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08/22/2007: "Talks to determine truce: NSCN (I-M) Nagarealm.com"

Talks to determine truce: NSCN (I-M) Nagarealm.com

Dimapur, AUG20 ANI]: NSCN (I-M) leaders, Chairman Isak Chishi Swu and General Secretary Th Muivah categorically reiterated that the continuation of the ceasefire will depend on the progress in talks.

"Periodic extension does not serve us. Neither has it served the Government of India. The point is that it has to be made rational and realistic. This is the consideration behind it. So, we find that ceasefire has been extended indefinitely subject to progress in talks," said Muivah. The Naga leaders said the "ball is in the centre's court" and they have taken "necessary positive steps and we have done all we could do" to make the talks progress." "Reality of Naga history has to be recognized. They have to recognize the uniqueness of the Naga history. Meaning Naga has never been part of Indian union in the past and present. This reality must be respected by India first," asserted Muivah.He further said that the Indian government should stop dividing Nagas."Who has divided us in different states? Can you expect us to accept this type of arrangement without our consent? It hurts us. Government of India is just overlooking it. They are not realistic, they do not understand us, they are dictating to us. We don't want anything from India-we have our land ...that we need to have and that we ought to have...they (Indian government) are trying to please Meiteis, Assamese, Arunachalis at the expense of Nagas .

We have been fighting for our rights for the last sixty years. Do you think we are fighting to be divided? Indians totally refuse to understand and recognize Nagas. Solutions would never be there. We will never bow down. Anything against our will we will never accept," thundered an emotionally charged up Muivah.During the 45-minute interview at the Hebron Camp o¬n the outskirts of Dimapur, both Naga leaders expressed displeasure with the Central Government's approach. They said that the Government does not have "guts" to make any bold and positive move to solve the five decade long conflict. Elaborating his point, Muivah said: "We have given them bottom line and below that we can't go and important step for this is integration of Naga areas, Naga homeland."

"We want neither secession nor separation. We want to be there as two entities. We have our own constitution and they (India) have their own and there will be some arrangement .Things which can be written in our own constitution and things which can be written in their Constitution, said NSCN (IM) Chairman Isak Chishi Swu.Making the point more clear, Muivah underlined that "relations should be determined in such a way that a sort of federation of India and federation of Nagaland not the federation within the federal structure of India. The Federation of India o¬n the o¬ne side and federation of Nagalaim o¬n the other."The Naga leaders accepted that the younger generation of the Nagas is not so passionate about the demand for Nagalim and the NSCN(IM) ideological position. "We all wishes to have consultations with people. But youngsters don't understand us because they are paying attention to their studies. But we have been talking to the public," asserted Swu.

