Licence To Kill - AFSPA

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file:///media/cf0263e2-bcc4-47ab-9a2e-07a5b57dfa42...
Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act
License To Kill
INSAF January 2005
Indian Social Action Forum A124/6 Katwaria Sarai New Delhi 110016 Tel: +91-11-26517814 Email: insaf@vsnl.com URL: http://www.insafindia.org/
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Tuesday 23 October 2012 08:47 PM
Contents: 1. Introduction: license to kill 2. Repeal The Armed Forces Special Powers Act: An Appeal to Reason 3. Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 4. Appendix 1: The Armed Forces (Assam and Manipur) Special Powers Act (Amendment) 1972 5. Appendix II: Excesses of Indian Army in Naga Areas 6. Appendix III: Violations During the Present Ceasefire Period 7. Appendix IV: Violations In Arunachal Pradesh 8. Appendix V: Some Infamous Incidents
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License to kill The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act of 1958 (AFSPA) is one of the most draconian legislations used by the Indian rulers to enslave and oppress peoples under the garb of fighting separation. Under this Act, security forces are given unrestricted and unaccounted power to carry out their operations, once an area is declared disturbed. Even a non-commissioned officer is granted the right to shoot to kill based on mere suspicion that it is necessary to do so in order to "maintain the public order". It has been going on for decades in our own North East states & Kashmir! The enforcement of the AFSPA has resulted in innumerable incidents of arbitrary detention, torture, rape, and looting by security personnel. This legislation is sought to be justified by the Government of India, on the plea that it is required to stop the North East states from seceding from the Indian Union. There is a strong sentiment movement for self-determination, which precedes the formation of the Indian Union. The demand for repeal of AFSPA once again got momentum in the backdrop of series of incidents that unfolded in Manipur after the rape and killing of Ms Thangajam Manorama by Assam Rifles blessed with special powers drawn from the said Act. As a result of the protests, the government of India merely budged a bit on 2 November 2004 agreeing to form an expert group to look into the "legal, constitutional and moral" aspects of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). While the military and a section of the ruling class continues to question even this minor move by the government of India, they fail to answer why the AFSPA has not been able to resolve a single insurgency problem since its adoption in 1958. The present publication reproduces the web material posted by Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights (NPMHR), South Asian Human Rights Documentation Centre (SAHRDC), Amnesty International, etc. We hope that this publication will inform the social activists about the grave human rights situation in our country and the need to express solidarity with the oppressed peoples and further the struggle to defend democracy. INSAF
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1. An Appeal to Reason[1] In Post-9/11 scenario the countries in the first world such as Britain and America, which contributed significantly in the modern definition of liberal democracy are busy waging wars and promulgating draconian laws in the name of protecting democracy. It is heartening to see that in a relatively backward country such as India, not only the human rights and civil liberties movement but even mainstream political parties are resisting and creating public opinion against such acts. The significance of the efforts being made for the repeal of POTA in strengthening and broadening democracy in the country can never be overstated. Yet it is time to attract the indulgence of these forces against similar draconian laws and acts that are in force in the relatively marginal regions of the country. One such act is the Armed Forces Special Powers Act that has been in operation in the states of the Northeastern region of the country since 1958. Purportedly aimed at fighting insurgency, the act has proved singularly ineffective. However, it has not only led to de facto implementation of emergency in the areas of its implementation but also, the suspension of even the fundamental rights of common citizens, including their right to life. Why Armed Forces Special Powers Act is one of the most pernicious draconian laws? Draconian laws are antithetical to modern democracy since they overturn the fundamental tenets of modern jurisprudence on which democracy rests viz., a person is presumed to be innocent till proven guilty. The genre of draconian laws thereby makes it difficult for persons booked under it to redress their grievances and get relief, such as bail. It grants extra-ordinary power to the investigating agencies (police etc.) to elicit confessions etc. Thus, the act empower the investigating agencies to easily frame a person whom they suspect to be guilty. Provisions of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act are far more severe. The provisions of the Act provide special powers to the Governor, whereby they can on their own discretion (without consulting the duly elected Chief Minister), by notification in the Official Gazette, declare the whole or part of the state or union territory to be a disturbed area. Bypassing duly elected and representative political authority is tantamount to de facto imposition of emergency. Unlike other draconian laws, the Armed Forces Special Powers Act does not stop at providing special powers to the investigating agency to elicit confession and to conduct search and arrest operations. It in fact provides the investigating agency with absolute powers whereby, even a havildar if he is of the opinion that it is necessary to fire or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death, can make use of the provisions of the act, thereby, harming the democratic fabric of the country. More disturbingly, even while it provides the Armed Forces with such absolute powers, it also provides them with immunity from any legal accountability. Even though the acts are in operation in the states and union territories of the country, the elected governments of these areas cannot initiate legal proceedings (let alone administrative action) against the Armed Forces without prior sanction of the Central government. (For details of the provisions
of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, see Appendix I)
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Controversy around the Act. Right since its inception the act has had a controversial career. It has elicited impassioned responses in its support and opposition both within and outside the government. When the Armed Forces Special Powers Bill was first tabled in the Parliament the Government had supported it as a necessary piece of legislation to fight militancy in the Naga Hills. There were, however, serious objections to its extreme provisions. Parliamentarian Mr. Dhenkanal Mohanty while supporting the idea that the Naga hostility must be settled quickly had opined that the act had provisions that were not related to the concern of quelling the rebellious Nagas. He pointed out to the fact that prohibiting the state governments from initiating legal proceedings against the Army takes away the right of the states to seek constitutional remedy given under article 32(1). As per the constitution, this right shall not be suspended without declaration of emergency. Parliamentarian Dr. Chingleput Krishnaswami opposed the act since it violated the rights of the states provided under the concurrent list. While not opposing the requisitioning to Army to quell disturbance, he disputed the provisions of the act since it violated the right of the states to call the Army if they so desired. The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act provided center with the absolute power to send Army for civilian aid. Thus the question was not of using army to quell disturbance. The moot question that the provisions of the act raised was that now all power was given to the Army and the civil authority divested of all control. Parliamentarian Mr. Jaipal Singh opposed the act on the ground that it seeks military solution for a question that is essentially political in nature. Just because the act was aimed at what the government termed as a small section of Naga hostiles, it does not make an extraordinary piece of legislation, martial law into an ordinary law. Can there be a draconian law with a human face? Government in order to ally the fears of parliamentarians such as the three worthies mentioned above and human rights activists has sought to justify draconian acts by promulgating some mandatory safeguards. For instance, POTA is a more humane version of TADA, or so we were told till the witch-hunt of Vaiko happened. In a similar vein, the Armed Forces Special Powers Bill was sought to be justified by the Honble Home Minister Mr. G. B. Pant on the grounds that it was aimed at a very small section of hostiles and was applicable to a very clearly demarcated area that was declared as disturbed. Both these checks have proven to be imperfect since the act was extended, not only to almost the entire Northeastern region but also, to Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir. More alarmingly the prime targets of the act did not remain a small band of hostiles but the bulk of the non-combatant civilians. (See Appendix II) Blatant targeting of civilians, human right activists and regular trespasses on civilian institutions soon made this act the rallying point of all human rights movement in the north eastern region. Army atrocities during operation Blue Bird (July1987) in the Senapati district of Manipur contributed in the formation of the Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights; formations of Mass and COHR can also be traced back to Army excesses. There are also several individual and equally heroic oppositions to the act. The
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brave but extremely tragic story of Irom Chanu Sharmila needs to be mentioned a young girl who instead of falling in love as most people at that age do, is sitting on a hunger strike for the last several months demanding repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Acts. Attempts were also made to challenge the constitutionality of the act in the Supreme Court. The court in its wisdom chose to declare the law to be good but sought to impose some checks. It cautioned that the act must not be imposed for an indefinite period. However, immunity to Armed Forces built into the act rendered these checks useless. The act continues to exist uninterrupted even in areas where militancy has ceased to exist or is currently maintaining peace. Civilians continue to be harassed by the Army under the provisions of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act. (See Appendix III) Immunity provides unlimited powers to the Army without any accountability. The adage, absolute power corrupts absolutely, has never been proven more correct. Armed Forces in the Northeastern region have become so used to operate under unfettered power that they assume that power even in areas such as Arunachal Pradesh, where the Armed Forces Special Powers Act is not in operation. (See Appendix IV) Has the Act Suceeded in checking Insurgency? Since its inception the Armed Forces Special Powers Bill (subsequently Act) aims at empowering the Army with special powers to bring normalcy in an area disturbed by insurgency. While introducing the Armed Forces Special Powers Bill Honble Home Minister Mr. G. B. Pant had argued, owing to the hostile activities of certain misguided section of Nagas, Government has to take special measures to restore normalcy. This has become the raison detre of the Bill and it subsequent amendments. Yet the Act has singularly failed in its stated objectives. In spite of the act, militancy has not only continued but also thrived. When the act had been promulgated and imposed on the whole of Assam and Manipur, there was only one militant organization that was based in the Naga areas. Now militancy has spread in the entire original region of its implementation with several militant organizations functioning in the area. Spread of militancy lie not so much in the imperfect implementation of the Act as in the imperfect nature of the Act. Parliamentarian Dr. Chingleput Krishnaswami had already indicated that in the Act, all power was given to the Army and the civil authority divested of all control. In fact it weakened not only civil authority but also civil space. Operating under absolute immunity the Army brooked no dissent even when peaceful and democratic. Human Rights activists such as Shelly Charia, Parag Das etc., were found murdered in mysterious circumstances. Prominent journalists such as Ajit Bhuian were subject to humiliating searches and third degree torture. The Army intimidated Mr. Max Phazang, the magistrate presiding over the Oinam case in Tamenlong. Even Chief Ministers, ministers and senior members of bureaucracy have not escaped their ire. Undermining of the civil space, that is a direct consequence of immunity extended to the army, has eroded the available space for democratic and peaceful dissent. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act, therefore, rather than curbing political disturbances has actually added to it.
