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09/03/2010: "I feel betrayed by the Indian government, says Muivah on Manipur visit- Editorials: Northeast Subir Gosh"

I feel betrayed by the Indian government, says Muivah on Manipur visit- Editorials: Northeast Subir Gosh


MAKING A POINT: NSCN General Secretary Thuingaleng Muivah speaks his mind out.
Photograph: Richa Bansal
For a man on a mission of reaching out to his people, the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) general secretary has been a busy man. The backdrop of talks with the Indian government makes Thuingaleng Muivah busier still. But he doesn’t keep you waiting. He doesn’t keep you waiting because he is not the kind.
The glint in his eyes is unmistakable, as he comes forward to greet me. As he exchanges pleasantries, it is evident he doesn’t forget things. He recollects my interactions with him long before the NSCN signed the ongoing ceasefire with the Indian government in 1997.
You don’t expect such a man to forget his homeland, much though he may have been away for years at a length. And he couldn’t forget his own home either. So the home front is what we start talking about.
Muivah was supposed to visit his ancestral village of Somdal in Manipur’s Ukhrul district in early May. This was part of his reachout programme. He had already covered the length and breadth of Nagaland, and his proposed visit had generated considerable interest among those who follow Northeast politics. It would have been big news.
“I had already visited many places in Nagaland. And I couldn’t possibly miss going there (Somdal),” says Muivah. His visage remains calm, but that twang of regret is discernible in his voice. “The last time I visited my home was in 1973 to meet my parents. It was in the dead of the night and I didn’t stay till dawn-break.” That was a good two years before the Shillong Accord, one that was denounced by Muivah, among others.
But Muivah’s plans were scuttled before he could cross the Mao Gate border into Manipur. The Manipur government opposed his entry on grounds that his presence would breach peace and tranquility in the region. CrPC 144 was imposed in the border district of Senapati. Even as the Nagas of Manipur prepared to welcome him, it was obvious that the visit was a non-starter. With the state government blocking all entry points into Manipur, Muivah stayed put on the Nagaland side with things taking a bloody turn. Two students were killed in police firing at Mao Gate.
Muivah grimaces a bit, but continues, “We could have pushed our way through. But that would have been at the cost of lots of lives. It wasn’t an issue that could not have been resolved. If Thuingaleng Muivah wants to go home, there is no need for anyone to feel threatened.” He sighs, then explains, “I have no fear. But I am also in talks with the Indian government. It wouldn’t have been proper on my part to go to Manipur without informing them.”
So, since the Indian government had been in the know of things all along (about his reachout mission), couldn’t it have intervened? Muivah replies, “There had been a clear-cut understanding. But it was to my utter surprise that things took an untoward turn.”
The NSCN leader says the idea had been primarily to brief the people about the progress made in the talks with the Indian government and how essential those are for a peaceful solution. “I am bound to feel betrayed by the Indian government,” he says aggrievedly. “They (the Indian government) knew that I have the right to visit my own native village. But when matters came to a head, they sided with the Meiteis.”
Muivah goes on to speak about Meiteis. “The Nagas are not their enemy. We respect their rights. It is indeed unfortunate that they feel the reverse. Their fears are totally unfounded. What is the point of (their) feeling so insecure? We are not taking an inch of their land.” He insists, “No unpleasant situation has been created by the Nagas. After all, it is nothing unnatural for the Nagas to live together with Meiteis.”
The NSCN leader asserts, “No innocent Meitei has ever been killed by the Nagas, except for maybe one incident. Our cadres were responsible for the killing. We are sorry for that, and we condemn the death.”
So who was responsible for the imbroglio over the Ukhrul visit? Muivah rests the blame squarely on the shoulders of the Manipur Chief Minister. “Ibobi (Singh) was responsible. All he wanted was to have the blessings of the Indian government. And, for its part, the Indian government was ready to oblige Ibobi.”
“The word doing the rounds was that ‘If Thuingaleng Muivah gives up his demand for Greater Nagalim, he will be allowed to enter.” Muivah smiles, and maintains, “The ‘Greater Nagalim’ term is what they use. I don’t use that phrase. I just want to reach out to my own people. Shouldn’t I visit my own village? I am a human being, after all.”
He wraps up his thoughts about the police firing at Mao Gate and his entry into Manipur, “It reminds one of how the Manipur government treats the Nagas. Can the Nagas feel happy this way? Such insults will drive the Nagas far away from them.”
But despite his abortive visit to Ukhrul, the NSCN leader swears that these have been the “best” of times, when asked about this reachout programme. He invokes (Rabindranath) Tagore, and avers, “If you can’t take the people with you, you will always be pulled back.”
NE militants shifting base to Myanmar DIMAPUR (IANS):
Terrorist outfits of northeast India have been trying to shift their base camps from Bangladesh to Myammar following a crackdown by the Bangladeshi Army and para-military, the Tripura police chief said here Friday.
‘Following the arrest and surrender of Bangladeshi trained militants in Tripura and getting inputs from various intelligence agencies, it was confirmed that the northeast militants are changing their base camps from Bangladesh to Myammar,’ Director General of Police Pranay Sahay told reporters.
The matter was discussed in the conference of directors general and inspectors general of police that was held in New Delhi last week, he said.
‘Before they can shift their base, the Bangladesh government may by persuaded to take appropriate actions to nab the northeast India militants taking shelter in that country,’ Sahay said.
‘Allmost all major separatist outfits of northeast, including ULFA (United Liberation Front of Asom), cadres of both factions of NSCN (National Socialist Council of Nagaland), PLA (People’s Liberation Army of Manipur), and NLFT (National Liberation Front of Tripura) had either already fled or were slipping out to Myanmar as the Bangladesh army launched a decisive campaign against them,’ he said.
Giving a specific instance, Sahay said: ‘Recently Bangladesh army dismantled three NLFT camps in Khagracherri area in southeast Bangladesh and flushed out the militants before builing their own helipad in the camp locations.’
‘However, many militants and top leaders are still holed up in Bangladesh,’ he said in an indirect reference to ULFA leader Paresh Barua, NLFT supremo Ranjit Debbarma, Biswamohan Debbarma and others.
He said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had said at the conference that Tripura is the best governed state in the country in terms of curbing terrorism.
‘Our success in combating militancy was discussed and praised at the DGPs’ conference in New Delhi. In fact, Tripura and Andhra Pradesh models in effectively countering the militancy menace were highly appreciated,’ said Sahay.
‘In 2008, there were total of 1,561 militancy related incidents which came down to 1,297 in 2009. This year so far 464 incidents were reported and total casualty stood this year at 15.’
The DGP said that few years back, the terrorist-infested area in Tripura was 70 percent and now it has reduced to 7 to 8 percent of the entire northeastern state, bordering Bangladesh.
The DGPs’ meet also dwelt on the emerging threat of Pakistan’s ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence) spy agency-sponsored terrorism in Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Bangladesh where some ‘modules’ were reported to have already come up.
The Tripura police chief said that while the ‘ISI threat is real’ in northeast India he did not foresee much of a Maoist scare in the region. ‘All such possibilities are being monitored at proper levels and pre-emptive actions were accordingly taken.’

