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Opinions
The Impact Of Insurgency On The North-East
By Manorama Masih
It may not be wrong to say that insurgency and underdevelopment are two sides of the same coin. They go hand in hand. This is true at least in the context of the problems faced by the North-Eastern States today. Initially it was the lack of development which created conditions for the rise of insurgency, but now, ironically, insurgency itself is becoming the main reason for the lack of development.

The period in Assam following the agitation saw the prospering Marwari businessmen becoming the main targets of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) as a result of which they started fleeing, some of them relocating their establishments to other States. The State’s economy thus started losing out on huge financial investments that were earlier coming to them from other parts of the country.

Insurgency adversely affects the healthy social environment because of the fear that it puts on the minds of the people. The law and order situation too deteriorates side by side. Because of the fear of armed insurgents as well as security forces, who are merely doing their job as ordered by the Government, the common man has to consciously restrict his movements, curfews and ‘bandhs’ only add to their problems. In his book "Youths in Turmoil Assam", Kanaksen Deka mentions an incident in which an engineer named Ganesh Dube and his son Bikash were shot dead in Guwahati and no neighbor came forward to even sympathize, leave alone assisting in last rites. Such an environment apart from not being viable for proper economic and social development amounts to virtual hell.

The activities of the insurgent groups and the inflammatory statements made by them create a lack of trust between the tribal communities and other people living in the areas. The demand of the Naga insurgents for a greater Nagaland virtually set Manipur on fire. The Nagas wanted the Naga majority areas in Manipur to become a part of the present Nagaland. This was followed by widespread violent protests in Manipur. Despite Prime Minister Vajpayee’s expression of grief at the loss of lives, reactions like those of theatre personality Ratan Thiyam returning his Padma Shri reflects the anger of Meiteis of the Manipur valley.

The North-Eastern States have invaluable natural resources, breathtaking scenic beauty and good weather - a combination which can spell prosperity by way of local cottage industry, a sound market economy and a vibrant tourist industry. But it is the fear in the minds of the ‘potential tourists’ that stops them from visiting these areas. The local inhabitants also miss out an opportunity to interact with the people outside their State and thus get a broader understanding of the country as a whole and vice-versa.

Residing in disturbed areas leaves its impact on the minds of the youth as well. In some way or the other, the quality of education that they get suffers. Those who do not have the resources to complete their education outside their States are the worst sufferers. Unemployed youths become special targets of insurgent groups. Out of frustration, they are forced to join such groups, because they do not want to stay home unemployed and become a burden on their respective families. Most of these youths who join insurgent groups die, and those who return home, in most cases fail to become normal for the rest of their lives.

Unemployed youth also easily come under the influence of insurgents and agents dealing in narco-terrorism. In Manipur, it is believed that the main cause behind the spread of AIDS is because of the sharing of needles used for injecting drugs rather than any other reason. The other dark side of narco-terrorism is that, money is extracted out the poor people by making them drug-addicts. The money earned out of it is then directed towards anti-people and anti-national activities.

Those who are lucky enough to get education in better environments, i.e. in places outside their States, do not wish to come back and settle in their own hometowns because of the adverse conditions. Apart from the insurgency problems, they are discouraged due to the poor infrastructure. In such conditions overall development takes even longer.

The resources wasted to combat insurgency could have been used for development of the region. In most cases, such financial resources provided by the Center for combating insurgency and ameliorating the lot of innocent people suffering from it, go into wrong hands.

There are limitations in crushing insurgency by force alone. The ultimate solution is always political. The combination of using force up to the point of containing violence by insurgents and counseling works quite well in steering the process towards political resolution. In situations where force has to be used against insurgents of one's own country, then side by side, the process of winning their hearts and minds must also be vigorously pursued so that they are convinced that the Government is concerned about their welfare. Dialogue and reconciliation between the Government and insurgent groups must start as soon as possible after they have been subdued and convinced.

The Assam Chief Minister, Tarun Gogoi is reported to have put a poser to the ULFA that if the LTTE can come to the negotiation table, dropping the demand for Eelam (State), why not the ULFA. 

Talks between the NSCN and the Central Government as well as the LTTE and the Sri Lankan Government are indeed welcomed developments in the South Asian region. It can only be hoped that they have a salutary effect on other insurgent groups in the North-East. — (Via E-mail)

(Courtesy: The Sangai Express)

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