16th June 2014 by The Morung Express

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The Morung Express

Dimapur VOL. IX ISSUE 163

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The Morung Express POLL QUESTIOn

Vote on www.morungexpress.com SMS your anSwer to 9862574165 Is the over-dependency on government jobs leading to rise in unemployment in Nagaland? no

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Does the BJP-led govt have the political will and understanding to find just solutions in the north East? Yes

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2014 FIFA World Cup

Afghans ignore Taliban threats to vote again in final test [ PAGE 9]

–Tom Landry

16th June - 09:30 PM Germany vs Portugal 17th June - 12:30 AM Iran vs nigeria 17th June - 3:30 AM Ghana vs United States

naga entrepreneurs call for conducive business environment

By Sandemo Ngullie

Rectify NSDZ: GPRN/NSCN

[ PAGE 2]

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reflections

“Innagalandover90%ofthepopulation are Christian,predominantly alcoholics?”

Community Cup – ‘Football for change’

Vidya Will do a Film With Shah Rukh Khan Only on One Condition

[ PAGE 8]

Yes

Monday, June 16, 2014 12 pages Rs. 4

Leadership is getting someone to do what they don’t want to do, to achieve what they want to achieve Modi arrives to a rousing welcome in Bhutan

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A Ecuadorean fan gestures before the group E World Cup soccer match between Switzerland and Ecuador at the Estadio nacional in Brasilia, Brazil, Sunday, June 15. (AP Photo)

formal talks between nscn (iM) & Goi soon newmai news network Dimapur | June 15

Prior to the holding of formal talks between the Government of India and the NSCN (IM), a series of informal meetings are reportedly going on in New Delhi between the two parties. “Very soon, the formal talks with the Government of India will begin at the highest level and we are hopeful of the outcome of the talks,” a well placed source from the NSCN (IM) said. “It was with the NDA government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee that some substantial development on the Naga peace process was

seen,” stated the source. The source then said that preparations and consultations among the NSCN (IM) leaders are underway in New Delhi for the formal and crucial talks, which will take place shortly. Six top NSCN (IM) leaders had left Dimapur for New Delhi to hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other NDA leaders. VS Atem, AK Lungalang, TT Among, Victor Angami, Imcha Longkumer and Qhevihe Chisi Swu are now in Delhi joining Isak Swu and Th Muivah for the meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home minister Rajnath Singh and other Central leaders.

DIMAPUR, JUNE 15 (MExN): An interactive session attended by various organizations, representing Naga entrepreneurs, has called for the development of a conducive business ecosystem in the state, which will enable local entrepreneurs to flourish. This was stated at interactive sessions, which were held in Kohima and Dimapur on June 13 and 14. The event was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry and was attended by the Nagaland state Council, Business Association of Nagas (BAN), Dimapur Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), and Mon Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI). A press note from the CII informed that Dr AM Gondane, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India was the special guest at the programme. Addressing the gathering, Dr AM Gondane said that entrepreneurs of Nagaland, being major stakeholders in the economic development of the state, should provide valuable inputs regarding endowments that the state possess in the areas of human resource, agriculture, minerals etc. so that he could present them at appropriate forum in the govern-

‘Development initiatives should come from within and not imposed by people from outside’

ment and other policy planning circles. Many participants representing different business organisations presented their views on a range of issues. Various speakers requested that the four International trade centres in Nagaland state be modernized and made functional, as opposed to the present predicament of them existing as mere bartering points. The issue of connectivity featured prominently, with many speakers emphasising on the need to make the IndoASEAN corridor operational at the earliest and requested the Central government to stick to the original plan of routing it through Moreh-Imphal-Kohima-Dimapur-NumaligarhGuwahati in the Indian sector and not divert it. The members also impressed upon the need to increase the frequency of flights operating through Dimapur and to have more Airlines to operate. Alarms were raised at the threat by DGCA to either

degrade or scrap Dimapur Airport due to non-expansion of the runway and other infrastructure at Dimapur Airport. Some speakers raised the issue of reduced availability of bandwith in the region, which has adversely affected internet connectivity and speed. Intense deliberations took place pertaining to the music industry, ranging right from manufacturing of musical instruments to performances. It was also pointed out that first generation entrepreneurs do not gain access to credit from the banks due to reasons that include absence of collateral security as, land in the entire state, barring some locations in Dimapur and Kohima, are not mortgageable due to the unique land tenure system prevalent. It was therefore suggested that a corpus fund be raised with provisions suited to the needs of the young Naga entrepreneurs willing to set up enterprises in Nagaland. It was further lamented that the business community has

been negatively affected by rampant taxation, extortion, kidnappings and killings. They urged the visiting official to impress upon the government of India to hasten the process of political settlement to ensure that entrepreneurs can pursue their chosen activity without any impediments. Discussions were also held on skill development and skill upgradation that would focus on the local manpower market demand. Wrapping up the session, the visiting senior bureaucrat, who is a research scholar in development sector, said that necessary inputs for policy formulations with regard to any development initiatives should come from within and not imposed by people from outside. He observed that Nagaland has core competencies in areas of agriculture, tourism and hospitality sectors, soft skills, art and craft, and that they need to be exploited productively. He further shared the views of the participants about the inevitability of a secure and peaceful environment which is crucial for accelerating the pace of development in the state. Earlier, Mr Ajay Sethi, MD, NIIT Dimapur delivered the welcome address.

ots class of 2014 graduates Morung Express news Dimapur | June 15

The Nineteenth Commencement for the Oriental Theological Seminary’s (OTS) graduating Class of 2014 was held Sunday at the Town Baptist Church here. 23 graduates—20 in Degree of Master of Divinity and 3 in Degree of Master in Ministry—were conferred their degrees along with special awards. Academic Dean of OTS, Rev. Dr. Kethozelhou Keyho, read out small personal notes on the graduates and their future endeavours as each was conferred their degree by Rev. Vilodi Sakhrie, Chairman of the OTS Board of Trustees, and Principal of OTS, Rev. Dr. Wati Aier. It signified the close knit framework through which students

of OTS are educated, and sent out to serve the community. While congratulating the Class of 2014, general secretary of the Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC), Rev. Dr. L. Anjo Keikung said that it is easy to humble and serve one another in a seminary, before our friends and teachers, but there is a journey for them to undertake “beyond the book.” He encouraged the students to work as hard on the field, and forge good relationships with the world outside, as much as they did in school. And to do this with humility. “Don’t try to be better than others,” he said, “Try to be humble and faithful.” The NBCC general secretary reminded that “God counts our donation, our service, not our duration,”

elaborating how the ‘second degree of ministry’ is not just to serve but to “give our life.” He quoted faithfulness and sacrifice as driving tenets of life instead of result-based enterprise. “We are not here to build our kingdoms—we are here to serve and sacrifice. Take the humanity and servanthood you have learned at OTS to the people,” Rev. Dr. Keikung encouraged. The hour-long commencement was presided by Dr. James Kalong, and benediction pronounced by Rev. Vilodi Sakhrie. The OTS Award for Academic Excellence was given to Elika, the Late Ms. Nula Panger Award in Ministry went to Sashiakum Imchen and the OTS Award for Dignity of Labour was presented to Ikatoli Husca.

‘economic empowerment is crucial for indigenous Women’ Our Correspondent New Delhi | June 15

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The National Consultation on the Situation of Indigenous Women (IW), which ended on June 12 at Indian Social Institute Delhi, saw the participation of 75 delegates from the North East, South India, North India and Central India, belonging to various tribal communities. “This national consultation is a historic event for the Indigenous Women in India,” says Khesheli Chishi, Convenor, Indigenous Women Forum of North East India (IWFNEI). A first of its kind where IW from all parts of India have come together not just to share their problems but to address the issues affecting IW in India, Khesheli Chishi from Nagaland is of the view that this program has helped them integrate their issues, strengthen their network and move forward together. Govind K e l k e r, LANDESA, one of the speakers at the consultation, stated that economic empowerment is crucial for empowerment of indigenous women. Forest and land rights are the first

and foremost rights that women need because land is central to the struggle of indigenous women in India whose economy lies in the land, said Kelkar, while asserting that individual rights and capabilities are also crucial for indigenous women. “Land rights should be the central point of your struggle and strategy because it leads to empowerment,” added Kelkar. He pointed out that individualization of capabilities in terms of land management, monitoring laws, education, good health, skills to manage one’s life and resources were essential. However, Kelkar was also of the view that power lies in the organization and that there is power in collectivity, and individualization of capabilities should not be seen against the community, but should lead to equal empowerment of each individual. “Women need to actively participate in political activities and unity among the IW is the most important element for their empowerment,” said Geetashree Oraon, Jharkand Minister for Educa-

tion, Human Resources, Arts and Culture and Youth Affairs, who spoke on policies and programs related to indigenous women and possibilities and opportunities for the advancement of tribal women. Rashmi Singh, Executive Director, National Mission for Empowerment of Women (NMEW) also spoke on the possibilities and opportunities for the advancement of indigenous women. Dr. Gina Shangham, Advisor, IWFNEI also shared that this consultation program has led to a broader understanding of the problems of IW and also the realization of the active participation and potentials of IW in delivering positive change and mitigating negative change in each of their communities. The key issues affecting IW which were discussed at the Consultation were sex trafficking, climate change and its impact on IW, sexual harassment, state violence, migration, domestic violence, militarization, increased alcoholism among tribal men, witch-hunting and displacement. It may be noted that these issues affect women all over India in

general, however the IW are the ones affected the most especially, in cases of trafficking, militarization, sexual harassment, displacement and witch hunting. The consultation concluded with the IW delegates formulating action plans, capacity building and policy advocacy for each of their regions to address issues affecting the IW. In the action plan, delegates pointed out how there is a need to include women in decision making process, land rights and natural resources and the need for women to be economically empowered and more aware of their rights and provisions. Another outcome of the consultation was the preparation of a shadow report which will be sent to the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) committee. The national consultation is an initiative of Indigenous Women Forum of North East India (IWFNEI) and Inter State Adivasi Women’s Network , supported by Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) and funded by UN Women Bangkok.

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Community Cup – ‘Football for change’ “Music Against Cancer” on June 21 Kohima, June 15 (mexn): Some of the finest female musicians from the state will come together, to sing and support children living with cancer on June 21 at the Regional Centre of Excellence for Music and Performing Arts (RCEMPA), Jotsoma. The event is being organized by “SpeakGuru Foundation-‘Touching Little Lives’”, a Christian Foundation which serves cancer patients and their families, provide resources for schools lacking basic educational amenities as well as expand and spread environmental conservation awareness. The Foundation also strives to aid in narrowing the gap between the needy families, and ensuring that every child unable to receive adequate cancer treatment has access to the Foundation’s facilities including financial, emotional and spiritual support. Last year, a Free Handed Concert with the tagline, “Experience the Joy of Giving” was organized by the SpeakGuru Foundation wherein Alobo Naga & the Band performed. This June, the Foundation will have two prominent events under the banner - “Hair Cutting Campaign” and “Music Against Cancer” on June 20 and 21 respectively. The

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Hair Cutting Campaign is a campaign in support of children afflicted with cancer, a charity event where any individual can participate and have a haircut and donate to the cause. The key message of the campaign is to show the little children that it’s perfectly okay to be bald, along the lines of chemotherapy. The event, “Music Against Cancer” that will take place on the following day at RCEMPA at 6:00 pm, will see some of the most popular and talented female artists from different communities coming together for the sole purpose of love, giving a person another reason to smile. June 21 is also World Music Day. One of the female musicians to perform at the event commented, “Thank God, we are blessed, at least we are healthy and not suffering; at least we are noticed and if our blessings can bless another child, we are definitely in, for it. We may not get anything in return, but we are coming together with SpeakGuru Foundation to help these children… for nothing, but for the sake of humanity and love.” The performing artists would include Mengu Suokhrie, Arenungla Longkumer, Kenei Chale, Topenu Assumi and Tetseo Sisters. Mengu Suokh-

rie is a singer, song writer and a recording artist and has an album- “Love is all we need” to her credit. Arenungla Longkumer is a creative dance graduate from YWAM, Lonavala as well as a creative fashion designer. Kenei Chale is one of the top finalists of Naga Idol 2008 and the brand ambassador of NSACS Red Ribbon Rock Reach 2010 while Topeni Assumi is the Naga Idol ’09 Season 4. Tetseo Sisters are the four sisters with a repertoire of folk songs of Nagaland, singing “Li” in the Chokri dialect of the Chakhesang Naga tribe of Nagaland and their songs are often accompanied by the age old Naga one stringed instrument, the "Tati/Heka Libuh". Tetseo Sisters have been singing folk music since their childhood and have performed in various parts of the country and abroad. The children, the Foundation has been supporting come from poor families, and are, by now, totally drained of resources to further their treatment. Most of them are currently undergoing chemotherapy. The SpeakGuru Foundation brochure aptly reads, “Contribute generously in aid of children afflicted with cancer because they cannot fight cancer alone.”

