A Death ... And A Fast-Unto-Death

Nine hundred ninety three, and still counting. That's the number of days that a young Manipur girl hasrefrained from taking food voluntarily to demand the withdrawal of an Act that gives unbridled powers to thesecurity forces to shoot and kill in this insurgency-hit state.

Since November 5, 2000, Irom Sharmila, a budding poet and a passionate human rights activist, has been on a"fast-unto-death" to protest against the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958. and has had to be"force fed" by the state government to stay alive. This Act, which is in force in Nagaland, Manipurand parts of Assam, gives untrammeled powers to the Army and other security forces. Under the provisions ofthe Act, the security forces can search a premise, detain a person without warrant and shoot to kill withoutany warning.

The Act has been in force in Manipur since September 9, 1979 when the government first imposed it to curbmilitancy in the Imphal valley but later extended it to the entire state. Sharmila, barely in hermid-twenties, was shocked into launching her fast-unto-death after Assam Rifles troops killed 10 innocentvillagers on the outskirts of Imphal on November 2, 2000.

Sharmila began her fast on November 5. The stategovernment moved in and took her to hospital two days later and since she refused to break her fast, andrefused bail she was arrested on grounds of attempted suicide and sent to Sajiwa Jail where she has been eversince and continues to abstain from eating. Every now and then, as her condition deteriorates, the police takeher to Imphal's Jawaharlal Nehru hospital to feed her through the noseand bring her back to jail.

Her condition has deteriorated and her vital organs affected. Some time back, allegedly because of ruderemarks passed by some nurses, she has refused even the nose feeding. Nobody is allowed to meet her. 

Manipur Chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh recently informed the State Assembly that the government hasalready spent Rs 2.35 lakh to keep Sharmila alive. Her fight against human rights violation and excesses bysecurity forces has drawn the attention of international human rights groups and other organisations, whichhave appealed to the union and state governments to address the issues raised by the girl.

Ibobi Singh, in turn, says: "I met her several times and requested her to end the fast. I alsoinformed Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani that my government waswilling to lift the Act from the state. However, due to lack of any positive response from the centre, wecould not fulfill her demand".  He adds that if the act is scrapped from Manipur, the centralgovernment might pull out all central forces for deployment from the state. "If the central forces arewithdrawn it will become very difficult for the state to combat the militant outfits," goes his arguement.

Meanwhile, in another development, human rights activists in Manipur are up in arms over the continuousincidents of custodial killings in the state by security forces. In the latest incident, two undergroundactivists of banned militant organizations were killed under suspicious circumstances, forcing human rightsactivists in Manipur to blast the ruling government for not protecting the rights of the people.

The convener of the Committee on Human Rights (COHR) Manipur, Dr L. Pardeshi, talking to this reporter inImphal alleged that the proscribed Revolutionary People's Front's publicity chief Sanjib, whose body wasfished out from Nambul river on July 8, was killed while in custody of the Manipur police commandos. Hisallegations are based on the basis of testimonies provided by two individuals who were arrested along with theunderground leader. COHR has also approached Amnesty International, London to help protect the lives ofwitnesses.

Pardeshi claims that the publicity chief N Mangoljao alias Sanjib (39) of Leimaram Khunou Tairenpokpi inImphal (West) was arrested along with Asem Inaoba (42) of Yaiskul and Oinam Dilipkumar (44) of Khoyathong fromLamphelpat area in Imphal West district on July 6. Recounting the incident, Inaoba and Dilipkumar told thisreporter that they were travelling in a Maruti car that night when Sanjib asked them for a lift upto the ICARoffice. When they drove towards the spot, they saw some police commandos near the ICAR complex. On Sanjib'srequest, they made a U-turn but were however over-powered by the commandoes after a hot chase.

The commandos then separated Sanjib from the group, the witnesses claim, and put him inside a police vehicle.All the three were blindfolded. After moving for sometime, they heard some gunshots, and later, they say,they  heard the police commandos shouting that Sanjib had run away. Since their eyes were blindfolded,they say, they could not see what was really happening and add that they even thought that Sanjib might haveescaped. They were later taken to the Manipur police commandos barrack in Imphal for the night.

The two individuals were later released after signing the PR bond on the following day. However, after theylearnt that the body of Sanjib had been fished out from the Nambul River on July 8, they left the state, asthey say they were apprehensive that the police might eliminate them to destroy evidence. After contactingCOHR, both of them arrived in Imphal on July 12 and spoke with the local media.

Dr. Pardeshi claims such custodial killings are common in Manipur. "This is the first time, however,that two witnesses have come forward to give testimony," he claims. The police, on the other hand,maintain Sanjib was killed when he tried to escape from their custody.

Irom Sharmila, meanwhile, is still in jail, resolutely on her fast, refusing to eat voluntarily, refusingto "co-operate". It would be a big embarrassment for her to be allowed tostay on her fast-unto-death. So the police would perhaps soon take her to the Jawaharlal Nehru hospital again,force-feedher through the nose, and release her after a few days. Nine hundred ninety four...