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The Act adversely impacts on Indias International standing. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act came up for discussion in the UN to determine if it were in accordance with the provisions of Human Rights Covenant. The discussion was conducted by the Human Rights Committee consisting of 18 experts. It is instructive to see that the concerns of the experts on Human Rights echoed the concerns of the Indian Parliamentarians in the parliamentary debate in 1958. The experts on human rights were concerned on the absolute powers given to the Army without any checks. They were concerned that the act did not provide for adequate mechanism for redressal. They were concerned that the act that had already lasted for 33 years in the year 1991 created a condition of continuous and perpetual emergency. The experts were alarmed that the act had provisions that empowered the Army to resort to shooting to kill on mere suspicion and wondered if that was responsible for large-scale political deaths in the areas in which the act was in operation. Lastly, the experts were worried if the act did not have any adverse impact of the structure of the Indian Constitution. All the experts mentioned approvingly of Indian democracy and its role in International initiatives such as NAM. In the same breath they asked if acts such as the Armed Forces Special Powers Act enhanced or eroded Indias international standing. In an era where human rights is fast becoming a tool to extract economic concession, the continued existence of draconian measures such as the Armed Forces Special Powers Act need to be evaluated. Conclusion We have endeavored to demonstrate that the Armed Forces Special Powers Act is a bad law since it has failed in its stated basic objective. It has, however, adversely impacted on the center-state relationship in the Northeastern region of the country. It has given all control to the Armed Forces while civil administration and civil space have undergone constant erosion. It has lead to the de facto imposition of emergency in the areas of its application that has resulted in a serious loss of life, limb and property of common citizens. Indeed, on the consequences of the act, the prediction of Shri. L. Achaw Singh has been prophetic: I fail to understand why the military authorities are to be invested with special powers. I have found that these military authorities have always committed excesses in many cases, especially in the subdivisions of Kohima and Mokokchung. In such a situation, I do not like that the officers should be invested with such special powers. Recently, such an incident took place in the Headquarters of the North Cachar and Mikir Hills District. Instead of rounding up the hostile Nagas, some military personnel trespassed into the houses of some retired tribal officials and committed rape on the widow. So, such things have deteriorated the situation. The tribal people have risen against the military people there. It is, therefore, dangerous to invest the military authorities with extraordinary powers of killing and of arrest without warrant and of house breaking. I have got reports of the operations of the armed forces in these tribal sub-division of Manipur, especially in the sub-division of Tamenglong where these armed forces occupied the religious institutions, in spite of the protest of the local people. Most of them are Christians there and hold their Churches sacred. But these armed forces would occupy these institutions. There are schools and the armed forces would forcibly
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occupy them, but then, in spite of the protests of the people, they encroached upon and trespassed into the houses. Then, very often, persecutions and also harassments would take place. I would rather request the Government not to encourage such things in the tribal areas. They would wound the religious sensibilities of the people there and would create more difficulties. This piece of legislation is an anti-democratic measure and also a reactionary one. Instead of helping to keep the law and order position in these areas, if they declare some areas as disturbed areas, it would cause more repression, more misunderstanding and more of unnecessary persecutions in the tribal areas. This is a black law. This is also an act of provocation on the part of the Government. How can we imagine these military officers should be allowed to shoot to kill and without warrant arrest and search? This is a lawless law. There are various provisions in the Indian Penal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code and they can easily deal with the law and order situation in these parts. I am afraid that this measure will only sever the right of the people and harass innocent th nd folks and deteriorate the situation. (Lok Sabha Debates Vol 18 (2), 11 August to 22 August 1958.) Therefore, we appeal to the sanity of the Indian policy makers and the Indian people to repeal this draconian Act.
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Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act[2] : An Overview HISTORICAL BACKGROUND As the great Himalayan range dividing South and Central Asia runs down the east, it takes a southward curve and splits into lower hill ranges. The hills are punctuated by valleys and the valleys are washed by the rivers that drain into to the Bay of Bengal. Waves of people settled in these blue hills and green valleys at various times in history. They brought with them cultures and traditions. The new interacted with the old and evolved into the unique cultural mosaic that characterizes the region. Through the centuries, these hills and valleys have bridged South, South East, and Central Asia. On today's geo-political map, a large part of the original region constitutes the seven states of the Republic of India, but its political, economic and socio-cultural systems have always been linked with South East Asia. The great Hindu and Muslim empires that reigned over the Indian sub-continent never extended east of the Bhramaputra river. India's British colonizers were the first to break this barrier. In the early 19th century, they moved in to check the Burmese expansion into today's Manipur and Assam. The British, with the help of the then Manipur King, Gambhir Singh, crushed the Burmese imperialist dream and the treaty of Yandabo was signed in 1828. Under this treaty, Assam became a part of British India and the British continued to influence the political affairs of the region. This undue interference eventually led to the bloody Anglo- Manipuri conflict of 1891. The British reaffirmed their position but were cognizant of the ferocious spirit of independence of these people and did not administer directly but only through the King. It was during the Second World War, when the Japanese tried to enter the Indian sub-continent through this narrow corridor, that the strategic significance of the region to the Indian armed forces was realised. With the bombing of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a disenchanted Japanese had to retreat from Imphal and Kohima fronts, however the importance of control over the region subsequently remained a priority for the Government of India. With the end of the war, the global political map was changed over night. As the British were preparing to leave Asia, the Political Department of the British Government planned to carve out a buffer state consisting of the Naga Hills, Mikir Hills, Sadiya Area, Balipara Tract, Manipur, Lushai Hills, Khasi and Hills in Assam, as well as the Chin Hills and the hills of northern Burma. The impending departure of the British created confusion and turmoil over how to fill the political vacuum they would leave behind. Ultimately, the various territories were parceled out to Nehru's India, Jinnah's Pakistan, Aung Sang's Burma and Mao's China according to strategic requirements. As expected, there were some rumblings between the new Asiatic powers on who should get how much - India and Burma over Kabow valley, India and East Pakistan over Chittagong Hill Tracts, and India and China over the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA), present day Arunachal Pradesh. Compromises were made, and issues were finally settled in distant capitals, to the satifaction of the new rulers. The people who had been dwelling in these hills and valleys for thousands of years were systematically excluded from the consultation process. The Indian share of the British colonial cake in this region constitutes the present "Seven
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Sisters" states of the North-East. Over the years, thanks to the British, the advent of western education and contact with new ideas brought about the realization that the old ways had to give way to the new. Indigenous movements evolved as the people aspired to a new social and political order. For example, in the ancient Kingdom of Manipur, under the charismatic leadership of Hijam Irabot, a strong popular democratic movement against feudalism and colonialism was raging. After the departure of the British, the Kingdom of Manipur was reconstituted as a constitutional monarchy on modern lines by passing the Manipur Constitution Act, 1947. Elections were held under the new constitution. A legislative assembly was formed. In 1949, Mr V P Menon, a senior representative of the Government of India, invited the King to a meeting on the pretext of discussing the deteriorating law and order situation in the state at Shillong. Upon his arrival, the King was allegedly forced to sign under duress the merger agreement. The agreement was never ratified in the Manipur Legislative Assembly. Rather, the Assembly was dissolved and Manipur was kept under the charge of a Chief Commissioner. There were protests, but the carrot-and-stick policy launched by the Indian Government successfully suppressed any opposition. The Naga Movement At the beginning of the century, the inhabitants of the Naga Hills, which extend across the Indo-Burmese border, came together under the single banner of Naga National Council (NNC), aspiring for a common homeland and self-governance. As early as 1929, the NNC petitioned the Simon Commission, which was examining the feasibility of future of self-governance of India. The Naga leaders were adamantly against Indian rule over their people once the British pulled out of the region. Mahatma Gandhi publicly announced that the Nagas had every right to be independent. His assertion was based on his belief in non-violence, he did not believe in the use of force or an unwilling union. Under the Hydari Agreement signed between NNC and British administration, Nagaland was granted protected status for ten years, after which the Nagas would decide whether they should stay in the Union or not. However, shortly after the British withdrew, independent India proclaimed the Naga Territory as part and parcel of the new Republic. The NNC proclaimed Nagaland's independence. In retaliation, Indian authorities arrested the Naga leaders. An armed struggle ensued and there were large casualties on either side. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act is the product of this tension. In 1975, some Naga leaders held talks with the Government of India which resulted in what is known as the Shillong Accord. The Naga leaders who did not agree with the Shillong accord formed the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) and continue to fight for what they call," Naga sovereignty". Problems of Integration Much of this historical bloodshed could have been avoided if the new India had lived up to the democratic principles enshrined in its Constitution and respected the rights of the nationalities it had taken within its borders. But in the over-zealous efforts to integrate these people into the "national mainstream", based on the dominant brahminical Aryan culture, much destruction has been done to the indigenous populations.
