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Imphal, May 27: Chairman of IPAK , Sapamcha Jadumani today warned Yambem Laba, former member of Manipur Human Rights Commission and Senior Journalist over his statement regarding implementation of ILPS in the state while deliring speech at Iboyaima Sumang Leela Sanglen.
Jadumani said that during a public meeting in connection with the demand for ST status on May 22, Yambem Laba had stated that the ILPS will never be possible.
Jadumani questioned on what ground the noted journalist had stated such irrelevent statement when ILPS is still enforced at neighbouring states of Manipur.
8 comments
ILPS will be possible if all the indigenous people of the state are tribal. Meitei being in general and OBC, there will be complicate issue about the implementation of ILPS in Manipur. As long as anti-ST demand stand of AMUCO and UCM persist, the ILP demand can’t be strong because all the simple intelligent laymen are more aware of efficacy of system that protect us from the onslaught of demographic expansion of outsiders. Statement of Yambem Laba was not wrong. Be realistic to the exiting reality in the Indian system not from the position of unknown entity.
I think there is no direct relation between ST status and ILPS or similar act. There must be a critical analysis before demanding the ST status. For me, I don’t want to be in ST category. To me ST category is not the right means for the survibal of Meitei/Meetei. Meitei/Meetei will remain survive if and only if they think and acts as Meiteis or Meeteis. Manipur should not be run by those dumb officers or bureaucrats or politicialns (Meitei or non Meitei) or so called leaders. Manipur should be run by entrepreneurs. So, first ILPS or similar laws then further action. There is a saying ” HEE ANI TONGBADI KARANG SEGAI”.
There are three tribal states of North East where ILPS is enforced. In Meghalaya also, khasi and Garo students organizations also demanding the implementation of ILPS in the state to check the marginalization of ethnic communities of the state due to the influx of Bangladeshi and Nepali and people from mainland India. In Meghalaya, due to its matrilineal system practiced by Khasi, Jaintia and Garo have a very sizable cocktail elite population in Meghalaya to challenge the imposition of such restrictive system. At the height of ILP movement in Manipur, in Meghalaya also there was a mobilization of students and civil societies to press for implementation of it. Mukul Sangma cleverly manipulate the issue diverting the attention of the general public by enforcing labour laws and land laws that restrict the ownership of land property and business enterprises in Meghalaya. There are certain law which has the characteristics of ILPS applied in Meghalaya and few pockets of tribal belt in Assam. In Manipur also why tribal civil society are not joining the movement on the ground that they are already protected by the existing Indian law being a tribal. Either enforcement of ILP or not doesn’t make any difference for them. So, inspite of supporting the movement, they are standing against the three bills supporting ILP. All leadership of Manipur need to know the pulse of down trodden Meitei families how they like to get room for breathing in the mist of suffocating lives due to imposition of long economic blockade and bandh that affect the life support system of average Meitei population. Why so many illegal local wine and ligour shops are opened as against the will the general public? Why our educated young women are married to outsiders being cheap stuffs?
Dear brother Lokendra, ST status is not only for the reservation of jobs and education but also for protection of economic and political right of endangered ethnic groups from the onslaught of large migrant populations from mainland and neighbouring countries. Regarding the issue of entrepreneurship and survival of ethnic groups is also impossible dream among the mass middle class mentality of the people and existing law and order couple with unwritten hill-valley divide by civil societies of both hill and valley. As you know, any individual can’t be a spirited entrepreneur to meet with success in their venture despite all odd. Can you count how many entrepreneurs are running a successful units in Manipur? Out of 28 lakhs population, only a countable few are successful entrepreneurs by dint of hard work. As for example Dhabali owner of Classic hotel, thangjam agros industries, Sangai Plastic industry etc can be mentioned. There are large number of government contractors due to connection with Ministers and Underground groups having acquiring large physical assets are not falling under great entrepreneur. They are like having wealth with the help of Alibba lamp. Majority of meitei enterprises are falling under cottage and household units that too mostly in the services sectors. Due to globalization and stagnation of technology of traditional units has gradually driven out all Meitei enterprises out of markets. The impotent government also not proactive to provide conducive economic environment for grooming entrepreneurs in Manipur. Everything can’t be set right at one fortnight. Government economic policy and trade laws are also very effective to edge over our competitors. Please look at Indo-Myanmar trade how our livelihoods of those families indulging in traditional sectors be it agriculture, handloom and high-end industry etc. How, Myanmarese vegetable vendors with the support of local government dominate Yongchak market in Numphalong and Moreh producing Yongchak at cheaper rate than found in Manipur and Nagaland. As per Sangai Express report around Rs 3.6 crore of rupees are spent per month by Manipur for purchase of Yonghak. Apart from this, you will find huge cheaper Chinese apple that found in Guwahati market are flooding even in local Imphal markets. In Myanmar also, 80 percent of major business enterprises are controlled by Mandarin speaking Sino-Myanmarese with tacit support from Yunnan government. All Chinese money from mainland China routed through deliberate matrimonial relation of mainland Chinese and sino-Myanmarese Chinese are building a strong economic entity of Sino-Myanmarese. Moreover, important military junta leadership like Ne Win also belong to Sino-Myanmarese ethnic groups. Though representing 3 percent of Myanmarese population, export import trade in myanmar has been controlling since 1990 since western sanction against military government of Myanmar. what I mean to say is state need to create conducive environment for grooming or cultivating entrepreneurs with tacit support of government in the form trade and land laws. Such things can’t be materialized few years down the line. Now, our requirement is food supplement and life support system of sagging economy of Meitei community under the existing regressive laws in Manipur.
