“Landmines are
uniquely savage in the history of modern
conventional warfare not only because of
their appalling individual impact, but also
their long term social and economic
destruction”
— Ms Machel
The civil society of the sleepy town of
Churachandpur district, Manipur have finally
stood up to deal with the threats of the
land mines or ‘weapons of civilian
destruction’, that has been gnawing the core
of human rights and existence, civilian
casualties, devastation of economic assets.
Land mines are truly insidious-cheap to make
and easy to distribute but difficult to
detect and expensive to remove. This
response by the civil society of
Churachandpur takes a stand that digresses
from the usual interest defined by narrow
boundaries of tribe, ethnicity, language,
etc. It could be termed as the birth of new
social movements in Churachandpur as the
characteristics reveals the collective
interest to confront challenges that comes
from the State Government as well as the
armed militants within the State. This is a
manifestation of the changing concept of
security, which is of course fast changing
in the face of forces determining not only
the present but also the uncertainties of
the future.
For the multi-ethnic town of Churachandpur,
the old concept of security that was once
very ethno-centric has slowly realized the
need for establishing collective security of
all the tribes inhabiting the space of the
district. What has finally emerged is the
realization of the concept of mutual
security. Pragmatism may still have to
travel another long path, negotiating and
confronting the narrow doors of
ethno-centrism. There is a need for the
people of the troubled torn district to view
each other through a more balanced and
representative prism so that the collective
interest surface against that which is
determined by identity derived from tribe,
language, and narrow selfish interest tied
to this worship.
However, as the threat has become too
common, with the booby traps identifying no
colors and blood for its victims, there is
an urgent need for redefining the concept of
security, which has to take into
considerations the question of identity and
its definition, if not redefinition,
encompassing the multi-ethnic district.
Churachandpur district can only claim to be
secure if it deconstructs the narrow fences
defined by the overflowing of emotions and
feelings on tribe lines. Otherwise, it has
to sink with the threats from inside as well
as outside. Fortunately, the idea of common
security has stirred the concept of
cooperative security, under which common
security is achieved through the cooperative
efforts of all the tribes. The criterion for
measuring security is no longer how secure
one tribe feels, but rather how secure all
the tribes can feel. Human security has
taken the centre stage in the space that was
once occupied by civil war, conflicts and
bloodshed on ethnic basis.
A second change for the better is that
unlike in the past, the threatening forces
and actors have not complicated, worsened or
divided relations between the tribes. Rather
the situation has once again planted the
shared notion that the issue is not merely
planting of landmines, but goes to the
extent of decoding the hidden agenda of
power struggle, dominance, and control. It
looks like the civil society is already
getting tired of its soft approach to the
ongoing developments. They felt the need to
locate the limits of their interest,
security and rights as equal citizens. On
the part of the Manipur Government, a
proactive approach towards fulfilling these
aspirations will go a long way to safeguard
not only the interest of its citizens but
also the interest of the state. The
insensitivity of the Government to
grievances, either of citizens at the
periphery or underprivileged strata of the
population, which points at insufficient
communication and lack of concern, will
certainly go another long way to raise
another voice where the proponents might
express their longing for a space outside
their present existence.
Here the balancing act by the State will be
desirable than the State merely “ruling”
over them. Without questioning, the civil
society has been suffering too long from
fear, insecurity, loss of lives and
property. The Government ought to restore
the political process and at the same time
address the grievances of the population and
win back their sympathy. The Government of
Manipur ought to implement the promise to
“initiate action to sanitize the entire
district at the earliest” as agreed in the
Memorandum of Understanding signed with the
Zomi Students’ Federation (ZSF) on August
24, 2005. Although the experience of the
State’s ability to be a proactive partner
has been looming large, the civil society
took another step to put the State to test
where the issue is of safeguarding the
“Fundamental Rights” of its citizens.
Meanwhile, it is interesting to note that
though the Mine Ban Treaty was a monumental
step forward for mankind, India abstained
from voting on the November 2001 United
Nations General Assembly resolution for
universalization of the Mine Ban Treaty as
it had done in the previous four years.
According to the International Campaign to
Ban Landmines (ICBL), India maintains a
stockpile of four to five million
anti-personnel mines which is the fifth
largest in the world. More than thirty-five
countries in the world have stopped
production of landmines and global trade of
landmines has almost stopped, but India
along with fourteen other countries
continues its productions.
A visit to the ICBL website reveals the
victims of the Indian State’s decision to
put landmines along the 1,800 mile border
with Pakistan in December 2001. Thousands of
acres of Indian farmland have been
contaminated with anti-personnel and
anti-tanks mines. This has been called the
biggest mine-laying operation in the world.
While India has claimed that it is not a
mine afflicted country, media reports
indicate that the Indian Army mined 173,000
acres of land along the line of control in
Kashmir and more than 27,000 hectares
including 350 villages in Punjab. This has
displaced thousands of villagers and more
than 400 civilians have been maimed as a
result of stepping into these mines.
Since India is not a signatory to the Mine
Ban Treaty, does it mean that India has no
international obligation to protect
civilians, including its own citizens from
these landmines? Is the Manipur Government’s
inactivity, despite its promises to sanitize
Churachandpur district, a manifestation of
the Centre not signing the Mine Ban Treaty?
The Government of Manipur ought to take the
matter seriously as the present problem
within the district is a creation and
spillover of the ongoing “Operation All
Clear” in different parts of the state that
is sponsored by the Government of India.
In the face of the threat from landmines and
the reluctance and inactivity of the state,
the civil society has raised concerns, who
has been victims at all levels. Equal
concerns for an active co-operation and
unity should constitute the common interest
in its bid to tackle the emerging threats
gnawing its security. Failure to situate
this for a long-term pursuit will be the
biggest threat to the population of
Churachandpur district.
The Government
of Manipur has to enter into a firm
commitment to interfere in the affairs of
its citizens as the confidence builder for
the vulnerable citizens of Churachandpur
district. The district has been living for
years with proliferation of light weapons or
small arms by various armed-groups who acted
in the name of safeguarding their interest
that only enthused the state to activate its
effort towards reinforcement after
reinforcement of its military might in
collusion with the Centre. This has for long
proved that it cannot be the solution to the
problem.
To a large extent, while the availability of
light weapons has “weaponized” societal
discontent and empowered a variety of
non-state actors that have become a burden
for the state at the moment, the approach
adopted by the State cannot be sidelined. In
the absence of any dialogue and
negotiations, it allows these “light
weapons” to cause a degree of devastation,
insecurity and violence in civil society.
These has its immense toll on human capital
gains, welfare and development that actually
took decades to accumulate in the vibrant,
multi-ethnic district that has by its very
diversity and size, the potential to grow
into a formidable economic, intellectual and
cultural pole of power and influence in the
State. This potential is eroded to a large
extent from within and without by the
presence of a big vacuum left unoccupied by
the state. The vicious circle of this has
its spillover on the civil societies who are
still pinning on democratic expressions and
in a more collective manner to wake the
State for a more people oriented approach.
While it is almost impossible to “roll back”
or “cap” the already proliferated weapons of
civilian destruction, the Government can
still hope to sanitize the threat by working
it out together with the people.
Once laid, a mine may remain active for up
to fifty years. Unless rigorous action is
taken, mines placed today will still be
killing and maiming people for another long
time. Cleansing the mine fields will
certainly give life back to the community.
The Government of Manipur ought to take up
humanitarian mine clearance immediately
which was an agreed condition of the
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the
ZSF. |
