The demand for 'Dimaraji State' has digressed and treaded the unwanted unconventional path by resorting to the ongoing "ethnic cleansing campaign" unleashed by the majority Dimasa tribe against the minority Hmars in Cachar and North Cachar Hills Districts of Assam. The misconceived assumption, of the belief that doing away with the Hmar tribe and various other minorities could enhance the realisation of 'Dimaraji State' is one of the core factor determining the macabre pogrom. On the other hand, it may be a mistake to view the conflicts of the two districts to be rooted in religious, cultural and identity differences, as some has pointed out. The ethnic cleansing campaign is, rather, in many ways, a product of years of communal campaign to cleanse Cachar and North Cachar Hills for the Dimasas.

The evidences are layered. One is the, so far, futile attempt on the part of the Dimaraji Revival Demand Committee (DRDC) and its armed wing, the Dima Halam Daogah (DHD) to change the name of N. C. Hills District into 'Dima Halili'. As such, the problem is not a sudden eruption. The root causes are serious and deeply embedded in the destructive political processes pursued by the DRDC in collusion with the DHD. They seared the political history of the Hmars and the Dimasas in the two districts of Assam. The campaign is largely a result of years of fears, jealousies and rivalries of the Dimasas against the Hmars who were minorities demographically, but were relatively well ahead of other communities in the region. The Hmars of N. C. Hills and Cachar were largely touched and benefitted by such revolutionary changes in education, trades and professions etc. Amidst such developments, fears and insecurity on the part of the demographically dominant community surfaced.

Singleminded preoccupation wedded the destructive myopic goal of the majority tribe which overtook the socio-economic and political capabilities. Since then, a pragmatic attitude towards the Hmars in particular, is a policy which the Dimasas can ill-afford. This has, in turn, become a convenient instrument for the Dimasa politicians who has always adopted adhoc and ill-conceived initiatives which have yielded nothing substantially for both the Dimasas and the Hmars. Unfortunately, however, this converged very well with the Dimasa politicians' own search for power defined in terms of votes, while at the same time, stirred and exhumed hyper-nationalism among the Dimasas.

Coupled with the Dimasas' sense of vulnerability was a conviction on the part of its political leadership that it had a vested interest in deepening the divide between the two tribes. The Dimasa political leadership, then, exploited the minority Hmar as the reason for embarking on the road to their political stability while at the same time giving life to the demand for 'Dimaraji State'. In the process, they have gorged itself upon the bulk of whatever resources is available at their capacity while the Government of Assam become inherently weak and intrinsically lacking in resilience. On the other hand, the thousands of indigenous Hmars of Cachar and North Cachar Hills who have been victimised and displaced were made to realise that they are struggling and fighting an entity none other than the State itself.

The Hmars have finally realised that the Dimasa politicians are increasingly using the State machinery to repress and supress their Fundamental Rights. This is manifested in numerous incidents where the Dimasa politicians and the Assam police in N. C. Hills have been particularly acting with biased respect to the rights of the Hmar people. The Dimasa politicians have developed a vested interest in maintaining a posture of hostility towards the Hmars and any rapprochement with the Hmars is seen as a threat to their privileged position. The Dimasa politicians conveniently exploit resentments, prejudices and passions in their attempt to gain or retain a hold on power.

These have engendered massive violations of fundamental human rights and freedoms, grave compromises of economic and social development, breakdowns of civil order and finally ethnic cleansing, genocide and exodus. This has stripped the Hmars of their essential humanity. However, the Dimasa polticians, the DRDC and the DHD ought to realise that there can be no peace and stability in Cachar and N. C. Hills unless the rights, status and privilege of the Hmars and various other minority tribes are unconditionally accepted.

Meanwhile, the Government of Assam has made no constructive efforts to intervene on behalf of the thousands of displaced Hmars who have crossed over to Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya and who were uprooted and insecurely dispersed in different parts of Assam. The Assam Government seem to be deliberately ignoring the fact that the thousands of internally displaced Hmars fall under the sovereign authority of its governments. The Governments' silence has no doubt adduced to the belief that it is operating in close tandem with the designers of destruction.

No organisation or group can be really counted on automatically to come to the assistance of the displaced persons or to take the peace initiative. The Church, students' organisations and various other philanthropic associations had intervened, but then retreated again in futility. However, it is the State and the Government who should intervene in its whole capacity to bring about peace and security in the region. The State should also immediately solve the immense problems of the thousands of internally displaced Hmars who are, now, among the single largest at-risk population. They are beset by hunger, disease and lack of adequate shelter. They are abused both by the State machineries and insurgent forces, and suffer mortality rates of epidemic proportions. Till today, their serious situations still remain unattended.

The Government of Assam has been treating the Hmars with deliberate biasness. The Hmars, although citizens, have been regarded as 'aliens', 'infiltrators' and 'threatening group', usually with a different language, culture or religion, and most often a minority subjected to abusive rule by the majority. This sense of alienation defined in terms of race, ethnicity, language, culture or religion is present in the ongoing forced displacement. The divisions it caused undermine peaceful coexistence, national unity and any efforts towards peace initiatives. They make illusory any sense of political or social solidarity. It looks like peace can only be attained if the depth of concern about the immediate and long term future of the thousands of internally displaced Hmars starting with proper rehabilitation and resettlement is dealt with in utmost urgency. Resettlement should be seen as the first step in a long term recovery process. Settlement must be a base for economic, social and psychological readjustment. The Government of Assam and the Central Government ought to immediately develop proper institutional structures, legal framework and rehabilitation designs to deal with the thousands of displaced.

The crude of State power against the minorities shows a contempt for the democratic spirit that is deeply disturbing. In the process, the law and order machinery is trampling on the basic and Fundamental Rights of the people. The Government of Assam as well as the Central Government should feel secure with its huge mandate and use the opportunity to concentrate on the task of governance without even the distractions of a political challenge. Ironically, it is instead, behaving like an administration which is unsure of itself and is living from day to day. Its inordinate appetite for political confrontation is bound to take a heavy toll in terms of diminutions of democratic rights and the welfare of the State as a whole.

If in Assam, a democratic government is created, one which respects human rights, then the effect of that region would be to create a model in the region. But the question is, can it be done? The task, it reminds me, of one of those sci-fi stories, in which the inhabitants of a doomed earth seek a planet from which to sculpt their new home, I think "terra-forming" was the phrase. Playing the role of God, human beings put in place, the foundations, the mountains, the institutions, the infrastructure necessary for survival and prosperity. It is unfortunate to witness how the Government downplays the whole situation. The Hmars are certainly at mire.