Helpline To Curb Non-Mizo Harassment, Assures Mizo CM

Aizawl, Sep 10 : Mizoram government would start a four digit helpline to counter alleged atrocities on the non-tribal communities by various Mizo organizations in recent times, stated Lal Thanhawla, the Chief Minister.

He further said, from now onwards only the state police would check the documents like Inner Line Permit (ILP) of the non-Mizo and organizations like YMA MBO would not be allowed to verify the papers.

A delegate from Barak Valley met Lal Thanhawla this week in Delhi and apprised him about the recent incidents where non-Mizo, particularly Bengali speaking Muslims had been harassed and tortured by Mizo groups when the latter started verifying the trade licence and ILP of the former.

This had created much tension both in Mizoram and adjacent Barak Valley. Various organizations of Barak Valley had threatened road blockade to prevent transportation of essential commodities to the neighbouring state.

In this backdrop, a team led by Sharifujjaman, general secretary of the Northeast Congress Co-ordination Committee and representatives like Hafiz Rashid Choudhury, Sadhan Purkayastha, Kamaluddin Ahmed and others met the Mizoram Chief Minister and sought his intervention. Lal Thanhawla said, a good number of people, mostly minorities entered into Mizoram claiming themselves as residents of either Karimganj or Hailakandi.

Subsequent investigation revealed that the address they had provided were fake and they were actually Bangladeshi infiltrators. This had compelled the Mizo organizations to keep vigil on the movement of the non-Mizo. However, in no case they should take law in their own hands, Lal Thanhawla clarified.

The delegates from Barak Valley wondered how come the Mizo police allow the Bangladeshis to enter into their State without verifying the ILP which was issued by the Liaison Office in Silchar. They further requested the Chief Minister to adopt a rule for renewal of trade licence as some Mizo group in pretext of checking the trade licence harass the non-Mizo businessmen.

Lal Thanhawla said he would take up the matter. He further stressed upon the cultural exchange programme between Mizoram and Assam which would strengthen the bondage between the two neighbouring States. Sharifujjaman told The Sentinel from Delhi that they were hopeful the Chief Minister would definitely take some action regarding the matter.

She Who Will Not Break

A room of her own Irom Sharmila in her special cell in Imphal’s Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital, a virtual ‘home’

Irom Sharmila won’t relinquish her hopes, ideals and love

By Dola Mitra

This was the satyagraha the country forgot—her decade-long test of will had been mostly erased from mainstream consciousness. It took another agitation, bang in the centre of India’s capital—one that was much feted and fussed over—for people to remember the Irom Sharmila story. It’s been unfolding with mind-numbing monotony of detail in faraway Imphal since November 2000. That’s when Sharmila went on a hunger strike demanding the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in Manipur. The routine hasn’t changed since then: her being force-fed in the special ward of Imphal’s Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital. After her first arrest for “attempting suicide”, and the subsequent judicial custody, as per law, she is released every year, only to be repeatedly rearrested due to her steadfast refusal to give up her fast.

The Anna Hazare agitation, because of the unmissable analogy, has now brought the spotlight back on Sharmila. She isn’t unhappy about the comparison. She says she looks up to Anna Hazare and is happy that his anti-corruption campaign yielded results, and that he could end his fast after 13 days. “I have a lot of reverence for Anna Hazare. I revere his struggle. The fight against corruption is a very noble cause. He invited me to go to Delhi to join him in his campaign. I would have been happy to do so. But I’m a prisoner. I’m tied to all this (she gestures at her room). Yes, this is the difference between him and me. I am a prisoner. He is a free man. He can go wherever he wants to. So I have invited him to come. He and his team are very welcome here. If the people of India came out in our support, my demand to repeal AFSPA would have been met by now.”

In Hazare’s victory, Sharmila sees the beginning of the end of her own struggle. “I feel finally the time has come,” she says with a smile. That’s why she has invited Team Anna to Manipur. Says Irom Singhajit, Sharmila’s elder brother, and someone who is closest to her: “Suddenly everyone has woken up from a slumber and realised that there is this girl who has been starving herself from the age of 28 for the sake of justice.”