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Culturally, the highly caste ridden, feudal society is totally incompatible with the ethics of North-East cultures which are by and large egalitarian. To make matters even worse, the Indian leaders found it useful to club these ethnic groups with the adivasis (indigenous peoples) of the sub-continent, dubbing them "scheduled tribes". As a result, in the casteist Indian social milieu, indigenous peoples are stigmatized by higher castes. The languages of the North-East are of the Tibeto- Chinese family rather than the Indo-Aryan or Dravidian. Until the recent Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, none of the Tibeto- Chinese languages were recognized as Indian languages. The predominantly mongoloid features of the people of the North-East is another barrier to cultural assimilation. Politically dependent, the North East is being economically undermined; the traditional trade routes with South East Asia and Bangladesh have been closed. It was kept out of the Government of India's massive infrastructural development in the first few five-yearplans. Gradually, the region has become the Indian capitalist's hinterland, where local industries have been reduced to nothing and the people are now entirely dependent on goods and businesses owned predominantly by those from the Indo- Gangetic plains. The economic strings of this region are controlled by these, in many cases, unscrupulous traders. All the states of the North-East are connected to India by the "chicken's neck", a narrow corridor between Bangladesh and Bhutan. At partition, the area was cut off from the nearest port of Chittagong, in what is now Bangladesh, reducing traffic to and from the region to a trickle. The states in the region are largely unconnected to India' vast rail system. India freely exploits the natural resources of the North-East. Assam produces one-fourth of all the petroleum for India, yet it is processed outside of Assam so the state does not receive the revenues. Manipur is 22% behind the national average for infrastructural development, and the entire North-Eastern region is 30% behind the rest of India. Observers have pointed out that "...it is clear that in the North East, insurgency and underdevelopment have been closely linked; in such a situation strong-arm tactics will only help to further alienate the people." The shifting demographic balance due to large-scale immigration from within and outside the country is another source of tension. The indigenous people fear that they will be outnumbered by outsiders in their own land. Laborers from Bihar and Bengal who live under rigidly feudal, casteist socio-economic conditions in their states are ready to do all kinds of menial jobs at much lower wages. As they pour in, more and more local laborers are being edged out of their jobs. Illegal immigration from Bangladesh and Nepal is also percieved as a threat. In Tripura, the indigenous population has been reduced to a mere 28% of the total population of the state because of large scale immigration from then East Pakistan and now Bangladesh. In Assam, a similar fear of " immigrant invasion" was at the root of a student movement in the early eighties. The student leaders formed a political party called the Assam Gana Parisad (AGP) and contested state elections and won. In 1984, the Assam Accord was signed with the Central Government. However, the provisions of the Accord were never implemented. The failure of the AGP to bring about change in the state of Assam
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fostered the growth of the armed and overtly seccessionist United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA). Mizoram In the Lushai hills of Assam in the early sixties, a famine broke out. A relief team cried out for help from the Government of India. But there was little help. The relief team organized themselves into the Mizo National Front (MNF) and called for an armed struggle, " to liberate Mizoram from Indian colonialiasm." In February 1966, armed militant groups captured the town of Aizawl and took possession of all government offices. It took the Indian army one week to recapture the town. The army responded viciously with air raids. This is the only place in India where the Indian Security Forces actually aerially bombed its own civilian population. The armed forces compelled people to leave their homes and dumped them on the roadside to set up new villages, so that the armed forces would be able to better control them. This devastated the structure of Mizo society. In 1986, the Mizo Accord was signed between the MNF and the Government of India. This accord was identical to the Shilong Accord made with the Nagas earlier. The MNF agreed to work within the Indian Constitution and to renounce violence. The Government of India's primary interest in the North East was strategic, and so was its response to the problems. A series of repressive laws were passed by the Government of India in order to deal with this uprising. In 1953, the Assam Maintenance of Public Order (Autonomous District) Regulation Act was passed. It was applicable to the then Naga Hills and Tuensang districts. It empowered the Governor to impose collective fines, prohibit public meetings and and detain anybody without a warrant. On 22 May 1958, a mere 12 days after the Budget Session of Parliament was over, the Armed Forces (Assam-Manipur) Special Powers Ordinance was passed. A bill was introduced in the Monsoon session of Parliament that year. Amongst those who cautioned against giving such blanket powers to the Army included the then Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, (Upper House of the Indian Parliament), Mr P N Sapru. In a brief discussion that lasted for three hours in the Lok Sabha and for four hours in the Rajya Sabha, Parliament approved the Armed Forces (Assam- Manipur) Special Powers Act with retrospective from 22 May 1958. THE ACT AND ITS PROVISIONS Section 1: This section states the name of the Act and the areas to which it extends (Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram). Section 2: This section sets out the definition of the Act, but leaves much un-defined. Under part (a) in the 1972 version, the armed forces were defined as "the military and Air Force of the Union so operating". In the 1958 version of the Act the definition was of the "military forces and the air forces operating as land forces". In the Lok Sabha Debates which led to the passing of the original Act, Mr Naushir Bharucha commented, "that probably means that the Government very mercifully has not permitted the air forces to shoot or strafe the area ... or to bomb." The Minister of Home Affairs did not confirm this interpretation, but certainly "acting as land forces" should rule out the power to resort to aerial bombardment. Nevertheless, in 1966, the Air Force in Mizoram did resort to aerial bombardment. Section 2(b) defines a "disturbed area" as any area declared as such under Clause 3 (see discussion below). Section 2(c) states that all other words not defined in the AFSPA
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have the meanings assigned to them in the Army Act of 1950. Section 3: This section defines "disturbed area" by stating how an area can be declared disturbed. It grants the power to declare an area disturbed to the Central Government and the Governor of the State, but does not describe the circumstances under which the authority would be justified in making such a declaration. Rather, the AFSPA only requires that such authority be "of the opinion that whole or parts of the area are in a dangerous or disturbed condition such that the use of the Armed Forces in aid of civil powers is necessary." The vagueness of this definition was challenged in Indrajit Barua v. State of Assam case. The court decided that the lack of precision to the definition of a disturbed area was not an issue because the government and people of India understand its meaning. However, since the declaration depends on the satisfaction of the Government official, the declaration that an area is disturbed is not subject to judicial review. So in practice, it is only the government's understanding which classifies an area as disturbed. There is no mechanism for the people to challenge this opinion. Strangely, there are acts which define the term more concretely. In the Disturbed Areas (Special Courts) Act, 1976, an area may be declared disturbed when "a State Government is satisfied that (i) there was, or (ii) there is, in any area within a State extensive disturbance of the public peace and tranquility, by reason of differences or disputes between members of different religions, racial, language, or regional groups or castes or communities, it may ... declare such area to be a disturbed area." The lack of precision in the definition of a disturbed area under the AFSPA demonstrates that the government is not interested in putting safeguards on its application of the AFSPA. The 1972 amendments to the AFSPA extended the power to declare an area disturbed to the Central Government. In the 1958 version of the AFSPA only the state governments had this power. In the 1972 Lok Sabha debates it was argued that extending this power to the Central Government would take away the State's authority. In the 1958 debates the authority and power of the states in applying the AFSPA was a key issue. The Home Minister had argued that the AFSPA broadened states' power because they could call in the military whenever they chose. The 1972 amendment shows that the Central Government is no longer concerned with the state's power. Rather, the Central Government now has the ability to overrule the opinion of a state governor and declare an area disturbed. This happened in Tripura, when the Central Government declared Tripura a disturbed area, over the opposition of the State Government. In the 1972 Lok Sabha debates, Mr S D Somasundaram pointed out that there was no need to extend this power to the Central Government, since the President had "the power to intervene in a disturbed State at any time" under the Constitution. This point went unheeded and the Central Government retains the power to apply the AFSPA to the areas it wishes in the Northeast. Section 4: This section sets out the powers granted to the military stationed in a disturbed area. These powers are granted to the commissioned officer, warrant officer, or non-commissioned officer, only a jawan (private) does not have these powers. The Section allows the armed forces personnel to use force for a variety of reasons. The army can shoot to kill, under the powers of section 4(a), for the commission or suspicion of the commission of the following offenses: acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons, carrying weapons, or carrying anything which is capable of being used as a fire-arm or ammunition. To justify the invocation of this provision, the officer need
