Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace

Posted on June 17, 2009 0 Comments1,209

Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace
A framework for action for democracy, human rights, economic justice and
conflict prevention in India’s Northeast region

First Consultative Conclave of Women from Northeast India

Organised by
Manipur Women Gun Survivor’s Network
in collaboration with
India International Centre

Held on 13th June 2009, India International Centre, New Delhi

Contents:

– Introduction: Northeast India and Women’s Movement

– Highlights of the Conclave

  • Inaugural Session: Introduction of the Conference

  • Session II: Listening to each other –
    stories of women and war in Northeast India Region

  • Session III: Taking Charge of Our lives, our rights

  • Session IV: Concluding Session

– Conclusion and Resolutions

– List of Speakers

– Contact

Introduction

For more than a century women and women’s organisations and movements have mobilised in support of social empowerment, economic justice, democracy, human rights and conflict prevention. It started as early as April 28, 1915 for the first time in history when nearly 1,200 women called “International Congress for Women” from warring and neutral countries came together to protest the conflict at the Hague in Holland. This later became the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF).

One of the most evident mobilising factors is the building of numerous organisations from women’s roles as mothers. Women have often organised to protect their children as in the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo protesting the “disappearance” of their children in Argentina. And in Sri Lanka, a group of more than two thousand women from across Sri Lanka directly affected by the war.  In the 1990s women have also continued anti-war action as mothers in Macedonia and in Chechenya.

Northeast India and Women’s Movement

Northeast India comprising of the eight states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura is facing the onslaught of multiple armed conflicts since the late 1940s. No other part of India or South Asia has been subjected to such a prolonged violent struggle, which have held development to ransom, as the Northeast. The fire of insurgency has for long engulfed this strategic region for the last half a century or more making it one of the South Asia’s most disturbed regions.

And it is not likely that this violence will end soon. In fact, the violence seems to be increasing with each passing day and the situation is becoming more and more complex. A level of militarization has engulfed India’s Northeast under the garb of insurgency and counter-insurgency. And in the process women are assaulted, humiliated, raped and murdered during conflicts which are not of their making. In the words of Anuradha Chenoy, “In 99 per cent of the world’s wars, the decision to wage them has been taken by men; women have only supported “men’s wars”. Women are used by the state and non-state actors in different ways during conflict and in the practice of militarism without being conscious of it”. Women in the region need to understand the political economy of militarism, to look at measures to bring peace and justice in the region.

Women groups in Northeast India have developed many a powerful programme of direct, non-violent, action designed to confront the armed violence of both insurgents and the security forces. However, most of their actions remain in “protest” form and after the initial action dies down, nothing much happens. The women’s movement in India’s Northeast that have emerged in response to the ongoing armed conflict is still now confined to “saving the sons of the soil” syndrome. We need to make ourselves, we the women in India’s northeast understand the issues of war, conflict, peace. We need to understand the political economy of violence, the militarization of Northeast societies. Besides, we also need to understand many of the internationally known United Nations Resolutions on women and peace building which remains just on paper such as United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1325 and 1820.

In India’s northeast, women have always played a major role in many peace and social movements. Concepts of solidarity amongst women’s groups are very strong in the region. This is often illustrated in the existence of self-help groups, traditional cooperative systems, women’s markets and other forms of cooperative village action. Women’s contribution in the economic sphere is great and women have some amount of economic autonomy.

The first ever-organised women’s protest in entire Northeast India has its origins in the first Nupilal or ‘Women’s War’ of 1904. This took place in the state of Manipur and became a landmark in the history of women’s movement in entire Northeast India. The other strong women’s movement that came about was the establishment of Tangkhul Shanao Long (All Tangkhul Women’s Association). The Naga Mother’s Association (NMA) is the one of the best well known women’s organisation in Northeast India which is working on peace issues. Mention may be made of the Bodo Women’s Justice Forum, Kasturba Gandh Memorial Trust, Anchalik Mahila Samitis and Sajagata Samiti of Assam etc. In the matrilineal communities of Meghalaya women have a certain degree of control over economic resources and together with the women of Manipur and Mizoram play a very important role in trade and commerce. In Mizoram the women have been the key mobilisers for financial resources for the church through the practice of buhfaitham. This consists of putting aside a handful of rice for the church for every handful that is consumed by the family.

The proposed meeting aims to draw a blue print for women in Northeast India to strategise an Action Plan for rebuilding peace, providing justice and political rights in a society ruptured by years of conflict. It will look at all the plans drawn up at the local, national and international level to end violence against women and see in what way women in Northeast can use the knowledge and empower themselves. This will be done through a series of action plans .

