Manipur News

In the process of executing the set agenda of modern nation states, societies in transition are often caught in a kind of dilemma mistaking the means as the ends. The phenomenon has often led to a crisis of governance idealised by staunch proponents of the efficacy of the legislature, the executive and the judiciary, the three organs of the state.

Most post colonial States across the globe have been experiencing a peculiar traumatic experience of normalizing aberrations. Here, one should be reminded that desiring a radical change will have less impact if the practices of normalizing aberrations continue to afflict societies in transition.

When one closely scrutinizes the contours of recent history, there are adequate evidences to suggest that the ruling class in the post colonial period had been made to learn the intricacies of governing the ungovernable through acquired values or rather vices than inculcated practices.

While making efforts to fulfil certain visions necessitated by choosing the correct path to development, envisioned objectives are rarely achieved despite the adoption of ideal techniques of implementing policy related programmes.

It has become the norm for not only India but also developing nations in the post colonial period to attach certain value to these organs.  While underplaying the value of the legislature by distancing oneself from politics of contemporary times, sections of the citizens subjectively overvalue the role of the executive.

In India for instance, a person who aspires to become a bureaucrat after overcoming the gruelling exercise of passing the annual civil services examination, fetches accolades from the society he or she belongs to. The value attached to becoming a bureaucrat at times has been so much overemphasized as if bureaucracy is an end in itself. Thus, the raison d’être of playing a role as the means to an end diminishes.

When the citizens are made to see the means as an end and there are no efforts to correct the lopsided vision, aberrations of the worst kind are spawned. This leads to further distortion of the procedural approach and as a result, one can easily bypass norms of governance by adopting practices considered anathema to all types of visions.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/aberrations-dilemma/

In a statement on the eve of the National Press Day, editors of major newspapers in Nagaland have reacted sharply to the a notification issued by a Colonel of the General Staff for Assam Rifles on October 25 last. The notification insinuated that the editors have violated the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of 1967 by publishing statements by proscribed organisations and that the editors were complicit in illegal activities.

However, the editor took the opportunity to reflect and assert their role to reinforce the idea of an independent and responsible free press and affirmed their commitment as the fourth pillar of democracy. They stated that the newspapers in Nagaland remain open to critical feedback and believed that “free flow of information and ideas is essential for contributing to mutual understanding and peace” in the State.

In the statement, the editors affirmed that they would continue to create and provide “responsible and healthy spaces and opportunities” that are open to diverse viewpoints in a sincere and sensitive manner without infringing on the news quality or the potential for constructive engagement.

In asserting that the editors would still continue reporting events “ethically with transparency, accountability and objectivity by verifying and authenticating our sources of information while respecting the principle of confidentiality”, they have also explicitly argued that notification issued by the Colonel needs to be viewed within the context of the long standing “Indo-Naga issue”.

The editors had also enlightened the Colonel that historians and scholars have noted the Naga issue as one of the oldest political conflicts in the world. They stated that the newspapers in Nagaland fully appreciated the historical reality within which they live and work.

The statement issued by the editors is an ideal way forward to resist the shrinking space of the media in the Northeast in a well coordinated alliance between civil society groups and policy makers.

Journalists and media persons in the region should also collectively engage with issues confronted by the States and work with other independent “non-partisan” media monitoring and analysis groups that can offer a treasure trove of information. Such interactions and engagements will make the policy makers go beyond the state/security/military apparatus formula.  While sharing free and unbiased flow of information and news, one should not forget that the news media is an essential component of a democratic state.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/beyond-the-military-apparatus/