DimaPuR, June 15 (mexn): Community Cup, a 5 man football tournament for business houses in Dimapur, was held today at the premises of Maple Tree School. With the theme ‘Football for change’, the Community Cup was envisaged with the idea of bringing together businesses in Dimapur, and giving back to the community, in an effort to further the idea of Community Social Responsibility. Altogether, 18 teams participated in the tournament. The atmosphere

was not dampened by the early morning shower or the water soaked pitch as the event began with much enthusiasm from the many participating teams and the crowd who had gathered to watch the game. The turf though was not conducive for playing and towards evening, the pitch had turned slushy. The food courts on the premises with the theme ‘Eat for Charity’ had helped draw a huge crowd. They included Muffets Pantry, Dosa Mahal, Fairy Sprinkles, Amonar Tea, Fast Food Court, Yellow

Chimney, Khalong’s BBQ, Dimul, Food Republic, Breeze Bakery, Aiko. The final match of the Community Cup was played between Muffets Pantry and Gorilla Marketing. Muffets Pantry had entered the final as favourites having gotten through their group stages brushing aside opponents with relative ease. Muffets Pantry’s combination within players and their flair with the ball had helped them reach the finals. However, Gorilla Marketing stuck to a tight defence and kept playing the aerial ball for-

ward. The match ended around 7 with the ball being barely visible. In the end, Gorilla Marketing emerged victorious via penalties beating Muffets Pantry by 1-0. The winner and the runner up teams were awarded prizes which were sponsored by Synergy Systems, Reebok, and Amonar Tea. The total proceeds from the day, amounting to Rs. 45,210, was handed over to Youngs’ Club Dimapur (YCD) – a youth led local NGO – working with educational programmes, especially for children af-

fected by HIV/AIDS and victims of Drugs and Alcohol abuse. YCD also works on programmes related to youth development, women’s empowerment, drop out students and overall community service. The main organizer for the event was Zatara Pvt. Ltd. with Design Stash and Maple Tree as event partners. The organizers hoped that the event would serve as a platform for local businesses to network with other business organizations in Dimapur and collaborate for a good cause. C

NLM William Norman along with BDO Kuhuboto S. Zheheto Sema and other officials inspecting a village gate at Ghonivi village on June 14.

utilization of fund. He observed that villages are trying to implement the projects and schemes as much as they can, but awareness part is significantly low. He will be visiting ten villages each in Dimapur, Kohima, Peren and

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was later installed by the association as advisor to UBCANEI. The seminar was attended by more than hundred UBCA church leaders (pastors, women leaders and youth directors) from Assam and Nagaland. Leaders of the seminar were Milo Gonmei, executive member, UBCA and Enny Thungjamo, pastor. Imsupong Nokder, pastor also delivered a message. Akheto Achumi, (EBM) UBCA and Rihuse Chakhesang, pastor, offered prayer and read scriptures from the Bible. Mothers’ group honours fathers through song during the celebration of Father’s Day at Chakhesang Baptist Church Kohima

NLM in Nagaland to monitor MoRD schemes

DimaPuR, June 15 (mexn): National Level Monitor (NLM) from the Ministry of Rural Development, William Norman is visiting Nagaland to monitor various MoRD sponsored schemes and projects such as Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY), National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM), Old Age Pension, Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP), Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) etc. William Norman, accompanied by Rural Development, Social Welfare and PHED officials and led by S. Zheheto Sema visited Phuhoto, Shitoi, Kiyelho and Ghonivi villages under RD Block, Kuhuboto under Dimapur district on June 14. The visiting official inspected various ongoing and completed projects and interacted with the villagers besides checking the records maintained by the village development board. William maintained that it is important for the village to keep proper records to ensure transparency and proper

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To mark Father’s Day, fathers present at the Community Cup event on June 15 engaged in a tug-of-war with young men. (Morung Photo)

Seminar for UBCA-NEI church leaders held

DimaPuR, June 15 (mexn): A one-day seminar for church leaders organized by United Baptist Churches Association, North East India was held on June 14, at United Baptist Church, Balijan (Assam), near LRC Colony, Dimapur with Rev. Dr. Phughoto Aye, Director, Fire Around the World as the resource person. Delivering a lecture at the seminar, Rev. Phughoto stressed on church administration and its functions, leadRev. Dr. Phughoto Aye, Director, Fire Around the ership and its qualities etc. He World speaking at a seminar for church leaders or- also elaborated on church organized by UBCA-NEI on June 14. dinance and art of praying. He

Phek districts. Other officials who accompanied the NML include Y. Shikato Jimo, Welfare Inspector, Social Welfare Office, Dimapur and Toshi Yaden and Wati Pongen both Junior Engineers, PHED Dimapur.

on June 15. NLA Speaker Chotisuh Sazo shared greetings, Sano Vamuzo, former chairperson Nagaland State Women Commission and Rev. Khrotso Mero also spoke on the occasion. A special prayer was also said for the fathers. (Morung Photo)

Eurokids International celebrates Father’s Day

DimaPuR, June 15 (mexn): Eurokids International School celebrated Father’s Day on June 15 with a lot of enthusiasm, informed the school principal Sandeep K Jain. In a press release, Sandeep said a special seminar under the theme – ‘Languages of Love’ was organised at the school with Rev Robert Kikon (Minister, Faith Christian Fellowship and 'Soaking and Healing room' Ministry) as the resource person. During the seminar attended by the fathers of the school children, Rev Robert Kikon talked about the importance of father in a child's life. He summarized the fatherly attributes in five sections and named them the five 'languages' of love

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Fathers of Eurokids International School’s children participate in a drawing competition on Father’s Day.

and elucidated about their importance in the relationship of father and child. The programme was well appreciated by all with every father enjoying the very informal fun filled setting, said the release, while quoting one father’s com-

ment, “It was a great effort on the part of the school to have thought about Father's Day celebration.” Apart from this, the fathers also participated in a surprise activity and in a special drawing competition under the theme

'Me and my child'. The programme was an effort made towards greater parental involvement. The school principal presented vote of thanks and appreciated the efforts of the faculty members in the preparation of the event.

Auto rickshaw and NFHRCC emergency meeting today June 15 (mexn): There treasurer Yashitsungba Ao at Khermascooty recovered DimaPuR, will be an emergency meeting of Na- hal, Dimapur. All the members con-

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DimaPuR, June 15 (mexn): Authority of Union Territory, NSCN (IM) has recovered an auto rickshaw with chassis no. MD2AA24LLNWA06724 and engine no. AEMBN24974 from Purana Bazaar, Dimapur. It also recovered a scooty (black colour) with engine no. OG4FC138093 and chassis no. MD626AG2C1F10043. In this regard, secretary of the UT Khekuto Jakhalu has asked the rightful owners to claim the vehicles with valid documents within seven days from his office. One may contact the CAO office, UT at 9856071655/ 8575659190 for further information. The secretary further reminded all the alcohol retailers/ vendors to close the businesses before 9:00 pm to avoid accident and manhandling on the street. Failing to comply with the order which comes with immediate effect, stern action will be initiated upon the defaulters, he warned.

galand Foothills Road Co-ordination cerned have been requested by General Committee (NFHRCC) on June 16, 3:00 Secretary WY Kithan to attend the meetpm at the residence of the committee’s ing without fail.

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Grade 3 to 5 students of Hope Academy in Dimapur visited Little Light House Orphanage at 3rd Mile Dimapur on June 14. The trip, which was based on the topic “sharing”, was part of their real life application.

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16 June 2014

MHA Committee of NE Concern visits Chennai DImapuR, June 15 (mexn): The Ministry of Home Affairs’ Committee of Northeast Concern visited Chennai to meet the Tamil Nadu Government and civil societies from Northeast India in Chennai from June 13 to 15. A press release received here informed. The committee comprised of Alemtemshi Jamir (IAS Retd.), Tape Bagra (IAS Retd.), S. Saha, MHA Deputy Secretary, R. D. David Boyes, Convener North East India Forum Against Racism, and J. Maivio Woba, President Naga Students’ Union Delhi, the release informed. On the first day of their visit, they met some prominent people in the city who had experienced the Northeast and the second day was followed by a meeting with student leaders as well as working professionals from the Northeast in Chennai, the release stated. Meanwhile, the committee also met top Tamil Nadu government officials at the state secretariat. The

press release informed that the committee had four main terms of reference: 1) To examine the various kinds of concern, including concerns regarding security of persons hailing from the Northeastern states. 2) To examine the causes behind attacks/violence and discrimination against the people of the Northeast states. 3) To suggest measures to be taken by government to address the concerns. 4) To suggest legal remedies to address these concerns. With regard to the people from Northeast in Chennai, it was decided to form a Northeast Welfare Forum Chennai in the presence of the visiting committee with their encouragements. The activities of the forum will be initially managed by Wapangtoshi, Pastor NCF Chennai, in coordination with the Naga Students’ Union Chennai. After a successful visit the MHA committee of Northeast Concern left for Kolkata on June 15 for their next assignment, the press note stated.

A fish seller returns after cleaning his container in the river Brahmaputra in in Guwahati, Assam. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)

Nephew hacks uncle to death in West Garo Hills ShIllong, June 15 (nnn): Reliving the horror story of almost a year ago when about thirty people went about hacking each other with swords and daos in Phulbari, the plain belt of West Garo Hills of Meghalaya erupted in another horror story where one person was killed after his cow broke through the wooden boundary of his neighbour. Another four were critically injured during the incident that happened supposedly between an uncle and his nephew in a

The ATDUM also demanded the removal of Manipur Social Welfare minister AK Mirabai saying the minister is not fit to run the department as there have been numerous cases of the victimisation of physically challenged persons during her tenure. ATDUM then demanded that termination of Social Welfare department director L Ibobi and Blind School headmistress W Binakumari. Addressing the media today, ATDUM said they will hold a massive protest rally in Imphal on June 20 for which elaborate arrangement is underway. However, ATDUM did not specify the location of the rally it planned to hold. ATDUM then said that the mere suspension of Social Welfare department director L Ibobi and Blind School head-

Northeast Briefs ZYF to enforce UNC bandh Imphal, June 15 (mexn): The Zeliangrong Youth Front (Assam, Manipur & Nagaland) has stated that it ‘strongly and fully supports’ the 48-hour total bandh called by United Naga Council (UNC) which will be effective from the midnight of June 16. A press statement issued by the association General Secretary David Kamei stated. “The Zeliangrong Youth Front will strictly enforce the total bandh to send strong message that the United Naga Council demand for Alternative Arrangement is appropriate, right time and justified especially for the Zeliangrong people in order to keep intact the ancestral land from being illegally taken away,” the note stated. In this regard, ZYF appealed to all people to extend support and cooperation towards the total bandh and warned that any uneventful incident which occurs “shall be the responsibility of those defying the said total bandh.”

Meghalaya militant outfit chairman arrested in Assam ShIllong, June 15 (IanS): Chairman of Meghalaya-based militant outfit UALA, Novembirth Ch Marak, was arrested Saturday from a hospital in Assam, a police official said. "Novembirth alias Chiindik Marak is a prize catch for us in our operation against the UALA (United A'chik Liberation Army) which has been creating reign of terror in Garo Hills," Meghalaya police chief Peter Hanaman told IANS. "A police team from Meghalaya is on its way to Assam to seek his transit remand," he said. UALA is a splinter group of the breakaway faction of the Achik National Volunteers Council and is fighting for a separate Garoland.

Three men murdered in Tripura agaRTala, June 15 (The hInDu): A 60-yearold man was beaten to death by a lunatic at Guliraibari in Seepahijala district, about 50 km south of Agartala, before dawn on Sunday. The lunatic was later lynched by an irate mob. The lunatic identified as Chaitrya Debbarma was lynched to death in presence of his wife and a relative after the former hit Biswarai Debbarma, 60, with a stick. Chaitrya was lodged in the house of a village doctor at Guliraibari for treatment from where he managed to flee post midnight. He started pelting stones on Biswarai Debbarma’s house who got enraged and rebuked him for the act. Chaitrya got angry and started hitting Biswarai with a bamboo pole. As he raised a hue and cry, people gathered at the scene and started beating the lunatic mercilessly resulting his death on the spot. Biswarai, was declared brought dead when taken to hospital. In another tragic incident a furious man beheaded a youth at Machli in Manu police station limit in Dhalai district on June14. Police arrested assailant Shankar Deb who alleged that victim Subodh Debnath, 28, had stolen some articles from his house. Police officers have launched an added investigation after reports suggested that the beheading occurred in presence of a few police personnel.

Three traders, driver abducted in Mizoram

village called Namabila, near Rajabala about 55 km from Tura in Garo Hills. The horror story started on Friday at about 6:30 pm when a cow broke through the bamboo boundary wall of now deceased Amzad Ali. The incident led to a quarrel between Amzad and his nephew, Sorpot Ali, who is also his neighbour. As had been the case in the Phulbari incident, women took an equal part in the atrocities perpetrated and are amongst the accused.

Even in the earlier case, one woman had succumbed to her injuries after 17 days. The two families had been at loggerheads for some time and the new provocation got ugly when Amzad asked his nephew to pay for the damage caused to the wall leading to frayed tempers. The families had been in a dispute over the boundary even before Friday’s incident. Sorpot’s angered family members immediately got swords and daos and at-

tacked Amzad and his family. Allegedly it was Sorpot who fatally stabbed Amzad in the abdomen. The attack also led to another four being critically injured, with one still fighting for his life. The attackers fled immediately after the incident even as neighbour gathered to check what had happened after hearing the heated commotion. Upon finding the injured people, these neighbours took Amzad and the rest of his family members to Ph-

ulbari CHC. The four others critically injured were taken to Dispur Hospital in Guwahati and have been identified as Monnaf Ali, Alomgir Ali, Alaya Begum and Rahim Badsha. The absconding attackers have been identified as Sorpot Ali, Sohidur Ali, Abbas Ali, Aynul Ali and. Ambiya Begum. A case is yet to be filed by Amzad’s family in this regard even as family members are busy with the injured and the dead.

Blind girl allegedly raped by school peon KI writes memorandum to PM Imphal, June 15 (nnn): In a startling revelation, the guardians of a 13 year old blind girl who was raped on April 13 of this year said today that the girl was also raped last year in October but it was concealed as the rapist had constantly threatened the victim. Addressing the media today, the guardians of the blind girl said a peon at the Blind School raped her and threatened the girl not to reveal. The Blind School peon and rapist Him Bahadur Thapa alias Kansa is now in police custody. Meanwhile, All Tribal Disabled Union, Manipur (ATDUM) has decided to hold rally on June 20 in protest against the raping of a blind girl in the Manipur government run Blind School located at Takyel in Imphal.

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mistress W Binakumari is not enough. "We demand their termination from their respective service," stated ATDUM. It then demanded for the life improsonment of the rapist. It can be mentioned here that a 13 years old blind girl was raped by the chawkidar of the Blind School on April 13. Meanwhile, ATDUM said it will submit a memorandum each to AICC president Sonia Gandhi, Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Gaikhangam and also to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on Monday (June 16) demanding the removal of AK Mirabai as the minister of Manipur Social Welfare minister. "We want an able minister to take charge as the new Social Welfare minister," stated ATDUM.