After all these years, does Sharmila miss regular food, even though she is force-fed thrice a day with nutrients and multi-vitamins? “Yes, I do miss food,” she candidly admits, “that is why I don’t think about it. I love honey and I love coconut water. Also, bitter gourd. But I love sweets. I ate a lot of pastry the day before I went on the fast. When I go back to normal life I will eat. Now I put cotton wool in my mouth so that I don’t swallow anything. I don’t even brush my teeth so that I don’t swallow anything.”

The spark A memorial for the victims of the firing in 2000 at Malom village, Manipur. (Photograph by Sandipan Chatterjee)

Sharmila’s fast began two days after ten civilians—including school students and a 61-year-old woman, inhabitants of Manipur’s Malom Village—were shot dead, allegedly by Assam Rifles commandos. As she recounts the horror and tragedy of that day 11 years ago, Thoibi Debi, mother of one of the boys who was killed, breaks down. When she recovers, she says, “It was 3 pm. His father had just come back from work. My son asked him for ten rupees for the bus fare because he had to go for his science tuition. Fifteen minutes later he was gone forever.”

The AFSPA, imposed in “disturbed” states like Manipur, vests the armed forces with wide powers to detain, interrogate, arrest and even kill on suspicion. Sharmila’s crusade highlights the plight of people who live in conflict zones and bear a terrible brunt, regularly caught in the crossfire between extremists and the army.

However, of late Sharmila has been in news for her relationship with 48-year-old writer Desmond Coutinho, a British citizen of Goan origin. They communicated for almost a year and professed their feelings for each other. They met once—this March. Sharmila admits, “Yes, I love someone. I am made out to be an extraordinary woman. I am called an iron lady. But I am human too. I want to lead a normal life. And do all that an ordinary woman wants to do. Like get married. I will do it when my demand is met.”

Desmond Coutinho and Sharmila write to each other, but have met only once. Her supporters don’t like the relationship.

To Sharmila’s discomfiture and unhappiness, her relationship with Coutinho is met with hostile suspicion by her supporters. Even her brother Singhajit disapproves: “That man—Desmond—is a government agent. He is trying to make her weak. His only goal is to marry Sharmila and take her away. We will not allow that to happen. She is struggling for over a decade. How can she just abandon her struggle for the love of a man?”

Sharmila says she will not give up her struggle and betray the cause. “No, I just can’t afford to run away. When I began the fast, I didn’t think it would last this long. I have been living from moment to moment. But I try not to think too much about it. I think of God and I leave it all to Him. I don’t think anyone wants to spend a life-time imprisoned in a hospital bed, tied to a nose-tube.”

Sharmila spends her time in custody reading and writing. Her favourite books? The Gita and the Bible. Right now she is reading a book by Minnie Vaid on Binayak Sen. The author personally gifted her a copy. “She wants to write about me too. But I’m not sure,” says Sharmila.

At her home in Kongpal Kongkham Leikai Porompal village, Sharmila’s mother Irom Sakshi says it would be irresponsible for her to ask her daughter to return home and have a hearty meal, although, like any mother she wants to feed her. “I never visit her as it will make her weak. And it will make me weak. I will never ask her to call off her fast because she is struggling for the people. Yes, she is the youngest of my nine children but she has ceased to be just my daughter. She is also the nation’s daughter now.”

Khasi/Jaintia Cuisine: It’s all about the flavours

This no-spice cuisine relies on the quality of the meats to enhance the taste of its dishes

By Janice Pariat

The cuisine of the Khasis and Jaintias in Meghalaya relies on a few staple flavours, including mustard oil and black and white sesame seed paste. The rice, either plain white or jadoh (a fluffy yellow version cooked with stock and meat), is eaten with a variety of smoked or unsmoked meats or fish curries, and light stews usually made with tyrso (pungent mustard leaves), jhur sdieh (mixed fried vegetables) and tungtap (dried fish chutney) or tungrungbai (chutney made from fermented soyabean and black sesame seed paste).

The best local food usually isn’t served in posh, fancy restaurants; instead, Meghalaya is dotted with small jadoh stalls where locals drop in for sha (tea), jingbam (snacks) and full meals at all hours of the day.

