Waking up the campaigner in Irom Sharmila - Nov 2, 2000 : Not just a date
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: November 02, 2012 -

Irom Sharmila Chanu on March 12, 2012 :: Pix - Bullu Raj

November 2, 2000.

Obviously the Assam Rifles personnel and their superiors would not have had even the faintest idea that in opening indiscriminate firing and in killing 10 innocent people at Malom they would be waking up the campaigner in Irom Chanu Sharmila.

And in the process give an official stamp on the demon that characterises the Armed Forces Special Powers Act. Resilience. Steadfastness. Determination. Undiluted belief in one's pursuit.

These terms come to mind when one thinks about the lady who has been on a fast for the last 12 years to demand the repeal of the Act, which rightfully has been dubbed as draconian.

Many other incidents predate the Malom massacre of November 2, 2000, notably the Oinam outrage of 1987, the Heirangoi-thong massacre, the RIMS massacre, Tonsen Lamkhai killing etc.

Listing all the cases of excesses under the immunity granted by the atrocious Act would not be possible for want of space in this column.

Post Malom, the Manorama incident of 2004 further pitched this Army Act into the limelight, constraining the Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh to fly down to Imphal and announce the constitution of the Justice Jeevan Reddy Commission.

A more humane Act is needed, is what the Prime Minister had then said or something along this line.

That the recommendations of the Jeevan Reddy Commission have remained just that, recommendations, may not merit a mention, but it is demonstrative of where Manipur and the North East figure in the political consciousness of India, the largest democracy in the world.

November 2, 2000 is not just another date on the calendar. In many ways it is a defining moment and has spawned many a movement, stuffs that revolutions are made of.

The immediate spark for the nude protest in front of Kangla in 2004 was the murder of Manorama by Assam Rifles troops in custody, but in many ways again, the seeds for such a protest were sown the day Sharmila launched her 12 years fast, after the Malom massacre of 2000.

Fast forward to 2012 now and while the lady is still refusing to budge from her stand it is significant to note that Delhi is adamantly sticking to an Act, under which anyone can be a suspect and where anyone can be killed under 'suspicion'.

With the Supreme Court of India already upholding the legality of the Act, AFSPA needs to be seen beyond the ambit of what is legal and what is not.

The politics of AFSPA runs much deeper than the question of keeping a tight rein on the militant outfits, which have raised the banner of armed revolt against India.

It is much more than the question of 'protecting the public' from the militants and letting the Government machineries function without disturbances.

It is these aspects of the Act that should be studied and understood. Peace and justice, this is what Sharmila is talking about.

One without the other would be meaningless.

That this has been conveniently overlooked by the mandarins of Delhi need not be stressed here.