Imphal, June 15 (mexn): The Kuki Inpi has written an open memorandum to Prime Minister Narenda Modi and expressing hope that the PM would “accord due cognizance of the Kuki people struggle for justice over the heinous criminal acts of the NSCN (I-M).” The memorandum released to the media by the Kuki Inpi was written by A. Lenthang, Kumpi and Thangsei Haokip, Semang of Kuki Inpi. The memorandum alleged the murder of 905 Kukis, uprooting of 360 Kuki villages and seizing their lands, and rendering

1,00,000 Kukis homeless. The memorandum mentioned that the Kuki Inpi had repeatedly requested the five preceding Prime Ministers of India “to settle this inconceivable crimes committed by NSCN (I-M) before making any possible agreement with the perpetrators but to no avail. They all failed to amicably settle such heinous crimes and bring justice to the Kuki people who are loyal citizens of the country.” Bringing out the stance of the Kuki Inpi, the memorandum made clear that until an amicable settlement is arrived at in a proper court of law, “whatever agree-

Assam health minister offers to resign guWahaTI, June 15 (pTI): Assam Health and Education Minister Dr Himanta Sarma today met Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and offered to resign from the Cabinet even as he said that the dissidence in the Congress Legislature Party had come to an end. "I met the chief minister for oneand-a-half hours and expressed my desire to resign from my minister's post to make way for others whenever he reshuffles his Cabinet," Sarma, regarded as the leader of the dissident Congress MLAs in Assam, told reporters following his meeting with Gogoi. "I have not submitted a written resignation to the chief minister but

have just expressed a desire to do so. I don't want to create a crisis by submitting a written resignation. Don't want to create an unnecessary situation," he said. "I also informed him that the 46 (dissident) MLAs last night had a meeting where it was decided that dissidence had ended and all MLAs will cooperate with the chief minister and not demand a change in the CLP leadership," Sarma further added. Asked what the chief minister's reaction was to his decision to resign, Sarma said, "I did not wait to hear what he had to say. It is up to him when he accepts my resignation ... today, one week or two months later.

"I had earlier on May 25 said that sacrifices are necessary for the government to function well. So, I expressed a desire to resign. Till he (Gogoi) does not accept my resignation, I'll continue to work with him. All the MLAs will also go back to their constituencies to work there," he said. "The state of paralysis on the part of the government for the last several days has been solved and the High Command's decision will be accepted on the leadership change issue," the minister added. "I told him (Gogoi) that my post will be vacant for being filled up by someone else and work will continue as usual," he said.

ment made is futile and would never be acceptable.” The memorandum expressed hope that the prime minister would take cognizance of their struggle for justice and amicable settlement. “Any possible agreement with the NSCN (I-M) shall be deemed biased and prejudicial if the miserable plight of the Kuki people is not solved first. Attending to plight of the Kukis is in the best interest of the country to guard the country against foreseeable blame on the Government of India which allowed such genocidal acts on it citizens,” it stated.

agaRTala, June 15 (IanS): Three Tripura traders and their driver were kidnapped by tribal guerrillas from Mizoram, police said here today. "Five businessmen from northern Tripura went to adjoining western Mizoram Saturday in connection with their trade. Armed militants waylaid their vehicle and kidnapped three traders and the driver of the car," a Tripura police spokesman told reporters. Two traders managed to escape when the members of the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) stopped the vehicle in western Mizoram's Faileng village, 20 km away from the TripuraMizoram border. Tripura Police have asked their Mizoram counterparts to rescue the hostages. The Border Security Force (BSF) has also been alerted to nab the militants if they tried to cross the India-Bangladesh border. The NLFT militants in separate incidents had abducted three Tripura businessmen and a telecommunication professional from the same area in Mizoram last year. However, the captives were freed after a few months for ransom money demanded from their rebels. After the erection of fencing and strengthening the security along the India-Bangladesh boundary with Tripura, the NLFT extremists use Mizoram to cross the border. The NLFT guerrillas, setting their base in Bangladesh, have been kidnapping people in Tripura and Mizoram to collect ransom. Mizoram has unfenced and porous international border of 404 km with Myanmar and 318 km with Bangladesh. Tripura also shares 856-km-long border with Bangladesh and some parts of the border areas are still unfenced.

UNC ‘fact-finding team’ takes stock of land disputes SenapaTI, June 15 (nnn): The United Naga Council's (UNC) sponsored 'fact-finding team' has taken first hand reports of the Lilong Chingkham land dispute matter and also the Thoubal-Chandel district border row in the vicinity of Kakching Lamkai area. The UNC then said it will respond appropriately to the Joint Non-Government Voluntary Organisation (JNGVO) and Lilong Chingkham Maya Development Organisation if the two latter's groups continue to be

wild in their approach. "We are ready to face any eventuality," said the UNC. On June 11, stray incidents had occurred at Lilong Chingkham area and also at Kakching Lamkhai on land disputes. The one at Lilong Chingkham was based on the bond of contention between two communities regarding the open area in the village vicinity. Regarding the Kakching Lamkhai incident, one group of people alleged another group of people of encroaching the Thoubal district.

NPF Tamenglong slams delay in completing Old Cachar Road Tamenglong, June 15 (nnn): Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been apprised by Naga People's Front (NPF), Nungba unit of Tamenglong district for investigating by a Central investigation agency such as CBI, SIT, etc. into the protracted incompletion of the Old Cachar Road (National Highway 37-A) from Bishnupur to Rengpang via Khoupum valley in Tamenglong district, Manipur. In a memorandum the NPF, Nungba unit said the historic Old Cachar Road was inaugurated as a strategic road in 1904 by Lord Curzon, the then Governor General of British India. It connected with Cachar district of Assam

and British troops used this road for transportation to Manipur. “It was one of the busiest roads during those days. Unfortunately, this historic road has become the most neglected road in the state of Manipur, it stated. "No doubt government of India had sanctioned many centrally sponsored schemes in this road in terms of crores of rupees for the 42 years after Manipur became full fledged state in the year 1972. Manipur Government and the department of works have been making this road as a money minting project for quite a long time contractors, government officials with the people representatives have got rich from their shares in contract

works on this road", the memorandum mentioned. "It is also learnt from reliable sources that several sanctions have been made to black-top this road which is a hundred km long stretch from Bishnupur to Rengpang and till date not even a stretch of kilometer has been black-top so far. "Where have all those funds or money spent? Where have those funds diverted? Despite cores of rupees being sanctioned for the last 42 years why Old Cachar Road remains the most neglected road in the State?," the NPF Nungba unit questioned. According to the NPF, Nungba unit memorandum, there are

more than 30 villages on both sides of the road living deprived of all modern amenities as enjoyed by citizens in other parts of the State and the country. Poor and aggrieved people living in remote areas have been compelled to travel on this muddy and bumpy road during rainy season. They travel during dust storms in the dry season which affects the public health to a great extent. Many have also died due to disease and frequent road incident on account of the pathetic condition of the road. Poor public of this areas have been forced to live in such horrified situation due to the step-motherly treatment meted out to them by the

Urea unit to be operational in Tripura in 3 years agaRTala, June 15 (pTI): A Rs 5,000 crore urea plant at Khobal in Unakoti district, a joint venture of Tripura government, ONGC and private sector firm Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals, would be operational by next three years, an ONGC official said on Sunday. “The project is in the initial stage. We need to get the clearance certificate from the ministry of environment and we have also to establish that the required amount of gas would be made available by us because the project is gas based. So, I

think it would take about three more years to be operational,” ONGC Tripura Asset Manager V P Mahawar said. He said, ONGC had expedited its exploration drive to gather more gas for supply to different projects. These included the second unit of the Palatana gas based thermal project to be operation within three months at Udaipur in Gomati district, 100 MW gas-based thermal power project of NEEPCO at Monarchak in Sipahijala district, which would be operational by three months and the urea plant at

Khobal in North Tripura district. The state government, ONGC, Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals had signed an MoU on April 9 2012 to set up the project, biggest initiative in the state so far. ONGC had discovered huge gas reserves at Khobal in 2011. Mahawar said, the Tripura unit of ONGC had struck gas in four wells in Trishna area of South Tripura district but about a decade ago the area was declared as a part of Trishna wildlife sanctuary as a result of which gas could not be lifted from those wells.

State government, the memorandum alleged. Sometimes, para military forces and army bring bull dozers and clear landslides etc. whenever they visit this area, it stated. "Therefore, we demand immediate investigation into the malpractises of the government of Manipur and department concerned for swindling crores of public money for the development of the said road by Central investigation agency like CBI, SIT etc. to deliver justice to the aggrieved people of the area. And those found guilty of swindling public money must be brought to brought to book at the earliest," NPF Nungba unit stated.

PUBLIC INFORMATION Complete FACILITY for all kinds of URINARY TRACT (KIDNEY, URETER, URINARY BLADDER, URETHRA) STONES by trained and skill surgeons, now available at OKING HOSPITAL KOHIMA. 1. ESWL (Extracorporeal Shock-Wave Lithotripsy): for kidney stones. 2. RIRS-HL (Retrograde Intra-Renal surgery- Holmium Laser): for kidney stones. 3. Laparoscopic Pyelolithotomy for Staghorn (big) kidney stones. 4. URSL (Ureteronephroscopic Lithotripsy) : Flexible and rigid scopes for ureteric stones. 5. CLT (Cystoscopic Lithotripsy): For Urethral and Urinary Bladder stones.

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Monday 16 June 2014

The Morung Express

State Government’s NSDZ clauses insults Nagas of Nagaland: GPRN/NSCN businEss Known for its tea, Bengal T forays into coffee cultivation

KolKata, June 15 (IanS): Known worldwide for its Darjeeling tea, West Bengal is now making its first foray into coffee cultivation, courtesy a joint initiative by the state government and the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT-KGP). The brainchild of the West Bengal Comprehensive Area Development Corporation (WBCADC), with the IIT’s Science and Technology Entrepreneurs Park (STEP) providing the technical knowhow, the pilot project envisages tea and coffee cultivation on the picturesque Ayodhya Hills in Purulia district. Known for its diversified flora and fauna, Ayodhya Hills, which stretches up to 610 metres, is an extension of the Dalma Hills of Jharkhand and is about 260 km from Kolkata. With the broad objective of turning the area into a tourism hub on the lines of Darjeeling, 11 acres of land in Kumari Kanan is being readied for cultivating tea and coffee. “The plan is to turn Ayodhya Hills into a tourism hub on the lines of Darjeeling where tourism and the tea industry go hand in hand. Besides augmenting tourism, the aim is to create an alternate livelihood for the people. Once the project is successful, we will substantially enhance the cultivation area,” WBCADC (Purulia-Bankura) chairman Subhashis Batabyal told IANS. The services of the STEP-affiliated Eco Yes Technologies, which specialises in cultivation of tea and coffee in non-traditional areas, are being roped in for the project. “At the IIT, we have been working on mastering the art of growing tea and coffee in non-traditional areas and we are using the same technology here. While the emphasis is more on growing tea, this is the first time coffee is being commercially cultivated in Bengal,” project head Soumen Palit told IANS. With investment of an estimated Rs. 2-3 lakh ($3,350-5,000) per acre, Palit said tea and coffee plants were chosen for cultivation because of their continuous yield. “A tea plant is evergreen while a coffee plant grows for 50-70 years...”

Centre must penalise states for overdrawing power: Assocham

new DelhI, June 15 (IanS): The centre needs to ensure maintenance of grid discipline, and states over-drawing power from the transmission lines must be penalised, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham) said here Sunday. “In the face of sweltering heat in most parts of the country pushing demand for electricity, the authorities should announce that maintaining a grid discipline will remain sacrosanct and it will not hesitate to penalise the states over-drawing power from the transmission lines,” the industry lobby said in a statement.

It said aerial patrolling of transmission lines along with better emergency restoration systems should become priorities. Over-drawal of power by states and the inability of distribution networks to cope with emergency situations like thunderstorms are the biggest risks which can break power lines for up to days, the industry lobby said. Pointing to chinks in the national capital region’s transmission maintained by state-run Delhi Transco during the May 30 storm, the chamber said: “It is evident not enough investment has been made in upgrading transmission systems and transformers.”

he Nagaland Legislative Assembly bulletin part II, No. 105, dated 20th March 2014, a resolution for setting up of Nagaland Special Development Zone (NSDZ) has a very very serious implications in the social, economic and political landscape in the future of the tribes of Nagaland. Whether the assembly approves or not, the grave danger that lurks in the number of clauses of the so-called Nagaland Special Development Zone (NSDZ) is much more than economic progress. The project is in a nutshell a subtle but forceful dispossession of land from owners in the demarcated zone. This issue is not about a small plot of land which the state government will offer to a family from Manipur, Assam, Arunachal or from Myanmar to do business in Nagaland. There is a grave danger that huge swathe of Nagaland’s reserve forests and foothill areas would be snatched away and owned by landless communities transplanted from north, south, east and west of Nagaland, all flashing ‘INVESTOR’ identity card issued by the state government. The NSDZ in its present form is

seemingly a licence for the socalled investors from neighboring states and few mainland Indians to become landowners along foothill and reserved forest areas in Nagaland. This is unacceptable because in the long run, despite abundant promises of economic benefits, the NSDZ and the foothill areas, like a long rope stretching from Peren to Tizit, will turn into a noose around the necks of thousands of Nagas of Nagaland! For clearer understanding of the impending danger to Nagas of Nagaland, pecific points in the NSDZ are reproduced below: 1. A cadastral survey of the entire specified area shall be done. 2. The ownership has to be registered and patta obtained. 3. No landowner will deny access to the land for any development activities under the master plan of NSDZ. TRANSFER OF OWNERSHIP OF LAND 1. Any land under the specified areas may be transferred to any Indian citizen with the permission of the state government. 2. Any land acquired by a non-naga shall not be trans-

our own dirty actions and inactions. Sensitivity to the signs of God is required. God is as near to us, His creatures, as our ear is to our mouth. Christ said “Ask and it will be given, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened.” “Not by might… but by my spirit” said the Lord Almighty. Then, what are we doing to ourselves inside our cage killing ourselves, destroying one another through corruption and extortion all these years in spite of the promised redemption at hand? 3. Is God Interested in our Problem? Are we praying to a grudging God out of whom every solution has to be squeezed and coerced? Do we get disappointed because God does not answer our prayers the way we want? We all know we pray to our God who is more ready to give than we are to ask. But, is not our problem that we pray only for what we want or what will suit our advantage only, whereas God has to care for others also? We need to search ourselves and know where we stand before God. Are we imbibing Esau’s lifestyle in ourselves in instant self- gratification and arrogantly despising our divine inheritance in selling our birthright, thereby compelling God to curse us instead of blessing us as it was in the case of Esau and his descendents? 4. Answer in His Way: God answers our prayers; but He answers them in His own way and His way is the way of perfect integrity, wisdom, love, mutual trust and unselfishness. Human beings can hardly understand two people talking at once, but

