Office of the
Coordination Committee of Naga Civil Society
Kohima-797001, Nagaland.
Email: nagacivilsociety@gmail.com
A Backgrounder on the Present Impasse
(Dated Kohima the 26th May, 2010)
Owing to the Manipur Government’s scornful and least-bothered response and attitude to the sentiments of the Naga people and other tribal communities of Manipur to review the imposition of the controversial Autonomous District Council (ADC) elections, the All Naga Students’ Association of Manipur called for a 6 – day Economic Blockade to draw the attention of the Government from April 12 to 17. The Blockades passed off without evoking any sense of concern from the Government of Manipur. So another one-week blockade was called again from the 17th of April till the 24th. This also did not raise even an eyebrow of Mr. Okram Ibobi Singh, the Chief Minister of Manipur. Left with no other means of protest against such insolent behavior from a heartless Government, the ANSAM called for an Indefinite Economic Blockade beginning from the 24th April evening hoping for acknowledgement of their grievances and yet without any respond. On the other hand, the Government of Manipur went ahead with its imposition without even bothering to call the agitators for resolving the problems. And the Blockade continues till date without any sign of “attention” from the Government, while Nagas are called all kinds of names and killed, wounded and displaced for daring to demonstrate their humanity.
In the meantime, it may be worthwhile to note some of the legitimate concerns over the controversial Manipur (Hill Area) District Council Act (Third Amendment) 2008 which takes away the powers of the tribal people.
Section 29 (i) clause XIII empowers District Council to occupy and sell/allot land from villages. It can also set apart certain areas of village land for purposes the Council thinks fit. This section directly infringes the right of the Village Authority of any tribal village.
Section 29 (1) clause (XIV) of the Act also empowers District Councils to manage forest and can be declared as National Park or Protected Forest or Reserve forest by a District Council without much a do with a village authority
Section 29 (2) (a) empowers the District Councils to recommend to the State Government for appointment or succession of Chiefs/Headman/Chairman without the knowledge or approval of the concern village.
Section 29 (2) (b) authorities District Council to issue orders by its own volition in matters relating to inheritance of property, marriage and divorce and control or regulation of customs and tradition.
On the 3rd of May, a delegation of the Naga Students’ Federation led by the President who were on a preparatory visit to Oinam Village for their forthcoming NSF Federal Assembly scheduled for May 7, were stopped at Mao gate and barred from entering their own ancestral lands for the very first time which was never ever done before. Unable to take this humiliation lying down, the NSF asked the Chief Minister of Manipur to tender his apology within 24 hours or else face consequences. Mr. Okram Ibobi Singh did not even bat an eye lid to show his regret. The NSF then banned the movement of all Manipur vehicles within the state of Nagaland. This part of the story are the causes and consequences of the Economic Blockade and thereof.
On the other hand, the Government of India, through the Ministry of Home affairs flashed a Wireless Message to the Chief Secretary of the Governments of Manipur, West Bengal and Nagaland, vide SECRET/CRASH NO. VI-23014/28/2010-VS Dated 29th April 2010, that “SHRI TH. MUIVAH, SECRETARY GENERAL, NSCN/IM IS SCHEDULED TO VISIT HEBRON AND UKHRUL ON WAY TO HIS VILLAGE AT SOMDAL BETWEEN 2ND TO 9TH MAY 2010” followed by a detailed itinerary of departure from Delhi – Hebron and onward to Somdal, Ukhrul, Senapati and back to Hebron etc. and ending with specific instructions to the respective state Governments; quote “IN VIEW OF THE ABOVE, ITS IS REQUESTED THAT FOOLPROOF SECURITY ARRANGMENTS FOR TH. MUIVAH MAY KINDLY BE ENSURED DURING HIS ABOVE VISIT IN YOUR JURISDICTION IN ORDER TO AVOID ANY UNTOWARD INCIDENT (.) MATTER MOST URGENT (.)”
The Government of Manipur responded to this missive from the Government of India by declaring 144 CRPC and imposed curfew at Mao gate and all routes specified by the Ministry of Home Affairs as travel routes, with effect from 5 PM of May 2, 2010 and deployed Manipur Rifles, Commandoes and IRB personnel, with armored vehicles, water cannons and steel bunkers, heavily fortified and positioned for WAR, after distorting the Wireless Message, saying that Th. Muivah is going to all the hills districts of Ukhrul, Senapati, Chandel and Tamenglong to hold meetings and rallies etc.
On the 5th of May, Mr. Th. Muivah the General Secretary of NSCN/GPRN started his journey from Hebron after postponing the journey for 2 days following the request of the Indian Prime Minister and reached Viswema Village on a scheduled visit and halted the night there. On the 6th of May, while a delegation on Naga Hoho, NPMHR, NSF and tribal leaders were consulting with the NSCN leadership and exploring options to avoid confrontations of any kind, indiscriminate firing of tear gas, lathi charge and firing rubber-bullets and live bullets by Manipur Police Commandoes and Manipur IRBs on Naga public who were waiting to receive the visiting Naga leader started overtaking the whole situation. The meeting was abandoned and leaders of the civil society and concern elders rushed to the borders to helplessly watch and listen to the gun fires and lists of casualties. The Government of Nagaland also rushed police forces and members of the Indian Red Cross Society with doctors and nurses and ambulances under the on-the-spot supervision of the Deputy Commissioner of Kohima and the Superintendent of Police. But they were prevented from entering Mao Gate even to collect the death bodies and to evacuate the injured for medical aid for more than 2 hours. This resulted in 2 deaths, 95 injured and hospitalized with many injured persons unrecorded while displacing more than two thousand Mao villagers, the details of which are now within everyone’s knowledge.
