If this story is true, what on earth is the GOI up to? It seems theywant a substitute for the word 'sovereignty' with something thatspalatable to both themselves and the ULFA. The GOI should not worrry som much about the word itself as opposed tothe meaning of the term. Simply put, the ULFA wants Assam to beseparate from India, and what part of that is there to parse? **"Once that politically correct substitute is found, the PMO's letterto the Ulfa will follow," said writer Mamoni Raisom Goswami. "And,hopefully, the letter should be ready in the next four to five days,"she added.*** Being PC has never been one of my strong points, so I have a hard timeunderstanding this. -- Ram http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050427/asp/northeast/story_4664712.asp Delhi in Ulfa talks quandary- Search on for 'sovereignty' substitute A STAFF REPORTER Mamoni Raisom Goswami Guwahati, April 26: The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) is searching fora word or a phrase that would be a politically correct substitute forthe term "sovereignty", which is used by the Ulfa. "Once that politically correct substitute is found, the PMO's letterto the Ulfa will follow," said writer Mamoni Raisom Goswami. "And,hopefully, the letter should be ready in the next four to five days,"she added. In its earlier letter, the Ulfa had made it clear that it would notsit for talks till the government was ready to discuss its demand for"sovereignty of Assam", which has been the core issue in the outfit's25-year-old armed struggle. Goswami, who has been trying to facilitate talks between the outfitand the Centre, said she met national security adviser M.K. Narayananyesterday and impressed upon him the need to expedite the despatch ofthe reply from the PMO to the Ulfa. "The PMO had earlier addressed its reply to the Ulfa's letter to me.This is not acceptable to the boys. So I have asked them that a freshletter be issued in the name of the organisation," she said. "We are trying to find a word or a phrase that can mean sovereignty," she said. The phrase "core issue" could also be an acceptable substitute, shesaid. "Basically, the idea is to ensure that the government is notembarrassed and at the same time the Ulfa is reassured by the languageof the letter that the Centre is willing to even discuss sovereignty,"she said. "I have also told them (the PMO) that unless their reply incorporatesacceptance of the Ulfa's condition, there is no use," Goswami said. On its part, the Centre had stated that it was ready to negotiate withany group provided it abjured violence and the talks were within theambit of the Constitution. This, however, did not impress the Ulfa. Goswami further said she had told the PMO that talks should start assoon as possible. "This is an important time... Elections are alsocoming," she said. Efforts at ending militancy in the state recently saw a group ofsocio-literary bodies led by the Asam Sahitya Sabha appealing to thegovernment and the Ulfa to declare a ceasefire from April 22. However, the Ulfa summarily dismissed the appeal and accused the sabhaof toeing Delhi's line by calling for the ceasefire. Ulfa chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa said sabha chief Kanaksen Deka hadfallen into the "trap laid by the colonial rulers of Delhi to crushthe freedom struggle of the people of Assam." On the other hand, the people of Jeraigaon — the native village ofUlfa commander-in-chief Paresh Barua and general secretary Anup Chetia— have invited Goswami and chief minister Tarun Gogoi to their Bihufestivities to give a push to the peace move. "I am definitely going there," Goswami said, adding that it was a"welcome move." _______________________________________________ Assam mailing list [email protected] http://pikespeak.uccs.edu/mailman/listinfo/assam
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