Beef up: Bih’s doh shiang cutlets. Wanphrang Diengdoh/Mint

One of the most popular places in Laitumkhrah (one of Shillong’s main commercial and residential areas) is the family-run Jaintia Jadoh Stall. Shongsuklang Langsteih, the young chef there, enjoys cooking doh khleh (meat mixed with ginger and onion) because “it’s light, can be prepared quickly and has little or no masala”. This dish comprises cuts of pork and the animal’s soft parts (including intestines and brain), mixed gently with fresh ginger and onion. Kong Bih, who runs a small stall near the Laitumkhrah market, however enjoys cooking doh shiang (minced beef cutlet), because “it makes for both a quick snack and can also be part of a meal”. Her doh shiang is soft, crumbly and mildly spicy, and is perfect when eaten with a portion of putharo (rice pancake) and pickled soh phoh (a Khasi pear that’s more tangy than usual).

During weddings and festivals, the food is usually the same, with a few additions like ja snam (brown rice cooked with chicken’s blood) and dai iong (lentils made with black sesame paste). The people are also fond of fish fried to a crisp in mustard oil, local wild mushroom, banana flower (usually made into a chutney), muli khleh (grated radish with white sesame paste), and smoked pork cooked with sweet red pumpkin.

Doh Shiang

MAKES 12 CUTLETS

Ingredients

1/2 kg minced beef

A 3-inch piece of ginger

1 tsp ground red chilli

2-3 cloves (optional)

4 tbsp mustard oil

Method

Boil the minced beef with water (just above the level of the meat), until almost completely dry. Let it cool. Heat the oil. Grind ginger to a paste and mix well with the meat. Add ground chilli, cloves and salt. Roll the mixture into balls the size of golf balls. Deep-fry until dark golden brown.

Recipe courtesy Kong Bih.

E-governance Gaining Ground in Northeast India

Agartala, Sep 10 : The concept of e-governance is gaining rapid popularity across the country and the northeast is no exception. The Directorate of Land Records and Settlement (DLRS) in Agartala has recently upgraded all land records.

It came as a pleasant shock to Ratan Debbarma from Kachucherra when he applied for his land mutation papers at the directorate and got them on the same day. He never thought that it could be done so quickly and easily.

This has become possible through the new service e-jami that is now operational in Tripura.

"I have come from Kamalpur's Kachucherra area. In the circle office it takes lot of time to get land mutation papers, I came to know that in the head office the same thing is done much faster. Today I came by train and applied for it and I have already got the papers," said Debbarma.

"My personal experience is that I had applied yesterday for mutation papers for my land and I received the computerized copy today. Now it is provided within one day, earlier it used to take several months. Obviously time is saved, that which used to take several months is now done in two days. We are happy," added Jupiter Chakma, a local.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar inaugurated the e-jami services, an online facility for land records on September 3.

This online service will update land records and other allied information on Internet thereby reducing land dispute cases and enhance transparency in the land records maintenance system.

The new e-governance project has been developed with financial and technical support from the Centre under the National Land Records Modernization Programme (NLRMP).

The major components of this program are computerization of all land records including mutations, digitization of maps, integration of textual and spatial data, survey (or re-survey) of all settlement records including creation of original cadastral records.

"Earlier it used to take lot of time to provide land documents to the applicants, as we had to find them after checking so many documents that had to be signed by higher officials. At present with computerization of land records the public has benefited as we are able to provide the documents very fast and our work has also become easy," said Soma Paul, Official, DLRS.

The digital survey in this program is done using Total Station and Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) and hybrid methodology using aerial photography and by High Resolution Satellite Imagery.

"All land records are being computerized using the modern technology. Around 11 lakh mutation papers have been digitalized. Our next target is to digitalize 5780 maps of the entire state. This will help the citizens of the state to get access to all information on land through Internet from anywhere," said DLRS Director M K NATH.

Tripura Government is sparing no efforts to implement the e-governance systems in the region to improve the functioning of the administration and make life easier for the people.

Meghalaya To Gain From Indo-Bangladesh Land Swap Agreement

Shillong, Sep 10 : In the land swap deal inked between India and Bangladesh, Meghalaya has gained 240 acres of land that were adversely held by the neighbouring country, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma has said.

Relationship between India and Bangladesh will start moving in the right direction following the agreements signed on the border disputes between Manmohan Singh and Sheikh Hasina. Reuters

Sangma, who had accompanied Singh during the high-profile visit, yesterday said the deal was mutually important and that it was mutually acceptable. ”People will be happy…it (border dispute) was an irritant for a long time. The settlement will promote goodwill and prosperity. It will safeguard the interests of the state,” he said, adding that every decision was in consultation with the respective state governments.

