Sunday, 28 August 2016

The Awakened People of Manipur Hills

The Awakened People of Manipur Hills 
(written during the first week of Sept 2015) 

Vision
To live in peace with dignity and self-respect without fear of subjugation of any one but the Almighty God who raised us in the land of our ancestors

Mission
To pursue the highest level of wholistic development for mankind in general and for ourselves in particular through good governance and ensuring justice in the society.

Core values
1.   Common faith in the Living God
2.   Common ethnicity
3.   Respect and acceptance of different dialects and identities
4.   Love and concern for our own people
5.   Transparency and Accountability
6.   Prayer as our weapon

Goals
1.   To stand and strive together and protect, preserve and develop the hills and valleys where God had placed us as good stewards of nature’s beauty and resources
2.   To bring about sustainable development for ourselves as tribal populations of NE India
3.   To encourage pursuit of the highest level of proficiency in various fields of human resource development under the Government of India [and thus continue our contribution to the growth and development of good governance and excellent diplomatic relations for our country]

Objectives
1.   To come together in the forum of commonality in ethnicity and faith and create a wide base of common leadership and think tank in xxx period
2.   To develop sustainable development strategies for tribal population with relevant ministries [e.g. MoTW, DONER, etc.] under GOI within xxx period
3.   To set up forum for students where they can pursue their studies in peace and tranquility and be prepared for future leadership to our people and the nation within xxx period

Strategies
1.   Consultation with key leaders (church leaders, tribe leaders, intellectuals, women groups, student groups, youth groups)
2.   Formation of steering committee and implementing team (s)
3.   Implementation plan to be executed in a time bound manner.

Outcome – Long-term
1.   Protection of tribal lands
2.   Recognition of our identity as people who walk in the fear of the Lord
3.   To have our own systems of governance under the law of the land (India) for tribal population
4.   Lasting Peace in the conflict prone region
5.   Acceleration and sustenance of wholistic development in the region

Output – Short-term
1.   Uniform understanding of the strategic plan
2.   Common forum/window of communication
3.   Maintaining peace and harmony in the spirit of equal respect for humanity

4.   New paradigm of progress and development in the spirit of integrity and transparency for our community



Sunday, 21 August 2016

Manipur Regulation of Non-local People Bill 2016 - my comment

Problem with the new draft bill 

The Government of Manipur  has invited comments on the draft of the proposed 'Manipur Regulation of Non-Local People Bill 2016' on or before the 24th August 2016. This draft is a mix of the then 'The Manipur Regulation of Visitors, Tenants and Migrant Workers Bill 2015' (which was passed by Manipur Legislative Assembly in 2015 but subsequently withdrawn) and the 'The Protection of Manipur Bill 2015' which was rightfully rejected by the President of India. The new draft Bill has nothing new to offer except some new terminology and the date and basis for determining who could be included as 'Local People'. Interestingly, the Bill is silent on the illegal influx from other countries. Further, the absence of any demarcation between the hills and valley in the Bill is nothing but an attempt to impose a common law in the Hills and Valley (placing Tribals and Non Tribals under the same is against the Indian Constitution) which will subsequently be extended in all legislation, thereby undermining the rights and identity of the tribals.

The changes are too little and too simplistic and does not resolve the contentious issues that provoke widespread protest not only in the state but all over the country. Till the underlying issues that sparked off the widespread unrest are addressed and justice for the nine tribal lives are met, an attempt to introduce the half baked Bill will most likely generate more problem than solve the present impasse.

Friday, 5 August 2016

an orphan named Odassah

There was an orphan named Hadassah. Her mother and father had died and so her father Abihail's brother took care of her and treated her as his own daughter. This man was very careful to practice the belief system of his tribe. In fact he was not afraid to tell others to which tribe he belonged. The stand he took landed him into big trouble. In fact not just him but all people of of his tribe. However if 'I die I die' was the principle he lived by and which he had imparted to Hadassah also. Only they and their people knew their God who is above all would hear their prayers. They also believed from generation to generation that God is in control of all affairs of the world. Their faith eventually prevailed against all odds and their stand vindicated.
Is there any lesson here as those who believed in the same God as this orphan girl and her cousin-brother uncle?