The Hindu : National / Elections 2004 : Human rights violations take centre stage in Manipur

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Saturday, Apr 10, 2004

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National - Elections 2004

Human rights violations take centre stage in Manipur

Political parties of all hues in the State are united in demanding the revocation of the Act, writes Sushanta Talukdar.

Three years ago, when Irom Sharmila begun a fast unto death demanding withdrawal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act from Manipur, there were few who took her seriously.

But today, the issue has reached centre stage in Manipur with the militant group, the Revolutionary People's Front (RPF), calling for a boycott of the ruling Congress candidate for the Lok Sabha elections, blaming the Okram Ibobi Government for alleged human rights violations by the armed forces.

With several organisations raising the demand for revocation of the act, the political parties and their candidates have also zeroed in on the issue. These organisations have been holding dharnas and sit-in protests against reported excesses by the security forces. Organisations such as the Committee Against Fake Encounters and Custodial Deaths, Manipur have accused the security forces of picking up civilians at random and killing them in staged encounters in the name of counter-insurgency operations.

The president of the Opposition Federal Party of Manipur (FPM), L. Chandramoni, who is also the party's candidate for the Inner Manipur Lok Sabha constituency, has alleged that as many as 13 civilians have been killed by the security forces since February 26. Similarly, the Janata Dal (United) candidate for the Outer Manipur constituency, Rosangzuala, has promised that he would do everything possible to have the act revoked, irrespective of whether he is elected or not. He told media persons that he had asked party president and the Defence Minister, George Fernandes, to visit Manipur to take stock of the situation.

The former Lok Sabha MP from the Outer Manipur constituency, Kim Gangte, who is contesting this time as a candidate of the Manipur People's Party (MPP), said that she had demanded the scrapping of the act on the floor of the Parliament during her stint as an MP. The Naga National Party (NNP) candidate from this constituency, Valley Rose Hungyo, on the other hand, has maintained that the solution lies in both the rebel groups and the Centre engaging in peace talks so that the act could be lifted.

The Congress candidate for the inner Manipur constituency and the State Higher Education Minister, Thockchom Meinya, said that the ruling party also favoured withdrawal of the act but at the same time it wanted the people to realise the consequences of doing so. He pointed out that once the act is withdrawn, the Central forces guarding vital installations in the State would be withdrawn, making maintenance of law and order difficult for the State government.

Mr. Meinya also joined the Chief Minister in appealing to the RPF to reconsider its decision to impose a ban on the Congress candidate and promised that the issue of security forces abusing human rights in Manipur would be his first priority if elected.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has also called for a review of the act but accused the Congress of adopting a populist stand to gain political mileage ahead of elections. "Since the act has been in force for a long time, a review must be made and complaints of violation of human rights or excesses should be looked into," said V. Satish, the BJP official in charge of the Northeastern States.

The stand of the parties in favour of withdrawing the act comes despite the fact that militant outfits have been continuing with their campaign of violence. While the RPF has banned campaigning by the Congress candidate, another militant group, the Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL), has announced a "death sentence" on the former Union minister and State BJP president, Thounajam Chaoba, and has warned other functionaries of the party of dire consequences if they fail to remove Chaoba from the party. The KYKL diktat has already prompted the State BJP vice president, N. Tombi, and one of the general secretaries, Sarat Singh, to resign from the party.

Mr. Ibobi has gone on record saying that his Government had not been able to function effectively because of the underground groups and the misinformation spread by the opposition parties. He alleged that a smear campaign linking the State Government to a banned militant group had resulted in the Centre's reluctance to release development funds.

With no word from the Assam Rifles authorities on the allegations of excess by its troops, the issue of withdrawal of the act is set to dominate electioneering.

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