Naga forum plans reconciliation meet - Church asks factions to stop war of words through the media OUR CORRESPONDENT The Telegraph
Kohima, The Forum for Naga Reconciliation which is brokering peace among various factions will soon convene a meeting of top militant leaders in Mon district.
A senior member of the forum, Niengulo Krome, said they are contemplating the meeting involving top leaders of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah), the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang) and the Federal Government of Nagaland (Singnyu) to defuse the heightening tension in the state.
The only hitch in the meeting will be Khaplang’s participation. “Khaplang’s movement has been restricted since he lives in Myanmar,” a member of the forum said.
The forum is looking forward to hosting Kitovi Zhimomi, general secretary of the NSCN(K). His attendance would be historic, a leader said.
The NSCN (I-M) alleged that certain elements in the rival NSCN (K) faction were trying to prevent the top brass from holding the meeting to sort out differences.
C. Singson, member of the joint working committee of the forum, who is also a senior “minister” in the NSCN (K), however, said it was his group which had suggested that a meeting at the highest level be held but there was some hiccups in the process. He did not elaborate what the hiccups were. Singson said the NSCN (I-M) wanted unification of Naga groups under their banner which he said could not be possible at any cost.
The forum has requested the two NSCN groups to desist from media war as this would worsen the fragile situation.
It has also set September 12 as a “special day of prayer” for the consummation of Naga reconciliation.
“We are saddened and pained to see our own people carrying on a diatribe in local dailies with the idolatry of words. The Forum for Naga Reconciliation, according to the wishes of the people and as our own conscience compels, implore the NSCN groups to terminate the idolatry of words against one another with immediate effect. We also call upon all to reflect on the Covenant of Reconciliation and the subsequent commitments to refrain from publication of any offensive articles in local dailies,” Rev. Wati Aier, convener of the forum, said.
“Today, the future of our people is at stake because of the situation we have created. The least we can do is to pray that the Lord helps us reconcile again and build the broken walls of our society,” Rev. L. Anjo Keikung, secretary general of Nagaland Baptist Church Council, said.
The Irony And Absolute Absurdity Of The Indo–Naga Problem Kaka D. Iralu Morungexpress
To begin with, do Nagas really have a political problem with India? If one looks at Nagaland today, at the surface level, there seems to be no problem at all. After all 90% + Nagas are happily pursuing their life’s ambitions under the Indian flag with over 1 lac government employees getting their salaries and even medals under that same flag and government. On top of this, the Indian government is building all the Naga roads as well as financing all the governmental infrastructure and expenditures to keep that Indian Naga government running smoothly.
What then is the Indo- Naga political problem? For an answer we will have to look into the past because the present does not seem to show any problems.
Now unless Naga fathers of the 1950’s have very short memories, they will remember that over 53,000 Indian troops accompanied by Heavy Artillery, Jet fighters and Light Armored Tanks invaded Naga country and burnt Nagaland into ashes. They will also remember that nearly 1 lack Naga fathers, mothers, sons and daughters died from bullets, rape torture, and diseases during that period alone. That was how the Indian flag was hoisted in Nagaland in the fifties on the false claims that Nagas are Indians and Nagaland is Indian Territory.