Naga leaders were very upset with the Indian government for what they believe is the arms and material support to the rival Khaplang faction. "Giving arms and ammunition to them-keeping NSCN(K) cadres outside the Hebron Camp. They are attacking us. Where is the sincerity o¬n the part of the government? Controlling them is in the hands of the Indian government", said Muivah in a choked voice. The next round of Naga talks is expected to be held in the first week of September. Naga leader have been holding talks with the central government since 1997 when the ceasefire came into existence. So far many rounds of talks have been held in India and abroad.
Naga UGs crackdown on errant cadres NSCN (IM) orders imprisonment of Sgt Major; FGN discharges ‘killer’ cadre Morung Express News
Dimapur In the wake of errant underground cadres causing harm to public peace as has been reported in the recent past, efforts are now being made to rein in such indiscipline within the ranks. In this regard both the NSCN (IM) and the FGN have decided to crack down on such errant cadres. The NSCN (I-M) has ordered the imprisonment of ‘Sgt. Major’ Athong for an indefinite duration, after a court martial found him guilty of “misconduct unbecoming of Naga Army.” Athong was involved in attempting to take the life of K Yamakum, an MLA.
“NSCN having done its job to enforce strict disciplinary conduct and sparing none in the eye of the law, would like to request the concerned organizations to respect the verdict of the Naga Army court martial on Sgt. Major Athong and his subsequent imprisonment,” a written communication from the MIP of the Naga group stated.
“There is no denying the fact that black sheep in the NSCN is doing great harm to the good name of the NSCN and its Naga Army. This is a regrettable reality that has discomforted the NSCN. But at the same time this social phenomenon has not been overlooked and NSCN is leaving no stone unturned to initiate investigation into the criminal-like behaviour of NSCN cadres.
“What happened to MLA K Yamakum at the hand of Naga Army Sgt. Major Athong is very unfortunate, and has prompted the Naga Army to fall in line with the people’s wish that Sgt. Major Athong should not be allowed to go scot-free.”
In a separate order, the Federal Government of Nagaland today announced the discharge of ‘Major’ Obed Sumi, the cadre implicated with the murder of a person named Nishena and the torture of another named Vikha Kiba at Yorüba Village on May 21 last.
Obed Sumi has been disrobed of his rank with immediate effect and an implementation report is to be furnished to the ‘government’ within a period of 15 days. The actions of the cadre “cannot be justified under any law,” ‘Keya Kilonser’ of the FGN, P Puthai, said in a press statement. “It is a total violation of the Naga Army Rules and Regulations and the Supplementary Ordinance of Code of Conduct for Naga Army. These types of characters are not an asset to the Nation but a threat to the solidarity and integrity of our people which only disrupts social harmony, peaceful co-existence and the normal life.”
Further, the FGN observed that not only Sumis but other Nagas must also make it a primary requisite at all times not to recommend unreliable sons and daughters for enrolment in “our National Army”, for the sole reason that “parents also have to reap what they had sown.”
Dawn to Dusk total Kohima bandh Morung Express News
KOHIMA The Angami Students’ Union and Angami Youth Organisation has called for a 12 hr total bandh in the state capital Kohima on Wednesday following the NSCN-K failure to meet its demand of handing Sgt Maj. Yehukho Sumi over to the public by last Monday evening.
The two bodies had demanded that the NSCN-K authority hand over its errant cadre, who attempted extortion and a bid on the life of former ASU president Medo Yhokha, to them by 3:00 pm, Monday last, however, the latter did not fulfil the demand, instead, it was learnt that the NSCN-K send an apology and a clarification letter.
The decision to imposed total bandh on its jurisdiction was arrived at today’s meeting of its range office bearers and unit presidents. According to the release issued by AYO president Kezhazer Angami and ASU president Kelhouneizo Yhome, the bandh would be from 6am to 6pm where all vehicular and public movements will be restricted, closure of all the business establishments, and also various institutions.
However, hospitals, paramilitary forces, press and funeral services are exempted from the purview of the bandh. “The ASU and AYO has reiterated that it has decided to execute its agitation through a phased manner and subsequently, the call of total bandh is part of the second phase of agitation, expressing its frustration and resentment towards the NCSN-K for their inability to react”, the release stated.
Earlier the two organizations had imposed two days total shops closure in the state capital Kohima in protest against the incident.
The ASU and AYO further appealed to all public and concerned citizens to cooperate and co-assist them, as the bandh was being called with an intention of eradicating ant- social elements who are perpetrating problems in the state, with particular reference to August 16 incident, where Medo Yhokha, ex-president and present tribunal member of ASU and Neiketouzo Kuotsu were threatened and harassed by Sgt. Maj Yehokhu Sumi of NSCN-K, the release stated.
Efforts on to arrest culprit: State police The Morung Express
Dimapur, August 21 (MExN): In the wake of the August 16 incident where an attempt on a student leader’s life was made by an NSCN (K) cadre in Kohima and the subsequent outcry and condemnation from different quarters in the state, the Nagaland Police Department today informed that a case has been registered in Kohima South Police Station and that efforts are being made to arrest the accused person.
