A public meeting was organised on 15th July 2010 by the Manipur Students Association of Delhi (MSAD) on the issue of state terror.
A public meeting was organised on 15th July 2010 by the Manipur Students Association of Delhi (MSAD) on the issue of state terror.
15th July is an important date for the people of Manipur. On this day in 2004, 12 women activists of different mass organizations demonstrated in the nude, at the gate of the headquarters of the armed forces in the erstwhile capital, Kangla. They were protesting against the rape and murder of Manorama. Ms. Manorama was picked up from her home in front of her family members and neighbours on July 11, 2004. The armed force personnel brutally raped her, severely beat her and then shot her dead.
Black laws like the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (1958) are being used by the Indian armed forces to quell and suppress the untiring struggle of our brothers and sisters, women and ordinary youth from Manipur.
Praising the tireless struggle of the Manipuri people, representative of Lok Raj Sangathan, Bijju Nayak said that it was a disgrace to human civilization to have such black laws in the 21st century. This black law gives the right to armed forces to kill a citizen merely on the basis of suspicion.
All over the country, people are demanding right to conscience, right to employment and right to shelter. As citizens of this country they want to live a life of dignity. Irrespective of where the struggle is going on, it is the same struggle in defence of basic rights that human civilization has been waging till date. Let us unitedly fight for the navnirman of our country so that the workers, peasants, women youth of all nations in our country will be active participants in setting the direction of the society in which rights for all will be guaranteed.
The organisations present in the meeting, Campaign for Peace and Democracy (Manipur), MSAD, Lok Raj Sangathan, Hind Naujawan Ekta Sabha, Janpaksh, Jamia Teachers Solidarity Association, Manipur Research Forum (Delhi), Journalist Union for Civil Society and NAPM, jointly passed the following resolutions.
* We condemn all violations of human rights, whether by the Indian state or by individual terrorists.
* Increasing state terror is revealing the real face of capitalism. The Central government is not interested in finding peaceful and democratic solutions to political and economic problems.
* Armed Forces Special Powers Act (1958) must be repealed and criminals roaming around as security forces should be punished. The Restricted Area Permit of 1958 should be withdrawn so that Manipur can have contact with the rest of the country and the world.
* Let the organisations in Manipur work with other democratic organizations to oppose the attacks on the people. Let us together march towards the goal of building a society without exploitation.