Yes, Sunil Nath was one of the first people to impress me that AssamNet means business. Though his comments now are infrequent.
Umesh
Chan Mahanta <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Chan Mahanta <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
I am in agreement with Sunil Nath's general thrust here--that the Center ought not to miss this opportunity to end the thirty years long rebellion with a fair and honourable political solution. I admire Prof. Indira Goswami's courage and have faith in her intents, which are in Assam's best interests, and thus India's as well; Sunil Nath's mild but unmistakable shot at painting her as ULFA's PR manager not withstanding. Here Tehelka is remiss in not introducing Sunil Nath, who is a reformed ULFA ( a SULFA in local parlance--a surrendered ULFA), who once set Assam on fire with his rhetoric as the PR Director of ULFA in its hey-day.
Chandan MahantaSt. Louis, USAThe above was my feedback to Tehelka____________________________________________________________________________A New Road Towards Peace in Assam
With Delhi willing to listen, ULFA should make use of the golden opportunity
By Sunil Nath
Sunil Nath
Hook, line and sinker are different; but the bait is the same - peaceful resolution of conflict through negotiations. The eager mediator, or facilitator, as preferred, is a high profile novelist, retired Delhi University professor, Indira Goswami, popularly known in Assam as Mamoni Roysom Goswami, her nom de plume. The Indian State is playing the role of the benevolent Big Brother, willing to listen to all grievances, even claims to the sovereignty of Assam, if not put bluntly enough to cause constitutional problems for the Centre. The people of Assam are unanimous and unequivocal in their longing for peace and want the rebels to give up violence and the demand for sovereignty, and instead focus on the more mundane problems, which afflicts the state and its people. The rebels till now were adam! ant in their stand that any talks between them and the Central government will have to centre around their demand for a sovereign Assam. It seemed, however, that the professor has been able to use her charm on the rebels and persuade them to sit and talk with the Centre.
The United Liberation Front of Asom aka ULFA started its secessionist campaign for an independent, sovereign Assam in 1979. Since 1990, the state has been a declared disturbed area with the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act in force. Being caught between the rebels and the security forces, the common people of Assam desperately seek peace and normalcy. The earlier regimes in Delhi were stuck in their stand that any solution to the insurgency problem of Assam has to be found within the parameters of the Constitution and secessionist claims shall not even be entertained. The present National Security Adviser, MK Narayanan, who is liaising with Goswami in the matter, was the Intelligence Bureau directo! r in 1992, when the first attempt of resolving the rebellion through talks failed. Though a sizeable section of the rebels surrendered following the aborted peace attempt, the top leadership, a few of them on parole to facilitate talks, disappeared.
After what seemed to be a very positive breakthrough following a direct letter sent by Narayanan to the ULFA chairman indicating willingness to take cognisance of the demand for sovereignty, the people of the state are hopeful that a peaceful change might come to the trouble-torn state. ULFA's Chief of Staff Paresh Barua, the de facto supremo of the organisation, however, has come up with a fresh pre-condition demanding the release of rebel leaders captured by the state police earlier. Paresh Barua is now saying that without consultation with the central council, a few members of whom are behind bars facing innumerable cases against them, no response can be expressed to the invitation for talks.
Happy Tune: PM w! ith wife Gursharan Kaur and singer Parveen Sultana in Guwahati
The people of Assam long for peace and want the rebels to give up violence and the demand for sovereignty
The Chief Minister of Assam, Tarun Gogoi, has, however, said that if the release of the incarcerated leaders paves the way for conflict resolution, he is ready to do so. Of course, security forces dealing with the rebels, including the state police, are not quite comfortable with the plan of releasing these rebels netted after much effort._______________________________________________
Apparently the stage is set for meaningful talks between ULFA and the Government of India. In a telephonic conversation with this writer, Paresh Barua praised both the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the National Security Adviser for their integrity and sincere desire for an honourable solution of the problem. When asked about their response to the Centre's invitation, he said that only the collective leadership of the organisation can finalise a response and it will take some time to get the leaders together. He did, however, agree to declare that the Centre's initiative is a positive development.
Though the earlier effort for a negotiated settlement in 1992 failed, it has to be kept in mind that Paresh Barua, commander-in-chief of the armed wing then, had not been involved in the process from the beginning and had specifically opposed it after some time. In fact, it was his opposition, which finally scared the other top leaders away from the table. ! This time he has been constantly in touch with Goswami, who has, for all practical purposes, become their interlocutor and public relations manager. The other crucial factor weighing in favour of talks and negotiated settlement is the US's identification of ULFA as a terrorist group. This would make it difficult for any foreign friends, specially States posing as US-friendly, to continue their tactical support to the secessionist organisation.
The logical conclusion that can be drawn from a perusal of the circumstances is that this time peace has a chance, though fragile. There would be many friends of the rebels, both at home and abroad, who would not be quite happy to see a peaceful resolution of the conflict. Then there is always the risk that the rebels are using the peace process as a ruse to get their captured comrades back but it is a risk worth taking. Though the incarcerated leaders are senior rebels, most of them are well past their prime and few of them could ! prove to be a serious threat to the Indian State, even if they decide to bolt and resume rebellion. The process is getting total public support in Assam and the side that reneges would definitely lose popular goodwill. It would be in the interest of the Centre to sincerely go about it
The writer is Features Editor, Dainik Janasadharan, an Assamese daily
June 25 ,2005
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