A Special Gift With Love From Mizoram

By Bindu Shajan Perappadan

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The female gibbon in Delhi zoo. Photo: Sandeep Saxena

Hoolock gibbon, highly endangered species, is listed in wildlife protection act.

The Delhi zoo has a new addition which has come here all the way from Mizoram. Currently under quarantine, the 6-8-year-old female hoolock gibbon is a highly endangered species and is listed on Schedule 1 of the Indian (Wildlife) Protection Act, 1972.

“She is getting used to the climate and change of diet at the Delhi zoo and will be introduced to the two other hoolock gibbons (a male and female) on display by the end of this month,” said zoo veterinary Dr. Paneer Selvam said.

The animal has been brought in as part of the zoo’s breeding programme and is from the wild. “This gibbon was in the Mizoram zoo for over four years and was transported to Kolkata by road and then brought here by air. The animal, which weighs about 12-15 kg and has an average life span of 30-35 years has been brought in for our breeding programme. The female that we currently have is very old and we hope that this female will be able to thrive in this Zoo,” added Dr. Selvam.

The animal is currently coping with a change in diet and “is getting used to a new variety of fruits and other supplements being provided to her”.

“We are giving her bananas, apples and other fruits along with egg, bread and milk which are new to her. She is slowly adapting to the change and is currently doing well,” said Dr. Selvam.

Meanwhile, the zoo has suspended two animal keepers after a badly-decomposed carcass of a stump-tailed macaque was found in its enclosure. The animal whose body was found unfit for post mortem had died in the last week of August, according to zoo officials.

Rights Group Alleges Racism in Champions League Ad

New Delhi, Sep 22 : The Asian Centre for Human Rights (ACHR) has called for immediate stopping of the broadcast of one of the ‘Champions League T20-T20 Nights Are Back’ advertisements for promoting stereotypes and racial prejudices against the Nepalese who are considered as the same people as of the Northeastern States because of Tibeto-Mongoloid features.

In its interventions with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Broadcast Content Complaints Council, International Cricket Council and the Board of Control for Cricket in India, ACHR alleged that it in one of the advertisements, “Champions League T20-T20 Nights Are Back!”, one of the Nepali looking youth says, “Wo Raatein Bhi Kya Raatein Thi, Nach te teh, gaate teh, chilla te teh, purra mohalla ko, haami toh jagate teh” (what nights were those nights, used to dance, used to sing, used to shout, we are the ones who used to wake up the entire locality)”– implying that Nepalese work as night guards and wake up the residents of the locality. The same is being repeatedly broadcast with distinguishable heavy, Nepalese accent in various TV channels and FM radios, the ACHR stated.

“In North India where Nepalese and Northeasterners are considered being the same people because of their same physical features, such stereotyping only promotes racism and acts of racial violence.

Though unconnected to the advertisement, on September 14, two Manipuri boys were attacked at Munirka village, New Delhi after they protested when some local youths made fun of them. In fact, the Northeasterners being called Nepali or “Bahadur” derogatively often leads to such incidents.

The Bezbaruah Committee set up by the Ministry of Home Affairs in its recent report stated that 86 per cent of the Northeasterners living in Delhi had faced some sort of racial discrimination while crimes against Northeasterners have gone up by 270 per cent in the last three years,” stated Suhas Chakma, Director of Asian Centre for Human Rights.

“Though Nepalese serve in various sectors including in the film industry, they are often stereotyped as night watchmen/guards in mass media and this creates inferior impression about the Nepalese and by implications the North- easterners among the viewers. These acts of stereotyping are reprehensible and justify the need for a law against racism in India,”further stated Chakma.

Sports has consistently been used to combat racism across the world but cricket, which is the most popular sport in South Asia, is being used to promote stereotyping and racism. The advertisement reflects extreme lack of sensitivity which is one of the root causes of racism in India, the ACHR added.