In return, Meghalaya has to concede 41 acres of land to Bangladesh, Sangma said.

Stressing on the importance of border fencing, he said innocent people were perceived as intruders in the past. ”There should be concerted efforts by both sides to ensure that the fencing is completed on time,” he said.

Relationship between India and Bangladesh will start moving in the right direction following the agreements signed on the border disputes, the chief minister said.

Mizoram Records 18 Cases of Human Trafficking in 11 Yrs

Aizawl, Sep 9 : Mizoram has recorded 18 cases of human trafficking during the last 11 years, DGP Lalrokhuma Pachuau said here on Thursday.

Speaking at a three-day state-level training of trainers on anti-human trafficking, which began today, the top cop said the 18 cases were official records and the actual number of human rafficking incidents could be much higher as many cases went unreported due to fear of stigmatisation.

”Mizoram is no longer an exception to human trafficking, which is one of the biggest organised crimes in the world next only to arms and drugs smuggling,” Mr Pachuau said.

As India is one of the worst victims of human trafficking, the Home Ministry has put emphasis on training the law enforcement agencies and social activists on the issue, he said.

”With Rs 15.16 lakh sanctioned by the Ministry, Mizoram police department has set up a well-equipped anti-human trafficking units in Aizawl and Lunglei districts, and we have applied for permission to set up one in Champhai district,” he said.

Each Superintendent of Police of the eight districts is made nodal officer for human trafficking, he said.

The training, held at the police headquarters’ Arya Mess, aimed to chalk out strategies to meet the emerging challenges in human trafficking which is stated to be on a steady rise in the Northeast India, including Mizoram.

Earlier this year, a sensitisation programme on anti-human trafficking and capsule course on investigation of human trafficking case had been organised for police.

This is the first state-level training of trainers in Mizoram and would be organised in other districts in due course of time.

Even though human trafficking cases are dealt by assigned police officers, SP or deputy SP, in each district, the DGP underlined the need for working with NGOs like in other states to fight the crime more effectively.

Like any other backward state, Mizoram is vulnerable to human trafficking and most of the victims have been lured out with a promise of job.

Rajdeep Sardesai: Irom's Cause Riskier Than Anna's

By Rajdeep Sardesai

"Why don't you cover Irom Sharmila's decade-old fast with the same intensity as you did Anna Hazare's 13-day fast?" asked Binalakshmi Nepram, the founder of the Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network with characteristic passion. On stage in a live programme, there was no escape. "Perhaps, it's because the Ramlila Maidan is closer to television studios than Imphal," was my feeble response.

The 'tyranny of distance' can only be a part-explanation for why a 39-year-old Manipuri woman's fast, that began in November 2000 for the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFPSA), has not resonated across television channels and the nation in the manner that Anna Hazare's did. Yes, it did take a nude street protest by Manipuri women for the national media to wake up momentarily to an unfolding tragedy. But to see this only from the prism of the traditional 'neglect' of the north-east would be to ignore the contemporary reality of what constitutes 'democratic' protest in the eyes of the media and enlightened citizenry.

Forget Irom's brave struggle for a moment. Look at Medha Patkar instead. In May this year, Patkar went on a nine-day fast in protest against slum demolitions in Mumbai. While the fast attracted some attention in the local newspapers, no large crowds or TV cameras could be spotted. Slum demolitions are an issue that discomfit the urban middle classes, for whom Patkar is seen as a quintessential trouble-maker, be it when seeking rehabilitation for those affected by the Narmada dam or in driving out the Tata Nano plant from Singur. And yet, the moment, the same Medha Patkar waves the Tricolour and shares a platform with Team Anna on the Jan Lokpal Bill, she becomes an embodiment of courage and idealism.

Or take the case of Prashant Bhushan, a 'core' member of Team Anna. Only a few months ago, when the lawyer-activist was fighting cases for alleged Maoists or defending author Arundhati Roy's right to free speech on Kashmir, he was dubbed 'anti-national' in a section of the media. Today, the same individual is embraced by the very same media as an anti-corruption crusader. When Bhushan and Patkar challenged the status quo they were targeted, even reviled. The moment they chose to swim with the tide, they were transformed into heroes by the identical groups.