The First Action plan was drawn up in at a meeting that was held on the 13 June 2009 in New Delhi. It was organised by Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network (MWGSN) in collaboration with India International Centre (IIC) and it was the first consultative conclave on ‘Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace’. Over 60 women from India and across Northeast India participated in the Conclave.

Objective of the consultative conclave were :

  • To provide opportunity to bring together women from all walks of life including peace makers, academicians, researchers, policy makers, lawyers, social activist and students to share knowledge, raise issues, to listen to one another and determine ways to promote peace in the region.
  • To strategise an action plan for building peace, providing justice and political rights in a society ruptured by years of conflict.
  • To find solutions to promote empowerment of women in the region by involving them in decision making.
  • To analyse and recommend the best ideas to all stake-holders namely the people, government, non-state armed groups, civil society to promote peace in the region.

Following are a record of some of the important highlights of the Conclave.

— — — —

Inaugural Session:
Introduction of the Conference

The consultative conclave began with a warm welcome address by Ms Binalakshmi Nepram, Founder, Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network; Secretary- General, Control Arms Foundation of India. She introduced the gathering to Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network (MWGSN), the network’s purpose and its aims. She stated “this is a network of women who have survived gun violence.” She shared the incidence of her life which led to the inception of MWGSN. She said “On 24 December 2004, I was interviewing women meira paibis in Wabgai Lamkhai Village in Manipur when I heard 3 gun shot. That was when a young man of about 27 years, Mr Budhi Moiranthem was shot dead. The wife of that man was brought to the market place and made to testify and speak in public just barely few hours after his death. After her testimony her mother said, “How will I feed you anymore. They should have shot you dead also?” “That was how the inception of the Manipur Women Gun Survivor Network took place, said Ms Nepram. In Manipur nearly 400 people are shot dead each year, leaving behind old mothers, young widows and children, with no means of survival, she added. “MWGSN was formed in an attempt to help such women, whose lives have been cut short because of a gun killing of her beloved husband, father or son. It attempts to lift women above the trauma and agony faced in the conflict by opening their bank accounts and providing them small loans”.

The inaugural session was chaired by Lt General (retd) Dr. B. S. Malik, President, Control Arms Foundation of India. He welcomed all the participants on behalf of Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network. He stated that military solutions to counter new threats should not become humanitarian problem. Quoting an example of how the efforts of the group of concerned citizens made the issue of small arms appear in the agenda of BIMSTEC, he said that the time has come for all of us to think in the right direction.

This was followed by a short self-introduction by all the participants of the consultative conclave.

Lt General (retd) Dr. B. S. Malik, then gave a warm welcome to the Chief Guest of the conclave, Shri Jarnail Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Department of Development of Northeast India Region and to key note speaker Dr. Monisha Behal, Chairperson, North-East Network.

Shri Jarnail Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Department of Development of Northeast India Region, stated that “the situation in Northeast is complicated”. Manipur is a difficult place to operate with more than 30 armed groups operating in the State, he added. He explained the complex situation of Manipur by quoting the words of former Maj General in J&K who was posted to Manipur. The words were “J&K operation was a cakewalk, Manipur is a minefield. There everything was in black and white. In is Manipur everything is grey.”

He further stated that “the Manipur Public Servants’ Personal Liability Act, 2006 and The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 has proved to be a good initiative in the region.” “The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 is to check the people who had property from the proceeds of terrorism and militancy; and the personal liability under the Manipur Public Servants’ Personal Liability Act arises if a public servant takes actions that are against the existing Govt. rules, instructions, or orders and result in financial loss or burden to the Government” he explained. However, due to insurgencies many programmes for social sectors like nutrition, immunization, and education etc. are getting affected. Family oriented schemes are affected leading to discontentment, he added. He concluded by stating that “My experience is if we have a fair system of delivery of social services and if the people feel that they are getting their due share then things will be better.”

Dr. Monisha Behal, Chairperson, North-East Network, highlighted the women movement in different states of North East India. She pointed out how Meira Paibis in Manipur and Mahila Samities in Assam have brought radical changes. She concluded by stating that “northeast women in Delhi are professional women and it is extremely important that they contribute their expertise to the Northeast”. She suggested that “it is important to partner efforts with South Asia and it is also important for us to meet the MPs who have made promises”.

Session II:
Listening to each other – stories of women and war in Northeast India Region

The second session was chaired by Prof. Anuradha Chenoy, School of International Studies, JNU, New Delhi. She stated that “in the Northeast women have had a key role in society but their role has been downplayed and they were not recognized. Women were continued to be exploited.” She shared her study in which she found that “99% of the people said they knew women affected by Domestic violence”. Outside home or in home, women continued to be affected by violence, she added.