Source: Newmai News Network

NSCN (IM) Leaders Arrive in Delhi For Resumption of Naga Peace Talks

By Samudra Gupta Kashyap

Guwahati, Sep 22 : More than ten months after the last round of talks, a high-level delegation of NSCN (IM) leaders have arrived in the national capital at the invitation of the government of India for resumption of the Naga peace talks.

The delegation led by its chairman Isak Chisi Swu and general secretary Thuingaleng Muivah will first meet different officials before attending the formal discussions slated sometime next week. The delegation arrived in New Delhi on Saturday.

It was in November last year that New Delhi had held the last round of discussions, while a meeting with then prime minister Manmohan Singh, slated for December 6, 2013 was cancelled at the last moment. A delegation of the NSCN (IM) had visited New Delhi in March this year after the Centre had called off another round of talks in view of the Lok Sabha elections.

There have been speculations in the media in Nagaland about NSCN (IM) leaders also meeting Prime Minister Modi, especially in view of then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee appreciating the “unique history of the Nagas” during his visit to Nagaland in July 2002.

The NSCN (IM) has been on a ceasefire with the government of India since August 1, 1997, following which it has held a series of discussions with New Delhi. While the group has dropped its demand for ‘sovereignty’, but  it has maintained that it would continue to press for integration of all Naga-inhabited areas.

The group had earlier this month taken exception to the appointment of former IB special director RN Ravi as New Delhi’s new interlocutor in view of certain remarks made by him in an newspaper column in December last year. This had prompted new Nagaland governor and veteran BJP leader PB Acharya to clarify that Ravi’s article was written much before the new government was elected.

Mizoram Home Minister Writes To MP Counterpart in Missionaries’ Arrest Case

Aizawl, Sep 19 : Mizoram Home Minister R Lalzirliana has written to his Madhya Pradesh counterpart Babulal Gaur asking the latter to personally intervene for the five Christian missionaries from Mizoram who were released on bail Tuesday evening after being kept in judicial custody at Khargone for four days and nights for allegedly offering money to Hindus to convert.

In his letter, R Lalzirliana asked the five men be “acquitted and released” as they still face cases against them and that “appropriate corrective action” be served against “the person who lodged the false report for justice’s sake”.

“I have been informed that these missionaries were arrested subsequent to an FIR, lodged by one local resident, accusing [them] of practicing proselytism by offering a sum of Rs 1 lakh to Hindus in an attempt to convert them to Christianity,” the Mizoram Home Minister wrote.

“I was shocked with disbelief on hearing the allegation as I would confidently vouch that the complaints are false and baseless. Christians…are never taught to resort to using any form of material or financial incentives in their mission works and I assure you that missionaries would not use such form of enticement or allure even in the future,” he added.

The five men and the families of two of them have been moved from Sanawad, near where they were arrested, to a Christian compound at Kanapur.

'Northeast Space Centre Not Getting Data From Central Agencies'

Shillong, Sep 19 : The North East Space Application Centre (NE-SAC), set up by the Centre to develop high-tech infrastructure support for the northeastern states, is grappling to obtain required data from central agencies due to the "security threat" perception in the region, an official said Thursday.

"We (NE-SAC) have been struggling to collect data from central and state agencies in in view of the security threat perception surrounding the northeastern states. This reluctance to share data has only put a hindrance for us to implement various programmes, like the Flood Early Warning System effectively," NE-SAC director S. Sudhakar told journalists.

"A centre like NE-SAC, which has been identified for disaster-related issues, should be provided with the database generated by various centres/state departments for analysis and generation of planning inputs, which will help in decision-making and implementation of various programmes more effectively," he added.

The NE-SAC is assisting various central and state departments to use space technology for their planning processes and also enhance the implementation of central schemes effectively to bring economic inclusive growth at the village level.

Lamenting that government agencies were not assisting the NE-SAC, Sudhakar said a system for data sharing should be created that will help in decision-making and implementation of various programmes.

