Solidarity meeting against violence in NC Hills

Solidarity meeting against violence in NC Hills
Dates: - 16th & 17th July 2009
Place: Guwahati
A two day meeting was held at NEDSF, Guwahati with the Zeme Nagas and Dimasas. The meeting was to share about the experiences of NC Hills on the conflict and how it has affected them as well as their family members.

Day One.16.07.2009
From the sharing it was found that the students who are from NC hills are totally cut off from their family members as they could not go back. They face difficulties as some of their parents could not sent money for their fees and other needs. While those living in NC Hills are harassed by the security and non state actors. They cannot move out of their house as they are suspected taking them to be a militant and beating them up in the market places which makes it difficult even to go and buy household things.

The participants felt that the conflict has divided the people, destroyed ethnic coexistence in the district.

To bring the discussion more lively and participatory the participants were divided into 2 different groups. They had to discuss on the question – how the conflict started. Who were the people involved. Who were the people affected. And what they do not like to happen in their District.

After the discussion the group had a presentation. Some of their points of discussions were

 Political link with underground outfits
 Interests of the State government
 Education and economic systems are hampered
 Transport system came to a halt
 Price rise of food commodities in the market as a result financial crisis of the common people.
 Senior citizens and 70 companies of armies fail to bring in normalcy in the district

What they do not want to happen in the district

 No more killings of innocent people
 They do not want any army or militants to protect them. They can look after themselves without them.
 No more corrupted officials especially in the council. All the workers should be reshuffled by new committed and dedicated people.
 Don’t want this situation to prevail anymore.

In another group discussion they were asked to discuss on – what are some of the small little things we at our own individual, group and community level can do to save the situation from getting worse. And how/in what ways can DCPF can support you. Give suggestion?

The participants came out with points like –
 Individual level all must remain calm and try not to retaliate back and help others do the same.
 Group level - we must form an organization to have talk in order to control the situation
 Community level - we must conduct talk/meeting between communities and respect other communities and raise our voices to the government.

Key Learning by the Participants
From the meeting and discussion the participants came to know about the facts behind the scenes:
 People start to join the political strategies as they project the conflict as your/my conflict without asking any critical question. And this is how we become part of the conflict
 Its not the fight of the Dimasa or the Zeme Nagas but it is done in their name.
 The villagers were asked to burn the villages and because of the compensation they will receive.
 No strong political or village leaders speak for the people because of the poor financial situations.

After all this presentation we came out with few remarks from the participants how they felt about the whole programme – They were enlightened to attend the meeting which gave them more insights of the conflict in NC Hills district. They also felt that the strength of any group is solidarity. They found hat it would also be a challenge for them to bring together different communities and groups for talks and discussions. After the meeting the group came out with an idea of meeting at regular intervals at Guwahati.

Day Two.17.07.2009
Present conflict situation
Deeper analysis of the conflict was done on the second day by the participants which revealed involvement of very strong and powerful secondary parties supporting the violent conflicts behind the two factions of armed Dimasa groups as primary parties. These secondary parties are located at Dimapur, Guwahati, NC Hills and Delhi with all their propaganda machineries and ground operational strategies.

Conflict analysis and perspectives
The ongoing violent conflict in NC Hills is influenced and reinforced by or at best connived at by the state and several parties behind the scene although it is made out to be Zeme Naga and Dimasa inter-tribal conflict. Innocent people including women and children in both the tribes are being killed, and their homes and fields are being destroyed, displaced and separated.

The larger picture
Increasingly, indigenous people in the region seem to be caught in a pattern of mutually destructive inter and intra-tribal/ community violent conflicts that weakens their self-determination political aspirations and threatens their own survival as a distinctive culture and polity secondly under the combined impacts of factional killing, drugs and HIV and AIDS are prevalent among most the productive youth population.

The factional difference and killings in almost all communities seem to have devastated the ethnic solidarity down to the family in each tribe and community engaged in armed conflict. This cannot be happening in the interests of the community! What worries most today any responsible citizen is the factional killings that seem to overrun political issues.

The central government with supports from international communities has large interventions going to save the people from HIV and AIDS but there is no law in the land to prevent factional killings. Huge population of Security forces deployed in the region do nothing when factional fights take place under their nose. Army intelligence, instead promote and encourage factional fights says unconfirmed reports from community and civil society groups working for peace.

Various distinctive tribes and indigenous communities in the region collective and separately have been engaging in armed struggles with central government for self-determination and political rights in different forms starting forms; greater autonomy to pre-independence status quos over the last half a century. A South Asian Terrorist Portal reports existence of as many as 110 different armed organizations (SATP website) belonging to various tribes and communities in India’s northeastern region in 2005. In order to maintain law and order and also internal security intact government of India enforced the AFSP Act 1958 which gives shooting dead rights of any (armed or unarmed anti-national) suspects to even non-commission officers with full legal protections.

If the situation is allowed to continue there is palpable dangers that indigenous people might lose everything; population and their land. Northeastern region is already pregnant with the problems of huge immigration (from across boundaries and rest of India) putting pressures on the living space of indigenous people. Indigenous population in Tripura is reduced to 30% in their own land. And if Manipur has already 27% immigrant population (Census 2001) one can guess the demographic situation in Assam next to Tripura.

Several themes are at root causes come out of this analysis that need to be addressed with multiple strategies that involves short term to long term objectives targeting decision makers from grass root levels to top levels.

1. Lack of critical awareness of own situation through alternative conflict analysis
2. Lack of creative response and skills for dialogue to problems and differences

Gaps identified:
A civil society group at NC Hills representing all communities have been successfully mobilized and organized at the trouble spot and further strengthening works are under process. The proposed gaps in peace building interventions are identified.
• External factors that include suspected third parties, armed groups and media.
• Civil society leaders including, women, youth and community leaders lack critical analysis and skills for dialogue for deeper understanding of the situations.
• Media being used as propaganda machineries for advancing conflict has to be adequately addressed.
• Delhi has not been adequately informed of the local conflict dynamics threatening the survival of small indigenous people in the NE region.

There is an urgency to respond to the situation before it is too late. Our response would have short term, middle term and long term strategies. Short term strategies would include, fact finding and healing mission. Middle term objectives will include setting up inter-tribe/party violence preventive measures and mechanisms, critical awareness through alternative conflict analysis, capacity building for dialogue and media advocacies. Policy changes that will include legal provisions that promotes inter-tribal/community dialogues, cooperation and relations and safeguards/ prevention from inter-tribal feuds, factional killing, etc.

Strategies and activities for Future:
1. Advocacy and lobby through Press conference at strategic locations
2. Visiting, meeting dialogue with civil society organizations including youth and women at strategic sites
3. Regular media team visiting trouble spots
4. Capacity building programs
5. Information, documentation and dissemination
6. Networking and coordination
7. Advocacy and lobby