The Zoramthanga Cabinet on May 30 made a landmark decision to separate the judiciary from the executive

August 6, 2008 will be well recorded in the history of Mizoram politics as this day saw the formation of the United Democratic Alliance under the leadership of former chief minister and Mizoram People’s Conference patriarch 86-year-old Brig T Sailo. Apart from T Sailo’s MPC, the UDA had Lalduhoma-led Zoram Nationalist Party and farmers’ organisation Zoram Kuthnathawktu Pawl led by Thanbanglova under its fold.

On August 28, the state government announced last pay recommendation based on one-step-up policy with high hope that this would ultimately appease all the agitating government employees. The hope proved false as the employees’ agitation went on till the announcement of the State Assembly elections on October 14. Making a complete U-turn, the Zoramthanga Cabinet on September 1 created three new districts Hnahthial, Saitual and Khawzawl. People of Hnahthial had been undertaking massive agitations demanding the district whereas Saitual and Khawzawl made no such stirs. The creation of the new districts was seen as the election-oriented move of the MNF. September 2 witnessed a sad incident for Mizoram as the Indian Reserve Battalion personnel were ambushed by Hmar militants in Mizoram’s soil leaving four IR personnel killed. A mind-boggling financial racket known as Chiahpuam bank will also red-mark the year in the history of Mizoram. The pyramid financial scam crashed with the disappearance of the kingpin H Lalmuanpuii on November 2. The arrest of the kingpin on November 8 did not prove a solution to the scam that involved around Rs 30,000 lakhs. The case is still on.

AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and AICC chief Sonia Gandhi visited Mizoram on November 21, 25 and 28 respectively for election campaigns. (UNI)

Movement against human rights violation gains momentum in Manipur

Imphal: Its the new forms of expressing anguish and campaign against human rights violations in Manipur.

The state of Manipur, hit in the recent past by various cases of violation against human rights including human trafficking of women and children, has taken to mass awareness of the people regarding violations of human rights rather than protest or raise voice in the aftermath of the incident.

And interestingly this has been done in the form of painting and photo exhibition competitions besides photo exhibitions on human rights violation including trafficking of women and children. On the occasion of the International fortnight observation against crime and violence on women and children, the Women Action for Development (WAD) on December 7 had organised a one day state level painting competition on the theme of “Child trafficking” at the Rose Garden, Khuman Lampak which was reportedly participated by over hundreds of students from class VII-X.

Speaking to the media, spokesperson of the WAD while disclosing the objective of the competition maintained that such observations would spread awareness among the people on the increasing violence against women and children. Further reminding of the trafficking cases that have hit the state in the recent past, the spokesperson opined that such competitions could aware the people of such cases which includes harassment, forced prostitution and even trafficking of children and women, stated the reports. (NNN)

Manipur militants want clean educational institutes

Imphal: Joint Task Force (JTF) Human Resource, jointly formed by the militants United National Liberation Front (UNLF) and Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL) in order to monitor any flaw in various institutions including educational institutions, has informed to award punishment to any person polluting these institutions in Manipur.

In relation with their task the JTF rounded up 15 students of Kanan Devi Memorial School on Monday and awarded a light punishment, ten canings each, on charges of assaulting the school bus driver and an attempted assault to one of the teachers.

Speaking to media persons somewhere in Thoubal district the commander of the JTF Lamjinba informed that the incident took place on December 11, 2008 when 17 students assaulted the driver who tried to prevent an assault to one of the teachers of the school at Khurai in Imphal East district.

The commander further revealed the incident started from the school the same day during the ongoing pre-final test for class 12 standard of the school.

The families of the 15 (fifteen) students had been informed to compensate the injured driver who has been hospitalized after the severe beating before or on January 5, 2009, informed the militant commander and has directed the other two students who were not present on Monday to surrender by January 2, 2009. Lamjingba informed that appropriate form of punishments would be provided to any one polluting learning institutions and that the JTF will continue their task to track down such flow from time to time.

Accident killed one in Kohima

Kohima: At least one person was killed while eight others seriously injured as the truck in which they were traveling capsized along the Nagaland Secretariat Road, Kohima on Monday at around 1:30 pm.

Sources revealed that the deeper truck (NL01-A-7484) carrying firewood from Kohima to Secretariat along with seven labourers and one of their in-charge overturned before reaching the destination. (NNN)

Militant nabbed

Imphal: Troops of Assam Rifles on Monday nabbed a cadre of People United Liberation Front at Singga, Thoubal district.

The militant was identified as Md Sanayai and was handed over to Yairipok police.