But now, what do we see going on in Nagaland today? Let us begin by asking ourselves the following questions:
1. When the enemy has invaded our lands and forced our citizens to dance in the inauguration of a so called state and then forced the first elections under the threat of loaded rifles; can our Pastors still urge their church members to go and cast their votes so that this foreign imposed government can be continued in our lands?
2. When the enemy is still in occupation of our lands, can our national leaders and our national army be sitting under a white flag for 35 years waiting for the enemy occupational forces to initiate peace talks?
3. Or when the enemy is still in occupation of our lands, can some of our national leaders be talking with the enemy occupational forces for 13 years for integration of our territories under the enemy’s constitution (Or a sub-Constitution under their constitution)?
4. Or still in greater absurdity, when the enemy is still in occupation of our lands, can we be shooting one another to death for factional supremacy instead of collectively fighting the enemy to drive them away from our lands? In times like this, when our beloved country lies in ruins of occupation and corruptions, can we be wasting all our time and energies running from every pillar to every post pleading for reconciliation and ceasefires among ourselves?
When one sees and considers all these unbelievable things that we Nagas are doing today, one cannot but conclude that though Nagas indeed had a political invasion problem with India from 1947 to 1975, the present so called Naga political problem is not an Indo-Naga problem but purely an INTERNAL NAGA PROBLEM.
In conclusion, as for those Nagas who are saying that they are Indians in order to enjoy the benefits of the Indian state of Nagaland, I emphatically wish to say this to these Naga imposters: DO NOT INSULT THE GREAT INDIAN PEOPLE BY PRETENDING TO BE ONE OF THEM. I call them great Indians because at least, they did not pretend to be British citizens when Britain was, by invasion ruling over them. They were men enough to say that they were Indians and fought and drove away that imperial power from their lands and became independent in 1947.
Karbis attack Dimapur & Imphal buses in Assam [IST] OneIndia News


Dimapur, Sep 3: The bandh carried out by Karbi bodies on Sep 1 alone the NH-36 and NH-39 was marked by wide scale hostility.
Night buses bound from Dimapur and Imphal were under attack injuring severely to many passengers and drivers as well.

Incidents of stone pelting and arson occurred in several places at around 4.am when a large mob came between Gorampani and Nambo.

One of the victims told the sources that his bus driver did not stop on the way even though he was injured , “He kept on pulling the bus amidst rain of stone and other flying missiles, amid shuttered windshield until he reach Dimapur.

Similar incident of attack on passenger buses and public carriers took place in Dengaon, locality of Diphu subdivision in NH-36. Protesters threw stone on number of vehicles inflicting injury on the commuters.

As of now, no buses are plying between those areas due to fear of more attacks, says travel department of Nagaland.

