leave any stone unturned to strengthen the national cause and take appropriate action against those organisations or individuals who work under the diktat/behest of the NSCN-IM.
“Any donkey cannot bark like a dog while an elephant cannot hawl like a jackal or fox. If at all Kilonser N.Panmei (of the NSCN-K) had actually stated that Zeliangrong Region of the NSCN-K had not burnt the Maruti Gypsy of pro-UNC/NSCN-IM, ZU president Ningtangpou. N.Panmei is in a sorry state as the authorities concerned of this region will set things right,” said the statement of M.Ragongning. The statement then said that it has been the fact that the GPRN/NSCN-K in the central council and the regional councils have been opposing to the move of the ANSAM with regard to the NBSE/BSEM. The outfit said that any student should be allowed to appear in any boards such as CBSE, NBSE and BSEM according to their choices. The vice-chairman of the NSCN-K, Zeliangrong Region then appeals all the Zeliangrong people to extend their cooperations to all the authorities concerned of the Zeliangrong Region as well as the concerned Town Commands and “settle things right mutually in the event of any misunderstanding.
UNC, others back ANSAM Sangai Express
Imphal, Mar 9: The Senapati District Students Assn (SDSA), Tangkhul Katamnao Saklong (TKS) and the United Naga Council (UNC) have said that they will fully endorse the stand of the ANSAM with regard to the banning of examination activities conducted under the Board of School Educa-tion, Manipur (BSEM) and the Council in Senapati, Ukhrul, Chandel & Tam-englong districts. The three organisations said that they will follow what-ever course of action the ANSAM undertakes in the matter of the school/ higher secondary boards. UNC president Paul Leo told NNN tonight that in the event of untoward inci-dents occurring related to the BSEM exams in the four hill districts, Chief Minister O Ibobi should be held responsible. NNN

Selective amnesia Editorial Sangai Express
That public memory short is an accepted thing but the manner in which the political leaders of the State manage to switch off their memory power with such dexterity is simply amazing. It was only some time back that political leaders of all hue and colour rushed to Delhi to show their solidarity to Irom Sharmila Chanu and to back her struggle and the promises given ranged from the complete repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act from Manipur to raising the issue on the floor of the Parliament. In fact, before Manipur went to polls from February 7, the most prominent name being bandied about by political leaders to win over the electorate was Irom Sharmila and the cause taken up by her. The election is over now and a new Government has come into being and along with the dawn of a new Government, albeit under the same party and its partner/s, Irom Sharmila Chanu has returned to Imphal dejected that New Delhi has refused to listen to her demand. The fight is far from over for the gutsy young lady as she is continuing with her fast and is presently being kept at JN Hospital and nose fed. We understand that Sharmila arrived here in the middle of the Yaoshang festival and the State media, particularly the print media was on a four day long hiatus, and her return may not have generated much publicity. However there is the electronic media, ISTV which beamed the story of her return. The interesting and yes ironic question is, what are the political leaders who had rushed to meet her at Delhi before the election doing now ? We had earlier strongly voiced our stand against any political party or politician trying to piggy ride their way to the seat of power by reducing the struggle of Sharmila to electoral arithmetic for we could see through the charade enacted by the political netas. We stand vindicated, though we cannot help but feel a certain sense of tragedy over the manner in politicians have been trivialising issues and exploiting situations just to book a ticket to the Ministerial kursis. Sharmila is back here and her return from Delhi to Imphal has exposed the true faces of many political parties and leaders. Maybe those who lost in the election are still licking their wounds while those who won have no time to even think about her in the euphoria of scoring a victory at the hustings. Keeping aside the issue of AFSPA for the moment, what we would like to remind the political class is that they cannot keep on fooling the people all the time. If Sharmila was the calling card of many political parties and politicians before the election then today she is just another name, who may become a useful tool when the next election comes. This is what we find galling in the most extreme sense. It is time to let the political class know that issues and people cannot be treated as Kleenex or some tissue papers which can be thrown into the waste bin or the loo after it has served its purpose. Far from it, the issues concerning the people will remain and if the political netas and their side kicks refuse to see the writing on the wall, the situation will only take a turn for the worse. Many political leaders and politicians tried to climb their way to the seat of power by piggy riding on Sharmila in the just concluded election and many others will try to do the same in the future not only with Sharmila but with other issues or individuals as well. The only way to keep these elements in their place is for the people to act intelligently and not be taken in by their glib talks.