1. Fratricide Free Nagaland: Considering the lack of Christian ethics in our public sphere, our rampant corruption, fratricide, extortion and immorality, a question arises: Are we praying to a Fake God that our Christian land could never be healed, or is our prayer a plain mockery? Why God would not answer our prayer for a peaceful and fratricide free Nagaland? A society free from fratricide is our urgent dire need and of utmost importance to all Nagas. Probably, the Almighty God would never acknowledge our prayers because of our faithless hypocrisy as reflected in our lives and particularly so in our state elections shown in the hateful trading and commercializing of our God given birthright as saleable commodity. 2. Expect Fratricide - Free Solution from Delhi? A nephew of mine, a doctor, once told me that our state election is a reliable ‘Faith Testing Equipment’ similar to the B.P instrument, which gives an accurate report of what you are. Why does our Christian identity change instantly at the sight of money or gun? Is this not the root of all evils! Do we believe that a fratricide -free solution which is our basic problem will come from Delhi without our people doing their homework at home? God’s silence over our prayers speaks volumes of our iniquities and faithlessness. Our myriad problems are due to our insensitivity to God who is speaking to us in His silence. The problems are in our hand. So, need we not play our part? We are responsible for

Game Number # 2909

hood be strengthened in the panNaga family despite the strains of enforced artificial boundaries. yet, whether one likes it or not, artificial boundaries cannot be removed at a present time.The NSDZ is an issue which must be wisely tackled by state government in consultation with the tribes of Nagaland. GPRN/NSCN demands that all clauses with regard to transfer of ownership of land to investors in the NSDZ be scrapped in the interest of the tribes of Nagaland. Land must be leased to investors for specific time duration with terms and conditions, safeguarding their interests but without transferring the ownership of land they occupy. Infrastructure is most important but transferring land ownership will be akin to selling one’s soul to the devil. The government of the day cannot transfer ownership of land to investors from other states be it to Nagas or non-Nagas. Transferring land ownership threatens the very existence of Nagaland tribes hence, the matter must be referred to sixteen tribes. MIP, GPRN/NSCN.

for God, if the entire world calls to Him at the one time, hears and understands them perfectly. A man is often annoyed by the requests of his countrymen even for needed information, but with God, all the time a man puts his needs and requests before Him, God loves him all the more. So, can we, with commitment pray for a Nagaland free from ‘fratricide, extortion and corruption? But the important question is will my prayer stop my hand from the deeply rooted culture of killing and corruption? Do I have an unshakable faith, the size of a mustard seed, that moves mountains and pray? An elderly Englishman who was an alcoholic before he received Christ, said to his alcoholic friends when they mocked his conversion, “I don’t know if Christ has made water into wine but He did convert wine into furniture in my house and there is a great change in my family circle since then, you may come and see for yourselves”. Out of the 98% Christians in Nagaland: how many of us can give such a testimony of a changed life? 5. Why for a temporary solution? Is there a man among our Naga brothers who hates his son? Or if a son asks for bread, will his father give him a stone? As no earthly father ever refused the request of his son, similarly, God the Great Father in heaven will never refuse the genuine request of his children. However, it is our iniquities that have separated us from God, our sins have hidden His face from us, so that He will not hear (Isaiah 59:2). Often, if He was to answer our prayers, as we desired at the mo-

ment; it would be the worst thing possible for us, for in our ignorance we often ask for temporary solution of our problems which would be our ruin and on the other hand, we would not recognize and accept the best solution already given by God. 6. Learn from the Golden Rule: Perhaps God in His silence says ”Mark my words, go, try my promises with utmost commitment, learn them all by yourselves, and discover my riches for your life” The Golden Rule is known to all of us: “What is hateful to yourself do to no other” so as not to harm or kill one another. Sir Thomas Browne, the seventeenth century author and physician, once said “We are beholden to every man we meet that he doth not kill us”. The Golden Rule is not in any sense an extra rule of life; it is something without which life could not go on at all. It involves nothing more than not doing certain unwanted actions. It is never very difficult, not to do things. We must not cause injury to others is a divine directive and principle, our permanent solution lies therein. Our failure in this matter is our overall frustration in our Naga fraternity. Christ said “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest …learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart… my yoke is easy and my burden is light” Kuolachalie Seyie Christian Fellowship IG Stadium Kohima Nagaland

Readers may please note that the contents of the articles, letters and opinions published do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

Simple Rules - There is just one simple rule: “Fill in the grid so that every row, every column, and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9.”

SUDOKU

Hohos, GBs, Mothers and Student Bodies to be aware of the contents of the NSDZ in relation with future repercussions. Two page document issued to members in the Nagaland Legislative Assembly must be thoroughly deliberated beyond the corriders of powers in Kohima. GPRN/ NSCN shall embrace what is good for the people but it shall not remain silent when in the garb development and employment, the land and lives of future Naga generations are threatened. The above noted points do not require a rocket scientist to explain what social and political misfortune will befall Nagaland tribes and their future generations if the contents in the NSDZ is not rectified through intense deliberation by tribal Hohos in Nagaland state. GPRN/NSCN insist that Land and its people are inseparable. Every Naga whether in the north, south, west or east have their own dwelling place passed on from our forefathers. All must exist and progress in their own domain. Social, cultural, economic, emotional and spiritual values must be incorporated and peace and brother-

Are We Praying to a Fake God?

LEISURE

ferred to a non-naga. 3.The state government will not necessarily acquire all lands falling under the NSDZ except those areas which maybe required for setting up of common infrastructure and facility on land compensation assessed by the government. ENTRY INTO NSDZ 1. The NSDZ will be a liberalized and regulated entry zone for all investors and persons involved in development activities. 2. Permanent settlement for non-naga will be subject to settlement permit to be issued by the state government. Through this project, a father in Nagaland who inherited his land from his forefathers will have no option but to give up his prized possession and his sons and daughters mere employees of economic masters in what was once their ancestral land. The truth is, NSDZ has dangerous social, economic and political repercussions in its clauses and unless tribes of Nagaland gets to the bottom of NSDZ dynamics, the project must be held back. GPRN/NSCN calls upon tribes in Nagaland; Intellectuals, Tribal

DAILY CROSS WORD

CROSSWORD # 2916

DIMAPUR Civil Hospital:

STD CODE: 03862

Metro Hospital: Faith Hospital: Shamrock Hospital Zion Hospital: Police Control Room Police Traffic Control East Police Station West Police Station CIHSR (Referral Hospital) Dimapur hospital Apollo Hospital Info Centre: Railway: Indian Airlines Chumukedima Fire Brigade Nikos Hospital and Research Centre Nagaland Multispecialty Health & Research Centre

Answer Number # 2908

KOHIMA

Police Control Room: North Police Station: South Police Station: Fire Brigade: Naga Hospital: Oking Hospital: Bethel Nursing Home:

232224; Emergency229529, 229474 227930, 231081 228846 228254 231864, 224117, 227337 228400 232106 227607 232181 242555/ 242533 224041, 248011 230695/9402435652 131/228404 229366 282777 232032, 231031 248302, 09856006026

STD CODE: 0370

Northeast Shuttles

100/2244279 2222222 2222111 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202

O GECKO REPTILE LIZARD SPECIES CLAWS EYESIGHT ADAPT INSECTS PEST

MOSQUITOES COCKROACHES POISONOUS DANGEROUS TERMITES TAIL CRAWL NOCTURNAL MATE SUCTION CAMOUFLAGE ENEMY HAWAII HABITAT ENVIRONMENT

S P E C I E S L W A R C G K N

Y P O I S O N O U S V W M S P

C D S N E G O S E T I M R E T

V I E S G V C A R E E N F H P

I G O E A H T A S Y N D F C L

C L T C L A U A U E V Z V A I

C P I T F B R D O S I I P O Z

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A R Q O O T A P E G O C G K R

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E T K T S E P U D E N E M Y J

H A W A I I E R E P T I L E E

G E C K O J N O I T C U S P H

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ACROSS 1. Marsh 6. Impetuous 10. Distinctive flair 14. Prison-related 15. Sea eagle 16. Unwakable state 17. Previously 18. Blend 19. Burden 20. Found on cave ceilings 22. Where a bird lives 23. Sailors 24. A level in a building 26. The bulk 30. Small portable bed 31. Sweet potato 32. Wings 33. Throw 35. Light purple 39. Repossess 41. Transverse flute 43. Keepsake 44. Views 46. Not legs 47. Big wine holder 49. Completely 50. In order to prevent 51. Marriageable 54. Regretted

56. Makes a mistake 57. A type of semiconductor 63. 13 in Roman numerals 64. Torture device 65. Trim 66. Annul 67. Dull pain 68. Essential parts 69. Observed 70. Not the original color 71. Athletics

DOWN 1. Resorts 2. The yarn woven across 3. Dwarf buffalo 4. A crumbling earthy deposit 5. Skirt fold 6. Lavatories 7. Creative persons 8. Hissy fit 9. Unorthodox tenets 10. Frugal 11. Hermit 12. Entertain 13. Spiteful 21. Desert plants 25. After-bath powder 26. Shopping place 27. Margarine

28. Big bag 29. Video entertainment 34. Explored a cave 36. Old stories 37. Charity 38. Outlay 40. A Freudian stage 42. Small islands 45. Otalgia 48. Foursome 51. Connection 52. Pee 53. _____ and groom 55. Platters 58. Risqué 59. Store 60. Tropical tuber 61. Not under 62. A musical pause Ans to CrossWord 2915

DIMAPUR: 03862-232201/101 (O) 9436601225 (OC) CHUMUKEDIMA: 03862-282777/101 (O) WOKHA: 03860-242215 (O) 9402643782 MOKOKCHUNG: 0369-2226225/101 (O) 9856872011 (OC) PHEK: 03865-223838/101 (O) 9436012949 (OC)

TUENSANG: 03861-220256/101 (O) 8974322879 MON: 03869-290629/101 (O) 9856248962/ 9612805461 (OC)

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2226241 2226214

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LOCAL

The Morung Express

Monday 16 June 2014

Dimapur

Rectify NSDZ, demands GPRN/NScN DIMAPUR, JUNE 15 (MExN): The GPRN/NSCN today stated that the NLA decision to set up a Nagaland Special Development Zone (NSDZ) “has very serious implications in the social, economic and political landscape in the future of the tribes of Nagaland.” A press note from the MIP cautioned that “grave danger lurks” in many clauses of the NSDZ and said that the project would result in “forceful dispossession of land from owners in the demarcated zone.” It further asserted that the NSDZ, in its present form, is “unacceptable.” The GPRN/NSCN said that the NSDZ has “dangerous social, economic and political repercussions in its clauses” and that “unless tribes of Nagaland get to the bottom of NSDZ dynamics, the project must be held back.” It called upon tribes in Nagaland, intellectuals, Tribal Hohos, GBs, mothers and student bodies to be aware of the contents of the NSDZ in relation to future repercussions. While assuring that the GPRN/NSCN will “embrace what is good for the people,” it however

GPRN/NSCN Lotha region censures poor road works

DIMAPUR, JUNE 15 (MExN): The GPRN/NSCN Lotha Regional Authority has expressed concern at the execution of contract works in respect to road construction from Longtho to Liphanyan Governor’s Camp, Wokha district covering 20 kilometres under NLCPR/DONER. A press note from the GPRN/NSCN Lotha Region Authority MIP informed that it conducted spot verification of the said contract work and “is appalled to find the work sub-standard and unfit.” It informed that an amount of Rs 1094.57 Lakhs had already been paid in full to the contractor concerned. Stating that the work done is sub standard, it said that “people of the area have been deprived of their right to possess the facility for which the contract work has been earmarked.” The MIP made it clear that the contractor and the company “MS Vilelie Khamo & Sons will not be allowed to execute any contract work/s in the Lotha region.” It further demanded that the concerned contractor be “black-listed” and “banned from executing any contract work/s, failing which the GPRN/NSCN will be compelled to act on its own.” It further said that “awarding of all major contract works in the Lotha region to outside contractors is the main reason for the poor execution of the contract works as they have no regard for the welfare of the local populace except to earn money.” As such, it urged all authorities to award major contract works in the Lotha region to local contractors who have the local area’s sentiment at heart. It also appealed to Lotha leaders and intellectuals to ponder over reasons for the “failure of all major projects” in Wokha district, and urged them to bring to its notice any sub-standard contract work/s being executed in the region.

MEx FILE Dimapur Police clarifies

DIMAPUR, JUNE 15 (MExN): Dimapur Police today clarified on the actual circumstances leading to the death of one of its personnel, UBC Thiubuibo Zeliang, during a search operation on June 14. A press note from the SDPO Dimapur informed that the deceased personnel was “shot from the service revolver of his colleague, while it was being snatched from the hand of the other personnel by a person (later identified as Viyishe,) who tried to illegally obstruct the police team after a successful raid operation in Thilixu village.” The office of the Superintended of Police, Dimapur strongly reiterated that the DEF Dimapur has lost an efficient and brave personnel with the death of UBC Thiubuibo Zeliang.