The PRO of Nagaland Police, LL Doungel, DIG of R/CID, in a press release, informed the general public that the case of August 16 incident where a student leader, Medo Yokha was shot at by an NSCN (K) cadre, is under investigation.
“Efforts are being made to arrest the accused person,” said Doungel.
However, he said that since the case involves a member of the NSCN (K) as the accused of this case, it was necessary for the law enforcing agencies to approach the Chairman of the Ceasefire Supervisory Board, Lt Gen (Rtd) Kulkarni, to ask the organisation to hand over the accused of this case to the police to facilitate the investigation.
The Nagaland Police Department, further, for the sake of the citizens of Kohima and for the sake of maintaining public peace and tranquility, earnestly urged the general public to maintain calm and extend their co-operation to the police and security agencies.
NSCN (I-M) claims ‘unearthing’ Hovizol’s killers
DIMAPUR, AUGUST 21 (MExN): The NSCN (I-M) today said they had unearthed, “for the clarification of public conscience,” the killing of Constable Hovizol Rajo (wireless department) at Kohima on October 3, 2006.
A statement issued today identified “Khaplang members involved in the killing” as ‘Lieutenant’ Hukato of Sanapsani village, ‘Private’ Isak of Sakhumi village, ‘Lieutenant’ Kukhahuto of Sanapsani village and ‘Sgt. Major’ Amando of Asukhoni village.
“The then Khaplang Town Commanders are Lieutenant Vitoyi of Tukunapani village and Lieutenant Tusika.”
The NSCN (I-M) further stated: “Notwithstanding its own lapses in maintaining disciplinary order among the Civil and Naga Army set up with occasional public outcry, the NSCN cannot sit silent, but condemn the assault on the former president of Angami Students Union Medo Yhokha by the cadres of Khaplang group. Befitting punishment should be given to any such criminal minded persons who dare to raise hand against a student leader.
“NSCN will be taking all necessary steps to root out criminal elements in the organization and the public are requested to be alert of any such criminals on the prowl disguised as national workers.”
Angami youth challenge NSCN (K) leader The Morung Express
DIMAPUR, AUGUST 21 (MExN): The Angami Students’ Union (ASU) and the Angami Youth Organisation (AYO) today hit out at an NSCN (K) leader by stating that were “being nagged by the comments and remarks manifested by Kughalu Mulatonu in the aftermath of the 16th August, 2007 incident and the subsequent reaction of the Angami frontal organizations.”
A press statement from the youth bodies stated, “The vicious statements from a man in the likes of Mulatonu has clearly undermined and belittled the sentiments of a particular community and further to disown and shy away from the responsibility of an uncultured crime committed by his cadre (Sgt. Maj. Yehokhu Sumi). The ASU and the AYO would like to make it known to Kughalu Mulatonu that rather then the two organization trying to blow the matter out of proportion, he himself has proved to be the virus adding fuel to the fire.”
The ASU-AYO said they had verbally communicated to the PRO, Thekelie, over telephone to inform the officials of the NSCN (K) for a meeting with the AYO-ASU, to which he complied. “However, prior to placing our demands no officials of the NSCN (K) met the ASU-AYO to settle the matter amicably. Thus the fact, Kughalu Mulatonu ought to understand that the issue cannot be settled by a war of words or through telephonic conversation. In reality the present stalemate could have been easily averted had the NSCN (K) authorities responded to the first called meeting to which they were invited for a mutual dialogue.”
The ASU-AYO also has also taken into account Mulatonu’s comment about his faction not cowing down to any pressure from any tribal Hoho or organization whatsoever. “However, the ASU-AYO with the mandate of its people reaffirms its stance that the unflattering behaviour of the particular cadre in question has aggravated everything whereby they have to face the consequences ultimately.”
The ASU-AYO has furthermore opined that Mulatonu’s “derogatory” remarks against chief minister Neiphiu Rio was “utterly discreditable and deplorable, which solely bears true evidence that it is a delusion of his part.” The youths asserted that it is “a direct challenge from Mulatonu reminding the Angamis that Neiphiu Rio hails from Angami community. It is a day light fact that Rio has been elected democratically and therefore is accredited as a committed Naga leader, who indefatigably renders his utmost objective service to the entire Naga community. Hence, Mulatonu’s verbal attacks on Neiphiu Rio are a self defeating propaganda and more so to wrap up his cadre’s horrendous action by unnecessarily provoking a fallacy on Neiphiu Rio’s integrity.”
The extreme remarks of Kughalu Mulatonu “indicate a complete lack of knowledge about the ongoing incident and his snobbish are filled with malice towards the Angami community,” the statement added. “It is established through Mr. Emusa Rengma (S/O Lt. Suma Rengma of Tesophenyu village) driver of NL-O1T 6077, the sole accomplice of Yehokhu Sema that the town crimes were perpetrated on the identity of the Angamis on the same day as opposed to the contentions and claims of the NSCN (K), that he was not responsible for the attack on Mr. Neiketouzo Kuotsu.“In the light of all the above statements, the ASU-AYO reads Mulatonu’s annotations as a challenge to the entire Angami community, whilst preparing to protect and safeguard its citizens from unsavoury elements, created by some few individuals under the pretext of Nationalism.
FGN nod to Zeliang Region Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, August 21: After prolong discussion, the Federal Government of Nagaland has formally granted recognition to the Zeliang region as a separate autonomous unit so as to fulfil the wishes and aspiration of the Zeliang people.