Naga Church narrates significance of 1964 ceasefire morungexpress
Dimapur, September 2 (MExN): During the 1950s, as bloodshed from the Naga political movement raged, Nagas were left standing on the ‘dividing edge’ of annihilation and on the other side of the line, life. Seeing the senseless killings and bloodshed first-hand, the church leaders of the 1950s reaffirmed the principle of non-violence as the guiding principle for any future peace work for the NBCC, one of Nagaland’s most eminent church leaders today, said.
Director of the NBCC’s Peace Affairs, Rev. L Kari Longchar today wrote an article elaborating retrospection on the ‘significance of’ the 1964 ceasefire in Nagaland between the government of India and the FGN. In the article, Rev. Longchar also explained the reasons the NBCC decided to “involve.” The September 6, 1964 cease-fire declaration is one of the landmarks and highlights in Naga history, Rev. Kari says. It was achieved through the ceaseless toil and sacrifice of Kenneth Kerhuo, Rev. Longri Ao and hosts of church leaders in facilitating peace talk between the top political leaders of the Government of India (GoI) and the ‘Federal Government of Nagaland’ (FGN).
Prior to the cease-fire, Assam Police and Indian Army waged a reign of terror in Nagaland. Empowered with the black law, the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 (AFSPA), they unsuccessfully attempted to destroy the Naga political struggle. “But they destroyed the economic support system by burning and destroying villages, granaries and paddy-fields. They raped women both young and old in full public view and sodomized boys. People were randomly killed. Even the Church workers were not spared. A classical example is Rev. Pelesato Chase, the first Field Director of Chakesang Baptist Church Council; without any reason (he) was pulled out from his house in Phek town on April 15th 1956. He was taken to Chakaba Army Camp, put inside a sack-bag, tortured mercilessly and killed. His body was never found.”
Those dark years, nobody questioned the vile atrocities of the Indian army, Rev. Longchar stated. “The voices of the Human Right movement, both national and international was not heard of and thus Naga public suffered the brunt and cruelty of the Indian Army. Against such a background, through the initiative of NBCC, on September 6, 1964, cease-fire was declared between the FGN and GoI. People’s joy knew no bound. It was truly a celebration of freedom from destructive devices of the Indian Army,” the NBCC leader stated in the article.
“Throughout the breadth and length of Nagaland, people swarmed into the streets, public places and churches rejoicing, praising, shouting, singing and praying because freedom was finally reality.” On the background of the Indo-Naga political conflict, the article referred to the advent of the British administration in the Naga lands. Then Naga territory remained independent and un-administered by any foreign power.
“The British Government arrived and occupied a part of Nagaland in 1880 A.D. bordering with the eastern side of Assam known as Naga Hills comprising several tribes. After about four decades of British occupation of the Naga Hills, the British wanted to arrange the administration in India; and to study about the same, a commission was detailed to India called the Simon Commission which arrived in Nagaland in 1929. The leaders of Naga people submitted a memorandum stating that Nagas be left alone as before the advent of British, on the eve of the British departure from the Indian sub-continent.”
Basing on this memorandum, Rev. Longchar said, the Naga Hills was put as an “excluded area” from British India under Constitutional Act of 1935 by the British parliament. This excluded area was looked after directly by the Governor of Assam since 1936.
On the “political position” of the Nagas then, the NBCC leader wrote that the Naga National Council (NNC) asserted “sovereignty” on a number of points: Nagaland was never part of Burma and India before the British’s partial occupation. NNC never agreed to be a part of India; the Nagas declared “independence” on 14th August, 1947, a day prior to India’s; the Naga Hills people/excluded area people conducted a “national plebiscite” on 16th May 1951 within the British administered area where 99.9% voted for “sovereignty” of Nagaland affirming the 14th August 1947 Independent declaration; the “plebiscite” further strengthened the people’s mandate to the NNC and the Naga Tatar Hoho (the Naga Parliament), NNC, adopted the “constitution of Nagaland,” which brought together the free Nagas and NNC and established the ‘Federal Government of Nagaland’ on 22nd of March 1952; the free Nagas are those Naga tribes who were never ruled by the British or any other foreign power.