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only be "of the opinion that it is necessary to do so for the maintenance of public order" and only give "such due warning as he may consider necessary". The army can destroy property under section 4(b) if it is an arms dump, a fortified position or shelter from where armed attacks are made or are suspected of being made, if the structure is used as a training camp, or as a hide-out by armed gangs or absconders. The army can arrest anyone without a warrant under section 4(c) who has committed, is suspected of having committed or of being about to commit, a cognisable offense and use any amount of force "necessary to effect the arrest". Under section 4(d), the army can enter and search without a warrant to make an arrest or to recover any property, arms, ammunition or explosives which are believed to be unlawfully kept on the premises. This section also allows the use of force necessary for the search. Section 5: This section states that after the military has arrested someone under the AFSPA, they must hand that person over to the nearest police station with the "least possible delay". There is no definition in the act of what constitutes the least possible delay. Some case-law has established that 4 to 5 days is too long. But since this provision has been interpreted as depending on the specifics circumstances of each case, there is no precise amount of time after which the section is violated. The holding of the arrested person, without review by a magistrate, constitutes arbitrary detention. Section 6: This section establishes that no legal proceeding can be brought against any member of the armed forces acting under the AFSPA, without the permission of the Central Government. This section leaves the victims of the armed forces abuses without a remedy. LEGAL ANALYSIS The Armed Forces Special Powers Act contravenes both Indian and International law standards. This was exemplified when India presented its second periodic report to the United Nations Human Rights Committee in 1991. Members of the UNHRC asked numerous questions about the validity of the AFSPA, questioning how the AFSPA could be deemed constitutional under Indian law and how it could be justified in light of Article 4 of the ICCPR. The Attorney General of India relied on the sole argument that the AFSPA is a necessary measure to prevent the secession of the North Eastern states. He said that a response to this agitation for secession in the North East had to be done on a "war footing." He argued that the Indian Constitution, in Article 355, made it the duty of the Central Government to protect the states from internal disturbance, and that there is no duty under international law to allow secession. This reasoning exemplifies the vicious cycle which has been instituted in the North East due to the AFSPA. The use of the AFSPA pushes the demand for more autonomy, giving the peoples of the North East more reason to want to secede from a state which enacts such powers and the agitation which ensues continues to justify the use of the AFSPA from the point of view of the Indian Government. RECOMMENDATIONS BY SAHRDC The only way to guarantee that the human rights abuses perpetrated by the armed forces
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in the North East cease is to both repeal the AFSPA and remove the military from playing a civil role in the area. Indeed with 50% of the military forces in India acting in a domestic role, through internal security duties, there is a serious question as to whether the civil authority's role is being usurped. As long as the local police are not relied on they will not be able to assume their proper role in law enforcement. The continued presence of the military forces prevents the police force from carrying out its functions. This also perpetuates the justification for the AFSPA. Among the recommendations made by the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, from 1994 was the statement that "Governments which have been maintaining states of emergency in force for many years should lift them, limit their effects or review the custodial measures that affect many persons, and in particular should apply the principle of proportionality rigorously." The National Human Rights Commission is now reviewing the AFSPA. Hopefully, the NHRC will find that the AFSPA is unconstitutional and will submit this finding to the Supreme Court to influence its review of the pending cases. However, the NHRC has a very limited role. In past cases, the Supreme Court has not welcomed such intervention by the NHRC. This was evident when the NHRC attempted to intervene in the hearing against the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA). If the AFSPA is not repealed, it must at a bare minimum comply with international law and Indian law standards. This means the powers to shoot to kill under section 4(a) must be unequivocally revoked. Arrests must be made with warrants and no force should be allowed in the search and seizure procedures. Section 5 should clearly state that persons arrested under the Act are to be handed over to the police within twenty-four hours. Section 6 should be completely repealed so that individuals who suffer abuses at the hands of the security forces may prosecute their abusers. Moreover, the definition of key phrases, especially "disturbed area" must be clarified. The declaration that an area is disturbed should not be left to the subjective opinion of the Central or State Government. It should have an objective standard which is judicially reviewable. Moreover, the declaration that an area is disturbed should be for a specified amount of time, no longer than six months. Such a declaration should not persist without legislative review. Armed forces should not be allowed to arrest or carry out any procedure on suspicion alone. All their actions should have an objective basis so that they are judicially reviewable. This will also assist those who file suit against the security forces. All personnel acting in a law enforcement capacity should be trained according to the UN Code of Conduct for law enforcement personnel. The instructions and training given to the armed forces should be available to the public. Complete transparency should be established so that a public accountability is rendered possible. Having the armed forces comply with the Indian CrPC would also be a bare minimum. The CrPC itself does not fully comply with international human rights standards, so making the AFSPA comply on its face with the CrPC provisions for the use of minimal force, arrest, search and seizure would only be a rudimentary step in reducing the abuses committed under the AFSPA. 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
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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.
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Appendix 1
The Armed Forces (Assam and Manipur) Special Powers Act (Amendment) Act 1972, No - 7 of 1972 (5 April 1972) An Act to enable certain special powers to be conferred upon the members of the armed forces in disturbed areas in states of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura and the Union Territories of Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. Be it enacted by Parliament in the Ninth Year of the Republic of India as follows:
q q
This Act may be called the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958. It extends to the whole of the States of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura and the Union Territories of Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. Armed Forces means the military and the Air Force of the Union so operating; Disturbed Area means an area which is for the time being declared by notification under Section 3 to be disturbed area; all other words and expression used herein, but not defined in the Air Force Act, 1950, or in the Army Act, 1950, or in the Army Act, 1950, shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in those Acts.
If in relation to any State or Union Territory to which this Act extends, the Governor of the State, or the Administrator of the Union Territory, or the Central Government in either case; is of the opinion that the whole or any is in such a disturbed or dangerous condition that the use of Armed Forces in aid of civil power is necessary, the Governor of that Sate or the Administrator of that Union Territory or the Central Government as the case may be, may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare the whole or such part of such State or Union Territory to be a disturbed area. Any commissioned officer, warrant officer, non-commissioned officer or any other person of equivalent rank in the Armed Forces may, in a disturbed area: if he is of the opinion that it is necessary to do so for maintanence of public order, after giving such due warning as he may consider necessary, fire upon or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death, against any person who is acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons or the carrying of weapons or of things capable of being used as weapons or fire-arms, ammunition or explosive substances; if he is of opinion that it is necessary to do so, destroy any arms dump, prepared or fortified position or shelter from which armed attacks are made or are likely to be made, or any structure used as a training camp for armed volunteers or utilized as a hide-out by armed gangs or absconders wanted for any offense; arrest, without warrant, any person who has committed a cognisable offense or against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a cognisable offense and may use such force as may be necessary to effect the arrest; enter and search without warrant any premises to make any such arrest as
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aforesaid or to recover any person believed to be wrongfully restrained or confined or any property or any arms, ammunition or explosive substances believed to be unlawfully kept in such premises: and may for that purpose use force as may be necessary.
q
Any person arrested and taken into custody under this Act shall be made over to the officer in charge of the nearest police station with the least possible delay, together with a report of the circumstances occasioning the arrest. No prosecution, suit or legal proceeding shall be instituted, except with the previous sanction of the Central Government against any person in respect of anything done or purported to be done in exercise of powers conferred by this Act.