Ms Uddipana Goswami, Contributing Editor on Assamese literature with Muse India, addressed the conclave on the topic “Assam’s Conflict and Finding Ways to Solution through Women’s Work, Writing and Activism”. She stated that “the present ethnic turmoil in Assam was after the Assam movement”. She pointed out that “In 2008 the Sahitya Academy Award went to a person who wrote about resistance of Bodo women to British rule”. She added that “every recognition given to the Bodo language was faced with agitation, but one wonders as to how many Bodo writers have actually written about the agitation which the Bodo language faced.” She suggested that “a healthy exchange of ideas and culture is called for”. She stated that “it is important that activists should be writers and writers should be activists”. She concluded by stating that “We need bold women and writers who face contemporary reality. We need writers with political sophistication and who can confront contemporary issues and address conflicts”.

Ms Elizabeth Imti, Parliamentary Affairs Coordinator, Control Arms Foundation of India, gave a narrative personal account of her grandfather T. Aliba Imti’s life and excerpts from his book titled “Reminiscence: Impur to Naga National Council” published in 1988. Late Shri T. Aliba Imti was Joint Secretary and President of the Naga National Council from 1946 to 1948. She futher stated “as a Naga women of the fourth generation what is the situation of the society now and the status of women is something that we are grappling with. She concluded that “though Naga women are famous for their bravery and courage as exemplified by the amazing work of the Naga mother association and many other associations. It is however, deeply saddening that the equality of Naga women is still a dream.”

Mr. Malem Ningthongn, Manipur Student Association, Delhi (MSAD), stated that “Manipur had never been a stable community from the very beginning. It is a loosely organized political community”. According to him, “Horizontal class divisions took place in Manipur. The ruling class and the people in the service sector are ruling the people. Class contradictions took lace in Manipur. Division was being promoted along community lines. The elite wanted to divide the people along communal lines.” He concluded by stating that we need to create class conscious among the people.

Session III:
Taking Charge of Our lives, our rights

The session III was chaired by Ms Jaya Shrivastava, Former Director, Ankur- Society for Alternatives in Education. She stated “the irony is that we are still unable to use UN system for our benefit”. She further stated “to resolve the issues it is important that the conflict zones should be brought in limelight rather than sidelining them.” The documentation of data, material and statistics with respect to women should be done, she added. She concluded by stating that “the feministic approach to peace should be aimed at justice, peace, plurality, healing and positive values.”

Ms Sreekala, Executive Director, North East Network, gave her presentation on “Implementing United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325/1820 and Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in India’s Northeast”. She stated that often “the government’s callous attitude and defensive stand on the armed conflict in the region hampers implementation of laws.” She further pointed out some grey areas like: “Lack of political will to resolve the conflict issue in true sprit; Lack of work and efforts at Ground level. Sending just few elites or bureaucrats to Geneva cannot serve the purpose of resolution of conflict; the attitude of the Government is defensive towards the arm conflict in the North East region which put hurdles in the implementation of concluding comments of CEDAW.” She suggested that “different organizations, women’s groups, and the civil society should be sensitized and must work together.”

Ms Lian Vaiphei, Lecturer, Political Science, IP College, Delhi University, explained stereotypes attached to women due to their gender. While discussing the practical and realistic position and status of Women in North East region, Ms Lian stated that “it was a myth that women from the northeast were more liberated than in other parts of the country.”  “True woman empowerment is when a woman becomes a part of decision making and not when she works or earns. Even though the women electorate is greater than the male electorate in these states, the representation of women in elections is highly negligible,’ Vaiphei said.

Ms Juliee Sharma, Control Arms Foundation of India, started her presentation by explaining the dynamics of contemporary conflicts and how it has made difficult the application of international humanitarian law in such situations. She further pointed out the provisions of international humanitarian law which are applicable in periods of internal tensions and strife. She also highlighted the certain specific human rights which cannot be suspended either in the times of war or emergency. She concluded by stating that “AFSPA is in violation of the national law and international law. The government of India must repeal this draconian legislation if the rule of law is to prevail.”

Ms Bibinaz Thockchom, Programme Officer, HAQ, Centre for Child Rights, very lucidly described the Psychological impact of armed violence on women and specially children. Describing ‘power game of armed forces’ as human tendency to execute power in opportunity, she said that “violent strategy is used in the name of nation, democracy , religion, anti –terrorism”. She pointed out that “the psychological well-being and development of children is deeply affected by armed conflict. Such experiences leave emotional, psychological and spiritual scars that may last a lifetime and many children remain filled with rage, aggression and guilt throughout their life.” She explained that “some indirect effects of armed conflict are political instability and social dysfunction , frustrated youths, loss of public property, increased rape and violence cases, increased number of youth taking arms, disturbed family and relationship, reduced quality education etc. she concluded by stating that “the modern age conflict are in nature of violence on citizens’.

