Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, August 10:
The All Tribal Students� Union, Manipur (ATSUM) and the All Naga Students� Association, Manipur (ANSAM) have called a 12-hour Hill Districts bandh from 4 am of August 12 till 4 pm to demand the removal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 from the State and also to give befitting punishment to the security personnel involved in the killing of Th Manorama and pastor Jamkholet Khongsai.
ATSUM general secretary Samson Remei and ANSAM president Paul Langhu issued statements separately to Newmai News Network today stating that AFSPA, 1958 was promulgated to contain the insurgency movements in the NE, but ever since its promulgation, militancy movement in the region has only increased.
The student bodies stated that it is no use to continue imposing this Act as the purpose has not been served at all.
The ATSUM statement said that civilians had become too vulnerable to the said Act despite the of "dos" and "don'ts" issued by a five member bench of the Supreme Court while the ANSAM stated that the Nagas had suffered untold miseries including rapes and tortures ever since the promulgation of "this draconian Act to suppress the peoples� movement of the Nagas but the Armed Forces Special Powers Act had not been able to suppress the movement of the Nagas inspite of all these things�.
ANSAM further stated that the AFSPA must be discontinued for restoring faith in the Government for peaceful and democratic resolution of the prevailing conflict in the North East region.
The Naga student body urged all its federating units and subordinate bodies to make the proposed bandh a success while the ATSUM stated that experiences of more than three decades of the promulgation of this Act shows that no amount of strict adherence to order would stop the security forces from abusing human rights.
ATSUM noted that pastor Jamkholet case had been ignored by the Manipur Government and demanded that justice should be done in this regard and also for the surviving family members of the deceased.