The Hindu : AGMS to relaunch campaign next month

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Apr 29, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Kerala

AGMS to relaunch campaign next month

By Our Special Correspondent

KOZHIKODE APRIL 28. To signal its resolve to renew the agitation on the tribal land issue, the Adivasi Gothra Maha Sabha (AGMS) would be launching a two-week campaign from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram in the second week of May.

The agitation, very much similar to the one witnessed in the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, would also be restarted in different places in the State when the campaign is under way.

This was announced at a press conference here today, by the AGMS president, C. K. Janu and M. Geethanandan, general convener of the Adivasi-Dalit Samara Samithy, which were spearheading the agitation inside the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary.

The AGMS campaign would highlight its version of the Muthanga incidents on February 19 which ended in the agitators who had been staying in a portion the wildlife sanctuary for 45 days being forcibly evicted in a joint operation by the police and the Forest Department personnel.

Emphasis would also be given to the demand for self-rule for tribals in tribal-dominated places, in line with the provisions of the Constitution.

Mr. Geethanandan expressed the hope that the campaign would also help forge a common political front for an agitation. Such a front would hopefully be made up of AGMS, Dalit human rights organisations and individuals who cherished democratic ideals by the time the campaign ended in Thiruvananthapuram. It has been planned to launch the campaign from Kasaragod on May 10.

Mr. Geethanandan claimed in spite of the setback suffered by the AGMS agitation inside the wildlife sanctuary, it did achieve certain gains also.

One was that it placed the tribal land rights issue on the top of the political agenda.

Another achievement was the Central Government circular to all State Governments to freeze the implementation of the decision to resettle Adivasis outside forests and instead to find them alternative land.

At the press conference Ms. Janu, looking cheerful and relaxed, stuck to her stand that the wildlife sanctuary in Muthanga was wasteland and could not be termed a sanctuary of wildlife and so should be returned to tribal people.

Ms. Janu claimed support for her agitation had strengthened after the police action on February 19 and that it would be in evidence during the campaign in May.

The police action had also strengthened the resolve of the AGMS volunteers to renew their agitation, in spite of the setback it suffered.

It was also made clear at the press conference the AGMS was not averse to re-opening a dialogue with the Government. However, the talks had to be of a comprehensive nature, covering not only the issues related to land rights of tribal groups but also framing of rules that would provide for self - rule by tribal people in tribal-dominated places in the State.

The legislation of 1975 regarding restoration of alienated land to tribal people was not enough. It had to be supplemented by legislation that would provide for tribal self-rule also, the agitation leaders said.

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