Clarion Call for Northeast India Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Inclusion of Women in Peace Talks and Decision Making at the Third Historic Northeast India Indigenous Women Peace Congregation
With the theme, “Working Towards Our Collective Peace, Justice and Our Rights”, The Third Historic Northeast India Indigenous Women Peace Congregation was held online via zoom at the backdrop of a global pandemic where Indigenous women of Northeast India and the world gathered to share experiences, lessons and to adopt resolutions for their future on 21 November 2020.
The peace congregation was organized by the Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network, Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace & The Global Alliance of Indigenous Peoples, Gender Justice & Peace. The congregation saw the gathering of over 51 indigenous scholars, practitioners and women rights activists from eight states of Northeast India and also from around the world including indigenous women leaders from the Americas, Peru, Japan, Philippines and Bangladesh. Mr Laishram Niketan, a story teller and a pena player from Manipur performed a beautiful song called “Yaikairol’ meaning awakening song at the inaugural session of the peace congregation.
Ms. Binalakshmi Nepram, Founder of Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network and the convener of the peace congregation gave the opening remarks narrating the importance of how she and many others in Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace started the First Women Peace Congregation in March 2015 in Imphal, Manipur followed by the second congregation in August 2016 in Guwahati, Assam with the aim to ensure that women of Northeast India are made equal stakeholders in peace and conflict resolution processes to bring lasting peace in the region. She added “Northeast India has been torn by seven decades of armed conflict where over 50,000 people have been killed.” She reiterated that lasting peace can come when women are made a part of the efforts.
The keynote speech of the peace congregation was given by Professor Elsa Stamatopoulou, Columbia University where she stated, “Indigenous women have bravely taken up the roles of mediators and peace builders…have sought to address these issues at the local, national and international levels. At the United Nations, Indigenous women have been advocates and leaders since the very first year of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations, in 1982 in Geneva. Indigenous women were active participants and contributors during the two decades of negotiations regarding the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which was adopted by the General Assembly in 2007”.
Professor Stamatopoulou further stated, “The struggles of indigenous peoples are embraced by International Law and that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) is a major normative framework for preventing and solving conflicts that contains a number of significant articles where it says that military activities shall not take place in territories of Indigenous Peoples unless justified by relevant public interest or requested by Indigenous peoples concerned and that states shall make effective consultations through appropriate procedures, especially representative institutions of Indigenous Peoples, prior to using lands for military activities. Indigenous Peoples shall not be forcibly removed, no relocation will take place without free, prior and informed consent, and agreement on just and fair compensation; Indigenous Peoples have the right to redress by means that can include restitution, and just, fair, equitable compensation for lands and resources”.
She concluded her speech by stating that “Resistance, persistence, resilience, vision for life” are the four words that embrace indigenous women’s struggles for peace.
Mr Niketu Iralu, a prominent Naga intellectual from Nagaland spoke about how the Northeast India has become “a region of many wounds”. He stated “We have hurt one another and the region has become a land of many ‘killing fields’, there is a feeling of ‘accumulated hurt’ that needs to heal.” Mr Iralu also joined the call by the organizers of the convening for the setting up of a Northeast India Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate into all forms of deaths, disappearances and acts of ethnic cleansing and genocide that has happened to the people of Northeast India for the past seven decades.
Ms Jarjum Ete, former Chairperson of Arunachal Pradesh Women Commission detailed the rising violence against women in her home state, Arunachal Pradesh, as well as her efforts for women empowerment in the state. She further spoke about the 1995 Beijing World Conference on Women where she attended along with a handful of women from Northeast India.
She also threw light on the attempts taken to take over indigenous peoples lands in her state as it is happening under the Draft Environment Assessment Impact Report 2020 and called for vigilance to protect indigenous peoples rights and land in the Northeast India border regions inhabited by indigenous peoples.
Ms Roshmi Goswami, co-founder of North East Network shared how the strengthening of neoliberal policies are eroding and hurting indigenous culture and struggle. She emphasized “the pandemic has maximized the already ongoing struggles of the indigenous peoples who are exploited by the Government authorities and sadly, do not have say in matters regarding their lives and lands.”
Moreover, she spoke about the imprisonment of many human rights defenders from the region and called for vigilance in the “cooption of women in peace building” and for setting terms of negotiation in what she calls Northeast as a “Conflict weary region”. In her speech, Goswami appealed to the peoples of Northeast to imagine a new peace that is devoid of patriarchal control and one that has transformational justice.
