Asom's brush with peace

Guwahati, Dec 28 (UNI) The year 2006 dawned on Asom raising hopes that a nascent peace initiative would mature to a stage where top leaders of the banned United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and Government of India representatives would see eye-to-eye across the negotiating table in their efforts to restore long-lost peace in the state.

Unfortunately, it was not to be so, much to the discouragement of the people of the state who had aspired for life in a peaceful atmosphere.

The much hyped peace initiative that started late last year, ended midway in a deadlock.

The initiative took root after the banned ULFA nominated its group of negotiators, the People's Consultative Group (PCG) in September-end last year, to prepare ground for direct ULFA-Government negotiation in future.

It was big news in a state that was reeling under insurgency since 1979. The initiative was an instant hit with the media all over. The hype raised lots of hope among the people of the state that at last, peace was going to return to the blood splattered Brahmaputra valley.

The Government of India too was enthused, as reflected in the presence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in the first round of talks with the PCG in New Delhi in early October last year.

Subsequently, the Union government held two rounds of talks with the PCG in February and June this year.

However, the initiative gradually started losing steam once the ULFA asked for the release of five of its senior leaders from jail through the PCG, as a sort of a pre-condition to direct talks with the government. In response, the Union government sent a message that it expected the militant group to give a written commitment to hold direct negotiation and asked it to fix date and venue for the same. The ULFA, however, failed to respond.

As a step to give ULFA another chance to send its commitment for talks in black and white, the Government of India declared unilateral halt to Army operations against the militant group from August 14 to September 23 this year, As ULFA failed to respond again, the Army was asked to re-launch its operation to prevent the outfit from regrouping and replenishing its coffer through extortion, taking advantage of the peace initiative.

Since the peace initiative had hit an apparently irresolvable stalemate, thanks to the adamant postures adopted by both the ULFA and the Government of India, the violence was bound to vitiate the atmosphere in the state once again after a brief lull.

Killings and counter-killings by ULFA militants and security forces once again started hogging headlines, dashing hopes of millions aspiring peace.

UNI TEAM SHB DB1034