NE tribals to move international forum to ensure rights

Aizawl, Dec 7 (UNI) Responding to the Centre's conciliatory move's Tribals of NE have forwarded a charter of demands to the World Council of Indigenous People (WCIP) to pressurise on the Union Government ''resolve the oppression on them''.

Association of Indigenous Rights Protection of Northeast (AIRPNE), a platfrom for tribal intellectuals of NE, recently raised the issue of alleged sufferings of the Tribals in the international forum.

In a represention to the WCIP, AIRPNE emphasised on four issues related to rights of NE tribals, including the removal of military and para-military forces from all civilian areas and giving more autonomy to the indigenous people.

It further demanded deportation of all foreign nationals who have come since 1951 and repealing 'Black Laws' like Assam maintenance of public order (Autonomous District) Act of 1953, Armed forces (special powers) regulation of 1958 and North East Armed forces special powers Act, 1972, which are ''being used as repressive measures.'' AIRPNE officials said, the influx of foreign nationals from Bangladesh and Nepal existed since India's independence and has been more pronounced since the liberation of Bangladesh.

''Even after decades of independence a regrettable feature of Centre's negligence is that the Indo-Bangladesh border still remains to be demarcated. To add to the problem no steps whatsoever are taken to check this increasing inflow,'' they said.

''Apart from these tribals also face economic exploitation, as industries like the plywood, paper and oil are merely fronts to exploit the natural resources of the tribal region without benefiting or developing the region in any way,'' they said.

Revealing the statistics of infiltrators in NE they said it was 30,000 in Mizoram, 1.5 lakh in Meghalaya, 23 lakhs in Asom, 1 lakh in Manipur(mostly from Nepal) and about 20 lakh in Tripura. Some political parties helped them to registered as Indian voters, they added.

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