KCCI appeals to NPGs

asserted that it would “not remain silent when in the garb development and employment, the land and lives of future Naga generations are threatened.” As such, it called for thorough intense deliberation by tribal Hohos in Nagaland state on the issue. It said that social, cultural, economic, emotional and spiritual values must be incorporated and that peace and brotherhood should be strengthened in the pan-Naga family, “despite the strains of enforced artificial boundaries.” However, it added that the NSDZ “is an issue which must be wisely tackled by the state government in consultation with the tribes of Nagaland.” GPRN/NSCN demanded that all clauses with regard to transfer of ownership of land to investors in the NSDZ be “scrapped in the interest of the tribes of Nagaland.” It asked that land must be leased to investors for specific time duration with terms and conditions, safeguarding their interests but without transferring the ownership of land they occupy. (Full text on Page 4)

Dimabang Halali Hosom gets office

DIMAPUR, JUNE 15 (MExN): The office of the Dimabang Halali Hosom (Society), Dimapur was inaugurated by Roben Daulaguphu, Head GB of Bamunpukhuri-II village on June 15 at Darogajan Village in the presence of the GBs, chairman and elders of Darogajan, Bamunpukhuri-I & II Village. The Dimabang Halali Hosom (Society) was formed on September 1, 2013 comprising of 11 (eleven) founder members headed by Bhopendra Longmailai as Chairman and Monuhar Thaosen as General Secretary. The aims and objectives of the society is to organise programmes and create awareness about the importance of preservation

of Dimasa Kachari culture, to provide assistance to the needy persons of Dimasa Kachari community of Dimapur to protect their ancestral land from self divestment, to empower education among the community and to preserve and cultivate Dimasa Kachari's rich cultural heritage, stated the general secretary in a press release. Society plants saplings The members of Dimabang Halali Hosom (Society), Dimapur on June 14 planted about 300 saplings at Darogajan, Bamunpukhuri-I & II Village respectively. The saplings were planted at the premises of Government Middle Schools, temple, and Community Hall etc, informed

KOHIMA, JUNE 15 (MExN): The Kohima Chamber Of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) has called upon Naga Political Groups to extend cooperation towards the business community in Kohima, by considering the financial position and market scenario in the state. A press note from the KCCI stated that the “meager transaction taking place in the market is barely managing to sustain the businesses and those dependent on the earnings.” It added that “any forceful fulfilling of taxation/notice, receipts of the dozen odd factions under present circumstances is detrimental to the already battered economy and sufferings of the business community at large.” While acknowledging the NPGs for understanding the situation, the KCCI reiterated its call for the former to “uphold the plight of the business KOHIMA, JUNE 15 (MExN): Nationcommunity and extend their co-operation.” al Service Scheme (NSS) unit of Kohima Science College, Jotsoma observed World Environment Day on June 5 at the DIMAPUR, JUNE 15 (MExN): The United Sangtam college campus with the Department of Region (USR), NSCN (IM) has mourned the untimely Science and Technology, Government demise of its comrade Holingsing, Leacy, USR. “Our of Nagaland sponsoring the entire event nation in general and United Sangtam Region in par- for the observation. According to a reticular has lost a very dedicated national worker,” stated lease from NSS Asst. Program Officer, SeMIP, NSCN (IM) in a message. “The contribution made lie Puro, planting of tree saplings in and by our comrade late Holingsing will always be remem- around Peak Hostel, organizing literary bered and the Naga nation will remain ever grateful to competitions, debate competition on the him.” The NSCN (IM) further prayed to God to give the topic ‘Nagas are Environmentally Conbereaved family strength to bear the loss and wished for cerned’, essay competition on the topic ‘Think Globally, Act Locally’, extempore the departed soul to rest in peace. speech competition on the slogan ‘Raise

Kohima Science College, NSS unit observes WED

USR NSCN (IM) condoles

the society president Bhopendra Longmailai and secretary Munohar Thaosen in a release. The plantation programme was organised in celebration of World Environment Day on June 5 which had to be postponed to June 14 due to lack of quality saplings. The society has expressed regret for the same, but acknowledged the Range Officers of Department of Forest, Dimapur District for supplying the saplings. The programme was participated by GBs, chairman, women folk, and students of the respective villages. The society has appealed to the respective village authority, school in-charges to take care and protect the saplings.

Students of GPS Middle Khel, Tuensang Village having their mid-day meal. The VEC of the school in a release informed that under Mid-day Meal Scheme, the school has been receiving all items like rice, cooking cost as per students’ enrolment, cook honorarium, and transportation charges on scheduled time.

Administrative Training Institute, Nagaland, Kohima conducted a training on “The Nagaland Government Servants Conduct Rules 1968” for Public Works Department from June 4 to 6. More than 120 participants attended the program. The participants included Superintendents, Assistant Superintendents, UDAs and LDAs. The resource person for the program was Dr. Hovithal Sothu, State Coordinator, DMC, ATI who exposed the 35 rules to them, stressing with examples. At the end of the training, all the participants committed to change for the better in punctuality, sincerity, honesty, dedication to work etc.

The newly appointed Chairman of Nagaland Bamboo Development Agency, Amenba Yaden, MLA having his maiden orientation meeting with the Team Leader and Members of the NBDA on June 6, 2014 at the Conference Hall, Nagaland Bamboo Resource Centre, Dimapur.

your Voice, not Sea Level’, were some of the highlights. The competition winners were felicitated with certificates and cash awards.

WED at Lephori village

PHEK, JUNE 15 (MExN): The WATSAN Committee of Lephori and Lephori Students’ Union jointly observed World Environment Day on June 5 at Lephori village. PHED Phek Division in a release stated that highlights of the programme included drafting a resolution on preservation and conservation of forest especially areas around water source of the village. Around 200 tree saplings of various species were planted around GHS Kamaleah and Kamaleah EAC Office at Students of Stella Higher Secondary School, Kohima cleaning the school locality on the occasion of World Environment Day on June 5. Lephori village.

Public SPace

lesson to be learned from the Neighbouring States: an Overview of land system and its challenges

ith deep concern I write this article as a responsible Naga to throw lights on one of the most emerging serious issues upon our state, if wise and constructive ideas are not being share today at the public Sphere things in future are likely to go wrong. Since the dawn of modern education we have taken the paths of modernity in a drastic form. One cannot ignore the reality that we as a state have transformed and apt, that our socio-economic, political and cultural system has on one hand developed and the transitions are enormous. But we are also aware, that the process of transition has not been very satisfying in many aspects and as such, we continue to witness the crisis and the loss of popular mandate in the quest of greater goals, at the same time issues of our ethnic identity in which we have deeply and painfully failed to bring any constructive solution to our endless problems, where forces both internal and external are in play. At this very juncture, Article 371(A) of the Indian Constitution defines the very essence of our rights to our traditional land ( land as my focus of concern). To quote Uttam Bathari ‘land is instrumental in the formation and shaping of the material and non-material culture of the communities depending on it.’ therefore the highest benefits can accrue to a society or people only

through its effective management. In such a case the objective of NSDZ ‘Structural modification’ and resolution adopted in the state Assembly on March 24, 2014 cannot be left without questioned. In considering the modernizing process of human society one cannot remain a silent spectator but rather try to become at par with the global society be it economy, culture or for that matter the entire system in function. Thus to reach at such point of modernity, it requires a new pattern of outlook which at times strongly challenges the traditional system of any society, but one needs to transform structurally than one has to embark on the expanding agencies of modernity such as the exploding urbanization and industrialization. But the theoretical question is whether we are entirely free or we are entirely dominant by forces and laws which are hard for a State like ours to become entirely free an in fact almost impossible. Since time immemorial our system of Common Property resources (CPRs) land apart from being and economic asset, is also the centre of our social and cultural life and one cannot imagined any meaningful life without being attached to land that is divided on the lines of individual ownership or even in the line of a clans and CPRs without any individual titles (patta). And thus any matters of dispute on land and even

the civil life was managed through the customary law without been questioned so far. But if any modern structural modification were to be imposed on such pristine traditional systems, the influence of legal law is without doubt and is likely to take in the patterns of North-East neighbouring state like Assam, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh and even Meghalaya. And we are looking into broader aspect of challenges, ‘Alienation’ from Land. Since the 1890s we have witness Assam state losing its CPRs in western wasteland to Bangladeshi-muslim immigrants, than Boro lands to the Nepali Graziers in the 20th century followed by Bihari immigrants during the times of partition and Tripura which lost 60 percent of their land to immigrants by the late 1960s. Also immigrants of Burmese in Mizoram, Hajong, Chakma and Tibetans in Arunachal Pradesh and still the legacy of colonial land laws is continued which recognised only private ownership deeds but treated CPRs as state property. One cannot also overlook the fact that many of the tension and conflict in the region are attached to land not only causes by immigration but also developmental projects for instances, Dumbur Dam in Tripura and as far as development-induced displacement study is concerned majority of the developmental projects in the region accounts to 70 percent of CPRs which is the fundamen-

tal sustenance of the tribal’s. Today the issues has grown uncontrollable in the region which have challenge the identity of the people that has led to many bloodshed, security problems, corruption and diversity of illegal means. Nagaland is also not free from such forces as the state continues to witness in exploding illegal immigration who are ready to do low-paid jobs as construction workers, rickshaw pullers and others which the local people do not do easily and in the process exploit the local communities by forming agencies for their rights and manipulate administration through illegal means. And in spite of the strict laws of Inner line permit (ILP) in reality it is more of the other way round which remains a big challenge for the state, and as we try to re-structure or modify through the legal laws towards a direction of development the comparative social system should be taken into account before jumping into conclusion and without doubt the discourse of public sphere has to be encourage for it is not the structure alone that makes the state but it is also the individual agencies which makes any society feasible. In conclusion, the need to search for such solution is obvious but till now attempt has only been dealing with the symptoms and one cannot imagine in witnessing another crisis befallen on the state. Thepfusalie Theunuo

Dimapur-Kohima road

he National Highway-29 linking the State Capital Kohima from Dimapur is the life line of part of the State. Each road is important and yet the 74km distance of this highway under BRO is the most important road. Whereas, maintenance of this road is found pathetic over the years. From time to time concerned citizens write about the pathetic condition and the negligence of the BRO manning this road. Some writers sarcastically compare the potholes all over the stretch of the highway to that of fishery pond. Indeed, there are deep potholes at several locations causing acute inconveniences specially to smaller cars for over a year now. There are portions of only metalling and soiling for years together without further improvement. Few heavily loaded trucks collapsed at one sharp turning near Tourism Deptt.’s Wayside hotel in Pherima area during this year itself as those trucks could not negotiate. And yet, BRO has no botheration to improve it in any manner at all. There are numerous sharp curves which require widening. It may not be done at one go, but the Organisation could have removed those curves steadily so as to shorten the distance. To my layman’s observation there may be potentiality to shorten the 74 km distance if the Govt. has interest to survey between Priphema and Dimapur, and we know what can be the immense benefit people will get in the long run. Despite somebody in power gave clean

chit to BRO praising their workmanship on the repair of few kilometres in Dimapur area a few months back. The hope of converting the existing double lane to 4 lane was raised in 2003 when the then PM Vajpayi promised to grant Rs.400 crores. The same was granted to Meghalaya for 4 lane from Guwahati to Shillong and 50% of it has been completed now. Whereas, the same project of Dimapur-Kohima became a damp squib perhaps with beautiful excuses. The people of Nagaland silently suffer. We are in the 52nd year of our Statehood and yet we have not enjoyed a single good road. The so called powerful NGOs have no concern to voice for our basic needs. The Churches prefer to remain in the gallery as mute spectator. Except Nagaland BJP the other political parties opted for back seat for reasons known to them. Now, BJP is ruling in the country and its branch here may not like to reiterate how BRO was pulled up in January 2014 by them. Had this been in other developed States, people will not allow the BRO and the Govt. to sleep till their road, such a lifeline, is improved. What has actually emboldened the BRO to remain a hard nut to crack and totally ignored the cry of the public? With what brazen face the organisation is taking public for a ride? How long will they keep the un-pliable portions neglected for months/years together?

The Morung Express is introducing “Public Space” as part of our intention to provide deliberate space for the opinions of the people to be expressed and heard through this newspaper. Nonetheless, The Morung Express points out that the opinions expressed in the contents published in the “Public Space” do not reflect the views and position of the newspaper or the editor.

-Z. Lohe

IN-FOCUS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express MonDAy 16 JunE 2014 voluME IX IssuE 163

Along Longkumer Consulting Editor

Governance, Outcome and Empowerment

few days before the announcement of results to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, a prominent spokesperson of the BJP was heard on national television spelling out the probable contour of the new government’s policy. Conscious of the failure of the outgoing Congress led UPA-II government, the BJP leader talked about how the new Modi government will focus on ‘empowerment and not entitlement’; ‘outcome and not outlay’; ‘more governance and less government’. Perhaps it will be right to say that only a few people in power would have benefited from such big entitlement, outlay and the subsequent pilferage. Good governance can lead to results on the ground and when people are benefited or when the fruits of development reach down, empowerment will take place. It’s therefore time to change the present approach to governance and development. And in tune with this new thinking, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the first few days since assuming charge, has unveiled a 10-point framework for 'suraaj' or good governance. This includes building up confidence in the bureaucracy, being integral to good governance and empowering them to take decisions without fear or favour. Importantly, Modi has also asked ministers to ensure a detailed action plan be put in place for the NDA's first 100 days in office. The PM told ministers to treat governance as the most important subject, with a sharp focus on delivery and implementation. The need to put in place a ‘people oriented system’ is also part of Modi’s top ten priorities. In this regard, the report of the Committee for Evolving a Composite Development index of States, has given some valuable suggestions on resource/fund allocation to States. The Committee proposes a general method for allocating funds from the Centre to the states based both on a state’s “development needs as well as its development performance”. This report has tried to draw a balance between “needs” and “performance”. “Given that poor administration or weak institutions in a recipient state can fritter away allocated resources to the detriment of the population, there should be some recognition for effective governance and the efficiency of resource use”, the committee states. In Nagaland’s context and experiences, it will be only appropriate to mention here that undertaking several development programs will mean nothing for the development graph of the State if the government does not show the commitment and purpose to ensure its effective implementation on the ground. The sustainable growth of the local economy will depend considerably on implementation and not so much on the program itself. Monitoring the performance of programs is therefore extremely important. It has already been suggested in these columns that the State government should seriously consider having a separate program implementation ministry/cell like the one at the Centre. It is so clear and evident that what Nagaland requires is improving the delivery of services while ensuring timely completion of projects and proper utilization of funds. However, putting in place a transparent and honest monitoring system requires political will and honest leadership—both rare commodities but nevertheless essential towards meeting our development objectives. The National Advisory Council (NAC) while giving recommendations for the Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) has also touched on the aspect of ‘weak governance’. It acknowledges what has been termed as “several deficiencies in public administration” and how this has “constrained the development of the region”. It goes on to observe that “lack of sufficient transparency and poor implementation and monitoring have resulted in sub-optimal utilisation of public resources”. The other aspect that cannot be ignored when it comes to the Northeast region is the ‘disturbed conditions’ prevailing. As they say, peace is a pre-requisite for progress and therefore, the new government under Modi will hopefully give equal priority in ‘conflict resolution’ so that peace and development can go hand in hand. All in all if Modi is really able to deliver on his positive intentions, we will hopefully see a new era of Governance, Outcome & Empowerment. (Feedback can be sent to consultingeditormex@gmail.com)

