Talk of normalcy gaining ground Reach out to the Nagas

It has taken more than 14 months but in a way it is assuring to hear talk of peace and normalcy gaining ground of late. On July 27, The Indian Express in a report from New Delhi quoted an unnamed BJP leader as stating, ‘bringing peace is the only mission in Manipur now. All that we have to do is to bring both sides (Meiteis and Kuki-Zos) to the table for discussions. It shouldn’t be about a new State nor about driving out people.’ Read between the lines and so many things may be read into it particularly the line ‘It shouldn’t be about a new State nor about driving out people’ and the way Delhi has interpreted its understanding of bringing the place back to normalcy may become a little clearer. What however has been said in black and white is the need to bring peace and while the report did not carry on the finer details of how the peace process may be set into motion, it is obvious that normalcy is at the top of the agenda of Delhi. The unnamed BJP leader has also been qualified with the line, ‘Another BJP leader familiar with the party’s functioning in the North East’ and this is where his take on the need to bring Manipur back on the track of normalcy gains that much more credence. If the unnamed BJP leader talked about the need to bring the State on the track of normalcy, Outer Lok Sabha MP Alfred Kanngam Arthur went one step further in recalling a meeting with the then Governor of Manipur Anusuiya Uikey wherein Congress leaders suggested reaching out to the Naga community for help in restoring peace in the State as it had remained neutral in the conflict and could talk to both sides. Wonder how this suggestion was taken by the Governor and the State Government, but here is a case of how the help and assistance of a major, indigenous community of the State could be harnessed to start the process of talking things over. On the same day that the Lok Sabha MP delivered his impassioned speech on the floor of the Lok Sabha, Chairperson of the Manipur Human Rights Commission, Justice UB Saha was in Ukhrul wherein he urged the Naga community to take the lead and see if they can contribute in resolving the prolonged conflict. The proposal of Justice UB Saha was aired during an interaction programme with District Level Officers as well as leaders of Tangkhul civil societies. Roping in the service of the Nagas to act as the mediator between the two warring communities and  nothing can be more practical than this and it is this same line which The Sangai Express had suggested on more than one occasion in this very column. One hopes the suggestions put forth by the MHRC Chairperson is acted upon by the civil society leaders of Ukhrul and see if it can be taken to the next level.
The Naga People’s Front (NPF) is very much a part of the BJP led Government at Imphal and one wonders if any effort has been put in to use this partnership in the effort to put the State back on the track of normalcy. Over 14 months in a state of conflict is long, very long and while the talk of peace and normalcy is welcome, one wonders why no overt efforts towards this seem to be coming from the side of the Centre. Create rooms for Naga leaders to be able to reach out to either side and let Delhi take up from there and be the host where the dialogue table can be laid. ‘Crisis can be resolved only through peaceful dialogues’ is the line maintained by the MHRC Chairperson and he could not have been more right than this and it is time for everyone concerned to fall in line with this line of facts. Over 220 people have died, more than 60,000 people are living as refugees in their own homeland, many are still missing and hundreds of homes have been razed and levelled to the ground but where has this taken Manipur ? Have the deaths, the displacements, the forced disappearance taken Manipur anywhere near resolving outstanding issues which would pose a threat to her existence ? Questions which all those who believe in the geo-political reality called Manipur should seriously ponder over. And at the same time it should also be clear that Manipur needs the intervention of Delhi to resolve the stand off and this is precisely the reason why such a furore was kicked up over the indifference of the Prime Minister to the fact that while he has been playing a world figure, a State in India has been on the boil for over a year now.