Unrest in the Northeast - II

By Walter Fernandes

FROM THE 1930s, the effort to cope with the changes expressed itself in the form of new organisations. The Bodos formed associations such as the Bodo Chhatra Sammilani for their education, welfare and to standardise their language. The Notified Areas Act was amended in 1947 to prevent land alienation and indebtedness, but the situation did not improve. The Constitution did not provide to the plains tribes the safeguards available to the hill tribes mainly because of the Congress leader, Gopinath Bordoloi's contention that they were being assimilated with the rest of the population. Slowly the Bodos came to view the Ahoms as the main enemy.

In Nagaland in 1918, the new leaders formed the Naga Club, later renamed the Naga Hills District Council. The traditional chiefs changed it to the Naga National Council. The names are significant. The former wanted autonomy and the latter, independence. Negotiations at that time would have strengthened the new elite. But with their homogenising ideology the national leaders failed to understand their aspirations. In 1987, Phizo wrote to Rajiv Gandhi that the Mahatma whom he had met in 1946 had been ready to negotiate their status but other leaders were non-committal. The chiefs declared independence on August 14, 1947.

In 1946, the new leaders had formed the Mizo Union that wanted the Lushai Hills to become an autonomous district. The chiefs who formed the United Mizo Freedom Organisation demanded its merger with Burma. In 1948 the Mizo Union launched a campaign against the chiefs and captured all three Assembly seats in 1952. They lost one in 1957 and 1962. Thus the people too seemed to be behind them. But during the major famine of 1959 Chief Laldenga who formed the Mizo National Famine Front got a large following. Later it became the Mizo National Front. The 1960 Assam Language Act protected tribal languages only in the districts where they were spoken. Otherwise Assamese was to be the official State language. These and other issues resulted in the two Mizo Union MLAs resigning their seats in 1962. The MNF that demanded independence won both in 1963.

Till 1947 mostly Muslim peasants migrated to Tripura, though in 1946 many Hindus flocked there because of communal riots in Mymensingh. Most migrants since 1947 are Hindus from Bangladesh. The tribals formed 70 per cent of the population in 1901, this figure came down to 56.37 per cent in 1951 and is around 30 per cent today. They have lost their land and access to education and other institutions as their low literacy figures show. That is the basis of the conflict.

The 29 Manipur tribes are divided into Naga and Chin with a few buffer groups. The developmental process is controlled by the Meitei, a Sanskritised Mongoloid group. The main competition in recent decades between the tribals and the Meitei and between the Naga and Kuki has been for decreasing land. Between the agricultural censuses of 1976-77 and 1980- 81, the number of small and marginal farmers declined by 1.7 per cent and the area they operated, by 3.03 per cent. With personal cultivation becoming profitable, many landowners went out of the market. By 1980 only 3.49 per cent of the land was leased against 14.9 per cent in 1970. The tribals being predominantly small and marginal farmers or tenants, were the biggest losers.

So the causes of unrest differ but the process is similar. In some form or the other, it is a reaction to a homogenising state and for control over livelihood. With external control resulting in less land and fewer jobs, at times they fight among themselves for the little that is left over, for example the NSCN factions, the Naga and the Kuki and the Ahom, the Bodo and the Adivasi. But the official solution has been administrative. At Independence the feeling among the national leaders was that since the British had separated the tribal areas of the Northeast from the rest of the country, administration should be extended to them. In so doing, their specificity was all but ignored. The States were reorganised but the economy was transferred to outsiders. For example, in the mid-1950s the inner line permit was modified in Nagaland to suit some economic forces. The leaders led by Phizo rose in revolt.

One is also left with the impression that after the Sino-Indian conflict, the concept of a buffer zone re-emerged. Its consequence is the law and order approach. Much of the Northeast is under the Special Armed Forces Act since 1958. The Centre is also alleged to have facilitated the formation of the Naga People's Convention, with groups not much represented in the underground. The militants were not represented in the negotiations leading to the formation of Nagaland in 1963. The large amounts of funds pumped into the State after it has resulted in corruption and division among the Nagas. But the problem remains. One can ask whether in the absence of a solution, even the new leaders have accepted the framework of the chiefs.

In Mizoram too, the agitation brought various Chin tribes under a single Mizo umbrella. Because of what they considered Assam's lack of respect for their culture, language and identity, the modern leaders demanded autonomy while the chiefs wanted independence. On March 1, 1966, Laldenga formed the underground government. Amid the rebellion that ensued, the Centre introduced the village regrouping scheme. The people were forced out of their ancestral villages, their houses destroyed and 464 villages regrouped into 109 centres between 1967 and 1970. The Guwahati High Court issued a stay order on the centres. So regrouping was withdrawn in 1970 and many rebels accepted the amnesty offer. In 1972 Mizoram became a Union Territory but the struggle continued. An accord was signed during the Emergency but rebellion erupted again in the mid-1980s. Finally an accord was signed on June 30 1986. Mizoram became a State in 1987 and the MNF won the elections. The growth in literacy and other developments indicate that homogeneity combined with their history of missionary involvement, insurrection and the consequent political awareness have made it possible for a modern leadership to emerge.

The struggle against Assam has been weaker than that against the Centre. Tripura and the Bodos joined the anti-foreigner movement in the 1970s and added their own demands. The movement for Udyanchal (Bodo and Mishing State) began in the 1970s but division among its leaders brought in some radical ideas. The differences were submerged in the anti-foreigner movement. However, the 1985 accord, Clause 6, spoke of protecting the cultural and social heritage of the Assamese but made no mention of the others. Some other clauses too caused apprehension in their minds. With that the demand for Bodoland grew. An alliance too seems to have grown with NSCN. The Bodoland Accord was signed in 1992 but the agitation continues partly because its implementation has been partial and partly because of division among the Bodos. At present the conflict around the borders of the Bodo Autonomous Council affects both with the Ahoms and the Adivasis. The Bodo Liberation Tigers, allegedly formed by the Centre, have signed a ceasefire recently.

Thus the modern as well as traditional leaders, want to protect their identity but in substantially different ways. In this context, many in the Northeast wonder whether the rest of India considers them a part of the country. The Brahmaputra which gives an identity to the region is bigger than the Ganga but is not a sacred river of the Hindus. Nowhere is the Northeast mentioned in the national anthem. During the recent millennium hype tourists were taken to the Andamans to see the first sunrise in India. Hardly anyone mentioned that it was actually in Arunachal Pradesh.

But with their homogenising ideology, the national leaders take an exclusively law and order and administrative view. The failure to recognise the real problems seems to have strengthened the traditional leaders. So the first step in finding a solution to the unrest is to understand the aspirations and respect cultural, economic and social autonomy. There is a move to abolish Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. One wonders whether extending it to the Northeast can be the first step towards a solution.

(Concluded)

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Opinion
Previous : Needed, a national refugee law
Next     : Lies and videotape