The Rongmeis merged into Zeliang region after 1962 leading to the establishment of Zeliangrong nomenclature, said a statement issued by the FGN's deputy secretary L Pishen adding "Now it is upto them whether to fall under the 9 brigade along with the Anals and Tangkhuls or take a new course of action for their future identity".

Appreciating 'invaluable' services rendered by national workers of the Zeliang Region to the ongoing movement of the NNC/FGN, Pishen further called upon them to ceaselessly work towards building a brighter Nagaland.
Extortion drive by Naga ultras in Assam From Our Correspondent Assam Tribune
SONARI, Aug 20 – ‘Government of the People’s Republic of Nagalim’ has issued ‘demand notes’ to tea estates of bordering areas of Assam. Self-styled adjutant Luvson of Shongshan battalion of Naga Army of the ‘Republic of Nagalim’ a wing of the NSCN served an extortion note on the manager, Namtola tea estate, Namtola division Namtola in Sivasagar district asking him to meet the ‘adjutant’ on August 9 last and the place of meeting was to be informed over a mobile telephone No. 09436441044.
Centre has not received any ULFA proposals for direct talks: Home Ministry From our ANI Correspondent

New Delhi, Aug 21: The Centre today said that it has not received any formal proposal from rebel United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) for direct talks. Reiterating the Government's stand that it is open to talks with any militant groups, including ULFA, provided they shun violence, Union State Home V Radhika Selvi in a written reply to Lok Sabha said that talks with several militant groups in the North East States have remained inconclusive even after several rounds of discussions. "Several rounds of tripartite talks with United People's Democratic Solidarity (UPDS), Dima Halam Daogah (DHD) and Achik National Volunteer Council (ANVC) on their Charter of Demands have been held and the talks are inconclusive," she stated. While a ceasefire agreement is in operation with National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Issac/Muivah) group, a Group of Minister (GoM) has been constituted to hold talks with them, she said adding that the July 31 talks with the rebel group remained inconclusive.

Centre is having a ceasefire agreement with National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang), UPDS, DHD, National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) and ANVC. However, both the Khaplang group and NDFB have not submitted any charters of their demands to the Centre.
Copyright Dailyindia.com/ANI
ULFA incited Karbi ultras to launch attacks By A Staff Reporter Assam Tribune
GUWAHATI, Aug 20 – A series of meetings were held between the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and KLNLF just before the recent spate of attacks on Hindi-speaking people in the hill district of Karbi Anglong and police believes that the ULFA motivated the Karbi militant outfit to launch the attacks. Highly placed police sources told The Assam Tribune today that according to information available, at least two of the recent attacks on Hindi speaking people were carried out by joint groups of ULFA and KLNLF and for the first time, the Karbi outfit launched such attacks on Hindi-speaking people. Sources said that the ULFA, with the help of the Karbi outfit, managed to establish bases in the Singhashan hills area of the district and though an operation has been launched in that area, the terrain and the weather conditions affected the operations. However, steps have been initiated to plug the transit routes and choke the supply lines. Steps have also been taken to increase vigilance along the border with Nagaland as the militants often try to cross over to the neighbouring state.

Sources said that as it is not possible to provide security to all the Hindi-speaking people living in scattered places in the district, efforts are on to persuade the people living in vulnerable areas to move into clusters and about a thousand people are now living in 14 such clusters, where adequate security has been provided. The people living in such clusters are allowed to go to their respective places for working during daytime.

A full-scale operation against militants have been launched in the district and since the mayhem started, three KLNLF militants were killed and seven others have been arrested. However, police admitted that it is not possible for the forces to dominate every part of the district because of the terrain. Karbi Anglong, with an area of 10,434 square kilometres, is one of the biggest districts in the North East region and about 65 percent of the district is covered by hills and jungles, making the task of the security forces more difficult.

Sources said that apart from Assam Police, personnel of the Army, Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) are now operating in the district and each force has been given specific area for domination. However, additional forces are yet to reach the district and after the spate of recent attacks, which resulted in the death of at least 28 persons including women and children, only one additional company of Assam Police reached the district and it has been used to provide security to the clusters of Hindi speaking people. At present, the district has eight companies of CRPF, four companies of BSF, seven columns of the Army and 10 companies of Assam Police personnel. However, the Government of India has assured to send at least 19 companies of additional forces to the State to tide over the situation and Karbi Anglong is expected to get some more force immediately after the arrival of the additional forces.

It may be mentioned here that Karbi Anglong now has only six police stations, 11 police outposts and three patrol posts, which is not at all adequate to deal with the situation and proposals for establishment of new police stations were pending with the Government for years. However, on the positive side, the State Government has recently decided to establish six more police stations and 13 outposts in the district, but completion of the formalities for the same will take some time. Highly placed police sources said that the plan to bifurcate Karbi Anglong into two police districts would also be helpful as it would give the Superintendents of Police smaller areas to administer and at present, it is becoming very difficult for the police to administer such a huge area and the district always has history of militant activities and attacks on different communities.
Whose interest is national anyway , Tarun Vijay Times od India

For the last three days the only news that seemed important next to the Left-UPA spat over the nuke deal was Sanjay Dutt's bail application, its hearing in the Supreme Court and finally the grant of bail. I am sure for the next seven days, his homecoming, sweet messages from everyone in filmdom, his clothes, and his cane-making experiences would hog the front pages as if the billion-strong, fast-moving, agro-based, IT-savvy, space-age nation has nothing else to read about. Meanwhile, I happened to notice a few marginalised or contemptuously ignored news items. For your benefit a few lines from a few news items are given below:

SRINAGAR: Ten people, including a Colonel were killed in a clash between troops and Muslim militants trying to sneak into Indian Kashmir from the Pakistani side, the Army said on Wednesday. (AFP). 'In an act of bravery Col Vasanth and Lance Naik Ganpat achieved martyrdom while fighting hardcore Afghan terrorists. Col. Vasanth earlier intercepted (the terrorist communication) and fired upon them.’ Leading from the front, he organised his troops to surround the terrorists. (IANS )

GUWAHATI: Hundreds of people bid a tearful farewell on Tuesday to an Indian Army soldier whose snow-preserved body was found nearly 40 years after he was killed in a plane crash in the northern Himalayas. Nearly 400 people attended Mahendra Nath Phukon's cremation near his family home in Deodhai, a village 340 km (215 miles) east of Guwahati, the capital of northeastern Assam state. (International Herald Tribune)

JAMMU: On the occasion of 60th Independence Day several West Pakistan refugees of 1947 including young and old, men and women staged a protest demonstration in Jammu. A woman said, "We were forced to flee our homes and hearths in 1947 and since then we have been languishing here in the state. We are at the fag end of our lives but what would happen to our children. We are fighting for justice and equality in a democratic country but no one is bothered about us." (Kashmir Times)

NEW DELHI: Two Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots created a new world record on Sunday by successfully flying a microlite aircraft around the world in 79 days. The pilots, Wing Cdr Rahul Monga and Wing Cdr Anil Kumar, had taken off from Hindan on June 1. The duo has created a new world record in circumnavigating the world in a single engine microlite aircraft in 79 days. The current world record is 99 days. The pilots covered a total of 40,497 kms flying over 19 countries. (TOI)

IMPHAL: Newspapers in Manipur published blank editorials to protest the government's attempt to curb the publication of statements issued by militant groups. (sinlung.com)

As you might have seen over the past few days the news of Sanjay Dutt's bail has got precedence to the martyrdom of brave soldiers, Col. Vasanth and Lance Naik Ganpat, with no publication even carrying their photographs. Somehow, to give your life for the country seems to have counted less than to have been a film actor who kept Dawood’s guns and had the right contacts.

Whether it's the plight of Hindus demanding citizenship in their own country or issues of national pride, it’s the charm of glamour that takes importance over serious issues of the commoner.

But, one can argue, the nuke deal was rightly on the front page. True, but did the debate over the nuke deal educate people in an unprejudiced manner? The level of the debate has come down to “headless chickens” and the “vegetable brains”.

In the end it's the nation that loses and not the politicos who go home heaving a sigh of relief over their dramatic performances. Everyone is fighting in the name of national interest. A deal affecting the future of our security is signed and opposed, both for national interest. A foreigner accused of pocketing Rs 64 crores as bribe is let off in Argentina with the connivance of the Indian government, but the same state apparatus witch-hunts a Shankaracharya and continues with cases against political foes back home again in the name of national interest. It's difficult to find amongst the leaders and the media where exactly national interest ends and prejudiced petty political agenda begins.

This national interest seems to be most invisible in Delhi's power corridors and the paparazzi when the shouts of help that come from the corners of the country are not echoed in the Capital. The largest student body of Assam, already traumatized by severe infiltration says “In about ten years Assam is going to have a Bangladeshi chief minister. We have been shouting for the last 22 years that illegal migrants are killing Assam today but they will kill India tomorrow”. But these voices are not being heard and the murder of the Hindi-speaking people (mostly Hindus) goes on unabated and continues to be ignored by the media.

We have become so enamoured with the tinsel world and the lives of the rich and famous (and infamous alike) that one of my editor friends from Guwahati wrote in utter despair, “Delhi doesn't need Northeast to remain a part of the nation which for a common Hindustani, doesn't exist beyond Kolkata”.

A couple of days before 12 insurgents were arrested from the official residence of three Congress MLAs in Imphal, arms and ammunition in large quantity were also recovered from their houses. Manipur's newspapers did not carry editorials against the insurgency in the state, but in fact carried blank editorials against the government's instruction to observe restraint in publishing statements of the terrorist outfits demanding separation from India, as they “use” print media to spread rumours and psychological terror. Manipur is observing a ban on Hindi movies and instead Korean movies are being freely shown. The national anthem is not allowed in schools and any chord that binds the famous region of Radha Krishna's cultural heritage with the rest of India is being weakened and torn. The state’s 150-year-old library, with rare Bengali manuscripts and books was burnt as the terrorists didn't want “a library having books in a colonial language”. Those in the state who stand up for national integration are not supported by either the media or the power centre in Delhi.