Naga Church narrates significance of 1964 ceasefire morungexpress
Dimapur, September 2 (MExN): During the 1950s, as bloodshed from the Naga political movement raged, Nagas were left standing on the ‘dividing edge’ of annihilation and on the other side of the line, life. Seeing the senseless killings and bloodshed first-hand, the church leaders of the 1950s reaffirmed the principle of non-violence as the guiding principle for any future peace work for the NBCC, one of Nagaland’s most eminent church leaders today, said.
Director of the NBCC’s Peace Affairs, Rev. L Kari Longchar today wrote an article elaborating retrospection on the ‘significance of’ the 1964 ceasefire in Nagaland between the government of India and the FGN. In the article, Rev. Longchar also explained the reasons the NBCC decided to “involve.” The September 6, 1964 cease-fire declaration is one of the landmarks and highlights in Naga history, Rev. Kari says. It was achieved through the ceaseless toil and sacrifice of Kenneth Kerhuo, Rev. Longri Ao and hosts of church leaders in facilitating peace talk between the top political leaders of the Government of India (GoI) and the ‘Federal Government of Nagaland’ (FGN).
Prior to the cease-fire, Assam Police and Indian Army waged a reign of terror in Nagaland. Empowered with the black law, the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 (AFSPA), they unsuccessfully attempted to destroy the Naga political struggle. “But they destroyed the economic support system by burning and destroying villages, granaries and paddy-fields. They raped women both young and old in full public view and sodomized boys. People were randomly killed. Even the Church workers were not spared. A classical example is Rev. Pelesato Chase, the first Field Director of Chakesang Baptist Church Council; without any reason (he) was pulled out from his house in Phek town on April 15th 1956. He was taken to Chakaba Army Camp, put inside a sack-bag, tortured mercilessly and killed. His body was never found.”
Those dark years, nobody questioned the vile atrocities of the Indian army, Rev. Longchar stated. “The voices of the Human Right movement, both national and international was not heard of and thus Naga public suffered the brunt and cruelty of the Indian Army. Against such a background, through the initiative of NBCC, on September 6, 1964, cease-fire was declared between the FGN and GoI. People’s joy knew no bound. It was truly a celebration of freedom from destructive devices of the Indian Army,” the NBCC leader stated in the article.
“Throughout the breadth and length of Nagaland, people swarmed into the streets, public places and churches rejoicing, praising, shouting, singing and praying because freedom was finally reality.” On the background of the Indo-Naga political conflict, the article referred to the advent of the British administration in the Naga lands. Then Naga territory remained independent and un-administered by any foreign power.
“The British Government arrived and occupied a part of Nagaland in 1880 A.D. bordering with the eastern side of Assam known as Naga Hills comprising several tribes. After about four decades of British occupation of the Naga Hills, the British wanted to arrange the administration in India; and to study about the same, a commission was detailed to India called the Simon Commission which arrived in Nagaland in 1929. The leaders of Naga people submitted a memorandum stating that Nagas be left alone as before the advent of British, on the eve of the British departure from the Indian sub-continent.”
Basing on this memorandum, Rev. Longchar said, the Naga Hills was put as an “excluded area” from British India under Constitutional Act of 1935 by the British parliament. This excluded area was looked after directly by the Governor of Assam since 1936.
On the “political position” of the Nagas then, the NBCC leader wrote that the Naga National Council (NNC) asserted “sovereignty” on a number of points: Nagaland was never part of Burma and India before the British’s partial occupation. NNC never agreed to be a part of India; the Nagas declared “independence” on 14th August, 1947, a day prior to India’s; the Naga Hills people/excluded area people conducted a “national plebiscite” on 16th May 1951 within the British administered area where 99.9% voted for “sovereignty” of Nagaland affirming the 14th August 1947 Independent declaration; the “plebiscite” further strengthened the people’s mandate to the NNC and the Naga Tatar Hoho (the Naga Parliament), NNC, adopted the “constitution of Nagaland,” which brought together the free Nagas and NNC and established the ‘Federal Government of Nagaland’ on 22nd of March 1952; the free Nagas are those Naga tribes who were never ruled by the British or any other foreign power.

NPMHR flays valley militants DIMAPUR, SEPT 3 (NPN):
Naga People’s Movement for Human Rights has accused valley-based militants of targeting Naga villagers for land grab citing the sequence of events leading to the “eviction warning” allegedly given by the KCP (MC) group to Mapao Khullen villagers under Senapati District from the area or to face death.
NPMHR Press Liaison has questioned whether the warning given was not part of the larger plot of non-tribals to grab the land of tribals in Manipur. The NPMHR disclosed that its members visited the village on Friday to record the events that occurred there on August 31 when suspected activists of the KCP (MC) group physically assaulted more than 30 males during the course of interrogating the villagers to identify “police informers” in the village.
It was revealed that the state forces comprising of IRB, Manipur Police Commandos and Assam Rifles had conducted a joint combing operation in the area on August 30.
According to NPMHR some armed individuals in combat uniforms numbering about 7-10 went to Mapao Khullen village forcing the men folk to assemble near the village bus stop and assume “push-up” positions for more than one hour. It stated that the armed men then assaulted villagers when they replied that there was no informer nor did they know of any such person. NPMHR said that the village pastor M. Shungkhai was kicked on the jaw and stood over with his neck pressed down under the boot of one of the armed individuals. Other villagers were also slapped and hit with gun-butts, it alleged.
NPMHR alleged that the armed individuals also threatened to kill one of the villagers if they did not identify police informers. When the villagers maintained that there were no police informers in the village, the armed individuals left the village between 9.30-10.00 pm with seven mobile phones, the NPMHR said. It said that the village was also warned to vacate the area within the next 4-5 days failing which they would be shot.
Condemning the “victimization of innocent” tribal villagers by valley based armed groups, the NPMHR rued that the response of state forces have not been encouraging at all adding “rather past experiences has shown that it puts villagers at higher risks.” The NPMHR called upon all concerned to refrain from such activities and to ensure safety and well being of villagers.