The fact is "anti-corruption" is an easy-to-market brand which consumes everyone who vouches for it. The success of Anna's movement has been in its simple, inclusive character. It's a movement that could co-opt a Medha Patkar, a Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and an Om Puri on the same platform along with millions of anonymous Indians. Why, even a Baba Ramdev would have been a star performer of the Anna brigade till such time as he made the cardinal mistake of allowing Sadhvi Ritambhara to share a platform with him. Suddenly, the divisiveness of Hindutva politics was seen to undermine the universality of the core anti-corruption message.

Therein also lies the fundamental difference between Anna's fast on the Jan Lokpal Bill and Irom Sharmila's battle for revoking AFSPA: one is seen to unite, the other is seen to divide. In the end, Anna's fast wasn't even really about the details of the Jan Lokpal Bill but more about being a potent symbol of popular anger against corruption. Many of those who gathered at the Ramlila Maidan and elsewhere couldn't really care whether the anti-corruption wing of the CBI is brought under a Lokpal; what they really wanted was some outlet to express their outrage against corruption. Anna, aided by a willing media, happily provided it. For the middle class in particular, Anna's asceticism was in sharp contrast to their own lifestyle of conspicuous consumption: wearing an Anna cap could redress the balance, if only for a while. It also enabled the economically privileged to suddenly feel politically empowered.

By contrast, Irom Sharmila presents a more complex choice before the average citizen. For Manipuris, she is a homegrown heroine who symbolises the fight against human rights violations by the Army. But for those outside Manipur, she is just as likely to be seen as someone who is questioning the majesty of the Indian state. Manipuris and many right-thinking Indians may see AFSPA as a violation of fundamental freedoms, but there are enough number of others who will see it as a necessity in a militancy-prone region. To that extent, Irom Sharmila's fast will be viewed by hyper-nationalists as a challenge to the Indian state much in the manner that any popular movement in Jammu and Kashmir is seen as a threat to national sovereignty.

The irony is that at their very heart, both Anna and Irom Sharmila should have more in common than one might imagine. For, both of them while using the fast as a peaceful protest weapon are essentially questioning the abuse of state power. And at the very root of this misuse of power is bad governance. Corruption flourishes where governance fails. The imposition of a draconian law like AFSPA, be it in Manipur or Jammu and Kashmir, reveals a crisis of governance. Indeed, both Manipur and Kashmir have suffered because of corrupt politics as much as they have from violence.

Which is why anyone who calls for a strong Lokpal Bill as an antidote to corruption should also support the repeal of AFSPA as a necessary condition for a more humane and honest state. Which is also why Anna Hazare should seriously consider Irom Sharmila's request to visit Manipur and express solidarity with her struggle. It may be a purely symbolic visit, but it will ensure that the television cameras are forced to turn their lens to Manipur's trauma, if only for a day.

Truckers Cry For Security on Choked Manipur Highways

Imphal, Sep 9 : Hundreds of truck drivers, who are facing their toughest time to carry essential commodities to Manipur in the face of the intensified economic blockade on national highways by two civil groups, have urged the state government to deploy maximum forces along the route.

Leaders of the All Manipur Road Transport Drivers and Motor Workers' Union even claimed involvement of unidentified armed persons in torching loaded trucks on NH-53 connecting Imphal and Silchar .

The truckers even threatened to tie up with the Transporters and Drivers' Council to decide on their future course of action if the government fails to provide adequate security along the highway. In pursuit of its long-standing demand to create Sadar Hills district, the Sadar Hills District Demand Committee (SHDDC) has been imposing economic blockade on NH-39 (Imphal-Dimapur route) and NH053 since August 1.

The United Naga Council (UNC), which is protesting against the state government's alleged attempt to bifurcate Naga-dominated areas to create new districts in Manipur, has also imposed similar blockades alongh the highways and there's no sign of suspension of agitation by both the groups.

Since NH-39, the key supply route of the state, has already been chocked by the agitators, the government has brought commodities along the deplorable NH-53 under heavy security arrangements. Despite the security measures, three loaded trucks were set ablaze on Wednesday night by suspected bandh supporters on the route considered the second life-line of the state. The Centre has asked the state to extend all co-operation towards the Border Roads Task Force in constructing and maintaining NH 53.