Manipuris also feel threatened by the growing clout of the separatist Naga organizations like National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isaac-Muivah group (NSCN-IM) which demands a chunk from Manipur to create a “Greater Nagalim for Christ”. In fact, Nagaland was created on December 1, 1963 slicing off parts of Assam, namely Naga Hills, Tuensang district and Dimapur after a fierce insurgency launched by A Z Phizo, who took refuge in London under British patronage and the Church's support. They still nourish a dream to create a Christian-dominated colony serving British and US interests in the region and their "war cry" is "Republic of Nagalim for Christ."

Even in Manipuri text books national subjects are omitted. In the text book screening committees, set up by the government, representatives of separatist organizations like the All Manipur Students Union, the Democratic Students Alliance of Manipur, the Manipur Students Federation (a Maoist outfit) take all the major decisions. The committee decided to teach only Manipur issues, leaving out of its curriculum, Gandhi, Nehru and other national heroes. In a Robin Hood role, student organizations check teachers' conduct and cut their salary if they are found to be absent from classes. The money collected is deposited in their association's account.

In the government sector, the Kanglipak Communist Party, the United National Liberation Front and the Kanglei Yayol Kannan Lup are most active and impose a “tax”, which no one can dare to refuse. Government employees are forced to give one to two per cent of their salary and each central project contractor or the officer-in-charge has to cough up 10 to 20 per cent of the project cost in most of the north-eastern states.

But Delhi remains busy in its own petty squabbles, either unaware or uncaring of the problems being faced by the Northeast.

Until a couple of years back, Arunachal Pradesh was known as the only peaceful state in the troubled Northeast. But gradually the forced religious conversions and accompanied insurgency by the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Issac-Muivah) in Changlang and Tirap districts and the lethargic attitude of the central government has already brought this beautiful state on the brink of unrest.

Arunachal's border with China is a long one, which stretches all the way from the east, over to its northern boundaries and down to its north-western edge where it merges with Tibet. To its west is Bhutan and on its southern end touches Assam, Nagaland and Burma before sweeping up to China. Let us not forget that China claims around 36,000 square miles of Indian Territory in Arunachal Pradesh, while it has occupied some 15,200 square miles in Kashmir. Though the state leadership had raised issues of security from time to time, the Delhi government has chosen to ignore their calls for help. In 2003, the then Chief Minister Mukut Mithi warned the central government about Chinese troops making forays across the border and demanded constructing vital roads along our borders with China to meet any security threats. Recently there was a furor in Parliament when an MP from Arunachal Kiran Rijiju sought to disclose Chinese intrusion in Indian territory. Though it was refuted by South Block, none from Delhi's media went to the border areas to cross check the facts and present the views of the Indians living there.

The UPA-Left spat will come to an end soon and so will Sanjay's bail and jail issues. Even if there is a mid-term election, does it bring any hope for a change or simply another burden of thousands of crores on the people of India? After all, the same faces will reappear in a different set-up. National interests remain prisoner to political and vested interests.

Come forward for talks, Gogoi tells Ulfa The Morung Express
New Delhi, August 21 (Agencies): The Assam government today made a fresh appeal to the outlawed Ulfa to come to the negotiating table, saying violence will take the state nowhere and bring misery to the people.
"I appeal to them to give up violence and come for talks. Violence will bring misery to people and push Assam into backwardness," Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi told reporters here.
Neighbouring countries like Myanmar and Bangladesh are harbouring Ulfa leaders and have not responded to calls from the Central government to evict the rebels and hand them over to New Delhi, he said.
Gogoi accused the Ulfa of having a nexus with Pakistan's ISI intelligence agency as the group's actions are helping only those forces which are inimical to India.
He denied allegations that his Congress government had a nexus with the Ulfa, saying these were part of a "baseless, politically motivated campaign" against him. Gogoi said his government was taking steps to curb violence in Karbi Anglong, where 36 Hindi-speaking people were killed recently, by deploying additional forces and enhancing vigil by using helicopters.
He also claimed that incidents of violence during his six years as Chief Minister were fewer than those in the five -year rule of the previous AGP government. "This is all happening despite the Ulfa changing its tactics to attack innocent people and frequently change bases," he said.
Court drama snarls Myanmar-India romance
Jessicah Curtis
On nearly all counts, India-Myanmar bilateral relations are on the upswing, with fast-growing military, trade and investment links. All, that is, but on one count: the unsettling revelations emerging from a case being heard in an Indian court about the infamous 1998 Operation Leech sting. Ever since India’s Ministry of Defense claimed nearly a decade ago to have captured what it referred to as an “international gang of gun smugglers” linked to ethnic-Arakan and Karen rebels who were fighting against neighboring Myanmar’s military government, and subsequently put 34 of the rebels on trial, the follow-up investigation into the charges has led to one embarrassment after another for the Indian defense establishment.
Many of the details of what transpired on India’s Andaman Islands on February 8, 1998, are still unclear. However, court observers say the more credible version of that evening’s events has come in defense of the rebel Karen National Union (KNU) and National Unity Party of Arakan (NUPA).
According to the defendant rebels, they traveled overnight from southern Thailand, where they had procured arms from unknown dealers, to India’s Landfall Island for a scheduled rendezvous with Indian military and intelligence officials. The two insurgent groups were in the process of moving more than US$2 million worth of arms and ammunition on to the island, where they claim Indian intelligence officials had offered them storage facilities.
They also say the same Indian officials had provided them similar clandestine support for years, but for still-unknown reasons that abruptly changed that evening in an intelligence sting operation now famously known as Operation Leech. After mooring on the island, six NUPA leaders were immediately apprehended and led away by Indian officials, while the other accompanying 34 rebels were disarmed, shackled, and held in a different area.
According to their court testimony, some of them soon thereafter heard the sound of gunshots in the distance. The six NUPA leaders, witnesses say, have not been heard from since. The detained rebels have spent the past nine years in legal limbo, and no formal charges were filed by India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) until December 2004.
The CBI and Ministry of Defense had reportedly squabbled internally for years over how to proceed with the case, and critics have made suggestions of a state cover-up. By the time the case was finally transferred to a sessions court in Kolkata, several lawyers who had agreed to represent the rebels said they had been harassed by Indian officials and refused access to the defendants. One legal counsel, T Vasandar, died in mysterious circumstances, according to their defense lawyers.
Meanwhile, because of lack of evidence, the CBI was forced to drop one of the initial charges that accused the rebels of attempting to wage war against India. During the proceedings, state prosecutors have reportedly failed to produce significant pieces of evidence requested by the defense, including the ammunition seized that evening, according to Siddharth Aggarwal, the rebels’ lead lawyer. Aggarwal has also complained that the court allowed three military officials allegedly involved in the sting operation to testify via video link without cross-examinations by the defense.