ULFA threatens to pull out of peace process GUWAHATI, (IANS):
The outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) Friday threatened to pull out of the peace process in Assam accusing New Delhi of double standards by engaging security forces in harassing supporters engaged in brokering peace.
“It is better to pull out of the peace process if New Delhi continues with its aggressive policies without trying to create conducive atmosphere for furthering the process of negotiations,” jailed ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa told journalists. Rajkhowa said this while being brought to the Gauhati Medical College Hospital for a routine health check up.
“At a time when the Citizens Forum was trying to broker peace between the ULFA and the government, we find many people involved with the forum arrested on flimsy charges. This double standard violates the spirit of peace talks,” the ULFA chairman said.
Rajkhowa also said there cannot be any talks with the government unless all the jailed ULFA leaders were released.
“Till now we are in jail and how can you expect the peace talks to move ahead. No way would we agree to talk from inside the jail,” the ULFA chairman said.
“It is the duty of the government to create an environment for peace talks, but on the contrary we find the government simply interested in counter insurgency operations.”
Barring ULFA’s elusive commander-in-chief Paresh Baruah, the entire top brass of the outfit is in jail.
The imprisoned leaders include chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa, deputy commander-in-chief Raju Baruah, self-styled foreign secretary Sasha Choudhury, finance secretary Chitrabon Hazarika, cultural secretary Pranati Deka, and Bhimkanta Buragohain.
Two other leaders - ULFA vice chairman Pradip Gogoi and publicity chief Mithinga Daimary, are out on bail and currently engaged in drumming up public support for peace talks.
Most of the jailed leaders have expressed their willingness to start peace talks with the government.
“We want talks, but such negotiations will have to be mutually acceptable and honourable,” Rajkhowa said.

With Bangladesh cracking the whip...NE insurgent groups shift base to Myanmar Press Trust of India

A map of the North East which shows their proximity to Myanmar and Bangladesh
Agartala, Sep 3 : With crackdowns on their camps in neighbouring Bangla-desh, ultras of the North- east are now shifting base to Myanmar, a top police official said today.
"Overall, insurgency is on the wane due to crackdown on ultras in Bangla- desh by their security forces, so different insurgent outfits are now shifting their bases to Myanmar," Pranay Sahaya, Director General of Tripura Police, told reporters here.
The issue came up at the conference of DGPs in New Delhi last month, which was addressed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and Home Secretary G K Pillai among others, he said.
"All the underground groups including ULFA are under extreme pressure in Bangladesh and are shifting their bases to Myanmar, taking advantage of the long porous and unfenced border which is not properly policed," Sahaya said.
Outfits like ULFA, KNLF and UNLF have already shifted their bases to Myanmar which has a 1650-km long border with India, according to reports, he said.
The DGP said the Centre has already taken up with the Myanmar government the issue of their soil being used by insurgents from Northeast India.
The Centre has taken the initiative to fence most borders of the country and coastal security has become very important to watch the movement of terrorists, he said.
The Bangladesh Army recently destroyed three camps of the banned National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) in Khagra-cherri district of Bangladesh.
Sahaya said the ISI is still trying to network among the different insurgent groups of our country and funding them through agents in countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Maldives.
However, he said overall insurgency has been declining.
In 2008, there were a total of 1561 insurgency-related incidents in the region.
The number went down to 1296 in 2009 and upto August 15 this year it was only 464, he said, adding, a number of insurgency-related incidents took place in Assam and Manipur.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has appreciated Tripura police for containing insurgency and the State government for it's good governance, the DGP said.
Some years back, the Bhutanese Army had also cracked down on the camps and safe havens of the ULFA, leading to a mass exodus from the Himalayan kingdom and forcing the armed outfit to look for safer climes—PTI