Source: End Army Rule: A Report on the Working of thee Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in the North-East [Committee for the Repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, Delhi 2004]
Appendix II
Excesses of Indian Army in Naga Areas 18 03 1956: The Indian Army forced 2 (two) Chiechama villagers to carry the dead body of the first National Home Guard killed by them (Indian Army), their hands tied to the pole to which the body was strung. One of the carriers was already handicapped having only one arm. On reaching Chiechama village the two villagers were tied to a tree and bayoneted to deaths before the villagers. Then the Indian Army forced more villagers to carry the dead body of the National Home Guard parading it around villages before reaching Kohima town where it was kept displayed at the Kohima Rest House and then at the main bazaar. Such horrible deeds were repeated on several occasions. 1956: Rev. Pelesato Chase was burnt alive on Bible Hill, Phek. 18 06 1957:The Indian Army declared Tsungiki village an Underground Sub-Headquarter and burnt down the village along with all their granaries. Not satisfied with that, the Army even went to the extent of torching their field barns too. The villagers were grouped; many able-bodied males tortured and left handicapped for life and women and girls sexually assaulted. When the villagers re-built their thatch-houses, the Army came and burnt it down again. This went on and on and subsequently, the village was burnt down seven times within a span of one year. 1962: Indian Army rounded up all the 12 (twelve) adult male members of Matikhru village and after torturing them for hours, took them into the village chief's house chopped off their heads one by one. One of them who survived with serious injuries managed to reach the outskirts of the village, but the army followed him and burned him to death. The womenfolk were chased out of the village and their village burnt down. The Captain commanding the Indian Army responsible for these heinous crimes was promoted. 1963: 6 (six) Naga students from Pfsutero Government High School were kidnapped by the Indian Army and later butchered into pieces and scattered those pieces in the jungle. 09 12 1970: Over 40 (forty) women subjected to sexual assault ranging from
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molestation to rape at Cheswezumi village. 24 03 1971: Several women at Mao Song Song village were molested in public. 11 07 1971: 4 (four) girls (all below 18 years of age) were raped inside Yankeli Baptist Church, by a contingent of the Maratha Regiment. The girls were dragged inside the church from amongst the villagers who had been rounded up. The villagers were not allowed to move out of the village for 4 complete days.
th 03-05/ 03 1974: Personnel of 95 BSF under Maj. Pundir Brahm Prakash and captain Negy, carried out mass tortures and sexual assaults on Ngaprum and Grihang vilagers.
Ngaprum. Rose, in her teens (around 19 years of age), committed suicide the next day after he was raped in front of her Ngaprum village elders on the 4th of March. In her suicide note, she said she did not see any reason for living in a world where such nasty crimes could be committed in the full knowledge of her people and nothing could be done against it. Grihang. At Ukhrul hospital, Ngashingla (23) was brought in in near dying condition, tortured and raped continuously for 3 (three) days from the 3rd of March to the 5th of March, by the th same 95 BSF personnel. On the third day, she was dragged to the school building where the villagers had already been rounded up. She was dragged by her around the classroom, kicked and beaten, forcibly stripped, sticks forced into her private parts causing profuse bleeding. All the villagers suffered immense tortures for 3 (three) days. Fathers were taken to the outskirts of the village with their wives and daughters, who were raped before their eyes by the personnel of the 95th BSF. The villagers of Ngaprum and Grihang were then threatened that if news of the BSFs crimes comes to the knowledge of the general public, the villagers would be wiped out. 1976: Security Forces summoned all village chiefs in Ukhrul district and told them to bring in the undergrounds by July or face dire consequences. Christian leaders were forced to set themselves up as peace committees. Then they imposed two month long curfew over 50 villages in May-June-July, and prevented the villagers from even ploughing their fields. 18 03 1978: A delegation of Naga leaders with prior consent of the Indian Government left Kohima to meet the Naga Federal leaders in the liberated areas to discuss matters relating to the political settlement (this was in connection with the Shillong Accord Clause 3). But as usual, the Indian Army, who also shot dead some of the delegates and arrested the rest, intercepted this delegation at the border. This particular incident, which took place at Meluri, speaks a lot about the public pronouncements made by the military authority, which can even override the Governor who represents the Central Government. 10 04 1979: Chikoy (15) and Nuhutso (14), two school children at Phek were beaten th up by the 14 Assam Rifles as anti-national elements. Another 11-year-old boy escaped. The Assam Rifles personnel cited the inability of these children to understand Hindi as adequate proof of being anti-national elements. 18 05 1979: Kuonou, a 60-year-old woman of Kohima village was on her way to the
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field when suddenly, a personnel of the 99th BSF, pounced upon her and dragged her into the nearby bushes and raped her. 1980: Captain N. L. Sharma, Post Commander of Kuingai, Ukhrul, molested village girls at the military doctors room. The girls had gone there at the invitation of the wife of the doctor. When the girls ran home, the Captain followed them with a number of personnel. At the village, the Captain broke into the houses in the name of carrying out housesearches, where as, he was actually looking for one of the girls. At last he found the girl, ordered everyone to go away while pulling the girl inside an empty house. The owner of the house who had been pushed out, held on to the girl and at the risk of her own life helped the girl to flee. While attempting this, several elders of the village were beaten up for coming out in the night. The Chairman of the Autonomous District Council, Kongsui Luithui took up the matter with the higher authorities. Immediately, Captain N. L. Sharma was brought to Ukhrul town as Commander of Operations. With additional power, Captain N. L. Sharma went around entering many a girls room. April 1981: The same Captain N. L. Sharma now picked up Kongsui Luithui and tortured him for hours. Kongsui had to be airlifted to Imphal in critical condition. 1982: Army staged mass torture and detention in the villages of Ukhrul making hundreds of them invalid for life. Hundreds of women were subjected to rape and other forms of indignities. On numerous occasions, the Security Forces stopped their vehicles in the middle of the road when they saw girls and abused them. The finding of the All Women Team from Delhi that visited the villages confirmed these atrocities. The Supreme Court of India awarded a relief of Rs. 200, 000/- to 2 (two) st widows whose husbands disappeared in the hands of the 21 Sikh Regiment. 25 02 1982: When the Army came to Nungbi Khullen village and began brutally assaulting the villagers; some women sought shelter in K. Yarsings house. But the army forcibly entered the house, drove out the women and began sexually assaulting the women. They forced them to undress and plucked their pubic hair as part of their enjoyment. The names of the women are K. Pangamla, K. Chareiphi, Ruth and Zingnila. 25 02 1982: Ngalangam Ramthao and Arthing, (schoolgirls) of Kalhang village were abducted by the army. Earlier, 3 (three) girls, Thotwonla , Thingthing and Kathingla from the same village had been publicly molested and taken away by the army and released after nearly two weeks. From Paorei village 11 (eleven) women were taken away to an unknown place following mass torture of villagers and released after days of illegal detention. Their names are: L. Maireila, Y. Lungmila, P. Woringla, Y. Tharawon, K. Peace, Sanyaola, Y. Sothingwon, Y. Hormila, L. Khoreila, Y. Luishomla and V. Vangamla. 03 03 1982: Pastor P. Mashangva of Huishi village and Pastor Mahangthei of Chingai were abducted and tortured in the army camp for a week without food. They were subjected to electric shocks in their soft and private parts, hanged upside down, made to dig their own graves and when unconscious made to lie on chipped stones. When they cried out to God to end their sufferings and take their lives, they were mockingly told to bring Jesus Christ to rescue them.