India overtakes Japan in number of billionaires Assam Tribune
NEW YORK, March 9 – By sheer numbers, Indians topped the list of richest people in Asia with 36 billionaires, of whom Forbes placed Lakshmi Mittal, Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani in the ultra elite global top 20, reports PTI. The combined wealth of Indian billionaires, including familiar names like Azim Premji, K P Singh, Sunil Mittal, Shashi and Ravi Ruia, Pallonji Mistry and Adi Godrej, swelled to 191 billion dollars — equal to one-fourth of India’s GDP.

Mukesh Ambani and his brother Anil Ambani breached into the top 20 richest list with a net worth of 20.1 billion dollar and 18.2 billion dollars respectively. Forbes ranked Lakshmi Mittal, whose steel empire has earned him 32 billion dollars, the fifth richest person on the planet.

The Forbes list for 2007 said India ended Japan’s 20-year reign as home to Asia’s most number of richest people. The land of the rising sun now has 24 billionaires with a combined net worth of 64 billion dollars. However, China and Hong Kong together account for 41 billionaires, including Hutchison Whampoa’s Li Ka-Shing.

“India’s rich are marching toward the top of our rankings and now has three in the upper echelons, second only to the US,” the Forbes’ magazine said. As many as 14 Indians have joined the coveted club this year, raising the net worth of the country’s billionaires by around 90 billion dollars. Wipro’s Premji is ranked 21st with 17.1 billion USD in the Forbes list. Kushal Pal Singh of DLF was ranked 62 with 10 billion USD, Bharti Group Chairman Sunil Mittal and family at 49 with 9.5 billion USD, Aditya Birla Group Chairman K M Birla at 86 with 8 billion USD and Essar Group’s Shashi and Ravi Ruia also at 86 with 8 billion USD.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates continues to be the richest person in the world for 13th year in succession with a net worth of 56 billion dollars among a record 946 billionaires listed by the magazine. Gates was followed by friend and fellow philanthropist Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc, with a net worth to of 52 billion USD.

Mexico’s richest man, Carlos Slim Helu is catching up fast with his net worth jumping by an astonishing 19 billion USD this year - the single biggest one-year gain in a decade. Sweden’s Ingvar Kamprad and family came fourth, ahead of L N Mittal, with a net worth of 33 billion USD. The number of billionaires in 2007 has risen 19 per cent to 946 over the previous years’ 793. The combined net worth has climbed by 900 billion dollars to 3.5 trillion dollars, according to the Forbes magazine. “This is the richest year ever in the human history. Never in history has there been such a notable advance,” Forbes Chief Executive Steve Forbes said.

Delhigate scandal shadows Ibobi govt The Imphal Free Press

IMPHAL, Mar 9: Has the Ibobi government auctioned off prime Manipur Government land allotted for the development of "Manipur Institute of Performing Arts" in Gurgaon to a private export house on the quiet? If a letter by the principal resident commissioner, Delhi Manipur Bhawan, Rakesh, is to be believed, this does appear to be so.

The land in question, a 4.25 acre space, (about as big as three football fields) is located at the Institutional Plot at Sector-18 Gurgaon adjacent to the complexes of Hero Honda, Ranbaxy and a plethora of other multinational companies, and according to knowledgeable sources in New Delhi, the commercial value of real estate in the area is estimated to be about Rs 80,000 sq feet, or easily about Rs 600 crore for the plot the Manipur Government owns.

The official letter dated January 4, 2007, apparently faxed to M/S Adani Exports Ltd, Adani House, Near Mithakhali Circle, Navarangpura, Ahmedabad � 380009 is marked for the attention of one Brig. SS Bhatti. A copy of the letter is now available with the IFP. The letter refers to an earlier letter of the Manipur Government as well as to the bid documents issued to Adani Exports, and a discussion held at the pre-bid meeting on December 23, 2006. All these apparently happened in a hush-hush manner for there are no references to any tender notification in any newspaper. Not surprisingly, not many even in the Manipur Government are aware of the development. The deal was also conceived and struck on the eve of the February 2007 elections giving tremendous room for suspicion of huge kickbacks. Did this kickback, if at all, in anyway influence the tenor of the election campaign in the state?