NPMHR decries Sangai Express
IMPHAL, Sep 3:The Naga Peoples' Movement for Human Rights (NPMHR) has expressed extreme concern over the rise in violence committed against the Nagas allegedly by armed persons, who identified themselves as cadres of the KCP (MC).
NPMHR conducted a field visit to Mapao Khu-llen, Senapati District today to record events that occurred in the village in the evening of August 31 in which more than 30 males from the village were physically assaulted by suspected cadres of the KCP (MC) group, said NPMHR in a press release.
On interviewing the villagers, including victims, NPMHR found that at around 8.30 pm of August 31, armed individuals in combat uniform, numbering about 7-10 came to Mapao Khullen village forcing men of the village to assemble near the village bus stop.
Some men were also forcefully woken up from their homes and marched to the assembly point. The assembled men were then ordered to assume “push-up” positions and forced to remain in the same position for more than an hour.
The armed individuals then began to interrogate the villagers to identify “police informers” in the village.
On the previous day, a combined team of IRB, Manipur Police Commandos and Assam Rifles conducted a joint combing operation in the area.
As the villagers replied that there were none or at least they did not know of anyone who was an informer, the armed indivi- duals started assaulting the villagers.
The village Pastor M Shungkhai was kicked in the jaw, and one of the gunmen pressed his boot of one his neck . Other villagers were also slapped and gun butted.
The armed individuals also threatened to kill one of the villagers if they did not identify police informers. As villagers reiterated that there were no police informers in the village, the armed individuals left the village between 9.30-10 pm. They also took away seven mobile phones, alleged the NPMHR.
The villagers were also warned that they should vacate the area within the next 4-5 days failing which they will be shot. NPMHR is compelled to question whether this eviction warning given to the villagers is not part of the larger plot of non-tribals to grab the land of tribals in Manipur. The incident has once again brought to light the serious criminal acts of valley based armed groups where tribal villagers are physically harmed to the extent of being killed and their rights are regularly abused, it remarked. The response of State forces have not been encouraging at all, rather past experiences has shown that it puts villagers at higher risks.
Strongly condemning the victimization of innocent tribal villagers by valley based armed groups, the NPMHR called upon everyone to immediately refrain from such activities.
Indian border-state trade envoys to tour Burma Khaing Kyaw Mya Mizzima

New Delhi (Mizzima) – Trade ministers from the four northeastern Indian states bordering Burma are set to meet Burmese trade and investment delegates this month in the military-ruled country in a bid to boost border trade and overcome hurdles, an Indian Chamber of Commerce official said.

The bilateral meetings organised by the chamber are to be held in Rangoon and Mandalay from September 13 to 16, attended by delegates of Myanmar (Burma) Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industries (UMFCCI) and the Burmese Foreign Affairs Minister Nyan Win, the chamber official said in Kolkata.

The ministers and Burmese delegates will highlight border trade problems, attempt to promote a smoother trade relationship and look for fresh investments in each other’s countries, the official said.

“We are taking representatives of four states bordering Burma – Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Mizoram,” the official said.

The long border areas are rife with illegal and unorganised trade. If these are respectively policed and streamlined it would help both countries, especially the northeastern Indian states, as the area lacks adequate connectivity and transport infrastructure.

“It’s a good opportunity to strengthen border trade, the official added.

Anjan Roy, the economic affairs adviser at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industries, believed that improving Indo-Burmese border trade would help to reduce customs duties as most of the goods to and from Burma are shipped through Singapore.

“Trade through the northeastern states will cut the intermediate costs,” Roy said.

On the last leg of their trip, the Indian ministers will visit Naypyidaw, the junta’s secluded national capital.

India is closely eyeing Burma’s rich natural energy resources and government corporations such as the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and gas transporter GAIL of India have secured stakes in gas fields and onshore pipeline projects in Burma.

The Indo-Burmese border trade agreement between the military regime and India following an agreement on January 21, 1994 to boost border trade, agreed to the trade of 22 products, mostly agricultural and primary commodities.

In 2001, a few items were added to the list and in recent years, the Indo-Burmese relationship has been strengthened significantly. On May 12, India added 18 categories for import and export to the permitted commodities, including bicycle parts, life-saving drugs, fertilizers, spices, incense sticks, salt and stainless-steel utensils.

Manipur’s border post is Moreh, opposite Tamu in Burma, while Mizoram’s gate is at Champhai bordering Burma’s Chin State. The Indo-Burmese trade road No. 2, opened in 2004, linking Zokhawthar in Mizoram with Rihkhawdar in Chin State.

Mizoram mainly imports blankets, leather shoes, slippers, life-saving drugs, fertilizers and livestock such as chickens, pigs and cows, said Lalrinliana Sailo, Mizoram Minister of Trade and Commerce, who will be on the Burma trip.

A source close to the matter said a team led by the deputy chairman of the Manipur state planning board and member of the legislative assembly, Bijoy Koijam, along with the state’s secretary of commerce and industry, Oinam Nabakishore Singh, will respresent their state at the meetings.

Meanwhile, Burmese and Thai ambassadors visited India in June and met Bijoy Krishna Handique, 75, India’s Minister of Mines and Minister of Development of the Northeastern Regional (DoNER), in New Delhi to discuss trade, tourism and road connectivity under the Kaladan River transport project.

“The ambassadors are scheduled to visit Manipur and Mizoram from September 19 to 23,” S. C. Sharma Director of DoNER said.