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05-06/ 03 1982: From 6:00 p.m. on the 5th of March to 10:30 a.m. of the 6th of March, all the villagers of Huining village were detained inside the village church leading to near suffocation, especially of little children and babies. Later, C. Paul, the Assistant Pastor was taken away. K. Somi, Pastor of Phungchan village, Matuiching, Pastor of Kalhang village and Vaomi, the church chowkidar were also meted out severe torture and electric shocks. 25 03 1982: Vareichung, Pastor of Kurei village Baptist Church, and three deacons, Z. Ronrei, R. V. Mahuiri and Ngashanglung, were taken into the church building and tortured. They were released after forcing them to sign statements saying nothing had been done to them. April 1983: 3 (three) boys preparing for the Class X Board Examination at Tadubi, were shot dead in their room without any reason. December 1984: Esau was pulled out from his home in Ukhrul and tortured to death (his neck was broken) at Talloi Camp. 1985: E. P. Winson of Tusom, Ukhrul, disappeared after being picked up from his th village by the 9 Grenadiers. His remains were found in the jungle adjacent to the Phungyar military camp. 24 01 1986: Two Army officers killed Luingamla (19) of Ngaimu, Ukhrul, inside her home when she resisted rape.
th 24 05 1986: A contingent of 4 Assam Rifles along with Peoples Militia of Nagaland pulled out 7 (seven) public leaders from their homes in Tamenglong, and tortured them severely. Two of them, S. T. P. Injellung, Headmaster, Tausem High School, and R. K. Shonghuwang, former Chairman of Small Town Committee, died on the spot. Others survived with serious injuries. nd 08 01 1987: 22 Rajput Regiment ambushed and killed boys from Singha Makok village, Mon district. They were a part of the 13 (thirteen) boys taken by the insurgents into the jungle that night and were returning home when they were fired upon. One of them was also injured. rd October 1987: 3 Assam Rifles forcibly evicted villagers from 22 houses located on the hillside of the Maram Bazar, Senapati. The said 3rd Assam Rifles converted the local church building into a canteen, 2 of the houses as schools and the rest as their quarters. The area was fenced off. Then they picked up village elders and youth leaders and tortured them in order to silence them from telling the outside world this forcible occupation.
October 1987: Rev. Father Chacko, was knocked down and trampled upon inside the th Ukhrul Parish compound by a contingent of the 4 Assam Rifles under the command of a Major because he told them that they cannot burst into the room of the nuns. October 1987: 2 (two) boys from Talloi brought to Ukhrul hospital with deep burn injuries after they were roasted in fire at the Talloi Mahar Regiment Camp.
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16 06 1988: Assam Rifles personnel under the command of a Major attacked the student volunteers helping civilian authorities in checking Inner Line Permit (ILP) in Kohima. The Assam Rifles personnel pulled out one student from the Naga Students Federation (NSF) office and beat him up severely. 07-10/ 07 1988: Z. V. Canaan, S. C. Esau and R. S. Isaac, were among the hundreds of persons rounded up from Ukhrul by the Security Forces and severely tortured. On the th 10 , Canaan and Esau were taken to the nearby jungle and shot. Their bodies bore multiple injuries. R. S. Isaac has since disappeared. 1989: Assam Rifles Personnel from Shangshak Post, Ukhrul, under two Majors one of them was Major Shukla rounded up and tortured Maku villagers and molested several women inside the houses where they had been isolated. 13 04 1993: after an encounter in which the army had killed one NSCN activist, the army entered Leishokching village and ordered all persons to assemble in the common ground where the villagers were accused of harboring and assisting the NSCN activists. 3 (three) young men were picked up as a part of the jungle operation, detained for three days and tortured with electric shocks. 15 08 1994: CRPF personnel opened fire on hearing the sound of an approaching scooter. 5 (five) persons got injured. Then the army came to Paraodon village, ordered the people to lie down on the ground. Three girls were among them. The persons injured were K. L. Chumringe, N. L. Piningam, S. N. Elpis, L. S. Hopeson, P. S. Shungnal and S. R. Ngatun who was tortured for 12 hours. 07 09 1995: Inashe Ayemi (36), Project Director of the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Zunheboto, was kicked and hit with gun butts by army men in front of his mother and sister, who were helpless. Inashe was then dragged away into an army camp. When his body was handed to the police, he had bruises all over and a deep gash on the head, which had been stitched up. There was stamp-pad ink on his fingers, which is itself suspicious. Why should an educated man person give his thumb impression, if he was conscious? 19 02 1996: Gaibi, a 20-year-old youth had carried his licensed gun while going hunting with a friend. Some army men began random firing in the market of Jalukie town th. on the19 Gaibis fore arm was hit with two shots and got fractured. He was picked up and detained for one day and night without food and water. No medical attention was given to his wounded arm. Ngoulung, Saina, Hoksen and Raku were also picked up at the same time and badly tortured. 04 04 1996: Humangot, an 18-year-old farmer from the Zeliangrong tribe was picked th up by the army at 2:30 p.m. from Jalukie town and was taken to the 16 Assam Rifles camp at Samzuiram, one and a half km from Jalukie, under Major Rana. There he was blindfolded, his body pricked all over with pins and a lathi squeezed on his lower body from hips to feet. For 5 days he was beaten severely, abused and forced to admit that he was an underground worker. Not only were his wounds not treated but red-chillies were rubbed into his open sores. He was then handed over to the police on April 19. 13 04 1996: Pekung, Hudang, Ningkhonlung, Kaihibe and Taisiakbe, were picked up,
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interrogated and tortured in the 16th Assam Rifles camp at Zamzuriam, and released the next day. Pekung had Rs. 1, 900/- on his person, which was payment from his log business. The army men appropriated the entire amount. 17 04 1996: Kehuing (25), of Ngwalwa village was picked up by the army at around 9 th a.m. from the village weekly bazar, and taken to the 26 Assam Rifles camp at Ngwalwa. He was blindfolded, his hands tied and interrogated at gunpoint in Hindi and beaten when th he could not answer. He was released on the 19 after signing a no harassment certificate.
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Appendix III
Violations During the Present Ceasefire Period Tabanglong Massacre, 28 12 2000. Suspected militants attacked a patrol party of the 15 Jat Regiment near Tabanglong bus stand killing 1 (one) army personnel and injuring 4 (four.) After the attack, the army stopped all the days Imphal bound buses at the attack site and forced all the passengers of one bus bearing registration No. MN03 0778 (Blue In Travels) to get down from the bus and beat up all the male passengers and detained them at the attack site. Dingam Newmai, the driver of the Deputy Commissioner, Tamenglong, was hospitalized after receiving head injury. Then the army forced the same bus to carry the dead body of the th army personnel and the other four injured to the battalion HQ of 15 Jat Regiment stationed at Tamenglong. While doing this, the army used women and children passengers as human shields by forcing them to sit in the bus along with them. th The same day, 15 Jat Regiment personnel came to Tabanglong village and forced all the 12 (twelve) males present at that time to gather at the village volleyball court and beat them up one after the other. Then they shot dead 8 (eight) of them including two Meitei chilly traders. One survived with bullet injuries while another escaped by jumping and running to the bushes nearby. The other two took shelter with the womenfolk and children, who were, before and during the killings, kept in groups in different houses and not allowed to come out. After the killings, they were taken to the church and detained there for the rest of