lEfT WING |

Nury Vittachi IANS

The difference between humans and animals: Dogs are smart

've always told my children that they can turn traffic lights green using only their minds. My wife scolds me, but it totally works. You just have to choose the moment you start thinking really carefully. The difference between human abilities and those of lesser creatures fascinates me. Which is why I was shocked when a reader forwarded me an Indian government minister's statement that dolphins' high intelligence indicates they "should be seen as non-human persons". If the definition of being a person is linked to intelligence, three-quarters of the people on my morning commuter bus would rate a classification roughly level with chickens (no offence intended to chickens). These folk carry electronic devices which can instantly access humanity's greatest works, but use them solely for screen-pecking games so repetitive they would bore a moderately bright patch of toe-fungus to tears. Campaigns calling for humans and animals to be treated equally are growing in North America, Europe and Australia, but India is ahead of the game. A dog was hit with criminal charges for biting a retired police officer in Lucknow in February and last year, three goats were detained for damaging a Chennai police car. In Nigeria, police famously detained a goat on suspicion of attempting to steal a Mazda 323. That didn't ring true with me: goats are canny outdoor types and would surely opt for the open-top Mazda MX-5. Humans also come in a wide range of intelligence levels, as was made clear by a story sent in by reader Wendy Tong. A motorist named Carmen, 34, was arrested for being drunk in charge of a vehicle, it said. Police in the US state of New Jersey told her to call a friend to drive her home. She phoned her buddy Nina, 23, who arrived in a similar state and was also arrested. So they both called a third friend, Ryan, 33, who drove up looking extremely wobbly and was also detained. The news report doesn't say what happened next, but one hopes officers kept the system going until they arrested everyone in the city, state or country. Wendy said drunkenness was not normally funny, but this report made her laugh. Agreed. Wendy, your tale reminded me of the first time I heard the song about the old woman who swallowed a fly and then swallowed a spider to catch the fly and ultimately a bird, cat, dog, and cow. I was only six but already had a skeptic's need for proof. "You got photos" I asked the teacher. She shifted nervously in her seat, and I've been suspicious of teachers ever since. Outside Asia and Africa, animal arrests are rare. For example, several "stoner" dogs were recently found to have become addicted to the highs you get by licking cane toads in Queensland, but not one was charged with substance abuse. The permissiveness of Western societies horrifies me. So perhaps animals and humans should be treated the same. Although I did struggle to teach my dog to change the colour of traffic lights using mind-control. In the end, I just let her bark at the lights until they turned green, which seemed to work just as well.

THE EDIT PAGE

C O M M E N T A R Y

Christa Hillstrom Yes Magazine

The Power of Oral History Personal Narratives behind the Headlines

n Dave Eggers' 2006 novel, What Is The What, young Valentino Achak Deng is forced from his village in Sudan and crosses hundreds of miles of desert—with thousands of other children— on foot. Every moment, they are in danger of being snatched up by militias or wild animals. They are the "Lost Boys" of Sudan—and Deng is a real person. Eggers met him years later in Atlanta, where Deng had settled, and agreed to help him write his story (which went on to become an international bestseller). Later, on a trip to Sudan with Deng, Eggers met more survivors of genocide and slavery. He told Smithsonian Magazine that the interaction left him asking, "What about them? What about their stories?" That experience led Eggers and a partner, Lola Vollen, to found Voice of Witness, a nonprofit organization that publishes oral history collections documenting global human rights crises through the prism of lived experience: the survivors of Burma's military regime, people displaced by the drug war in Colombia, and wrongfully convicted prisoners in the United States, for example. Voice of Witness, whose books are published by Eggers' popular McSweeney's Books, believes those who have lived through human rights abuses have authority over their own experiences. They lend a platform to people whose stories are usually told by others—journalists, human rights workers, or government reports. When I talked to executive director mimi lok, I called this unique perspective a lens; she called it a "pair of superhuman glasses" that invites us beyond the same old dominant narratives, to the raw material of human experience. Last year, Smithsonian honored Voice of Witness with a 2013 Ingenuity Award for "Upending the Narrative of the Great Man of History": recording history from the bottom up. The latest offering is Invisible Hands: Voices From the Global Economy, a collection that goes "behind the scenes of the global economy" to uncover the violations it masks. We hear from narrators around the world whose lives have been affected—often devastated—by agriculture, garment, electronics, and mining industries; narrators who have remarkably transformed their experiences of abuse to take on the very industries that harmed their communities. lok hopes to show readers—including the many students who engage with Voice of Witness oral histories through its education program—how they're connected, often invisibly, to exploitation and abuse. She also hopes those connections will help them see how they're linked to real people. The narrators of Invisible Hands are mothers and fathers; teenagers and widows; artists and activists; hard workers who take pride in what they do. The real connective tissue of oral storytelling, lok said, is empathy. YES!: Invisible Hands is such an ambitious work that takes on a daunting and complex problem. Why approach these issues through oral histories rather than through the lens of a journalist or expert? mimi lok: I think that it's because of that words—lens. We don't often experience and engage with stories and human rights issues through the lens of people who actually lived through them. Normally it's through the lens of a scholar, activist, or pundit. All of those things have their value, but we wanted to lift up the authority of the perspectives of people who were going through it. The views of the situation of the people who were most closely affected by it are often the ones who are least heard from. When you don't have that perspective you're missing a big chunk of understanding about that particular issue. You can't look at it from the top down; it has to be from the bottom up. Historically, oral history has been considered one of the more egalitarian forms of storytelling because you

ust a few years ago, all the headlines coming out of Brazil were positive. Huge oilfields had been discovered off the country’s coast, suggesting it would take its place among the world’s top producers. With Russia, India and China, Brazil was one of the BRICs—an economy to watch. Millions had been lifted out of poverty and its cash-transfer programme, Bolsa Familia, was seen as a model for tackling inequality. A country blessed with resources was led by a president known universally as “Lula”, whose very life-story— escaping poverty in the arid northeast—seemed to reflect that promise. However popular he was at home, not many Brazilian politicians grab the international limelight; yet his US counterpart, Barack Obama, saluted Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as “my man”. Brazil was opening embassies, offering solutions (not always welcomed) to international problems and pushing its long-held ambition for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. As the icing on the cake, it seemed, Brazil was chosen to host the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. Uncertain Fast forward to 2014, with the world’s top football tournament about to open, and one finds a much more uncertain country. For a start, in a place often seen as the spiritual home of football, there has been a sometimes-simmering, sometimes-blazing resentment over the cost of staging the World Cup. Many promised infrastructure prospects were not delivered on time and delays in finishing the stadia were seen as embarrassingly emblematic of domestic corruption and bureaucracy. Perhaps it is because Brazilians’ expectations had been raised so much that they seem so disappointed with so many things. Angst-ridden parents

When people tell their own stories, history is written from the bottom up

have to preserve the integrity of what someone said and how they said it. It's a really powerful way to counteract the dominant narrative around an issue or situation. YES!: The act of interviewing for these stories, and then sharing them with the world, must be quite sensitive. How do you approach it? lok: The way that we've developed it has a lot of emphasis on building relationship and trust with each narrator. We ask them about their whole life, not just to have them describe the incident of abuse. To us, that's not the most interesting thing about that person. These are real people—they're complex individuals that we can all empathize with. We feel successful when we see a high school student or a reader who thought they knew about this particular situation quite well, and then they read someone's story about it—and it complicates their thinking, in a good way. Someone who's otherwise seen as a statistic suddenly becomes someone that you can identify with and are rooting for. YES!: And what does it do for the narrators? lok: Just the fact of being listened to without judgement and being believed is incredibly powerful for a lot of these people, who oftentimes have had their story taken away from them. Someone else has been telling their story to them. YES!: You've talked about the role of oral histories in disrupting the established narratives. When I read the book, it struck me that you seemed to have set out to investigate stories of people victimized by a human rights violation, but ended up with a collection of people who had come into their own as activists. The stories here are mostly those of people taking agency in their own lives—not the usual fare for human rights reporting. To me, that felt like disrupting the established narrative. How else did this come up for you? lok: When we were making the book, a lot of our assumptions were tested. The book was first conceived to be about labor rights as the most dominant set of issues connected with the global economy. All these other things came up like environmen-

tal rights and land seizures and health. We ended up including people whose position in the narrative wasn't as a laborer, but as someone who had a peripheral position in relation to the actual workplace. But, the actions of a company or a large farm really impacted them. Our frame of reference got incredibly more complex and broad. But I think the main assumption that we want to challenge is that these are things that are happening to people "over there" and it has nothing to do with me. I think there's a disconnect—you can identify as an activist for human rights via doing certain actions that benefit this group over here or support these rights over here, and then be completely disconnected from the human rights story behind this pair of jeans or the cell phone I'm using. The word "invisible"—there's no other word for it. YES!: It sounds like what you're saying is that not only does your approach to the book change the narrative of people being victims rather than survivors with agency, but it also invites readers to challenge their own role in the global economy. It's an invitation. lok: Yes! It's an invitation. When you have the opportunity to engage with people on a human level there's something really inspiring—that they can tell their story is a sign of resilience and hope. A lot of these narrators—especially the garment workers—they've become really strong activists. I hope that's an inspiration for readers as well. Its not just a triumph of the spirit. There's real strategy, real alliance-building going on. So that's possible for readers too, to find out how they can be part of that work. YES!: Is there any particular story from this new collection that really hit you? lok: Nasiba's, from Uzbekistan. Her children, along with many other schoolchildren in Uzbekistan, are taken out of school to work in the fields and pick cotton, and they're supervised by their teachers and have to sleep in the schools. That was something we had never conceived of before. All of the other narratives, I had some sense these kinds of things were going on. Not this one. I knew Uzbekistan was a big supplier of cotton, but I had absolutely no idea that children were being pulled out of school to pick cotton. That stayed with me. Also, Kalpona's story is just such an engaging and rich story—going to work at twelve and then being part of her first strike at fifteen. Her voice is so lively and warm and there's humor—she's self-depracating. She's just comes across as a real person and we get to see her childhood and teen years and being with her abusive husband and forming the BCWS [Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity]. She's a complete badass. The first time I read a complete draft of that story I remember putting it down and feeling so in awe of her. There are some stories you finish reading and think, God that was difficult, or, I'm really angered by that. But Kalpona's—I was in awe of this human being and wanted to be her best friend. To someone who only had formal education up the age of twelve, she's found her own way to educate herself. I love the fact that she makes no qualms about when they were first organizing and no one had any idea what their rights were, no one had any idea how to organize themselves. They muddled their way through it. YES!: I like what you said about the value of including the whole story rather than just the abuse; not letting this one violation define life. You really get to see that it shapes life, but there's so much more than that. lok: Yeah, people make a life in spite of all this. I really liked Ana Juarez, the garment worker from Mexico. I like what she said about the pride that she takes in her work: "I made that pair of jeans. I'm proud of that." That's something that doesn't always get highlighted.

Brazil: a country of jangled nerves Gary Duffy vent their frustrations over the quality of education available to their children: the less well-off must make do with poorer schools, they say, while the rich have access to private education and those given a leg up have an easier path through free third-level colleges to qualifications and job prospects. The health system struggles to meet basic needs and in many hospitals conditions are terrible with long queues. In the shanty-towns, drug dealers carry arms that wouldn’t look out of place in a war zone and around 50,000 people die violent deaths each year. The better off live behind security gates and high walls, some travelling in bullet-proof cars. Economic growth of over 7 percent in 2010 has slowed to around 2 percent and politicians across the spectrum are mostly regarded with contempt. Brazil will choose a new president later this year and while Dilma Rousseff, Lula’s anointed successor, seems likely to win re-election, her lead in the polls has slipped. The main opposition candidates, Aecio Neves and Eduardo Campos, are not making huge strides but between now and October they will be chasing hard. Discontent Almost exactly a year ago, more than a million Brazilians took to the streets to show their discontent about a wide range of problems, from corruption to increases in public-transport fares. The protests have diminished and have become less spontaneous, with more focused political groups— among them homeless and indigenous campaigners—making specific

demands. Meanwhile, the presence of Black Bloc protesters with an anarchist agenda has led to confrontation in a society where the police easily resort to force, sometimes blatantly excessive. The government would say to all this that overall there have been huge strides—and no one would argue that running a country of continental proportions and 200m people could be easy. Billions of dollars are being set aside for projects linked to urban mobility, transport and airport modernisation. Jobs have been created and tourism given a shot in the arm. World Cup visitors will not take away these projects in their suitcases and the legacy will remain for the Brazilian people, says Rousseff.Brazilians have not been painting the streets yellow and green to mark the World Cup with anything like the fervour of previous tournaments. They haven’t lost the passion for an event their country has won more often than any other but the vast expenditure and emerging questions about mismanagement and inflated spending have left a bad taste. And in Rio the long-promised clean-up of pollution in the beautiful Guanabara Bay, which the government now says will not be realised as promised, heralds more problems with the Olympics. In addition, to confront a shortage of doctors, thousands of Cuban medics were invited to plug gaps in the country’s health system, in the teeth of opposition from the medical establishment. And, in the country’s most high-profile corruption case, the Supreme Court, led by the feisty Joaquim

WRITE-WING

Barbosa (one of few black Brazilians to reach the highest level of society), jailed more than 20 politicians, including leading members of the ruling Workers’ Party—a riposte of sorts to those who say Brazil is synonymous with impunity. Ill at ease Even so, the World Cup kicks off in a country ill at ease with itself, puzzling a watching international community which associates it with the “beautiful game”. Noting that Jerome Valcke of Fifa was travelling around in a bullet-proof car with police escort, one Brazilian newspaper asked him if he was afraid of being attacked. And there will be a heavy presence of police and soldiers on the streets throughout the tournament. Tear gas and confrontation marred the Confederations Cup, the warmup competition last year in Brazil. It seems hard to imagine that trouble can be avoided this time round either, although the scale is hard to predict— small and controllable, the government will certainly be hoping. It is trying to lance some of the most painful political boils, reportedly reaching out to include the homeless movement in a major programme of public house-building. A stellar performance by the national team may well lift the public mood. But, spurred on by social media, Brazilians are debating their problems and their future more profoundly than at any time since democracy replaced military dictatorship in 1985. Undoubtedly deeply proud of their country, they are equally frustrated by its failings and seem unconvinced that anyone is offering the right answers. Long after the World Cup is over, that discussion will continue—and many Brazilians have already shown that, if the answers are inadequate, they have the determination to take the argument to the streets.

