Source: The Imphal Free Press
Imphal, August 07:
The Tangkhul Aze Katamnao Long (Southern Tangkhul Students' Union) has urged the fraternal communities in the state particularly the hill and valley brethren to exercise circumspection stating that otherwise their existing relationship may suddenly die out one day.
It also appealed to the concerned not to use slogans or words of communal nature during rallies.
"If the hill and valley brethren, who have been living together with the spirit of unity for a long time, do things without due consideration, the existing relationship between them may suddenly die out one day", said a release issued by MS Apam and Tennyson Kashung, president and general secretary respectively of the Tangkhul Aze Katamnao Long (TAKL).
"The valley brethren are out to upset the long aspirations of the hill people because they fail to appreciate the hardships of the latter who incessantly fight for a bite without having an affordable time to say we are done up", the release said adding a week's stay among the hill people will make the valley people sufficiently realize how life is in the hills.
"Education is hampered by the poor state of road communication; educational institutions and offices are sinking into oblivion; agricultural produces, though abundant, are laid waste due to lack of proper marketing facility, while each cultivator works for around 10 hours a day in the field and return home at the end of the day only to be harassed and tortured by the Army", accounted the release.
"We truly welcomed the ceasefire extension only to escape such atrocity" "However, the valley brethren are shouting 'we want peace, we oppose ceasefire' out of egotism thus landing the Indian government into confusion.
Unfortunately, the Indian government has seized upon this variance between us and is now finding it easy to employ a divide and rule policy", said the release.
The release expressed pain at the series of events that took place during the agitation protesting the Indian government-NSCN(IM) ceasefire without territorial limit.
"It should be cleared as to why we should like the gun-battle between NSCN and security forces amidst us, the resultant torture and harassment on us and degradation of women, to continue, if at all we want peace", said the release.
Strongly stressing the need to exercise circumspection, the TAKL release also expressed concern over the opposition to each other's causes and hurling of allegations and counter-allegations to each other between the people.