the day. Then at dusk, 6 (six) villagers, including 4 (four) women were forced to carry the dead bodies of the 2 (two) Meitei chilly traders to the Tabanglong bus stand while the other 6 (six) bodies were kept in the village itself. Wokha Incident, 14 07 2001. th Indian Security Forces led by one Maj. O. P. Singh of 24 Assam Rifles were having a clandestine meeting with some cadres from one of the NSCN factions in one M.E. School at Wokha village. When some villagers came upon them, Maj. O. P. Singh immediately ordered them the village elders to ensure a safe passage to the said cadres. With no other options left, the village elders accompanied those cadres along the way as ordered. On their return, the same officer and his boys captured the village elders including the village Council Chairman and tortured them. One of the elders fainted in the process. They were questioned as to why they had hidingly provided a safe passage to the NSCN cadres when they (Indian Security Force) were about to apprehend them. The Vice-Chairman of Wokha Town Committee was among those tortured. After torturing them, they were left almost half dead along the road and the men of the village were prevented from carrying their bodies back to their homes or to the hospital. Instead, the women were ordered to carry them. 15 07 2001: 4 (four) young civilian boys were captured and tortured with their limbs bound for hours together without any reason: again by the same Maj. O. P. Singh. Some days later, at Elumyo village (about 6 kilometers from Wokha), the Indian Security Forces destroyed 4 civilian houses on the ground that there were some NSCN boys taking shelter in them. Tadubi Incident, 14 08 2001. rd Captain K. K. Sharma, the post commander of Tadubi 3 Assam Rifles post, in his civvies along with his armed bodyguards started harassing and disturbing the women
th
peace rallyists who were on a Human Chain Peace Rally organized by the Naga Women in Senapati District. Sensing the commotion, the Secretary General (S.G.) of NPMHR, who had joined the rally along with his colleagues, attempted to intervene and diffuse the situation. However, the said Captain jumped on him and in the scuffle that followed, he was caused bodily injury. His still camera, with which he was covering the rally side by side, was also partially damaged. Then the women peace rallyists were indiscriminately fired upon. Three (3) persons received serious bullet wounds and many women peace rallyists injured. 09 03 2002: Xutovi Achumi, a physical training teacher of Government Middle English School, Nito (Nuiland), was illegally detained and tortured at the Rangapahar Forest th th check gate, Nagarjan Road, Dimapur, by the 6 Bihar Regiment. The 6 Bihar Regiment personnel then came out with a clumsy ploy heaping unfounded allegations on Xutovi and then getting him registered under Bokajan Police Station, Assam, listed as general area, far away from the assumed formal coverage of the cease-fire area. Then the victims (a literate, school physical trainer!) thumb impression was taken for a no th damage claim certificate by the 6 Bihar Regiment. 26 07 2002: 3 (three) persons arrested without any justified reason by Security Forces in two separate incidents in Chandel. Md. Abdul Kadir (45) of Solan village, an employee in the DBO office as a VLW, and S. Themreiwing (29) of Solan village, an instructor in NGO Typing Institute, were arrested from their residences at around 1AM early morning, by security forces posted at Kakching Lamkhai. Later, they were handed over to the Thoubal Police. In another incident; Ishwar Singh (42) son of Kirshin Singh (Haryana), proprietor of Ishwar Singh and Shamer Singh shop at Japhou Bazaar, Chandel, was arrested by Commando Police who came from Imphal at around 11:30 AM. Later, he was released at Imphal Police Station. None of these cases were reported at the local Police Station. 06 04 2003: On the evening of 6 April 2003, Achumbemo Kikon, the President Elect of Naga Students Federation (NSF), was coming up from the Naga Hospital after paying a visit to some patients when the Assam Rifles stopped his vehicle at TCP gate, Kohima, exactly at 8:15 PM and asked to get down. The president obeyed their order and got down from the vehicle whereby the Assam Rifles frisked him and took him to a dark corner. As per their order, the president was standing and looking at the vehicle being checked when suddenly an armed constable went near the president and assaulted him physically using abusive words. After the president identified himself, the Assam Rifles personnel denied they assaulted him: a grim reminder of the Security Forces habitual records of obtaining signatures on sheets of blank paper from innocent victims saying they were not harassed or tortured.
th
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Appendix IV
Violations In Arunachal Pradesh 05 06 2002: Some armed miscreants along with Indian security forces went to one Ransiat Ruttum (40), ex. Assam Regiments house in Borduria village and assaulted the villagers. They came in search of NSCN (IM). 08 06 2002: All the villagers of Borduria were gathered in the football ground at 7 a.m. Even women and young children were not spared. Only after 9 a.m. women were allowed to go back. All the male members were interrogated throughout the day. On the same day, around 3 a.m. the Indian Security Forces entered the house of one Liahang Lamra, Rtd. SSB (46), and began to search the house. They also rudely woke up Liahangs daughter, Chalit (15), who was sleeping along with her friend. The girls were assaulted and only allowed to go after Liahang intervened. One school-going boy, Janglin Medam (17), son of Wangnoap, who was coming from his uncles house was beaten up by the same Gurkha Regiment. 12 06 2002: Mukhiak Mongwang (44), and Rangwang Henkhey (40), with other friends were kept under house arrest for one whole night with no proper reason. They were forcefully made to play cards the whole night. Curfew was imposed in Borduria village and the villagers were warned not to come out of their house after 6 p.m. 17 06 2002: the following persons were arrested by the Indian Security Forces: 1. Wanghoan Mongchan (58), 2. Wangrian Mongchan (18), 3. Ranlanm (37), 4. Ransiat Ruttum (40), 5. Phoaja Wangha (34).
th In yet another series of incidents, the 6 Assam Rifles personnel under the command of Lt. Col. Sekhawat, harassed the local innocent people: th 21 05 2002: at around 2 p.m., near Khonsa Petrol pump check gate, the 6 Assam Rifles jawans in the name of searching for UGs stopped the State Transport bus plying between Khonsa and Katang village. They enquired the whereabouts of Tumriate Lobwang (38), of Khela village. It is worth mentioning that Tumriate had been missing th from his village since 19 April 2002. In the process, the villagers of the area were asked to get out of the bus and they started beating them mercilessly.
Panic-struck, the villagers stopped going to Khonsa town, the Headquarter of Tirap district, even for essential commodities. The children of Khela village who were seriously th ill could not get medical treatment at Khonsa hospital due to harassment by the 6 Assam Rifles. 06 06 2002: At around 1:30 p.m., in the same bus, the chief of Katang village, Phonong Lowang, Ex-SSB, head constable, in his late 60s whose hearing is impaired, was going back to his village. He was beaten up mercilessly by the 6th Assam Rifles without any rhyme or reason.
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13 06 2002: At around 4 p.m., the 6th Assam Rifles soldiers took 3 (three) women and 4 (four) men from Laju village for carrying their belongings as porters without any payment. Thereafter, between Laju and Khothung village there was a firing and Yangbay Kongkang (37), wife of Yangli Kongkang (40), resident of Laju village, of Tirap, succumbed to head injury. It is believed that the injury was a bullet wound, which was th clearly shown by the injury. But the 6 Assam Rifles claimed that the injury was due to her falling down a rock. On the same day, at around 7 p.m., Yumsen Homcha (29), from Nogklo village was arrested by the 6th Assam Rifles from the Khonsa hospital where he was attending to his ailing relative. Witnessing this arrest, the seriously ill Kamthoak Khocha (40), died of shock.
