Why AFSPA in a Democratic Country
- Part 1 -

Urikhimbam Jenison *

Peace Rally at Imphal observing the signing of AFSPA in 1958 on 11 September 2011 :: Pix - Amarjit Longjam

The people of the North Eastern region of India, particularly Manipur, suffer the most since the imposition of the Armed Forces (Special Powers Act), 1958. It has been more than 50 years since the people of Manipur have been living with this lawless law or rather the Act to be precise. It is more like a snake ready to strike any time anywhere, while the people at large do not know where and when to run to escape from its poisonous fangs. The People in Manipur have not yet had the taste of living in freedom, only the bitter taste of conflict where the general public gets tangled between the devil and the deep blue sea.

The conflict continues in many forms. Since my childhood, torture, killing, rape, rape coupled with murder, unwarranted arrest, detention, firing, bomb blast, and extrajudicial killings have been the call of the day. The experiences I have been surrounded with, having read about them in daily newspapers and, sometimes, even watched news of the same on the TV news channel. When I was young, this used to be the news of the time, but when confronted by the ground reality as I grew older, I am compelled to get beholden to it and it made me restless. When I began to work in the fields where I would hear the cry of the victims' families, it haunted me and continues to do so till today.

How many more will suffer under this draconian law and who will be the next prey of sufferings? Many cases go unreported, as the people shiver in fear of the armed forces by recalling brutal incidents which they had been through during the peak of insurgency in the 1980's and 90's. Although there are many cases of complaints filed in the concerned police stations, the related files and evidence are manipulated by the authorities concerned, resulting in delays.

Getting justice in these cases is just a myth in this corrupt society. In many cases, police themselves become judge and jury, solving the cases by negotiating with the respective victims' families and the perpetrators, collecting a percentage of compensatory money from both parties. As such, many of the cases are not fully investigated and justice could not be delivered to any of the victims' families stuck in the protracted armed conflict. It is in this kind of society we are compelled to live because of the invocation of AFSPA in Manipur.

Although the AFSPA has been lifted from the region of greater Imphal ranging into 7 assembly segments, the disturbance and the restlessness are still being experienced by the people. Also, some other forms of violence do exist. The right to freedom of speech, right to freedom of assembly, and right to freedom of association are violated by the civil police, the commandos and the paramilitary forces. Many human rights lawyers, journalists, and social activists meet obstacles from State or non State actors while performing their task of attending issues of human rights violation. Death threats, infrequent physical attack, planting of hand grenades in front of gates, and receiving gun shots at residences are some of what is still being faced.

Every two kilometres, one is frisked by the police, and this is one of their routine works for collecting "taxes" from the passersby for their not having proper documents. Once a person is stopped, the police personnel find ways and means to point out minor mistakes to achieve their ends. The collected "taxes" are then distributed among themselves and the shares of their officers are also delivered on a daily or monthly basis. All the shops, street vendors, mobile cafes, public buses, rickshaw pullers, and restaurants are some of the areas from where they receive their "taxes".

On the other hand, the different insurgent outfits also collect "taxes" from the same areas; they too extort from households and all kinds of vehicles owners, including trucks transporting livestock. If people fail to give the "taxes" then different forms of harassment take place, like pushing the truck down the hill, burning the vehicle, firing at the buses, and so on. During such courses of action, many casualties have been reported. At least Rs. 25,000 is spent per trip on the National Highways by truck owners, and it varies according to the products being transported. The interesting thing is the check post or the illegal tax collection counter which is located just beside the army or the police check post. As a result, prices of products for daily use are hiked and all members of society suffer.

People cannot speak out against these acts as they are gripped by fear, of both the civilian and military establishments and the insurgent groups. Ironically, although many Indian army companies and regiments are deployed, and also the recruitment into the police force is on the increase, yet, the disturbance also goes on increasing. There are 207 cases of crime against humanity recorded between the months of January and May 2015(sources from documentation by Women Action for Development an organisation working for Violence Against Women), out of it 128 cases are of crime against women and children in which 23 are reported dead and 99 cases of crime against male in which 58 are reported dead.

A staggering 37 bomb blasts across the state were also reported during the month of January to May 2015 in which 4 civilians were killed and 54 others injured. These incidents speak of the fact that Manipur has become "A Land of the Dead" and the people of the State find it to be a place where they have become more and more insecure living in. "The Right to Life" spelled out in Article 21 of the Indian Constitution is violated with impunity by State and non-State armed parties, and sadly the Government of India has failed to protect its own citizens in the world's largest democracy.

To highlight one case among those recorded, the gang rape and murder of Thangjam Manorama in the year 2004, by the 17 Assam Rifles personnel, shows the highhandedness of the Army and the paramilitary forces deployed for counter insurgency work and to protect the country from external aggression. It seems the courage and might of the Army is shown only to the vulnerable groups and the innocent people. Personnel receive promotions and bravery awards for killing and torturing innocent civilians. In the year 2009, 74 police officers of Manipur were awarded with President's Police Medal and State's Police Medal for gallantry - the highest recorded gallantry awards in India.

The unbridled powers received by the army and the security forces under the cloak of AFSPA can also be seen in the work sites of many developmental projects. Taking over power in the work site, the forces are used to drive off the villagers from their inhabited lands. The areas belonging to the indigenous people and the rights of these people are invariably violated, ever since the imposition of AFSPA in Manipur. The forests, rivers, land, and resources are sources of livelihood for the indigenous people. However, the Army and the state security forces have become used to forcefully evict forest dwellers from their land and villages. At the same time, trees are indiscriminately felled in the name of hunting out insurgent groups.

As we can see, the ongoing construction of "Thoubal Multipurpose Project" is a clear example of taking over power of the affected villages in the downstream and also upstream of the Dam. There are four posts of Indian Reserved Battalions, four posts of Assam Rifles, one post of Border Security Force, and one Police Station opened especially for the forced construction of the Dam. More than 1,500 hectares of paddy fields and 500 hectares of forest land will be affected both in upstream and the downstream portion of the Dam.

The free, prior and informed consent was not given to the villagers who will be adversely affected once the Dam comes into operation (they have already begun to lose their lives and livelihood). It is to be noted that Hydro Power Project of Singda Dam, Khuga Dam, and Khoupum Dam are some of the projects which had failed to give electricity/power since being commissioned. Who will benefit from Mapithel Dam and other Dams constructed and being constructed in Manipur? Definitely, not the indigenous community who are suffering the pains of such "development" projects. Some of the engineers working in the Mapithel Project have expressed their views that even if the villagers oppose building of the Dam, it will not be a problem as the Armed Forces are more in population than all the local villagers put together.

To be continued ....