Letters to the Editor should be sent to: The Morung Express, House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur - 797112, Or –email: morung@gmail.com All letters (including those via email) should have the full name and Postal address of the sender. Readers may please note that the contents of the articles, letters and opinions published do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

Monday

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

16 June 2014

PERSPECTIVE NEWS ANALYSIS, FEATURE AND DISCOURSE

THE EVERYWHERE OF SANITATION: India’s Feudal Rapists Violence, oppression and the body W amana Fontanella Khan New York Times

Colin McFarlane t is difficult to imagine a more profound illustration of the necessity of sanitation to life itself: two teenage girls venturing into the fields at night, brutally raped, killed and left to hang from a mango tree. They left their homes because they had no alternative, due to the denial of adequate sanitation, but to answer the call of nature by use of a nearby field. This is a shocking and extremely sad story of violence and vulnerability in Uttar Pradesh, India. What kind of vulnerability is this? A vulnerability produced by caste oppression, the normalisation of horrific violence against poor women, and the structural and systematic failure of the Indian state to provide the minimum of everyday rights: a clean, functional toilet. The National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights recently reported that 67% of low caste Dalit women - often referred to as ‘untouchable’ - have faced some form of sexual violence (Soundararajan, 2014). This is likely to be an underestimate. Many of these attacks happen because women are forced into open defecation in fields, railway tracks, forest areas, garbage grounds, and other marginal spaces across India. The denial of adequate toilets, a profound and fundamental bodily need, gives rise to an opportunity for the worst kind of bodily violence. When it comes to rape, the oppressive ethic of ‘untouchability’ appears to give way. There is a profound sadness to the unfolding of India’s sanitation history. Is there any sphere of human life more intimately connected to progress, however discredited that notion may have become, than adequate sanitation? Sanitation is historically a bringer of life and health – more important than Independence, Gandhi famously observed – but in practice it symbolises the threat of violence, and is intimately linked to crushing forms of torturous poverty. New Prime Minister Narendra Modi has had nothing to say on the attacks in Uttar Pradesh, but a debate has emerged in India about how a rich country can lag so dangerously far behind its competitors in providing basic safe and clean sanitation. For the sad and shocking truth is that this is the latest more extreme example of entrenched daily violence emergent from inequalities in gender, caste, class and sanitation in India. Poor sanitation conditions are not the cause of caste-based gendered violence, but the denial of sanitation facilitates the toxic relationship between vulnerability and violence more profoundly than any other facet of Indian life. For millions of Indian women, everyday life is a series of struggles, anxieties and risks around sanitation. If Modi said anything at all in his recent election campaign that mattered, it was this: toilets matter more than temples. India’s sanitation crisis ought to be a living obsession for the new Indian government: at least as important as the civil rights movement in the US and the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa (Soundararajan, 2014). The tragedy of sanitation is that it is fundamentally not just about toilets and pipes. Sanitation is far more than the staples of daily life, the unglamorous backstage of everyday life, as Erving Goffman once put it. Sanitation is an incessantly morphing object: it is immersed in and enrolled through malnutrition, violence, caste cultural politics, sexism, ethno-religious hatred, political patronage, educational disadvantage, illness and disease, precarious livelihoods, unemployment, environmental pollution, and more. Inadequate sanitation intensifies India’s poverty and displays its inequalities more starkly than any other aspect of life in the country. It is a tragedy of the rural and urban commons. And yet, while we should not pretend that solutions are straightforward, it is hardly rocket science to fix inadequate sanitation, and there are plenty of low-cost, technologically flexible, and context specific options out there, if only the political will was in place to deliver them (Mara, 2012). In countries where that political will is real – examples include Vietnam and Malaysia, who put the emergent global superpower to shame - open defecation has been all but eliminated, and India’s neighbour Pakistan has had far higher rates of success despite still being a very long way from universal provision. In 2011, Aasma Sheikh, a resident of Rafinagar, a predominantly Muslim slum in northeast Mumbai

and one of the poorest neighbourhoods in the city, suddenly became the subject of media attention. She and her infant son featured centrally in a report that was part of the Hindustan Times newspaper’s ‘Hunger Project’ (Bhattacharya, 2011). She was the mother of Gulnaz, a severely malnourished child that caught the media’s attention. Malnutrition here is common, a product of poor sanitation conditions and crippling poverty. Aasma was prescribed medicines to treat the illnesses that she, Gulnaz and her other children suffered from and which were exacerbated by malnutrition, but the cost of water meant that she could not afford to buy them. She had to spend Rs. 30-40 on water per day, she said. She was faced with the choice: water or medicine. The child later died. While Mumbai gets an average water supply of 200 litres per capita per day, the city's slums get less than 90 litres. Informal neighbourhoods such as Rafinagar get nothing, at least not legally. Families here earn roughly Rs. 100-150 per day, a substantial amount of which goes on water and kerosene. Following the Hindustan Times report, then women and child development minister, Varsha Gaikwad, visited Rafinagar, but no change followed and the deaths from a combination of malnutrition, poor sanitation and low incomes have continued. In fact, local public health NGO Apnalaya stated that the situation has worsened. Here is India’s ‘development miracle’. India shining, an economy celebrated for its growth rates, a middle class that has firmly announced itself as at one with the globalisation party, and where poor women must choose between fields and the risk of rape when they need the toilet, or between water and medicine for their children when they are ill from poor sanitation and a failing welfare system. Even beyond

these extreme but not uncommon stories, the links between gender, class, caste, religion and sanitation fragment and oppress daily lives across the country. “If we had to pick one tangible symbol of male privilege in the city”, write Shilpa Phadke, Sameera Khan and Shilpa Ranade in their 2011 book on Mumbai, Why Loiter?, “the winner hands-down would be the public toilet” (ibid: 79). They show how in Mumbai, India’s richest city, not only is there a profound imbalance of provisions of toilets for women as compared to men, the size, functionality and location of public toilets is extremely circumscribed. This is particularly difficult for poorer and usually lower caste women, who find it harder to make use, for instance, of the toilets of hotels or restaurants, and for whom the lack of toilets is, as Phadke et al (ibid. 80) put it, “a reminder of her unwantedness in the city”. This unwantedness reflects in part the gendered nature of infrastructure provision in the city and expectations about who uses and should be using public space, as well as cultural notions of pollution and the female body associated in particular with Hindu social orders linking caste and gender. Women’s bodies, like toilets themselves, are often linked to contamination, dirt and pollution, meaning that many people are reluctant even to speak about sanitation: “Women’s bodies are associated with bodily secretions – menstruation, ovulation, lactation – seen as sources of ritual contamination at particular times of the month or year” (ibid. 82). The impact on the everyday health of women is profound. Sometimes this cultural politics of ‘pollution’ can be turned on its head. A few years ago, a public toilet block run by a private company in Rafinagar doubled the pay-per-use price from Rs.1 to Rs.2. In this neigh-

bourhood, women are discriminated against in several ways: as Muslims in an illegal neighbourhood distant from the public eye and living on the edge of the city’s largest garbage ground, Deonar. A group of residents began to protest the price hike, as Mumtaz related: “The public created a scene. They went and sat down [to defecate] anywhere, in the maidan [open ground], on the road, near the clinic…So that he [the toilet block caretaker] will also not be able to sit there, he will also get the stink, no?” Mumtaz positions smell, not organizational pressure, as key to this political act. This is a form of protest in which an urban collective temporarily constitutes a political moment that dramatizes the limited options available to the poor, forced here to use their own bodies as political agents in their own neighborhoods. The protest in the end was successful, and points to a wider set of small contestations whereby residents try to maintain conditions or nudge them in a different direction. These are temporary conflicts that resonate with accounts of lower key contentious politics, where urban public spaces become particularly important for pursuing and registering grievances (e.g., Bayat 2010). They are part of a longer repertoire of what Sudipta Kaviraj (1997: 110) calls “small rebelliousness” around sanitation, where improvised defilement itself becomes a political outlet that depends on the power of smell, irritation, and proximity. Small rebelliousness, emergent in metabolic and social desperation, with small victories, repeated daily up and down the country. Up and down the country, sanitation is everyday violence, oppression, exploitation and politicization of different forms. To take another example, in August 2013, to demand rehabilitation and immediate passage of a pending Bill outlawing ‘manual scavenging’ - cleaning drains and sewers with your bare hands - and providing provisions for retraining, hundreds of manual scavengers, and many of their family members, from across the country burnt their baskets at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. The protests were aimed at the most oppressive working conditions in the country, where workers are squeezed into narrow urban drains, surrounded by raw sewage and toxic gases. In Delhi, in February 2013, three men were killed trying to unblock a drain underneath the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts. In Chennai, two months later, two men died attempting to unblock a 40-foot deep septic tank underneath a hotel. The men, typically working without any safety gear, were killed by asphyxiation from polluting gases in the drains. These stories of death, not to mention disease and illness, from cleaning drains and sewers, can be multiplied in cities across India. While many states in India have banned the practice commonly referred to as ‘manual scavenging’ - always carried out by Dalits - and insisted sanitation workers are issued with adequate safety equipment, in practice the process continues. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, speaking in June 2011, called manual scavenging “one of the darkest blots on [India’s] development process”, but two years later the Supreme Court expressed serious concern at the inordinate delay in passing the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Bill, developed in 2012 and aimed at amending and replacing the existing 1993 Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act. The new bill promises rehabilitation for manual scavengers in the form of training and education grants, but its slow implementation brought some of India’s most marginalised, exploited and desperate workers onto the streets of the capital. Sanitation is not a development target. It is more than this. It is a network, ever morphing: an ideology of pollution, a cultural logic of oppression, a political economy of class inequality, a social relation of gender, caste and religion, and an infrastructural challenge. It is a symbol of exploitation and fear, the promise of health, and the possibility of safety, education and livelihood. All India needs to fix this is public pressure and political will. The new government must be held to account on its capacity to provide this most fundamental of bodily requirements, and the debate that has begun cannot be allowed to pass over into another instance of temporary public fury.

The Morung Express

hen a distressed father is reporting his daughter’s disappearance to a policeman in India, there are some questions he doesn’t want to hear. “What is your caste?” is one of them. Yet, the father, Sohan Lal, said this was the first thing the police asked him last Tuesday, when he begged them for help. After revealing his low-caste background as a Shakya, Lal said the officers mocked him and refused to lift a finger. Hours later, Lal’s daughter, 12, and a female cousin, 14, were found hanging by their scarves from a mango tree in Katra Saadatganj, in the state of Uttar Pradesh. They had been raped. His daughter had last been seen with a group of brothers from the Yadav caste, which is the dominant caste in the village. Our understanding of their deaths will be incomplete until we recognize the role of the caste system in India’s rape crisis. For much of India’s history the lower castes, especially the Dalits (once known as untouchables), have been routinely raped by the landowning upper castes. Better legal protections, urbanization and social mobility have helped reduce caste-based discrimination, but not enough. Dalit women are still the most likely to be victims of gang rapes. An analysis of Uttar Pradesh’s crime statistics for 2007 by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties showed that 90 percent of rape victims in 2007 were Dalit women. Since December 2012, when a 23-year-old woman from the Kurmi caste, another low caste, died after being gang raped and attacked with an iron rod by five men in a moving bus, India has been undergoing a process of soul searching. Yet the caste system has not been mentioned enough in the debate. While attacks against Western tourists and women in urban centers have attracted a great deal of attention, rapes of lower-caste women routinely fail to provoke an outcry. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for example, has yet to condemn the rape and murder in Katra Saadatganj. It is no surprise that the caste system, and the unequal society it produces, leads to moral blind spots that hide rapes from public view. Caste historically determined where you lived, what you did, whom you married, even what you ate. In many villages, those rules are still in place, decades after caste discrimination was banned. Much of the caste-based sexual violence emerges out of a feudal sense of entitlement among some upper-caste men. “You have not really experienced the land until you have experienced the Dalit women” is a popular saying among the landowning Jats, a politically powerful group that, despite being relatively low caste themselves, are above the Dalits. Though upper-caste men are rarely imprisoned for raping Dalits, they have a widely accepted defense at their disposal, should they ever need one: They would never touch a lowercaste woman for fear of being “polluted.” In one famous 1995 case, a Dalit woman’s allegations of gang rape were dismissed by a judge who claimed that “an upper-caste man could not have defiled himself by raping a lower-caste woman.” Caste discrimination is exacerbated by corrupt and inefficient governance, which encourages people to seek political power through caste allegiances. Caste bias seems to have been at work in the Katra Saadatganj case. One need only look at the names of the accused brothers (Pappu Yadav, Awadhesh Yadav and Urvesh Yadav) and that of the head of the police station (Ram Vilas Yadav) for evidence that they belonged to the same caste. Two more police constables involved are also Yadavs. When the police and judiciary cannot be relied on to resolve disputes, rape often becomes a means of retribution. This has been apparent in Hindu-Muslim riots as well as in intercaste conflict. “Rape is a weapon to silence the assertions of the community. A way to teach us a lesson. To show us, including our men, that they are helpless and cannot protect their own women,” said Asha Kowtal, a Dalit activist. Such thinking seems to have been at work in March, in the state of Haryana, when four lower-caste girls were gang-raped and dumped on a train station platform more than 100 miles from their homes. There is evidence that a conflict between Dalits and Jats precipitated the attack. According to the Indian newspaper Mint, a land dispute led Jats to declare “a social and economic boycott against the Dalits,” perhaps culminating in the gang rape. We will never be able to address India’s rape crisis if we remain blind to the machinations of caste discrimination. In the past, it has taken gruesome cases of violence to ensure coverage of rape. Indeed, perhaps the only reason the Katra Saadatganj hangings attracted attention was that grisly photographs of the dangling bodies were published in Indian newspapers and circulated on social media, despite complaints by Dalit activists that this was disrespectful. But we cannot rely on the shock value of particularly horrific cases to lead to change; we need structural solutions. The government should start by amending the 1989 Prevention of Atrocities Act, which is designed to address caste-based violence. The conviction rate under the act is notoriously low – according to a 2012 report, more than half of all cases are closed before they reach the courts. In the case of Lal’s daughter and her cousin, the police did not register the crime under the act at all. Amendment proposals that would ensure crucial witness protection, more legal support and special courts are sitting in Parliament right now, awaiting approval. There is no doubt that it was wrong for the police to ask Lal about caste. But for the rest of us, when it comes to understanding India’s rape crisis, not talking about caste is just as bad.