th The 6 Assam Rifles rationale for using the villagers as porters without payment: if the UGs can ask villagers to carry their loads, why not by them too
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Appendix V
Some Infamous Incidents Oinam, 09 07 1987. On the 9th of July, suspected NSCN activists attacked an Assam Rifles outpost killing 9 (nine) soldiers and decamped with large quantities of arms and ammunitions. The Assam Rifles responded by conducting a large-scale operation code named, Operation Blue Bird, in 30 (thirty) villages in and around Oinam village. In the course of this operation, 15 (fifteen) men were killed in the custody of the Security Forces, apparently after torture, at least 3 (three) women raped, whole village populations held in the open or in the churches up to 12 hours at a stretch, day after day, over a period of several weeks. All villagers detained in the Army camps were beaten indiscriminately regardless of their age or whether they were men or women, tied up and hung upside down and beaten for several hours at a time with rifle butts, lathis and chains until they lost consciousness, or until they could not walk, or until their limbs were broken (in Oinam and Lairouching army camps, and makeshift places of detention), given electric shocks on their genitals (Oinam army camp, Lakhamai). Still others had chilli powder smeared on their genitals, eyes and noses, water poured over their faces until they lost consciousness, burnt with cigarette butts and had their pubic hair burnt. Victims of torture included village elders and pregnant women; 2 (two) women aborted within two weeks after being beaten. Some of the tortured victims have since died after prolonged illnesses and others, permanently disabled. The Assam Rifles also burnt down and dismantled over 125 houses, looted villagers grain stores, vegetable plots, domestic goods and livestock. The villagers were not allowed to tend to their cattle who therefore ate up their paddy crop, as a result of which the villagers suffered severe food shortages whereas, they used to sell surplus rice earlier. Harassment continued for several months and even by December, the Security Forces had not stopped rounding up villagers for forced labor for such tasks as porter services, building new army camps, washing clothes and cutting firewood. Ukhrul, 09 05 1994. When 2 (two) Majors of the Assam Rifles were killed by alleged NSCN activists near the th Ukhrul town post on the 9 of May, the Assam Rifles bombarded Ukhrul town with 2 Inch mortar bombs. Firing into the houses with SLR and AK47 continued non-stop for two hours. The Security personnel went berserk, searched houses, destroyed anything that came their way, and beat up many people including women and children. In the end, the town was left with miraculously just 3 (three) deaths, many damaged houses, broken furniture, utensils, and over hundred bleeding men and women, out of which 75 were admitted with broken limbs and other serious injuries. Mokokchung, 27 12 1994. th On the 27 of December, suspected insurgents fired upon a patrol of the Maratha Light Infantry (MLI) moving near the Police Point in Mokokchung town. 1 (one) jawan of the MLI was killed and 1 (one) insurgent died in the return fire, while another was chased and shot dead. The JCO of the patrol party died while attempting to charge inside a house with insurgents inside. The MLI then doused woolen balls and other inflammable materials with petrol and set houses and shops on fire even while civilians were still trapped inside them. 5 (five) civilians were burnt alive inside their houses, 3 (three) others died despite being able to
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come out of their houses and 4 (four) women raped at gunpoint. The army personnel threatened the Superintendent of Police (SP), when he tried to arrange for a fire brigade. The army was to later claim that the houses caught fire as a consequence of the initial grenade attack and the snapping of high-tension wires. Then it spread naturally in the wind, they said. Akuloto, 23 01 1995. rd At around 3:50 on the morning of the 23 January, some insurgents fired upon a post of the 15th Assam Rifles stationed at Akuloto. The exchange of fire carried on till 5 oclock in the morning. Then Subedar Khelaram and 15 (fifteen) jawans of Assam Rifles went in pursuit of the insurgents. Unable to find them, the army men encircled some houses, got the people out, poured kerosene on the houses and burnt them. They had suspected the residents of being sympathetic to the militants and harboring them. Hozheto Sema, a farmer, and his wife were asked to put down their children and come out of their house. They refused. A jawan fired at Hozhetos wife killing her on the spot and blowing off the hand of her three-month-old child. Kohima, 05 03 1995. th th On the 5 of March, a convoy of 16 Rashtriya Rifles was going from Bishnupur in Manipur to Dimapur in Nagaland. The convoy had 63 vehicles with 5 officers, 15 JCOs and 400 jawans, and stretched over 5 kilometers. They were halting at Kohima when a tyre of one of the convoys Shaktiman trucks burst, and the RR personnel started shooting immediately thinking that they were being attacked. They fired automatic weapons and shelled the civilian areas with 2 Inch mortars. They were soon joined by the CRPF and Assam Rifles posted at Kohima. Together they conducted combing operations and fired indiscriminately at various parts of Kohima. In the operation that lasted 2 hours, 7 (seven) persons including 2 (two) minor girls of three and a half years old and an 8 year old were killed, 22 (twenty two) persons injured by shrapnel and bullets, 15 (fifteen) persons physically assaulted and 26 (twenty six) persons arrested and tortured by the Security Forces in their camps. The firing included 1,207 rounds of gunfire and 5 rounds of mortar shells. Doctors were prevented from attending to the injured and the generator of the only hospital in the town was switched off, forcing the doctors to operate with candles and torches. Namtiram, 07-12/ 08 1995. st In the aftermath of the shoot-out between 21 Rajputana Rifles and suspected NSCN activists on the 7th of August, near Namtiram, the Security Forces personnel went berserk. They carried out combing operations in the 5 villages of Namtiram, Azuram, Saramba, Thiulon and Joute Pabram in Tamenglong district, Manipur. They detained people without food, hundreds of villagers were tortured, women were sexually assaulted th th and the homes of these villages were looted. From the 8 to the 12 of August, the area was completely sealed off. No one was allowed to go in or out. Villagers were not allowed to go out and tend to their fields where the crops were fully riped and left to destruction by wild animals. The Civil Administration was rendered helpless, as the civil authorities th were not allowed to enter the area. On August 10 , the Deputy Commissioner, Superintendent of Police and the Sub-Divisional Officer of Tamenglong were turned back from Ahahu (Barak) bridge. The first medical team was turned back. It was only when the th public protested that the team was allowed into Namtiram on the 12 of August.
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The Rajputana Rifles Company Subedar Major had demanded women from the villagers in lieu of cash since the time they came to Namtiram outpost. This is something alien to Naga culture. Apart from physical and mental tortures and the looting of household goods of the villagers, the same demand was made while torturing was going on after the th August 7 incident. Jesami, 02 01 1996. On January 2, at about 4:00p.m. 6 or 7 army personnel came to the Jesami bazaar in a jonga. They turned the vehicle around and alighted. Vicky Tamang, a Nepali was sitting in the Muslim Hotel. The moment he saw the army personnel he ran out and started shouting. The army personnel asked him, Where is that man? He pointed to a local boy who started running. They fired towards the running boy who escaped unhurt. Hearing the gunfire, 15-16 more army personnel came down from the army post towards the bazaar. Then all of them started firing indiscriminately in all directions. The army later claimed that NSCN militants shot at the Nepali. The SP of Ukhrul who interrogated Tamang was categorical that Tamang was not shot at all and the entire story he was giving was false and inconsistent. People outdoors began running helter-skelter. A party of army personnel commanded by one Major Singh and captain Sahni began dragging people out of their homes and congregated them at Zero Point where they were systematically assaulted with rifle butts and the blunt edge of daos (machete), kicked with boots. The helpless villagers saw the houses of Raju, a Rajasthani shopkeeper, Augustine, a policeman and Pamreiphy, a businesswoman, going up in flames. They pleaded with the army personnel to let them put off the fire, but to no avail. Only after the houses were almost completely gutted did the officers shout at them to go and put out the fire asking as to what they were doing when their houses were on fire. Another set of villagers were attending service in church when Captain Ashwini rushed into the church and on to the pulpit, took out his revolver and pointing to the congregation shouted at them to stop praying or that he would shoot them. The jawans immediately took up positions at the church windows pointing their rifles inwards. The men and women were grouped separately on either side of the aisle. Tamang was then brought in and all the persons were checked. One person from Talloi village was brutally beaten inside the church compound. Two other visitors from Kachai village were taken to the camp and tortured. Only after two days were they handed over to the village authority. A Nepali blacksmith, the police wireless operator, the school principal, the village chairman and village secretary were especially targeted for attack and they sustained serious injuries. 2 Nepali women were also sexually molested. Shoving fingers into her vagina they molested another woman, a mother of four. In all, 63 persons were injured. So with the concocted story of an attack on a Nepali man who was new to the village, the army was successful in spreading terror in the village of Jesami. Huishu, 11 03 1996. On March 11, at the crack of dawn, a group of militants believed to be from the NSCN th attacked the 20 Assam Rifles post at Huishu. The heavy exchange of fire between the NSCN and the Assam Rifles lasted for about three hours. The panic stricken villagers who were caught unawares by the burst of rapid gunfire of the encounter and the subsequent explosions of 2 Inch mortars in the civilian areas ran for safety leaving behind all their belongings. One third of the villagers who had gone to participate in the Centenary celebrations to mark the coming of Christianity to Ukhrul could not return home because of the reign of terror unleashed by the Assam Rifles. Those who fled to the jungle managed to find shelter while those who took the main road to Poi village were intercepted by the reinforcements from the Poi outpost near Sharok stream. The
reinforcement from the Poi outpost under the command of one Captain Sharma forced the villagers (about 26 of them), to march back to Huishu. As this group of villagers and the personnel of the Assam Rifles neared the village, a few shots were fired towards them. As the villagers ran for cover, they were pulled back by the Assam Rifles personnel and used as human shields by placing the muzzle of their guns on their shoulders. This was the first time that women were used as human shields by the army. Khachungla, a woman, was made to cover Captain Sharma with a Naga shawl while approaching Huishu. When this group reached the village, they were beaten up and interrogated. None of them was spared. Paisho (51), a sector leader of the Village Voluntary Force attached to SSB, Poi post, and Parshuram Karki (45), a carpenter of Nepalese origin were taken away and shot. Their bodies bore torture marks and on Paishos dead body, intestines were oozing out from the right side of his stomach. Then the Assam Rifles with bottles of kerosene torched the village, house by house after ransacking and collecting all the valuables in sacks at around 10:30 a.m. Except the church building, school building and six other houses which were located at odd places, everything else was burnt down. A total of 103 houses mostly with CGI roofing and 19 granaries/barns were reduced to ashes.
[1] End Army Rule: A Report on the Working of thee Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in the North-East [Committee for the Repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, Delhi 2004] [2] Website of South Asian Human Rights Documentation Centre: http://www.hrdc.net/sahrdc/resources /armed_forces.htm
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Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act

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