SHILLONG: The state government on Thursday said that the Centre has been apprised of the Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC)’s offer for peace talks and promise to abjure violence.
Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong told reporters here, “We have communicated to the central government and the ball is in its court now.”
The statement comes in the wake of BJP, a constituent of the MDA government, expressing its willingness to mediate between the banned group and the central government for a negotiated settlement of the issues flagged by the former.
Tynsong pointed out that it was the Centre which had banned HNLC and, therefore, it would have to take the call on the issue.
On the HNLC’s demand for “unconditional talks”, Tynsong said that it was premature to say whether it would be conditional or unconditional talks and that it was entirely up to the Centre to decide.
HNLC pats BJP
Meanwhile, in a statement issued here on Thursday, HNLC welcomed the BJP’s move to, what it called, give peace a chance.
“After decades of fake promises from politicians, we are now pleased to know that Bah AL Hek has taken full responsibility to carry forward the peace initiatives with the Prime Minister and Union Home minister including the other leaders of the NDA government. This is indeed a positive gesture shown by the BJP state unit and we welcome this move”, the statement said.
It said that after getting positive response from “your end we have realised that we need to live to give back to our society. We are hoping for a positive outcome from this initiative which will enable us to build bridges, with the government of India”.
“We believe that it is high time for us to lay aside our prejudices and biases, to be able to find a common ground for peace to flourish”, the statement said.
The statement also assured that HNLC would work with “sincerity, dedication and honesty” to “build bridges rather than walls”.
It said the sole objective was about “resolving our conflict without violence”.
Expressing full confidence on the leadership of Hek, the HNLC gave him “full liberty to go ahead with his proposal and carry forward our message of peace” to the Centre.
The HNLC, which was proscribed on November 16, 2000, owes its origin to the erstwhile Hynniewtrep Achik Liberation Council (HALC), the first militant organisation in Meghalaya, which claimed to be a united armed front for the three major tribes of the state.
After a split occurred in HALC over tribal differences, the Garo members formed a new outfit called Achik Matgrik Liberation Army (AMLA), while the Khasi and Jaintia members emerged as the HNLC in 1993.
The HNLC is accused of indulging in a number of illegal activities, including killing, abduction, robbery, arms smuggling, cattle smuggling and extortion in several parts of the state.