Ms Elvera Sargent, a member of the Mohawk Nation in Akwasne belonging to the Haudenosaunee Confederacy spoke about how there are 524 tribes that live along the international border of United States and Canada and that her people also have a long history of being colonised by both countries with huge impact on the lives of indigenous peoples.
Ms Sargent asserted how schools were built to assimilate her people by the colonisers. She shared her experience of setting up of the Akwasasne Freedom School where their indigenous languages and ways of life are being taught to the younger generation. Ms Sargent concluded with remarks of hope in the election of 6 indigenous women in the recent US elections and how that can help bring positive change.
Ms Tarcila Rivera Zea, an eminent Indigenous woman leader from Peru and founder of the organization Chirapaq from Peru was the guest of honor at the peace congregation. In her speech, she talked about how since the First World Women Conference at Beijing in 1995, indigenous women from across the world have been meeting globally to strengthen the work. She narrated how in her home area in Peru, over 70,000 have been killed in armed conflict as it has happened in India’s Northeast.
She expressed that domestic violence, sexual violence in conflict, environmental violence and racism and discrimination have been common happenings to the indigenous peoples and territories, in her country. She mentioned that indigenous people continue to remain vulnerable and added how access to education and awareness raising remains important to address the difference issues that face indigenous peoples. She drew attention to how Indigenous women have already given 200 recommendations for effective change and called for the strengthening of a global alliance of indigenous peoples to work on these issues.
Ima Lourembam Nganbi, noted Meira Paibi Woman Leader from Manipur spoke about the continued militarization, imposition of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 and the impact it has on women and children in Manipur. She called for the removal of the Act and to ensure that the security forces who raped and killed a 31 year old woman Thangjam Manorama be brought to book as this has not been done till now. She highlighted the various cases of fake encounter killings in the state of Manipur and strongly called for the inclusion of women in decision making.
Rose Mangshi Haokip, a distinguished Kuki woman leader from Kuki Women’s Union, shared how the kuki women’s struggle started during the Kuki-Naga ethnic clash in 1993. She highlighted that women came together to help other women, girls and many orphaned in the violence. She joined the others in calling for the inclusion of women in decision making, especially political decision making.
Important sharing was done by indigenous women and men scholars and community peace workers from all across the Northeast and around the world that include among others the following Professor Lalneihzovi from Mizoram University, Homen Thangjam from Indira Gandhi National tribal University, Shibani Phukan, Dr Lianboi Vaiphei of Delhi University, Parboti Roy of University of British Columbia, Tinat Atifa Masood, Pantibolliu Gonmei, Agnes Kharsing, Amita Sangma, Anjali Rai, Rebina Subba, Sangeeta Goswami from Human Security Collective from The Hague, Dr Gyanabati Khuraijam from NIT, Tripura, Sam Simonds, Ringyuichon Vashum, Yuri Luikham, Nongdren, Chanthoi, Shanthalembi, Vipin Kumar, Shaheen Hussain, Shadab Anis, Shubhra Hanjabam, Pushpita Aheibam, Gilbert, Kanchan Sinha, Maisam Arnapal, Mumtaz Begum, Mitzi and Adine from Non-Violence International Southeast Asia and Pradip Phanjaobam, noted media personality from Manipur also attended the congregation.
The online historic peace congregation concluded with a melodious Tangkhul folk song sung beautifully by Ms Chonshimlan Huileng, a class X student from Ukhrul, Manipur. The vote of thanks was given by Ms Reena from Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network. The congregation also adopted the following new resolutions at the historic convening :
RESOLUTION OF THIRD NORTHEAST INDIA INDIGENOUS WOMEN PEACE CONGREGATION HELD ON 21 NOVEMBER 2020 VIA ZOOM ONLINE PLATFORM
The strength of women of Northeast India has been proven historically time and again. The congregation recognizes the 116 year old women’s movement in Manipur and Northeast Region that started with First Nupi Lan or Women’s War of 1904 against British Colonial Rule, followed by the Second Women’s War or 1939 and the setting up of the legendary Meira Paibis in 1980s following the start of counter-insurgency operations. We also recognized the historic work done by Naga Mothers Association, Kuki Mothers Association and many others who paved the way for the emergence of a strong indigenous women’s movement in Northeast India.