A hint that this transaction was being planned by the government before the February elections had already been published in the vernacular Mannaba in its January 23 issue. Apart from the principal resident commissioner`s letter, the other documents are still not available with the IFP but their gist is very much obvious from the principal resident commissioner`s letter.
The IFP will get hold of the documents using the RTI provisions and publicise them as and when they are in its custody. The government`s letter to Adani Exports cloaks the deal under the deceptive title of "Development of 4.25 acres of Instutitional Land of the Government of Manipur at Gurgaon", but virtually it is a sale. It would allow this private company to exclusively develop the land as per its needs and use it for a 30 years lease period, extendable under the same terms of the first period of lease for another 20 years. Again, obviously to cloak and make the deal appear soft, the word "lease" is not used and instead it is substituted by the term "concession period".

The terms put to the bidder are also too mild and simple to be believed. They mention nothing of the conditions or rights the Manipur Government would have over the land during the lease period. Instead it says the company must abide by the land use norms as prescribed by the HUDA, of the Haryana Government. In other words, it is like saying the Manipur Government is agreeing to lease ("gift") this land on the condition that the lessee does not get it into legal trouble with the Haryana Government.

It even goes to the extent of noting "No compensation, claim or damages will be entertained by the Government of Manipur in this regard."

The only bit of stricture mentioned to the bidder is that "the act of granting permission to develop the Project Facility at the Site and to license the use of the Project Facility or any part thereof shall not vest or create any proprietary interest in the Project Facility or any part thereof�"

The question is, what good would any proprietary claim be if the facility can be had for 50 years without it, and probably at a throw-away cost? The Manipur Diaspora Association, NCT, Delhi, an organization of eminent artists, writers, government servants, Army officers, doctors, lawyers, social workers and other professionals from the state settled in Delhi has already made a representation to the chief minister Okram Ibobi on March 1, after coming to learn of the government`s planned deal with Adani Exports.

Border trade agreement signed The Imphal Free Press

imphal, mar 9: In order to boost Indo-Myanmar border trade, a trilaleral agreement has been signed between trade representatives of Manipur, Assam and Myanmar in Guwahati, Ph Ibotombi Sharma, general secretary of the Indo-Myanmar Border Trade Union, informed today. Addressing a press conference at the IMBTU office today, Ph Ibotombi Sharma said the trilateral agreement was signed by representatives of the IMBTU, Industries Trade Fair Association of Assam and Myanmar Border Trade Chamber of Commerce in the course of the visit by a Myanmarese trade delegation to Manipur and other states of the north east. He noted that the 31 member delegation from Myanmar headed by U Hla Mauang, president, union of Myanmar Border Trade Chamber of Commerce. had reached Imphal on February 28, and later visited Guwahati and Aizwal.

The visit was the result of a bilatieral agreement signed between IMBTU and UMBTTCC on December 1, 2006 at Moreh, he further noted. He further said that an interaction programme between Myanmar trade delegation and Indian trade delegation was held for the very first time on March 1 at the state guest house which was attended by PC Laumkunga, principal secretary, commerce and industry, as chief guest with a host of other officials of the state

The interaction session covered various topics regarding the border trade system including introduction of letter of credit in the border trade between the two countries, to open fishery and veterinary quarantine to facilitate export-import of agro-based products at land customs station Moreh, and to extend time period of border pass for traders from seven to fifteen days.

The delegation also visited various places of interest in the state before leaving for Guwahati on March 3, 2007 and on March 4, a trilateral MoU was signed at ITFA complex, Guwahati.

U Hla Maung, president, and U Aye Ko, secretary, UMBTCC and W Nabachandra president of the IMBTU and Ph Ibotombi Sharma along with J Hazarika, president and Rajeev Das, secretary, Industries Trade Fair Association of Assam The MoU agreed to boost bilaterial trade between north east India and Myanmar and to hold a meeting of the three trade unions at Moreh within three months. The Myanmarese delegation then headed towards Aizwal, Mizoram, and after meeting various officials, left India through the Champai border gate, he informed.