Dear brother Lokendro, I would prefer some protection other than no protection at all. ILP is difficult to achieve since it involves amendment of the Indian constitution whereas ST demand is easy to achieve because we belong to indigenous people and we qualify the necessary criteria. ST is just a constitutional status like OBC or general. You can still be a proud meitei after all. On the other hand I would also like to mention that if you stay in Delhi or Bangalore or any other part of India neither will people around you treat you like a general, nor do you get any opportunity. Very few meiteis could compete with the general of the mainland India. We lack in facilities. What is the pride of being a general when we are always running at the bottom in class or in job.?? What is the pride of being a general if majority we are doing minority jobs.
Talking about administration, how do you think that if we become ST manipur will be run by dump officers? Or is the current administration in manipur run by only general category bureaucrats? Do you know how many ST/ SC officers belonging to other states are working as IAS/ IPS in manipur at present?
Who said the value of entrepreneurship will come down if we become ST? I would say if we become ST, we will get more benefits in entrepreneurship and would be definitely better than the current scenario. There are several schemes for this given to ST.
Having said, I have no objection to ILP. It is upto the people of manipur which one to go first.
Where is all civil society organisation gone when some handful of peoples are engaged in gambling like housie every day and night at YAC, Bokul makhong, kakwa community hall, tera etc changing vanues now and then
Yambem Laba, the well known journalist, human rights activist is right. Those who are opposing his views do not understand Articles 19(5), 342(1) and 371(C), among others, of our Indian Constitution. Our land and polity can be saved, influx and economy can be streamlined only under the above Articles. There are many friends who worked for Yelhoumee or indigenous people, without knowing the fact that OBC Meiteis are not recognised as indigenous people by the Constitution. Thirty four Scheduled Tribes and seven Scheduled Castes of Manipur are indigenous people. Others including Meiteis are not. Should not we challenge this? A verdict of Supreme Court (special leave petition no.10367; Kailas vs. State of Maharashtra) dated 5 Jan 2011, stated among others, that Scheduled Tribes are indigenous people of India. Even the Burmans of Tripura and Chogyals of Sikkim who once ruled their respective kingdoms are today listed in the Scheduled. Manipur kings once had matrimonial alliance with Burmans, otherwise known as Takhel to the Meiteis. (The famed Hindi film music director of yesteryear, SD Burman, father of RD Burman, was born to a Manipuri princess named Nirmala Devi). Meiteis who once ruled from Surma valley to Kabaw valley have today shrunked to only Imphal valley covering. This is hardly 10 pc of present Manipur’s geographical space, sharing peacefully with Manipuri Muslims, tribals, Biharis, Nepalis, Bengalis etc. Unless protected under Articles mentioned above, Meiteis will be a vanishing tribe. It’s high time for UCM and AMUCO to know the geo-political reality. Posterity will not forgive us.
Respected senior journalist Yambem Laba is right. Some of our orthodox yet vociferous middle class Meitei landed gentries (a section of professors and editors included) prefer the status quo. However, they have miserably failed to suggest a concrete and practicable alternative, under the Constitution, to protect our land and polity, influx and economy, for the last sixty five years. The relevance of Yelhoumee or indigenous people is not a contemporary myth. It’s real and needs self introspection. Like a vanishing tribe or lost children of history, walking from one spot of buried hope to the death rattle of another, searching the Constitutional safeguards on the wrong pages of wrong chapter of Indian Constitution, we shall be doomed in the wilderness of the streets only. What we need is to flip the right pages where everything about ‘indigenous’ and ‘Constitutional safeguards’ is enumerated in our statute books. Most of the answer to our present social unrest lies in understanding the above two words correctly. It’s very simple and no rocket science indeed. The geo-political reality of today compels us to search for this. We surely need mutual understanding and collective political wisdom before the NFR train reaches Tupul and Imphal.