UNM-M pleads President to repeal AFSPA
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, April 13 2013 :
Ahead of the President of India Pranab Mukherjee's maiden visit to Manipur on April 15, United NGOs Mission-Manipur (UNM-M) has dispatched a memorandum to the President highlighting a 15-point charter of demands including the demand for repealing Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), 1958 and long term sustainable peace building in Manipur.
Informing this to mediapersons during a press conference at Manipur Press Club here today, Secretary of UNM-M U Nobokishore said that the copy of the memorandum has been faxed to the President.
The 15-point charter of demands highlighted in the memorandum included repeal of AFSPA from the soil of India so that the true picture of democracy can be maintained, establishment of 20 Special Investigation Teams (SITs) to investigate all the 1528 cases of extrajudicial killings and rape under AFSPA/counter insurgency and take up necessary legal measures to ensure justice to the victim families by awarding appropriate punishment to the perpetrators within a period of one year.
Furthermore, the memorandum demanded to stop systematical violence and discrimination against women and children in terms of rape, killing and trafficking and punish all the culprits without any delay, not to allow to depute Armed Forces deployed in Manipur for UN Peace Keeping Force to any foreign country, compulsory registration and allotment of numbers to all the vehicles being used by the paramilitary and Indian Army and punishment of those who violate the law, setting up of a commission to investigate into how the illegal arms got into the hands of individuals of gangs and punish those who are violating the law of the land, to hold political dialogue with armed political organizations by constituting an Independent Commission for Conflict Resolution in Manipur and also to develop a framework on pre-negotiation, negotiation and post-negotiation with special monitoring mechanism with due representation from civil societies and NGOs and also by engaging International community as a third party to the negotiation to settle the long standing political conflict.
With regard to the proposed India-EU FTA, the memorandum demanded to hold discussion and debate on the proposal in the Parliament and State Assemblies and said that without such discussion and debate, UNM-M would strongly object to signing on the proposed text of the current trade negotiation.
The memorandum also demanded that implementation of REDD, REDD+ and CDM projects in the northeast under Climate Change Negotiation should be implemented.
On the issue of illegal drug trade, UNM-M urged the President for stringent punishment of any actor/party involved in such crimes.
The memorandum has also demanded political settlement of Manipur with its own police and self-determination for political, economic, social and cultural rights; to stop construction of dams, exploration of oil and natural gas as well as mineral in Manipur without the free, prior and informed consent of the indigenous people; revival of Manipur Human Rights Commission and constituting a policy for the victims of armed conflict, particularly women and children for their livelihood, education and health.