Consultative Meeting of Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights Groups’ of NE India
SHILLONG: The alarming rise in human rights violation of the indigenous people within the region owing to the recent spate of increased militarization has raised concern from several quarters. The 2nd Consultative Meeting of Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights Groups’ of North East India held in Ukhrul, Manipur from June 2-4 also stressed on the fact that such an increase in militant activities could be linked to developmental aggression and economic policies.
The long term implications of such disastrous developments would only revolve around indigenous communities being further disfranchised and marginalized. This has come about with current policies.
Dino D G Dympep, chairman of the Meghalaya People’s Human Rights Council stated, “Such approach has always had deleterious consequences on indigenous communities resulting in increasing cases of fake encounter, illegal detention, torture, including death in custody, human trafficking, violence against indigenous women and children, and HIV/AIDS etc.”
The meeting was attended by representatives of Meghalaya Peoples Human Rights Council (MPHRC), Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights (NPMHR), Borok Peoples Human Rights Organisation (BPHRO), Indigenous Women’s Forum of Northeast India (IWFNEI), Karbi Human Rights Watch (KHRW), Zomi Human Rights Foundation (ZHRF) and Naga Women’s Union (NWU) and many others.
The meeting also took strong note of the ongoing series of negotiation and dialogue between the States and the Centre with different indigenous groups and civil societies with regards to varied demands for recognition of their distinct rights and identities based on their historical relationship with their lands, territories, resources, languages and cultures.
The meeting, distressed by the continued racial attacks and discrimination against people from the region residing in other parts of the country, questioned the “insincerity” of the government in ensuring the safety and security of the people.
Representatives of the organizations also dwelled at length on the implicit role of successive governments in perpetuating conflict among the indigenous peoples of the region through encouragement of land alienation by non-indigenous communities, implementation of anti-people development agendas, extraction of mineral resources etc.
The meeting reiterated its stance on the right to self-determination of indigenous peoples and strongly urged the Government of India to uphold its commitment to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.