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The
Growing Importance of Media in the North-East (India)
By Oken Jeet Sandham
I was the only one among the dozens of top brass
of the Indian Army to see off the visiting
British Army Lt General Michael Rose who came
all the way from
Britain
to pay homage to their World War II heroes at
Kohima War cemetery. He abruptly became
attentive while knowing that I was a pressman.
“I can’t believe that you people from North-East*
could become journalists”, the General tapping
on my back. “You know when British soldiers
were around this region, we didn’t hear much
about media activity. Had there been media
persons from this region during those days,
things would have been quite different by
now”.
It is true that the turmoil, people of the North-East*
faced since the British transferred its power to
the Indian leaders, would have been different
had the media was active in this region.
Although there were limited media persons and
few language papers, it did not live up to the
expectations of the people. Therefore it failed
to have much impact to the Center whereby this
region was left unattended and neglected for
decades. This total negligence of the Government
of India towards the north eastern region was
responsible in giving birth to several
underground outfits and with demands ranging
from a sovereign nation to a separate statehood.
Some
organizations like Mizo National Front which
fought for a separate independent nation reached
an agreement and signed an accord with the
Center and joined the national mainstream. And
still many underground organizations including
both factions of the NSCN, Bodo Liberation
Tiger, etc are engaged in political negotiations
with the Government of India. And the Government
of India is still wooing other outfits to come
forward for finding a peaceful solution across
the table.
To bring back the lost tracks, the Government of
India has started organizing economic seminars,
investing huge amount of money for various
developmental activities, a manifold increase in
recruiting youths to the Indian army, raising a
number of battalions in the region, awarding a
number of centrally-sponsored schemes to various
NGOs and such others, while on the other hand
security forces has also played its own cards to
win the hearts of the common men especially the
youths. Today we have seen in many parts of this
region where security forces have a good rapport
with the general public unlike in the past.
The recent intelligence report that some
militant groups in the region particularly the
National Democratic Front of Bodoland is
planning to target certain journalists who do
not oblige the militants by publishing in their
favor is a shocking development. This definitely
will give a major blow to the presspersons
working in NDFB dominated areas. There were
already several media-related incidents in the
region. Sometimes it is more troubling to work
in faction-ridden areas like Manipur and
Nagaland. At the same time, security forces
cannot be excluded from the purview. Several
crimes have been perpetrated on media
personalities in the North-East*
and even in Manipur we have witnessed freaky
predicament being faced by the media fraternity.
Some were even forced to retire from the
profession.
Altogether 37 journalists were killed elsewhere
in the globe in 2001 while this year at least 5
journalists were killed because of their work as
journalists. They either died in the line of
duty or were deliberately targeted for
assassination because of their reporting or
their affiliation with news organizations. But
there are still investigations of unconfirmed
deaths of working journalists. We all know how
South Asian correspondent for Wall Street
Journal, Daniel Pearl was inhumanely tortured to
death by his captors in
Pakistan
.
Pearl
went missing on January 23 in the port city of
Karachi
and four days later, a group calling itself
“The National Movement for the Restoration of
Pakistan Sovereignty” sent an e-mail to
several
US
and Pakistan-based news organizations claiming
responsibility for kidnapping the
US
journalist. The outfit also attached four
photographs of the journalist while sending
e-mail including one in which he is held at
gunpoint and another in which he is holding a
copy of January 24 issue of Pakistan’s Dawn
newspaper. The captors also disclosed in the
e-mail that they treated cruelly the hostage as
much the American military did to the Pakistanis
and nationals of other sovereign countries in
Cuba
.
The captors demanded the American military
release those Pakistanis and nationals of other
sovereign countries in exchange for Daniel
Pearl.
The world sees how the journalists undergo
trials and tribulations in countries like
Pakistan
,
Burma
,
China
,
Russia
,
Iran
,
Liberia
,
Zimbabwe
,
Colombia
,
Ukraine
,
Malaysia
,
etc. Dozens of journalists from
Burma
,
China
,
Russia
,
etc have to live in exile to fight back against
their oppressive rulers. Several journalists
have been jailed for their free expression but
those who are willing to work inside these
countries must contend with the bulk of
regulations and censorship imposed in the name
of national security. Despite of all these harsh
regulations and censorship imposed, many
journalists manage to bring to light the dismal
state of affairs in their respective countries.
The gloomy facade is that though media persons
are working under a typical situation in north
east
India
,
it cannot be denied that the face of the region
has changed drastically over the years in a
variety of ways because of the rapidly growing
media activity. But touching development is that
such enormous input of the media fraternity is
not counted. Instead they are always at the
receiving end.
The media in Nagaland are also partly
responsible in bridging the gap between the
Government of India and the Naga underground
organizations and today not only the people of
this country but also the whole world witnessed
how the political process is going on. But it is
regrettable that sometimes media persons who
were all long discharging their modest duties
for the service of the people also faced the
wrath from multiple corners—underground
organizations, Government agencies including
security forces. They have to struggle with a
series of unwanted developments hurled
unnecessarily towards them. They have been even
pulled up in the Court sometimes if some piece
of news was published against the Government
forgetting that it was done for the interest of
the general public who has every right to know
what the government was doing.
We have seen how media persons were treated in
Manipur. Editors were killed by unidentified
gunmen and sometimes journalists were banned
from exercising their professions by underground
elements even closed down newspaper office,
though problems must have existed between the
parties involved. Even Chief Minister Ibobi
Okram and the Chief Secretary Rakesh could have
no control over their despotic bureaucrats who
as usual care the least as to the value of the
press people. One should know how media persons
in a state like Manipur, where more than twenty
different underground outfits are operating and
ethnically very sensitive, are working.
Despite all these odds, they even dared to visit
highly susceptible cross section of the people
and tried their best in convincing them the
importance to maintain peace and harmony,
besides highlighting chronic slackness of the
State Government in the interior areas.
Today we have a number of media persons from the
North-East* working
with various national papers and magazines. Yet
we are not enjoying the privileges and perk our
counterparts in other parts of the country do.
However, these national papers and magazines
have started giving adequate space for the north
eastern region and the face of the Center
towards the North-East*
has in fact changed a lot.
Although there is lack of proper attention for
the well-being of the media fraternity in the
region by the national media organizations, the
media fraternity appears to be coming closer and
in the real sense of term they have to fight
collectively for their common goal irrespective
of their caste, creed and religion, because the
vestige of this region lies in their collective
hand whether one likes it or not.
(The author is based in Kohima, Nagaland)
* The seven
sister states located in the north-eastern part
of India is collectively called the North-East
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