Conflicting claims According to Aggarwal, his clients’ defense is simple: “They were called to Landfall [Island] by the Indian authorities with the promise that ... they [would] be armed by the Indian Army in their quest for freedom against the military junta” in Myanmar. The prosecution has denied the claims, insisting that the Indian military’s only contact with either rebel group was for the purpose of conducting the sting. Whether or not the Indian military had deeper ties to the NUPA and KNU is still in dispute. But the allegations raised at the trial have nonetheless been a public relations disaster for New Delhi, crucially at a time when several big business deals with Myanmar’s military junta hang in the balance. When the rebels were first arrested in 1998, the trial and its revelations would have been less problematic for India. Back then, New Delhi hadn’t yet launched its diplomatic charm offensive toward Myanmar’s generals, and then-defense minister George Fernandes openly supported and even provided sanctuary in his personal compound for exiled Myanmar pro-democracy student groups situated in India.
With India’s “Look East” diplomatic strategy, which includes securing new regional sources of fossil fuels, now in full swing, the trial has highlighted the still-conflicted nature of the two sides’ budding bilateral relationship and the difficulty India is having cutting ties to its past policy of at least tacit support for Myanmar’s pro-democracy and rebel movements. Beginning in the late 1990s, India slowly moved to change its position and engage Myanmar’s military regime, toward the strategic aim of curbing China’s growing influence in the neighboring country. Indian defense officials were and remain vexed by Yangon’s agreement to allow Beijing to build a listening post at Coco Island in the Indian Ocean. India’s new policy toward Myanmar has arguably paid economic and strategic dividends for both sides, though at the expense of India’s previous foreign policy that emphasized democracy promotion. Myanmar’s generals have been able to diversify with a competing power their past reliance on China for arms, aid and trade. At the end of last fiscal year, according to official statistics, India-Myanmar trade had reached US$650 million, making India Myanmar’s fourth-largest trading partner after China, Singapore and Thailand. Military-to-military ties have in particular strengthened. A number of leading Indian defense officials have recently visited Yangon and, in return, junta leaders General Than Shwe and General Maung Aye have been given what the Indian press referred to as “red-carpet welcomes” on their arrival to New Delhi. India’s arming of Myanmar’s military has helped it crack down on other separatist groups fighting against New Delhi that in the past have operated from remote territories along the two countries’ border. That has meant the sale by India of a wide range of military hardware, including surveillance aircraft, T-55 tanks and 105mm artillery pieces. While that has certainly improved Myanmar’s military capabilities, it has also raised concerns among international rights groups, which claim the arms sales will help Myanmar to fight against the same rebel groups India is accused of in the past clandestinely supporting. In apparent exchange for the arms deals, India is vigorously lobbying Myanmar to award it the rights to natural-gas blocks in the Shwe fields off Myanmar’s Arakan state. India reportedly sweetened its offer last week by proposing to develop a major new port in Arakan territories that would pave the way for more efficient fuel exports. China is also reportedly competing for the gas rights. Some political analysts say the revelations emerging from the Operation Leech trial, including Delhi’s alleged past support for rebel groups who operate in the very areas India is now bidding to develop for energy exports, have compromised its negotiating position vis-a-vis Myanmar. The KNU and NUPA have both claimed in court to have received support from Indian intelligence operatives for years before Operation Leech was launched. Independent researchers working on Myanmar’s western borders told Asia Times Online that Indian intelligence operatives likely spent years cultivating ties with rebel groups fighting Myanmar’s military in the late 1980s and early 1990s and that they had made several offers of logistical support to the Arakan and Chin insurgent groups operating in Myanmar’s remote western border regions. So far these courtroom claims have not spread much further than the presiding court in Kolkata. “If the trial goes on for too long, the Indian military’s contacts