Y Dilipkumar, chairman, PIC, while addressing the media maintained that there is a need for the people of the state to be aware about the possibility of diversion of the border trade, from present imphal-moreh-tamu route to Aizwal-Champai-Tamu route which is being put up by various bodies in Mizoram and is also being proposed by the Mizoram government

If this occurs, the border trade will suffer drastically, he pointed out, and warned that owing to bandhs and economc blockade culture of Manipur, the border trade through Moreh may be left high and dry. IMBTU president W Nabachandra Singh also revealed that a Moreh to Mandalay bus service is in the offing and the government of India has already given approval and is waiting for the Myanmarese response. He further stressed on the need to increase the number of legal import-export items from the present 22.

Beyond the Digital Camera
Shiluinla Jamir

There can never be a more disgusting news than an elected councilor (supposed to be promoting people’s interest) harassing a media representative, that too, a lady representative. Media is not just media, mere printed papers. This is one inherent medium that keeps all citizens connected. It is one medium that keeps the cycle of human relationship going. It represents people’s voices, people’s aspirations; it is a tool that shapes our consciousness. One issue that I have been struggling to come to term with, since I read of this incident, is how can someone elected by the people trample upon people’s medium of consciousness. Media’s sole relevance is communication. Since communication means reaching people and since people constitute society, media is an inherent element of society. It was so when the first caveman scrawled drawings on rock walls. It is so as computers carry information technology to new and newer horizons. It will remain as long as people need to communicate with another. Media is also a leveler; anyone can voice his or her concern through it. And to terrorize an institution such as this, needs serious re-thinking. This incident is not only about the person involved and the media fraternity. There is obviously something beyond. Our values, our morals have gone haywire. It is in no way an “unfortunate incident” as we might want to portray. It brings to light the surface of a society that remains fallen to male chauvinism and power manipulation. An unholy alliance indeed! Any use of the term “unfortunate” or “stray incident” to describe this happening has to be vehemently condemned, as much as the incident itself.
Media occupies a major chunk of the time afforded by people all over the world and increasingly in India has become an off quoted truism. If (of course any form of violence is not accepted) the lady reporter was from a tabloid trying to capture pictures of celebrities and those photos were to be sold to increase her fatty bank balance then we could have taken the incident with a pinch of salt. But a reporter for a daily, that updates us everyday on the daily happenings, a serious newspaper collecting serious information for us, being harassed is beyond all human imagination.
Remember we are talking of a lady reporter. Yes, a lady reporter! A reporter is expected to be following happenings and events round the clock. If in the broad day light she can be harassed, what is the guarantee that other lady journalist would be safe? I am sure she did not breach any security measures. Even if she had, an elected councilor is in no way empowered to harass her. There are security personnel to take care of her.
What we find here is a blatant misuse, abuse and use of power by the elected leader, a male over the female, over someone whom he rules over, an exercise of power over the powerless. What makes power prone to abuse is not the exercise per se but the motive and manner by which it is exercised. In plain terms, power in and of itself is morally neutral. It is an important and necessary factor in all human relationships. It is the energy, the potential to act, to effect and to shape. Some of the visible manifestations of power we can map from this incident are aggression, domination; destruction and violence, making power assume negative connotations significantly influencing the logic and practice of power. This violent potential of power being exercised by our elected leader makes it necessary for us to interrogate the implication of power at the ideological and praxis level. But we can only interrogate if and when our consciousness is awakened.

It also shows how insensitive and immune we have become to factors and issues that jeopardize our rights as human beings. We often tend to remain either silent or sit on the fence when situation calls us to react (that includes me also). We remain silent because we are afraid (no doubt, when violence has reached this scale any one would be) or because incidents such as this does not affect us directly. When it comes to blatant violation of human and professional dignity through misuse and abuse of power, I believe we should have the courage and the faith to say “No” to it. If we become used to living within our comfort zone and not voice our concerns, our silence will give way to death and our children will hold us responsible one day. What we need today is a consciousness that will disturb us in our apathy, a consciousness that will burn our lethargic heart, a consciousness that will break our silence in the midst of violence. Civil Societies should play a key role in awakening this consciousness. At the end of the day, what should matter to us is about peaceful living where we can exercise our rights and powers with responsibility. Kindly move beyond the digital camera, there are a lot of thorny issues involved in this episode. As I wind this article, I solicit that all conscious Nagas will raise their heads beyond this ugly event and stand by our press fraternity, especially by the lady reporter who has been harassed while trying to let you and I see events behind the hegemonic spectacles.