The Meghalaya Government has termed the latest ‘surrender of arms’ by the ANVC and ANVC (B) scheduled for December 15 as a “Disbanding Ceremony.” The word ‘disband’ means to break up or to dissolve an organisation. The first militant outfit in Meghalaya was the Hynniewtrep Achik Liberation Council (HALC) which later, because of ethno-centric reasons, split into the Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) and the Achik Liberation Matgrik Army (ALMA). The ALMA transmogrified into the Achik National Volunteers Council (ANVC) which carried out virulent attacks on civilians and police in Garo Hills since it was formed in December 1995. Every militant outfit uses its own alibi to win public support. The objective of the ANVC was to carve out a homeland for the Garo tribe comprising the present districts of Garo Hills in Meghalaya and a large part of the Kamrup and the Goalpara districts in adjoining Assam. ANVC led by Dilash R Marak, was outlawed in November 16, 2000. In July 2004 the outfit signed a ceasefire agreement with the Government of India which was extended for an indefinite period since July 23, 2008.
In 2012, the ANVC split after one of its area commanders Bernard Marak alias Rimpu Marak broke away and started the ANVC(B). This year on September 24, both the ANVC and ANVC (B) signed a Memorandum of Settlement with the Central Government and Meghalaya Government at New Delhi. Today several area commanders of the former ANVC have started their own outfits with fancy acronyms. Sohan Shira the commander in chief of the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) known to be a shrewd strategist and sharp-shooter was once the ANVC area commander of Williamnagar. Today there are about 10 militant outfits in Garo Hills each led by former areas commanders and leading cadres of the ANVC. How does the Government of Meghalaya propose to deal with these outfits and with the most virulent of them all – the GNLA which has bled the State of Meghalaya the most.
There are several areas of contention when it comes to signing of surrender deals between militant outfits and the state. The first of these is whether the surrender is a win-win situation for both parties. The Government will be providing the surrendered cadres an honourable exit and provide money and skills for their integration in the society they had once abandoned. What do the surrendered militants bring with them? Would they be able to convince their comrades who are still in the jungles to also give up arms and choose the path of peace? As of now the GNLA is still adamant about adopting violence as the instrument of engagement and is able to hit at the state where it hurts the most. It is true that the state forces would now be able to focus on the GNLA instead of being deflected by the two factions of the ANVC. Once that happens and the GNLA is cornered they too will cry “surrender.” Will that be the end of militancy in Garo Hills? What about the heinous crimes committed by all these outfits? Will they get general amnesty? Would citizens and relatives of victims like Josbina Sangma accept this arbitrary settlement? Is it not possible that another armed group or groups comprising people with other grievances would also come up after seeing how easy it is to convince the government to welcome them and pardon all their criminal acts? A surrender ceremony is not an occasion for celebration but for introspection especially on the part of the state. Is the state not actually making it easy for disgruntled, rogue elements to take up arms, kill, torture, loot and extort without paying for their crimes? We cannot skim over these serious issues just yet.