Inspired by the work of women of Northeast & around the world, Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network along with many others established the Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace in 2009-10 and on 25 March 2015, we brought together indigenous women from Northeast India for the First Historic Northeast Women Peace Congregation held in Manipur. This was followed by “Second Northeast India Women Peace Congregation held on 24-25 August 2016 in Guwahati, Assam. Also informed by the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, CEDAW, UNDRIP, UNSCR 1325 and many other conventions that protect the rights of women and indigenous peoples.
We, thus, came together on 21 November 2020 on an online platform due to the pandemic for The Historic Third Northeast India Indigenous Women Peace Congregation with the theme “Working Towards Our Collective Peace, Justice and Our Rights’ and we seek to resolve the following:
1. Set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission for Northeast India to investigation into all forms of death, disappearances and acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing of Indigenous People from Northeast India since 1949 till date. This is important to acknowledge our past, to understand our present and take positive steps for future peace in region.
2. Recognize racial, gender and environmental violence, population engineering, distortion of our histories, cultures, languages, rituals and indigenous ways of life and indigenous faith in our region and find ways to protect this.
3. Acknowledge the rising violence against indigenous women and girls, arms and narco-trafficking in our areas as this has greatly impacted our youth, our security and our democracy.
4. Discuss ways to bring peaceful resolution of political settlement to the conflicts in region and ensure that women are included in all peace talks, negotiations and decision making. No peace without women of Northeast India. No to peace talks without women.
5. Call for the setting up of an anti-racial law to stop racial violence against indigenous peoples of Northeast India and call for repeal the Discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act passed in Dec 2019 as this Act also impacts and discriminates Indigenous Peoples.
6. The Women Congregation also recognizes that Armed Forces Special Powers Act has been continuously imposed in the Northeast region since 1958 and that its removal will be the greatest confidence building measure that Govt of India can do to the people of Northeast India. Sincere efforts must be made to de-militarized the region so peoples and children of Northeast India can grow up in peaceful, nurturing environment. The Congregation is launching the “De-militarise Indigenous Territories Northeast India”, “Lay Down Your Arms” Campaign.
7. Resources spent in militarization, counter-insurgency operations in Northeast India should be rather invested in health, education, fight environment degradation of the indigenous peoples of Northeast India. Extraction industries should not be allowed to destroy the forests and living habitats and biodiversity of indigenous peoples of Northeast Region.
8. Strengthen survivors assistance and ensure economic empowerment programs to help support women and children survivors of violence and all forms of violent conflict. To ensure all perpetrators of sexual violence committed by state and non-state, rape at gun point must stop and justice be done. Till today, the security forces who raped and killed Thangjam Manorama has not been arrested. Those who commit the crime must be punished and not protected.
9. Stop the rising threats and attacks against Indigenous women and other human rights defenders, media etc in the region and protect freedom of expression which is a must for a robust democracy.
10. Increase women in decision making. Aim to ensure 100 indigenous women in decision making positions – socially, economic, political. Gender budgeting with proper allocation of resources must be done at every state in Northeast India so that proper resources can be set aside.
11. Forge alliances with other global indigenous women leaders and communities to work towards ensuring rule of law and deepen democracy.
12. Congregation pay our deepest condolences to families who have lost loved ones in the COVID 19 pandemic and called upon all to work together to help heal lives and go through this crisis together.
About MWGSN / NEIWIP / GAIGAP
Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network (MWGSN) was founded on December 24, 2004 in an attempt to help women in Manipur and other armed violence affected areas, whose lives have been affected because of the gun killings of a family member whether be it by state, non-state actors or unidentified gunmen. For more details log on to www.womensurvivorsnetwork.org.
Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace (NEIWIP) is a network of women-individuals, groups and organizations that are working for peace in the northeast region of India. NEIWIP brings together women from all over Northeast states to strategize an action plan for building peace, providing justice and political rights in the region ruptured by years of conflict.
Global Alliance of Indigenous Peoples, Gender Justice and Peace (GAIGAP) is a global alliance led by indigenous peoples and those committed to the issue of indigeneity from all the seven global indigenous zones of the world and whose aim is to work towards an strengthening ties of indigenous peoples, especially Indigenous Women and work collectively for Indigenous Peace, Disarmament and Conflict Resolution, Inclusion of Indigenous Histories and Cultures in Nations and in Global Narrative of History and Story Telling and for Racial & Environmental Justice and a Gender Just Equal World.
Source: www.e-pao.net