Meanwhile, two youths, shot dead by a combined force last evening at Leimakhong, were identified as Salam Jingo (36) of Sagolband and Soibam Baocha (24) of Sega road, police said. (UNI)

Human rights activist meets Irom Sharmila

Imphal: Proclaiming that hunger striker Irom Chanu Sharmila who has been fast-unto-death agitation, has chosen the right path of democratic protest, Dr. Sandeep Pandey, National co-ordinator of National Alliance for People’s Movement referred to her as the living Gandhi.

Stating further that Sharmila has been eight years into the hunger strike, Dr. Pandey also called upon the people of the state to support her stance.

Visiting the ‘iron lady’ on Monday evening at the Jawahar Lal Nehru (JN) hospital in Porompat, Imphal East where Sharmila is under custody of the state government on charges of suicide attempt and is being nose fed, Dr. Pandey held that the one of the prior duty of the state government was to solve the problems of the people of the state and bring peace. Enforcing draconian law such as the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, AFSPA in the state would only add to the problem of the state, observed the noted human rights activist and opined that political dialogue could help solve the problem.

It is sad that the Union and Manipur governments are still silent on this draconian law of AFSPA in the state, lamented Dr. Pandey.

Extending his support in the fight against AFSPA, Dr. Pandey reminded that seven members from the National Alliance for People’s Movement had participated in the 5 days fasting organised by the Manipur Forward Youth Front (MAFYF) sometimes back. (NNN)

2008: A year of political upheaval in Mizoram

Aizawl: The year 2008 saw a storming comeback of the Congress in Mizoram after ten years of hibernation.

2008 witnessed a series of political activities and developments in Mizoram throughout the year. In the administration, it saw non-stop agitations of government employees who were demanding pay parity.

As the year started, Mizoram was greeted by acute rice shortage particularly in the rural areas following the cyclic gregarious bamboo flowering locally referred to as Mautam that hit the state the previous year. The bamboo flowering, which occurred every 48 years, resulted in the multiplication of rats that attacked standing rice.

Church organisations, NGOs and global agencies came to the rescue even as the ruling Mizo National Front, which happened to be an offspring of previous Mautam in the late 1950s, was scathingly attacked as failing to combat the famine despite central fund of Rs 125 crore for the purpose. Fortunately, there was no starvation death following the Mautam famine. According to official reports, as many as 1,41,825 families in rural Mizoram were more or less affected by the Mautam.

Mautam issue went on to become one of the major poll planks of the Congress in the run-up to the December 2 State Assembly polls.

May 15 was a red-letter day for the Mizoram Pradesh Congress Committee as the John Lalsangzuala-led Mizoram Congress Party came back to the parent party after three years of rebellion. Subsequently, the two MCP legislators elected with the support of ruling MNF, resigned.

Khandu lodges protest with Gogoi over checkgate demolition

Itanagar/Lakhimpur: The demolition of a checkgate erected by Arunachal Pradesh in Assam’s Lakhimpur district by police and forest department personnel on Monday led Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu to lodge a protest with his Assam counterpart Tarun Gogoi.

Official sources said the demolition in Lakhimpur took place in the presence of an executive magistrate while people from Arunachal Pradesh armed with bows, arrows and sticks attacked a forest department office there. Three of the attackers have been arrested.

Khandu told reporters in Itanagar that about 100 policemen from Assam forcibly entered Gumto village on the inter-state border early on Monday and took away valuables of the villagers after beating them up and ransacking their homes.

Stating that he had requested Gogoi to ensure that such attacks did not recur, he said Home Minister Garban Gamlin will visit the area tomorrow to take stock of the situation. The decade-old Assam-Arunachal boundary problem has become the bone of contention for the people living in the border areas as they were always being targeted by Assam officials in the name of eviction. Many such incidents of harassment were being reported in earlier years with the state government appealing the neighbouring state for corrective measures but without any positive results.

Meanwhile, Lok Sabha MP from Arunachal Kiren Rijiju in an emergency meeting with Union Home Minister P Chidambaram strongly protested and lodged a complaint against the act of perpetrators by the officers of Assam Police for commiting crime against the innocent people of Gumto Village.

The BJP MP asked the home minister for immediate intervention of the Centre to take necessary action against the erring officials including Lakhimpur DC, SP, divisional forest officer, ADC, ADSP and circle officers involved in the demolition drive.

Mr Chidambaram, however, assured Mr Rijiju that a report would be sought immediately and necessary action would be initiated, sources informed.

Khandu said a one man commission appointed by the Supreme Court is currently going into the inter-state boundary dispute and the Assam government should ensure that such incidents do not take place in the future. In 1999 an agreement was signed between then Assam chief minister Hiteswar Saikia and his Arunachal counterpart Gegong Apang that no checkgate would be set up on the border in Assam territory, official sources in Assam said. (PTI)