To,
Dr. Manmohan Singh
Honorable Prime Minister of India
Government of India,
This beautiful part of the world is filled with an ever increasing number of grieving parents and families at the loss of their loved ones. These mindless acts have far exceeded the tolerance level of any civilized society and we believe the citizens of Manipur deserve some answers and solutions to this present state of turmoil.
We are a hardworking, law abiding citizens of this country but lamentably have to lead a life of constant state of fear and apprehension, continually facing the prospect of losing the lives of our loved ones, to these mindless acts of violence which should not have any place in any civilized society. We, the public, regret to say that we have minimal confidence in the existing government and the state machinery especially when it comes to safeguarding its citizens
Manipur, we believe, has become a ‘stage’ for the many politicians and leaders of various organizations, both legal and illegal, to indulge in disturbing and violence-based politics at the cost of countless lives of innocent public and the society. The state has unfortunately even witnessed unimaginable acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing in the past. The recent incident in Imphal has further substantiated our fear of Manipur being used as an experimental stage for violence.
At this juncture, as citizens of the state in particular and the country at large, we would like to raise some serious questions that need immediate attention – questions that need to be addressed.
1. Why is it that the action of the State and Central Government is limited to official condemnations and lack concrete plan and policies? Whilst we appreciate the swift action of the government in tracing and making a strong official statement of having concrete evidences of those behind the attack and murder, we would like to share our deepest concerns, especially the failure to arrest and hold anyone accountable so far, and despite knowing who those individuals are, who carried out the heinous act, allow them to continue to live freely in the community.
2. Why has no action been taken against the government officials under whose jurisdiction these incidents happened for dereliction of duty and failure to maintain law and order?
3. Why is it that the famed RAW, IB, Crime Branches and all other Intelligence Agencies unable to provide intelligence inputs / information to prevent such acts of terror? Why is action against such agencies not taken for such failures?
4. Why has the political machinery and the government not taken any concrete steps to bring an end to the decades old armed insurgency in the state despite taking thousands of innocent lives and bringing economic development to a grinding halt? If the Punjab Accord can bring an end to the turmoil in Punjab despite being backed and funded by Pakistan, and if the Mizoram Accord can bring peace to a similar problem in neighboring Mizoram, why cannot a negotiated settlement be brought about in Manipur?
5. Does the political system have the moral right to be still in power if it has failed in its primary duty of looking after the welfare of its citizens?
6. Do the present national media houses of the country have any moral responsibility to cover the present turmoil in the state and initiate debates with the public of the country?
We would like to remind the Government of India and the state of Manipur that they have failed time and again to implement any concrete programs and policies. We believe this lack of concrete steps has allowed this present state of misgovernance to flourish, leaving these individuals / organizations free to continue their activities and establish a sense of lawlessness.
We want to be part of a responsible society where everyone lives in peace. We want a society where there is no more bloodshed or mindless killings of innocent lives, a place where education can flourish without any bombs near schools and a place led by people with high standards of political moral values.
We would like to request all concerned and responsible people of land to please come together on a common platform and militancy and insurgency issues are solved based on highest humane values.
We once again would like to strongly urge the Honorable Prime Minister, the Chief Minister, and the leaders of the various Organizations of the state to introspect, take moral responsibility and give justice to the innocent victims of the recent act of violence. We urge you to restore the faith of the people by delivering justice and promote democratic ideals and establish a peaceful and prosperous state.
We would ever remain grateful for any attempt to create fair governance and a chance for a dignified life to the people of Manipur.
1/ Ex-Students from Don Bosco School (DBS), IMPHAL
2/ Ex-Students from Little Flower School (LFS), IMPHAL
3/ Ex-Students from C C Higher Secondary School IMPHAL
4/ Ex-Students from Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV), Kakching
5/ Kuki Student Organisation, Delhi
6/ Komrem Student Union, Delhi
7/ Manipur Youth Foundation
8/ Hyderabad Manipuri Soceity
This mail is copied to :-
The above Press Release was sent to Kanglaonline by Nelson Elengbam. He can be contacted @ elangbam[@]gmail.com
May I suggest that first the hard working and law abiding citizens of Manipur stop choosing their police officers by bribery 3-4 lacs being the rate for basic police commando rising to several million to be an officer. It’s not that they then don’t do anything. I was arrested twice and then released with the explanation that I wasn’t really really arrested. And once interrogated with threats of violence by 3 SIB officers. So it’s not that these security forces don’t do anything. It’s more that they are in the employ of local gangsters. That the hard working and law abiding citizens of Manipur are paralyzed by constant fear and aprehension so it is you who do nothing. Take for example the response of the State Government, that they will be forced to reinsitute AF(SP)A within Imphal City Limits. This is nothing but an attack from one family of gangsters against another. The DG of Imphal Police can ask for a lot of money if you want to join his gang but if turn all those commandoes into pure ceremonial officers and hand back real power to intimidate and swagger back to the Assam Rifles or other Indian Army secondments then why would anyone keep paying the bribes. My experience of Manipur was confirmed by a visitor from UdayIndia a new weekly magazine http://www.udayindia.org/content_02july2011/cover_story.html A slimy copper can visit your hotel room and make outrageous demands. I told mine not without a warrant and so he began to suggest he would pick up any local women who might have come into contact with me. The report above confirms what I know that your coppers aren’t all that stupid they are just corrupt. In both cases the officers knew where each of us had been where we going purpose of visit etc. When I was there there were two large car bomb explosions and two hand grenade attacks. The second grenade attack was also in a busy market area of Imphal very close to Police HQ. There was also a gangland murder in an office block very close to Police HQ. Nobody saw anything. For too long your gangsters have known that if they pay bribes up front they will never be investigated. And outside Imphal for now the Indian Army have the same rights. What Indians call levelling the playing field. But you hardworking law abiding citizens of India claim that it is your constant fear and apprehension which causes you good men to do nothing. The rest of India knows that Manipur is run as a police state from a third world banana republic. For now your fear and apprehension outweighs your duty to work hard and abide by the law. And yet your fear and apprehension has it made any of you feel safer today. As a start you have given a name, it might even be a real contactable one. I no longer name the people I know to be prospering under the current regime of corruption because Kangla then will not publish, hard working and law abiding as its journalists may be they too live under constant fear and apprehension, and anyway you all know their names and details far more closely than I. There is a simple step that you hard working and law abiding citizens could take to begin to restore the rule of law to Manipur. That would be the lifting of AF(SP)A not just from Imphal City limits which was a grubby deal done to help one family who now besieges and torments Irom Sharmila whom some claim to support and love, from all of Manipur. That is within the power of Manipuris. So please no more we are only a few million what can we do when we are swamped by a billion Indians. You can take responsibility for your own lives and that of your State. That’s it that’s my suggestion. Or you can continue to write pointless letters to Delhi. If you will not lift a finger to rid yourselves of problems of your own making then why would people who don’t care about your State for whom it is a land far far away whose peoples and customs are strange to them. This is a democracy. The British left in the last millenium way back in the last century. The year is 2011. When will you hard working and law abiding Manipuris take responsibility for your own lives in your own State. Repeal AF(SP)A and I’ll show you how a free man lives and dies. Manipur is not beautiful. It has become a suppurating carbuncle on India’s backside. Any land nearby has beauty so perhaps it was beautiful once. And so maybe it can be regained. I am not coming to Manipur for any of you others or for its beautiful landscapes and there is no economy here apart from drug gun and people trafficking. But if you think that the problems you have now are as bad as they get so long as through fear and apprehension you continue to do nothing. Then you are far more stupid then even I imagined.