with Burmese rebels will be revealed ... That’s why they killed the six leaders. It was because they knew too much,” said David Htaw, a KNU official monitoring the case. Brahma Chellaney, a senior Indian military analyst attached to the New Delhi-based Center for Policy Research, believes that despite the damning nature of the claims, the overall upbeat relationship between India and Myanmar is unlikely to be hurt by the trial. He contends that Myanmar’s military, condemned for its repression in the court of international opinion, is now basking in its association with the world’s largest democracy. “Despite all this, the relationship between the two countries just keeps improving,” Chellaney said.
Assamese columnist condemns killing of Hindi-speaking people by militants
By ANI By Peter Alex Todd
Guwahati, Aug 22 (ANI): An Assamese columnist has condemned the killing of over 30 people, mostly Hindi speaking, in a series of attacks by separatist outfits in Karbi Anglong District, about 300 kilometers from here.
Militants of Karbi Longri National Liberation Front (KLNLF) and United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) are suspected to be behind the killings.arekrishna Deka, a columnist, said even the people could have revolted against the killings, but they do not believe in violence.
"The people are discontent. And if the people's discontent has the same route, by this time they could have been able to cause a revolt . They could have got a mass support. But that is not forthcoming, because people don't believe in violence," said Deka.
In a difficult geographical terrain, people in Karbi Anglong have become a soft target for militants groups.
At a time when the country is celebrating its 60th anniversary of Independence, the ULFA detonated two bombs in Jorhat, killing two and injuring over ten.
"It appears as if when there is some occasion, the (rebel) operations are mounted. But nothing is being done to take the people's co-operation. The civil society is not being engaged," said Deka.
Condemning the killings, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said: "All the insurgent groups, whether the ULFA or the KNLF, the tactics that they have adopted through bomb and killing innocent people is not a heroic job. It is cowardice and we condemn it like anything."
From early this year over 80 Hindi speaking people have lost their lives. On Januray 5, 45 people were killed in Tinsukia and Dibrugarh.
On January 7, 17 innocents fell to the ULFA bullet in Sibsagar and Dibrugarh. (ANI)
ONGC strikes oil at 2 sites in State Indo Burma News
August 22, 2007: New Delhi, The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) has made six new oil and gas discoveries including two in Assam and one in Tripura, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister, Murli Deora said. In a Rajya Sabha reply, the Minister said out of the new discoveries, two oil and gas discoveries in Assam have been put on production, as the required surface and infrastructure facilities were available near by the discovered wells. Remaining four discoveries are at various stages of delineation.
The time taken for development of oil and gas discoveries is normally about three to eight years depending upon the location of discovery, availability of infrastructure and markets in and around the area, the Minister added.
However, that is about the only goods news the Minister had as the prospects of wheeling out gas from neighbouring countries of Bangladesh and Myanmar is all but dead.
India had pursued the import of natural gas from Bangladesh. However, Bangladesh held that considering their domestic demand, they do not have sufficient quantity of gas to export. Currently, India does not have a proposal to import gas from Bangladesh, he added. Deora, however, hinted at a possible Bangladesh-Beijing deal. There are reports about Chinese investments for developing gas reserves in Bangladesh and for industries for value added projects.
About the Myanmar-India gas pipeline project, the Minister said Myanmar has conveyed to India in March that it has decided to sell its gas from AI and A3 blocks to China through the pipeline route. GAIL impressed upon the partners and Myanmar Government that its pipeline offer was still the most competitive and offered optimum value for them due to proximity of India to these fields. However, Myanmar Government’s decision to sell gas to China remains as of now, he added. GAIL and ONGC’s OVL had in 2002 acquired 10 and 20 percent interesting AI and A3 blocks. GAIL had even completed a Detailed Feasibility Report for an onland pipeline from Myanmar passing the North Eastern Region.