Silently effective. This is the course of protest that Editors of five Nagaland based newspapers have decided to take up against the notification issued by the General Staff Officer of the Assam Rifles in Nagaland on November 17. Leaving the editorial space blank in a newspaper is a significant decision and has expressed what words may not be enough to do. Tough to say what course of action the Assam Rifles authority in Nagaland or the office of the IGAR (N) may be planning to take up, but a powerful statement has been delivered, silently. And this is something which should not be brushed aside. Leaving the editorial space is not new to the media here in Manipur, for there have been quite a number of time in the past when Editors thought it better to lodge a silent protest rather than exercising their ‘lung power’. Accusing the media of being cosy to unlawful organisations is not something new here in the region, but it should be clear that the media is merely doing its job of disseminating information to the readers when they publish statements or reports of banned or unlawful organisations. In the present case and discerning from the joint statement issued by Editors of five Nagaland based newspapers on November 15, it is clear that the General Staff Officer of the Assam Rifles had more than hinted that by publishing statements of the NSCN (K), they are supporting the outfit, intentionally or otherwise. This sounds ludicrous for the fact stands that newspapers all over the world do carry statements of banned organisations. The media in Manipur too is no exception.

The matter is serious and the Assam Rifles authority should spell out their stand. Keeping mum would amount to saying that they are keen on silencing the voice of the media, which is against the tenets of democracy. It was something much more than an official notification, for in many ways it could also be taken as some sort of a list of dos and don’ts for the media in Nagaland and this is not acceptable. Time also right for the media houses in the North East region to close ranks and state their stand over the issue. As already noted here earlier, the media in Manipur knows how it is to work under pressure and the notification issued by a senior officer of the Assam Rifles can certainly be taken as some sort of a pressure mounted on the functioning of the media. This is unacceptable. If the Assam Rifles is of the belief and conviction that any media house is directly or indirectly supporting a banned organisation, then there is always the law Court to take up the matter with. There is also the Press Council of India. As an important institution of the Union Home Ministry, the Assam Rifles should know better than to issue a notification which has the potential to create misunderstanding and brand the media as a whole. Better it would be for everyone to retract the notification issued on October 15.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/keeping-the-editorial-space-blank-silently-effective/

Crucial questions. Can the Congress party carry on the extremely good show it managed after the Assembly election in 2012 ? Equally important, can the BJP hope to open its account when results of the by poll elections in Thangmeiband Assembly Constituency and Thongju Assembly Constituency are declared after polling day on November 21 ? After the 2012 Assembly election, the Congress has been on a roll in Manipur, returning the highest number of candidates when 42 of its candidates were elected in the House of 60. Not long after this stupendous showing, the Congress managed to add 7 more after all the elected members of the MSCP merged with the Congress, taking its strength to 49. Thangmeiband and Thongju ACs where by elections will be held on November 21, elected All India Trinamool Congress candidates in 2012, before they were disqualified in the earlier part of 2015. In between the Congress did well to wrest Hiyanglam Assembly Constituency in the by election held in 2014 taking its total number of MLAs to 50. By election to Hiyanglam AC was necessitated following the demise of its then sitting MLA M Kunjo of the All India Trinamool Congress. In short it has been the Congress all the way here but this should not be taken to mean that the BJP can be viewed as a push over. After the BJP swept the Lok Sabha elections in 2014, it has done well in the Assembly elections in some States such as Maharashtra, Haryana, Jharkhand, Jammu and Kashmir but bit the dust at Delhi and Bihar.

It is just two ACs and the results will not impact on the stability of the Congress Government here, but there is a reason why many see the November 21 by elections as some sort of a semi-final to the 2017 Assembly election. This is virtually the reason why Chief Minister O Ibobi and Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam have been leaving nothing to chance while campaigning for the two Congress candidates. Not that the BJP is lagging behind and this can be confirmed from the canvassing launched by some of the Central leaders here. The interesting question is whether the Central leaders will be able to make an impact amongst the voters of the two ACs. How about the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister ? Can they influence the voters of the two Assembly segments ? Will people buy their promises and assurances ? Only time can tell, but from the manner in which the two parties have been hitting the campaign trail, nothing is being left to chance. This is about the two political parties, but what is it that the voters want ? Have the candidates and the political parties they represent been able to touch on any topic or subject which interest the voters ? Much will depend on how successfully the two parties are able to address issues which are important to the voters.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/will-bjp-debut-this-time-crucial-questions/