Since then, the various Naga civil society organizations comprising of Naga Hoho, Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights, Naga Mothers’ Association, Naga Students Federation, Tenyimia Women Organization, United Naga Council, Naga Women Union of Manipur, All Naga Students’ Association of Manipur and Mao Naga community leaders, started holding consultative meetings amongst themselves from the evening of May 6, 2010, to collectively address the crisis, which have gone beyond the causes and consequences of the Economic Blockade. Towards this endeavor a collective concern was expressed through the media and a representation was written to the Chief Minister of Nagaland the very next day on the 7th of May. So also a delegation of the civil society visited the displaced Nagas who were being sheltered at Khuzama and also interacted with the Village elders and leaders.
To further demonstrate our resentment over the atrocities committed on the innocent civilians at Mao Gate, a Peace Rally was conducted by the Naga Mothers’ Association at the NH 39 in between Khuzama and Mao Gate in front of the heavily fortified build up bunkers and armoured vehicles of Manipur Police Commandoes and IRB personnel, on the 8th of May. On the 9th of May, which was also the Mothers’ Day, the civil society organizations got together under the banner of the Naga Mothers Association and held Candle-light Prayer program with the displaced Nagas who were shifted to Kisama, Naga Heritage Village, in the aftermath of an assault on 3 Naga leaders at Kohima.
On the 10th of May, the Naga Students’ Federation organized a Protest Rally against the assault on the leaders of Naga Hoho and a member of the Forum for Naga Reconciliation on 9th May from 10 AM onwards. In the later afternoon, leaders of all the above-mentioned civil society organization got together again to formulate programs for exploring ways of resolving the deteriorating impasse. And towards late afternoon, in a meeting which were all conducted and chaired by officials of the Naga Hoho all this while ever since the crisis erupted, it was decided to form a Committee to oversee and co-ordinate the activities of all the civil society organizations. And under the Chair and Secretarial initiatives of the Speaker of Naga Hoho and Assembly Secretary of the Naga Hoho, the present Coordination Committee of Naga Civil Society was formed on the 10th May 2010. Side by side the meeting also endorsed the Naga Mothers’ Association to approach the Manipur Police for handing over the bodies of the 2 students killed on May 6 Manipur police firing.
On the 11th of May, NMA leaders proceeded to Mao Gate to take the bodies of the 2 students and handed them over to the respective families for necessary burial the next day. Towards the later part of the day, the first meeting of the CCNCS was held, where detail program for conducting the funeral service on the 12th May were decided to be conducted under the aegis of the Coordination Committee of Naga Civil Society to give a befitting recognition to the martyrdom of the two students. It was also decided in this meeting, that the Naga Civil Society will not succumb to the provocations of the Manipur Government and the Meitei civil population who incited the Government of Manipur to bar the entry of Th. Muivah to his native village Somdal, and rather invite them to a face-to-face talk to clear any confusions they may be having on the Historical and Political rights of the Nagas, and to also enquire why a person cannot visit his birth place and native village, for the sake of our people (both Nagas and Meiteis) “who deserve to live in peace and harmony”. Towards this an open letter of invitation was send out through the media both in Nagaland and Manipur to the Presidents of UCM and AMUCO for a meeting at Guwahati on the 13th May at 3 PM which would be hosted by the Assamese Civil Society leaders who are well acquainted to both Nagas and Meiteis. On the 12th evening, since no response was received, the Convenor of the CCNCS took one more step forward to personally call leaders of AMUCO on the phone, to which the later expressed their inability to reach Guwahati on the 13th May. So the meeting was again postponed to the 14th of May. However, our offer for talks was turned down ultimately.
What happened and transpired after that needs no further elaboration. But what needs to be known by all parties concerned is to differentiate the dynamics of the conflict. And that in the very first place the ongoing Economic Blockade has nothing to do with the visit of Mr. Th. Muivah to his native village. Secondly the Government of Manipur and the various Meitei organization has done nothing to help ease the situation, but have rather infuriated the crisis with misinformation and distortion of events. To add more fuel to the fire, the many third parties have also not helped any of the conflicting parties in their intervention except on one or two exceptional case. Most surprisingly, the Asian Human Rights Commission, which has been one of Asia’s most respected Human Rights network have itself indulged in mud-slinging activities against the Nagas and have issued statements alongside Human Rights Alert, which is a Meitei organization based in Imphal. Such is unbecoming of any neutral Human Rights organization and we call upon its members to investigate the correctness of the allegations made against the Nagas.
Therefore, if the non-Naga and non-Meitei communities and all other human rights and social and democratic rights groups across India and so also the international community genuinely wish to be a part of building peace, we would urge you to look into the issues involved and not just be carried away by economic concerns. Our deaths and injuries, displaced from homes and hearts, denied entry to our own birth places, forcible closure of educational institutions and forcible occupation of houses and buildings, continues harassments and assaults on the civilian population in Mao and Tadubi areas, denial of democratic expression and movements are all humanitarian issues.
The CCNCS recognizing the potentials of this crisis to persist beyond the present impasse takes this moment to call upon all democratic, civil liberties and human rights organizations across the sub-continent and elsewhere to make meaningful and positive interventions, without jumping to conclusions. Nagas are fully aware in our over 6 decades of political struggle, that our future are bound together not only with our neighbours but also with the world’s community in a global village. But if our aspiration to attain our rightful humanity is constantly denied, we would rather face the challenges with the worth of a human person than to live with humiliation.
Sd/- Sd/-
Neingulo Krome Rosemary Dzuvichu
Convenor, CCNCS Member Secretary, CCNCS.