TURA, NOV 9: Conglomeration of ngos have urged Meghalaya chief minister Mukul Sangma to initiate talk with centre not to allow introduction of Armed Force (Special Powers) Act in Garo hills.
The conglomeration which includes Garo Students Union (GSU), Federation of A’chik Freedom (FAF), Association for Democracy and Empowerment (ADE), A’chik Youth Welfare Organisation (AYWO) and Federation of Khasi Jaintia and Garo People (FKJGP) on Sunday met Meghalaya chief minister Mukul Sangma at Shillong to raise their concern on the high court order seeking consideration of centre for introduction of AFSPA.
In a release issued today, the conglomeration said that chief minister has assured that Meghalaya police was capable of countering the activities of Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) and other insurgent outfits.
The release said that the chief minister has assured to resolve the insurgency situation by seeking adequate help for revamping the Meghalaya police force from centre.
“He (Chief Minister) stated that the frustrated and unemployed youths are mostly the ones prone to sympathise with the GNLA cause”, the release said. The chief minister assured the conglomeration that government’s flagship programme like basin development is aimed at giving employment opportunities to the youths.
The release said that Garo hills does not deserve to be declared “disturbed area” and the implementation of AFSPA for several reasons – the situation created by GNLA does not pose any kind of internal security for the nation, GNLA activities are isolated to Garo hills, the outfits have not connive with foreign powers to destabilise India or invited any outside interference and neither are any foreign powers fishing in troubled waters.
“The land locked region of Garo hills is facing problems of influx from Bangladeshi nationals but Bangladesh does not pose a significant security threat to India and neither is Bangladesh involved in directly inciting the armed rebellion in Garo hills. The GNLA has a demand- a demand for separate Garoland state. The GNLA is not strong enough to create an internal security threat for India”, the release said.
The conglomeration felt that Meghalaya police is strong enough to counter GNLA and the implementation of AFSPA will be an overreaction, which will only alienate the people defeating the purpose of democracy and integration of the people.
“It is an accepted, learned and experienced fact that the Indian Army do tend to go overboard in executions of its operations against insurgents and innocents have paid the heaviest price disrupting normal life and economy causing harassment to a level and degree not even perpetrated by the insurgent groups”, the release added.
They claimed that mushrooming of several small armed groups in Garo hills was due to the easy availability of arms from cross border smuggling. It is a known intelligence fact that guns smuggling happen on a greater scale in the India -Bangladesh international borders of other north eastern states than in Garo hills.
“One of the effective ways to curb militancy in North East will be the toning down of the volume of arms smuggling through the porous international border. The Indian government must make sure that its international borders with Bangladesh is secure and strict which will not only solve the problem of influx in Northeast but also curb militancy through effective control of availability of arms through illegal arms trade”, the conglomeration remarked.
They also said that the Naxalites poses a far greater problem to India’s internal security rather than the combined militant groups of Meghalaya; however, the government has wisely restrained itself from invoking the AFSPA in those regions.
“Garo hills does not deserve AFSPA”, they thundered.
On AFSPA in Manipur, they claimed that it has not succeeded in curbing the menace of militancy there. “The people have been alienated but only the use of force to an excessive level has shown a cosmetic compliance of the people. The people of Manipur have used every democratic means to protest against AFSPA and other issues. But the demands and demonstrations of the people have been militarily suppressed”, the release felt.-From Our Correspondent
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