V SUMMINLUN
Tribal students of Manipur, TISS Mumbai with their university Students’ Union organized a candle light vigil to pay tribute to the tribal martyrs and to condemn the inhuman violence of the state towards innocent tribals.
Lallian Valte, a student from Lamka, Manipur addressed the gathering with an introductory note:
Dear friends,
We are gathered here today to pay our respect and condole the 8 innocent lives lost in Manipur in the hands of the state forces on the 31st of August 2015 and the 1st of September 2015. It is with a heavy heart I stand here to greet you to this gathering.
1. Robert V. Jamminthang, 30yrs
2. Khamsianmuan (21yrs)
3. Khaijamang Touthang (11yrs)
4. Henlalson (18)
5. Pausuanlian (19)
6. Thangzalian (30)
7. H. Paulianmang (23)
8. K. Lamkhenthang (45)
The Tribal Martyrs of Manipur, let their names forever strike an accord in the history for generations to come and their blood, blood of heroes, set the people free.
Today we condemn the brutality of the police, but we do not forget what led us to this juncture. We condemn the age long suffering, but we do not give up and never will we. Today we stand together even closer and stronger.
As Che Guevara once said,
“The life of a single human being is worth a million times more than all the property of the richest man on earth.”
Hear us, you must. I quote as enshrined in Article 21 of the constitution of India, 1949, “No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty”. It is the sworn duty of the state to protect these rights and ensure to all its citizens and not take away instead. Our lives are not to be sold to or taken away at the mercy of the one who runs the state. Nor are we any longer benign to the autocracy that often than not belittle Tribal Rights.
Peace and harmony was murdered a long time ago. As good citizens of the world, let us join hands in fighting for what is right. Let us fight for our Tribal Right in unity.
May all the departed souls rest in peace. And I pray that the Heavenly Father’s unending consolation be upon the bereaved family.
With the end of his note, a moment of silence is observed in respect of the departed souls followed by a heart touching song from Ashwini Ghising who echoes through every soul present there.
“If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song”
The student Union President, Deepak Nanda addressing the gathering spells out a strong message saying that “Everyone should stand against injustice, Injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere and it is our democratic right to raise our voice against any form of injustice”.
Candle lighting followed after press release during which TISS Eimi students presented a song by Biaklian Samte,
“Doulai daibang theng a,
Zogam a hong paal chiang
Guabang a hinglai teng
Dawnbang tuak kimuh chiang
Zoutui nunkhum ning zouding
Aw lungdeih teng kim nanwlou ding”
It saddens our heart that our heroes will not be with us to enjoy the fruits of their sacrifice but we will keep on striving towards the goal, the goal that they lay down their life for.
The crowd sings in unison “We shall overcome, we shall overcome someday”. It is our hope and prayer that we shall overcome all the injustice, the discrimination and work towards our own interest as a unified entity-THE TRIBALS OF MANIPUR.
“March, March forward my brothers. March, March towards our freedom. Let the blood of our Martyrs not flow in Vain”.
PRESS RELEASE
TISS Students’ Union strongly condemned the state brutality, over the loss of innocent lives including 10 year old boy in Churachandpur incident and seeks the State to consult tribal bodies in any matter that infringe upon their interests:
We, the tribal students from Manipur studying in Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) with our Students’ Union, want to convey in this medium our displeasure to the excessive forces lashed out against the tribal people in Churachandpur.
We would also like to point out the State’s apathy and its approach towards the hills, and we strongly condemn the calculated act of the State against the hills. Inhuman experiences meted out to tribal people are not new, and the process of marginalisation is at play for many decades by the State.
In the present context, the State has the audacity to override the existing constitutional rights of tribal people and passed the three contentious bills namely:
The protection of Manipur People’s Bill;
The Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh Amendment) Bill; and
The Manipur Shops and Establishment (Second Amendment) Bill.
The step taken by the Manipur Government as such disrespects the constitutional body- Hill Areas Committee and the existence of tribal people in Manipur.
The State assembly held on 31st August 2015 was aware of the bandh in the hills organised jointly by Kuki Students’ Organization (GHQ), All Naga Students Association, Manipur (ANSAM) and All Tribal Students’ Union Manipur (ATSUM).
The way how the three bills were passed in the assembly unanimously suggests that there is more to it than the assurance doing round the corner that the bills in question does not infringe upon tribal’s interests and its land.
The emphasis on ‘lack of communication’ leading to a protest in Churachandpur is seen as a move to exclude tribal people’s interest from the process of consultation. However the manner in which the bills have been passed without consulting tribal bodies shows that the State is drawing a distinct line against the hill districts.
The content of the bill, despite claims of unfounded fear by the tribal people, is far from convincing especially the base line year and the provisions under the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh Amendment) Bill.
The former issue can exclude tribal people from their land owing to the customary practices where land and its settlement are besotted with community/village chief so there is a need to critically analyse the notion around creation of base year be it 1951 or 1961 or 1971.
This is in consonance with the practices of land among tribal society where land records are usually maintained orally, and passed on from one generation to another on the basis of shared values- culture, custom and identity. On the aspect of the latter concerning Land Reforms bill, there is a fear that the amended Bill can formalise non-tribal to make in roads into the lands of tribal people. It is not that the existing Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (MLR & LR) Act protects the hill districts, there are loopholes in it for instance land lying in the low lying areas in the hill districts are being placed under this act.
As per evidence drawn from the year 2010, there are already 117 villages from Churachandpur, Senapati and Tamenglong districts where MLR & LR Act has been implemented. The recently amended Bill can escalate the existing loophole and institutionalise the dilution of tribal’s rights over their land. There is a need to engage and consult with tribal bodies rather than communication when it comes to the interest of tribal people.
Additionally, it is important to point out that the recently concluded Autonomous District Council’s election is yet to be functional, despite repeated call for its operationalisation.
Within the sphere of Autonomous District Council, the demand for Sixth Schedule has begun in late 1980s and till date the State has not implemented Sixth Schedule despite the centre’s directive to implement Sixth Schedule in the hill districts of Manipur.
At this juncture, we also like to raise the under-representation of tribal people in the media houses operating out of Imphal. The dissemination of information from Imphal largely shapes the discourse of politics, activism and how it informs public consciousness, and the role it plays in public policy. We would like to inform the mainstream media to focus on gathering information from the hill districts as well.
We echo the sentiments of our tribal people who are struggling back home. We also reiterate the common call for separate administration in the hill districts under the ambit of Sixth Schedule.
We place before the State to repeal the bills in question- the Protection of Manipur People’s Bill, the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh Amendment) Bill, and the Manipur Shops and Establishment (Second Amendment) Bill, and proceed an inquiry into Churachandpur incidents where the armed forces unleashed brutality against tribal people leading to loss of 8 lives.
We also want the State to follow and stick to the course of constitutional mechanism in consulting tribal bodies in any matters concerning tribal people.
Last but not least, the claim of unequal population and land distribution in the hills and plains does not place any community in Manipur to have upper hands without exercising power through political means over economic, cultural and social status which resides predominantly in Imphal.
(writer is a student of M.A in Development Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai)
English
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