"People are working in isolation. We need an integration of data as the space community has a greater role to play in improving preparedness for various disasters," he said.

The NE-SAC has initiated various programmes, including establishment of the North Eastern Regional Node for Disaster Risk Reduction (NER-DRR), he said.

'Garoland Demand To Continue Even After Peace Accord'

Shillong, Sep 19 : A rebel group in Meghalaya that would next week sign a peace accord with the central government Thursday said it would continue with its original demand for a separate Garoland state.

"We will continue with our demand for the creation of a separate Garoland state (to be carved out of Meghalaya) politically and through non-violence after signing the peace accord with the central and Meghalaya governments," Arist Sengsrang Sangma, spokesman of the A'chik National Volunteers Council (ANVC), told IANS.

The Centre Wednesday announced the signing of the peace accord with two rebel outfits - ANVC and its breakaway group ANVC-B - operating in the five districts of Garo Hills in Meghalaya.

The accord will be signed Sep 24 in New Delhi after a decade of peace negotiations.

"This issue (Garoland) is very much alive as 80 percent of Garo people want a state of their own. Political parties, civil society groups and armed outfit Garo National Liberation Army are demanding the same," Sangma said.

"We will continue to fight for a separate state as central government officials have told us that there is no harm in continuing with our original demand for a separate state but that should be fought through non-violence," he said.

Gogoi urges Rajnath to deploy SSB along Assam-Naga Border

Gogoi also expressed concern over the alleged presence of Nagaland Armed Police in some villages in the disputed area

Guwahati, Sep 19 : Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday urged union home minister Rajnath Singh to initiate immediate measures to deploy Sashtra Seema Bal (SSB) as a neutral force in the affected villages along its border with Nagaland.

“Necessary suitable directions may be passed to the government of Nagaland and SSB authorities for ensuring early return of the affected families from the relief camps,” he said in a letter to the union minister. Gogoi pointed out the urgent need to rehabilitate the displaced persons at the earliest as delay to their homes “may further aggravate the law and order situation in the state.... Sooner the people return to their villages, the better it is for maintenance of the law and order situation.”

The chief minister also expressed concern over the alleged presence of Nagaland Armed Police in some villages in the disputed area and requested Singh to ensure withdrawal of the forces from the villages immediately. He also reviewed the prevailing law and order situation along the Assam-Nagaland border with senior officials at his official residence last night, officials in the chief minister’s office said.

Officials of the home and political department and Assam police informed the chief minister that some Naga villagers backed by NSCN militants were creating obstruction in the process of rehabilitation of the displaced persons, thus creating a sense of insecurity and panic among villagers.

Eleven persons were killed along the Assam-Nagaland border in Golaghat district since 12 August and nearly 10,000 people had taken shelter in relief camps. Of them 5,700 have so far returned to their villages while 4,167 are still in the camps, the officials said.

Are You Chinese, Peng Asks Northeast Students

New Delhi, Sep 18 : China's First Lady Peng Liyuan today mistook a group of students from the northeast India as Chinese only to be told by them that they were Indians.

          
As Peng entered the Tagore International School, she was greeted by students wearing Indian traditional costumes. She noticed a group of students, including few from the northeast who greeted her "Ni Hao" (How are you?).
         
Mistaking the northeast students as Chinese, she stopped and asked one of them, "Ni sh zhonggu rn" (Are you Chinese?).

The translation is ""你是中國人？"
         
"Bu. Woh shi Indu ren. (No, I am an Indian)," Albert Ginsangmuam K (12), a class VII student, responded confidently.
         
Hailing from Manipur, Albert, wearing a kurta, said he was nervous about the first interaction with Peng and he had not expected her to speak to him.
         
"I know a bit of Chinese, but I was a bit nervous. What if I made a mistake? What would have the school said?" Albert, along with many of his classmates, has taken up Chinese language course.