Ms Gayatri Buragohain, Founder, Feminist Approach to Technology (FAT), elucidated how Information Communication Technologies (ICT) can be used as an effective tool for information flow and for the empowerment of North East women for peace. She explained how “blogs, digital images, discussion boards, e-petition, Twitter and social networks” are being increasingly used for creating awareness and activism. He suggested that “Citizen Journalism and info -activism, which means turning of information from citizens and generating it into action, should be promoted.”

Session IV:
Concluding Session

Screening of film Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network.

Ms Ketaki Bardaloi, Foundation for Social Transformation, Guwahati, Assam, started her presentation by introducing Foundation for Social Transformation. She stated that “FST is a seed of idea of a unique resource and support base by, of and for the Northeast India.” The “Foundation facilitates social transformation of the north eastern region of India through people’s active involvement to enable dynamism, ingenuity and creativity of communities” She added. She highlighted various activities of FST that promotes and supports right based approaches and gender equality.  She concluded by sharing the future prospects of FST that includes building capacities and continued consultations with civil society groups in the region.

Smt Radha Bhatt, Chairperson, Gandhi Peace Foundation, New Delhi, gave a valedictory address on the conclave. She said “Northeast issue is an issue for the country.” Women all over the country are doing symbolic activism. We are not here to tolerate all this injustice, she added. She further stated that “Young people joining insurgency has to be stopped. We have to give them a heroic non-violent power. She concluded by stating that “the path of construction and struggle combined together in the revolutionary way of Mahatma Gandhi. I wish woman who are quite suitable actor of this constructive-revolution come forward to give way to peace, harmony and justice in North East India to start with and all over India and all over the world ultimately.”

— — — — —

CONCLUSION

The consultative conclave proved very useful and productive as it brought together women from all walks of life including peace makers, academicians, researchers, policy makers, lawyers, social activist and students to share knowledge, raise issues, to listen to one another and determine ways to promote peace in the region

For the first time women from all over Northeast India came together to strategise an action plan for building peace, providing justice and political rights in a society ruptured by years of conflict.

The major success of the conclave was it gave the participants opportunity to come together to inspire strategies and pressurise the government for sincere dialogue.  The conclave ended on a very positive note as all participants were united in their belief that if they work together in solidarity then they can make a difference.

— — —

Some of the resolutions taken at the
First Consultative Conclave of Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace

(1) Recognition of women role in peace processes and ensuring the participation of women as decision –makers in peace negotiations and present and post conflict reconstructions by both the Central and State Governments.

(2) Appeal to all ethnic groups, communities in Northeast India to rise above the greater common goal of peace and prosperity for all in the Northeast. Women across ethnic, community, religion, state lines to unite to work together to make this possible.

(3) To start a database of Northeast India Women Professionals in Delhi and NCR for a start and to reach out to thousands of women from Northeast India who are in different parts of the globe.

(4) Women in Northeast India region to start using “Technology for Peace”. Creation of centralized info-activism so that it reaches out to millions of people.  Setting up of a website of Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace. Documenting and disseminating information using new media such as blogs.

(5) To work towards empowering women survivors of guns and other forms of violence in the region with emphasis on ecomomic justice and rights. Special emphasis on women with disabilities and efforts to improve the mental health situations of many of these women living in armed conflict situation.

The women also collectively called upon and raised the following important issues

(6) Call upon the government of India to work towards implementing United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security.

(7) The Government of India must look into the issues of Northeast region squarely in the face and make a sincere effort to find a political solution to the armed conflict in Northeast India.

(8) The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958 must be repealed immediately as recommended by the government-appointed Jeevan Reddy committee.

(9) As mentioned in a report by Human Rights Watch, the Human Rights Protection Act must be amended to allow the National Human Rights Commission to independently investigate allegations of abuse by members of the armed forces.

(10) As mentioned in a report by Human Rights Watch, Indian security forces involved in military operations should take all necessary steps to ensure compliance with international humanitarian law.  India should ratify the 1977 Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1949.

(11) If the Indian Government truly believes that the only way to handle the governance of the North Eastern states is through force, then it must allow the ICRC to intervene. This can only have a calming influence. Acceptance of ICRC services would demonstrate that the fighting parties want to bring an end to the violence. The ICRC’s involvement could help protect the residents of the North East who are currently trapped in the middle between insurgents and the military.

(12) As mentioned in a report by Human Rights Watch, non-state armed groups to take all necessary steps to ensure compliance with international humanitarian law, specifically common article 3 to the 1949 Geneva Conventions and customary international humanitarian law.

(13) Reiterating stand taken by Human Rights Watch that non-state armed groups to end human rights abuses and laws of war violations against civilians, including killings, the use of threats, extortion, and reprisals against individuals suspected to be informers or supporters of another group.

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