According to official statistics, Indo-Burma bilateral trade touched US$1.19 billion in 2009-2010, a 26.1-per-cent increase year on year. India is the fourth largest trading partner of Burma after Thailand, China and Singapore.

Burma’s exports to India were US$1 billion while its imports from India were US$194 million, of a total of 1.19 billion in fiscal 2009-10.

Mizzima contacted the UMFCCI, which refused to offer any statement on this month’s meeting.
Everything is Broken: The Untold Story of Disaster under Burma's Military Regime: review Telegraph News UK Simon Scott Plummer
September 2, 2010: As we are discovering this summer, natural disasters can cruelly expose the shortcomings of governments. Russia has tried to divert attention from inadequate firefighting equipment by crude publicity stunts. In Pakistan, the authorities have been overwhelmed by the flooding of the River Indus under torrential monsoon rains.
If these ordeals by fire and water have confirmed failings that we suspected, no such doubt should have surrounded the way in which the Burmese junta would react to the cyclone that struck the Irrawaddy Delta on May 2 2008. Over 40 years the regime has reduced a well-endowed land to penury and crushed all resistance. In 1990 it ignored a landslide election victory by the opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The odium the stolen election incited left Burma’s generals isolated and heightened their fear of being overthrown. Their first reaction when Cyclone Nargis struck was, therefore, not to lose control. That meant, initially, refusing entry to foreign aid workers and confining those already in the country to Rangoon.
The supreme leader, Senior General Than Shwe, took more than a fortnight to acknowledge publicly the catastrophe. And on May 10 he had the gall to go ahead with a referendum on a new constitution designed to entrench military rule, subsequently claiming that it had been supported by more than 90 per cent of voters. This grotesque exercise took place while Rangoon and the delta were being battered by wind and waves that could have claimed more than 500,000 lives and devastated an area responsible for 65 per cent of the nation’s rice output and 80 per cent of its fishery products. The generals’ sole concern was their political survival.
One only wishes that Bernard Kouchner, the French foreign minister, had been able to persuade the UN Security Council to authorise the delivery of aid by force: the means were there. Many lives would have been saved, and the regime could even have been fatally undermined.
Emma Larkin is a pseudonym for an American writer based in Bangkok who has been a regular visitor to Burma, slipping in on tourist visas, since the early Nineties. As well as protecting her own name, she has given false identities to her interviewees.
Her account of the 2008 disaster is both graphic and painstaking. She also reminds us of the megalomaniac nature of the regime, seen in the building of the new capital, Naypyidaw, and of its bizarre fascination with the occult.
At the end of her book, Larkin recalls the collapse last year of the ancient Danok Pagoda near Rangoon, shortly after it had been restored and graced with a ceremonial visit by Than Shwe’s wife. “It was a fearful omen for the regime; an irreversible and supernatural declaration of dissatisfaction with Burma’s current rulers,” she writes.
But if celestial powers are angry, earthly ones are more tolerant. While Larkin leaves no doubt about the nature of the regime, she fails to mention its neighbours.
China would prefer a totalitarian entity on its south-western border, and has helped the generals with military and economic aid. Its strategic rival, India, has not wanted to be left behind. And the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Burma is a member, has regularly pulled its punches over the junta’s hideous human rights record.
Like North Korea, the generals have learned how to make the best of a poor diplomatic hand. Everything Is Broken: the Untold Story of Disaster under Burma’s Military Regime by Emma Larkin 265PP, GRANTA, £12.99
The hottest pepper in the world Chicago Tribune
Anyone with a fondness for hot chili peppers should know the Dorset naga.
It was developed by Michael and Joy Michaud, owners of a British mail-order seed company (seaspringseeds.co.uk). They started with a Bangladeshi pepper, the Naga morich, and refined it until they got the Dorset naga, probably the hottest pepper in the world.
Guinness World Records listed the bhut jolokia pepper as the world's hottest in 2007 after it registered 1,001,304 Scoville heat units in testing. (A Scoville unit is a measure of the capsaicin, the heat-producing chemical, in a pepper.) The Michauds' little red beauties were tested at an eye-watering 1.6 million units. In comparison, jalapeños come in at 2,500 to 8,000.
What do you do with something that hot?
The Bangladeshis seldom cook with the Naga morich, Joy Michaud said via e-mail. They consume them whole, breaking pieces off as they eat and mixing them with their food. "Anecdotal evidence also suggests that they rub their plates with the [peppers] before the food is served."
Then there is the Idiot Factor.
"There are a lot of videos on YouTube of people eating them, so the fruit are used to create some sort of YouTube subcult," Michaud wrote.