Malom massacre of Nov 2, 2000 : Ten killed, one crusader born
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: November 04, 2014 -

Irom Chanu Sharmila brought out of the court of JMIC Imphal East Court at Lamphelpat :: October 09, 2012 :: Pix - Premchand Thongam

November 2, 2000 is not just another date on the calendar.

Significant in many ways for it did not merely add another chapter to the mass killings of civilians by security personnel but once again brought out the ugly face of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act.

To rejig the memory of the readers and the people, ten people were killed on this day at Malom and it should be more than apparent that the ten were not killed in a cross fire, for there was no encounter as such.

More than likely that the security personnel picked up their targets, physically and metaphorically speaking.

Adding salt to the hurt psyche of the people is the point that till today there is nothing to suggest that the Government of India has pulled up the trigger happy personnel.

This is what sucks and gives credence to the observation that the Armed Forces Special Powers Act is nothing less than a license given to the security personnel to kill as they please.

Thanks to the struggle taken up by a lone soul, the Malom massacre will not fade away from public memory that easily.

If the gruesome killing of Th Manorama gave birth to the nude protest in front of Kangla in 2004, then Sharmila is undoubtedly a child of the Malom massacre in 2000.

A child of the massacre and lest anyone forgets, the Malom massacre must have also given birth to a number of widows and orphans.

A point which no one should forget, particularly Delhi.

From Malom to the international arena, Sharmila has surely managed to bring to the attention of the world a draconian Act with her 14 year fast and this is something that should be acknowledged, for hers is more than just a question of fasting in pursuit of a demand, but is against an oppressive measure, the end of which is not likely to materialise any time in the future.

Not just another day and surely not just a day for the public or some section of the people to queue up at the memorial site at Malom to pay their respect to the departed souls.

Imphal and Delhi need to do something concrete to give more substance to the day.

Listening to the point that Sharmila or for that matter anyone who has something to say against the continued imposition of the Army Act may just be the right start.

It was not for nothing that former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh constituted the Jeevan Reddy Committee to minutely study the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and submit its own recommendations.

A good start it was but it ended rather dismally with nothing to show that the Government of India is ready to act on the recommendations of the Committee.

Once again a grim reminder that the demand pursued by Sharmila may not materialise in the near future. More than right that Delhi wake up and take note of the reality here.

That the Act is draconian should be beyond doubt.

A point underlined by the fact that the former Prime Minister had said that efforts would be put in to see if a more humane law can be put in place of the present Army Act.

Ten people were killed at Malom 14 years back, but it should say something that in the death of the 14, the world today sees the birth of a crusader, though it may have been 14 years back.