POll RESUlTS

Does the BJP-leD govt have the Political will anD unDerstanDing to finD Just solutions in the north east? Some of those who voted YES had this to say: • Yes. Why because now bjp as a new government in India as a couple of years after to power comes so we people wait and watch to see some years and decide your full resolution isn't it. • Through their public speeches the intent of the BJP is very clear. They seem to have the will to do something about the situation in the north east. At the same time, I don’t see anyone within the BJP who will be in a position to initiate any positive step. Whether it is Sonowal, Kiren or Rio, none of them have the capacity to help the BJP government to make positive inroads in the region. • Yes, NPF alliance with BJP • Yes Because tiger man sri, modi is there. • Yes, BJP is the just government Some of those who voted no had this to say: • No. Appointing an Ex Army General as DoNER Minister; the very Army General who is so vocal that AFSPA should not be repealed from North East much against the wishes of the North Easterns.....so, where is the Will and Understanding? In Mouth, they are willing so solutions, but in action it is just the opposite. • No, just harping on national integration will not yield any just solution to the north east. They need to realize that north east region is different and so a uniform

approach will not work. • Its just formality, there will be no fruitful result at the end. • No. Hard to say Yes. 60% • The BJP government will be more assertive than the previous Congress government. Modi seems to be more decisive and certain about what kind of India he is working towards. I have my doubts about whether the solutions will be just or not. • The BJP definitely has no clear understanding of the situation in the north east. Most of their information is provided by the various RSS agencies that have been established throughout the northeast region. With such biased information, I doubt the will have a clear under16% standing of the situation to make any positive impact. So political will alone is not enough. YES no • We must make a distinction here as far as Naga political issue is concerned. All other insurgent groups in the north east are related to socio-economic problem, better status

turbances from the neighbours, the government may and a case of secessionism. The Naga political issue extend only the stick without carrot to the insurgent is unique as it is a case of invasion by India and the groups of NE India because the new leadership is people fighting for restoration of their already aware that this industry has to be crashed to freedom. The BJP-led govt may have plant new ones for the economic growth and developthe political will and understanding but ment of the region. it is doubtful if they will do justice. • No, They have bigger issues to solve • This is according to us (Nagas). We need co-operation and reunite. first which concerns the majority • All the insurgent movements will be crushed with an iron hand. Modiji has indicated not to talk to ANY groups. Some of those who voted NSCN talks are abandoned as of now. GOIs older polOTHERS had this to say: icy of creating insurgency to prevent restive neighbors • May be or may not... wait for six from taking over Indian land is being replaced by new months, it would be interesting to compolicy of Industrialization and immediate access to the ment/debate then, I guessed! Burmese oil, gold and land resources. • The BJP government will be more determined and will take steps to solve • Crushing North east will meant, the beginning of India's disintegration ...Perhaps to be more humane, Modiji problems in the Northeast region. But 24% Government should initiate rewriting of the Indian NaI doubt they will be just solutions. For tional Anthem inclusive of North East India if at all India them it will only be for strengthening believe in the true spirit of Democracy...no nation, no national integration and for expedienruler and no historian can ignore the legitimate rights of cy sake. It will not be for justice and the people and should be deal sensitively. rights of the people. • The party appears to be showing • Its too early to give a proper response to this quesOTHERS tion, but definitely Modi seems to be in a hurry to new direction in the foreign policy of the country. Pakistan, China and Banpave a clear way for the kind of India he wants to gladesh appears to be quite comfortable with the new create. Time will tell whether the northeast region leadership of India as of now. In the absence of disis part of that vision.

Readers may please note that, the contents of the articles published on this page do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

Dimapur

NATIONAL

Monday 16 June 2014

The Morung Express

Modi arrives to a rousing welcome in Bhutan

ThiMPu, JuNe 15 (iANS): Hundreds of school children cheered and waved the national flags of India and Bhutan as Indian Prime Minister Nar-

tour since taking over the reins of the government in New Delhi three weeks ago. Modi arrived to a red carpet welcome at the picturesque Paro International

his cabinet ministers and senior government officials. As a smiling Modi alighted from the flight with his hands folded in namaste, Tobgay received the

India, Bhutan to enhance economic ties as Modi pitches for ‘B2B’ links

ThiMPhu, JuNe 15 (iANS): India and Bhutan Sunday focused on extensive development cooperation between the two neighbours and discussed measures to enhance economic ties as visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi described their close and friendly ties as “B2B” or “Bharat to Bhutan” relations. Modi, who called on Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and later met the landlocked Himalayan nation’s premier, Tshering Tobgay, expressed satisfaction at India being considered a privileged

partner of Bhutan, official sources said. “The prime minister expressed satisfaction at India being considered as a privileged partner of Bhutan and stressed that his government would not only nurture these strong bonds, but would also strengthen them,” the sources said. “The primary focus of both the meetings was the extensive development cooperation between the two countries and measures to enhance the economic ties,” they said. Describing the bilateral relations as “B2B” relations, Modi emphasised

the possibilities of greater educational contacts and suggested doubling the scholarships being provided to Bhutanese students in India.Modi also said that India will assist in setting up a digital library which will provide Bhutanese youth access to two million books and periodicals. Thanking the Bhutanese leadership for the warm welcome accorded to him, the prime minister said that “it reflects the warmth in our bilateral relations”. “He applauded the personal efforts made in ensuring the success of his first visit outside India,” the sources added.

endra Modi arrived here on a two-day visit to the landlocked Himalayan nation Sunday, his first foreign

Airport, which is nestled amidst mountain ranges. He was greeted by Bhutanese Premier Tshering Tobgay,

prime minister in the traditional Bhutanese style by draping a khadar around his neck. After a ceremo-

nial guard of honour at the airport, Modi was driven in a huge convoy of vehicles to the scenic Bhutanese capital Thimpu, about 60 km from the airport, amid tight security. Enthusiastic school children, some of them carrying colourful umbrellas, lined up at various sections of the route to the capital, waving the flags of the two neighbours, while there were several welcome arches with cutouts of Modi and Tobgay. On one arch was embossed: “Bhutan takes pleasure welcoming our close friend Indian prime minister Shri Narendra Modi”. Another was dedicated “to Bhutan and India - a shining testimony of bilateral relations”. The flags of the two countries were also hoisted at many lampposts. Modi is accompanied by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh. He will call on Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and also hold talks with Tobgay. In the evening, Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a ceremonial welcome on his arrival at the Paro International Airport in Bhutan. (PTI)

will inaugurate the new Supreme Court building in Hejo, which was constructed with funding from the Indian government. Modi will also formally call on Prime Minister Tobgay, who will host a banquet for him at the royal banquet hall. On Monday, the Indian prime minister will call on

former king Jigme Singye Wangchuck, a close friend of India. Modi will also address a joint sitting of the third session of the second parliament of Bhutan. Later, he will unveil the foundation stone of the 600 MW Kholongchu hydropower project, a joint venture model between Satluj

Jal Vidyut Nigam and Druk Green Power Corporation. Construction on the project is expected to start later this year. The Bhutan king will then host a lunch in honour of the Prime Minister Modi and his delegation, before they depart from Thimphu June 16.

In his pre-departure statement on the eve of his trip, Modi described Bhutan as a “natural choice” for his maiden visit abroad after assuming office in New Delhi, and said relations with the neighbouring nation would be a key foreign policy priority of his government.

‘Violations by Pak must stop for dialogue to progress’ India faced big cuts in aid for basic education

SRiNAgAR, JuNe 15 (PTi): The Centre on Sunday asserted that dialogue with Pakistan cannot progress if ceasefire violations and infiltration continue, saying such hostilities “must stop” for the situation to “normalize”. “For the situation to normalize I think it is extremely important that these kind of violations which are taking place at the LoC must stop. That in itself is a confidence building measure before

any country can proceed further,” Defence minister Arun Jaitley told reporters on the second day of his maiden visit to J&K after taking charge. He replied in the negative when asked if dialogue with Pakistan would go ahead if the ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) and infiltration in J&K continued. “Obviously not,” Jaitley, who is on a twoday visit for reviewing security measures, said, adding

ceasefire violations must stop for further progress. India has maintained that it has been its endeavour to establish peaceful and friendly relations with all neighbours, including Pakistan. It has reminded Pakistan that maintenance of peace and tranquility on the border is a “pre-condition” for having a normal relationship between the two countries. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had invited his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz

Sharif to his swearing in last month and held a meeting with him on crucial bilateral issues including terror and speedy trial of Mumbai terror attack case in Pakistan. The meeting was seen as a positive development in the India-Pak ties, which for last one year have witnessed cold vibes due to the incidents along the Line of Control, including beheading of an Indian soldier by Pakistan troops. The third round of com-

prehensive India-Pak dialogue process was stalled in January last after the beheading incident. Jaitley today said he has discussed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir in separate meetings with governor NN Vohra, chief minister Omar Abdullah and senior Army officers. He also attended a special security review meeting with Omar, top civil, army, police and paramilitary officials this morning.

Agriculture activists slam IB report, say it’s not intelligent New Delhi, JuNe 15 (TNN): The controversial Intelligence Bureau (IB) report that accuses foreign funded NGOs to be a threat to India’s economic security is being thrashed by activists for not just the kind of accusations it has made but also the research quality of the report. Agriculture and anti-genetically modified (GM) crop activists for instance have slammed it for not referring to existing scientific reports on the issue. The Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA), a coalition of hundreds of organizations that has been named by the IB for perpetrating a strong campaign against genetically modified (GM) crops

released a statement on Sunday. It said that parts of the report are “unconnected with illogical arguments and even lacks any sound accusations.” The 21 page IB report which is now in public domain after being leaked recently, has named 5 activists—Vandana Shiva of Navdanya, Suman Sahai of Gene Campaign, Aruna Rodrigues who had filed a PIL on the issue in the Supreme Court, advocate Prashant Bhushan who argued for her and Kavitha Kuruganti of ASHA and 6 NGOs. It has also claimed that campaigns by them have played a role in the government imposing a moratorium on Bt Brinjal in 2010 when Jairam

Ramesh was the environment minister and that their social media activism has also influenced the parliamentary standing committee on GM crops and a Technical Expert committee appointed by the Supreme Court to take an anti-GM stand. It goes on to say that 2 billion people all over the world are already consuming GM foods. The report says that “pro-GM and biotech companies” have not found any connection between cattle death in Warangal in 2006 and 2007 that activists had linked to feeding on Bt cotton. “It is laughable that the IB expects pro-GM researchers and biotech companies to verify such deaths and

bring to light the facts.” Says ASHA statement. “Indeed, ASHA does bring information and news with regard to GMOs into the public domain, so that an informed debate is created on the subject. And yes, liaising with other activists and using social media are part of what we do. This is part of spreading awareness on a technology which ASHA has sound evidence to believe is not in the interest of farmers or consumers. It is unclear once again what is illegal or objectionable about this?” the ASHA statement says. ASHA points that the IB report has not cited any of the scientific literature or publications that have raised concerns about the

safety of GM crops. “In the GMO debate in India, more foreign funds are being spent by foreign MNCs than any NGO. If this is about foreign forces influencing domestic decisions in India, why is it that the IB does not think that it is objectionable that biotech industry led by these foreign MNCs is into heavy lobbying, PR and influencing?” the statement adds. “Is the IB saying that studies cannot be commissioned to research on particular potential impacts, and that public awareness cannot be created? “it states. ASHA also runs a campaign against high pesticide and insecticide inputs in crops and their health impacts.

Woman allegedly gang-raped by 10 persons, including husband

KhANDwA MP, JuNe 15 (PTi): In yet another shocking incident of crime against women, a tribal woman was allegedly gang-raped by ten persons, including her husband, paraded naked and forced to drink urine in front of her minor son following a land dispute. After the woman lodged a complaint in which she alleged that the attack was carried out at the behest of her husband, all the accused were nabbed, police said on Sunday. The incident took place

three days back at Bhiali Kheda village under Piplod police station in Madhya Pradesh. The victim reported the matter on June 13 to police after her family members brought her to Khandwa district hospital, police said. Acting on the complaint, police yesterday arrested all the ten persons allegedly involved in the gang rape, including the victim’s husband, relatives and other villagers, deputy superintendent of police (DSP), Women’s Cell, Khandwa, Sunita Rawat told reporters

here yesterday. The woman in her police complaint alleged that she was gang-raped by ten persons, including her husband Kailash Rumalia and her relatives, the DSP said. She also mentioned that before committing gang rape, they allegedlymanhandledher,paraded her naked and when she asked for water, they forced her to drink urine in front of her minor son, Rawat said quoting her complaint. Meanwhile, the woman’s husband claimed before reporters that because

of a land dispute, she was levelling baseless allegations against him and other villagers and also said that he doubted her character. Police have registered a case under IPC sections 376 (g) (gang rape), 354 (b) (act with intent to disrobe a woman), 294 (obscene acts and songs), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) against the accused and are further

probing the incident. The victim was undergoing treatment at the district hospital where women constables and Piplod police station incharge were deployed for her security, Rawat added. There has been nationwide outrage on the string of incidents of sexual assault on women. The issue has come into fresh focus following the gang rape and murder of two teenage cousins, whose bodies were found hanging from a tree in Badaun district of Uttar Pradesh.

New Delhi, JuNe 15 (AgeNcieS): Despite being among the top five countries with most children out of school, India experienced the largest cuts in aid to basic education. Its aid to the sector fell by $278 million between 2010-12. While global aid to education is seriously declining: it fell by just over 6% between 2010 and 2011, and a further 3% in 2012, for India it fell by 10% in this period. These new figures are released by Unesco’s Education for All (EFA) Global Monitoring Report ahead of the Global Partnership for Education’s Replenishment Pledging Conference in Brussels on June 25-26, 2014. Basic education which enables children to acquire foundational skills and core knowledge - is now receiving the same amount of aid as it was in 2008. As funds diminish, and just one year before the deadline for achieving the global EFA goals, 57 million children and 69 million adolescents are still out of school. These new figures are released by the Unesco re-

port just ahead of the Brussels conference at which donors are being asked to help raise a much-needed US$3.5 billion for education in the poorest countries. “When so many girls and boys are still out of school and not learning, the continuing drop in funds for education is cause for serious concern,” said Irina Bokova, director-general of Unesco, “Increasing external support for education is an ethical and development imperative. We know the difference that well-targeted aid can make in helping countries to put quality education first.” Julia Gillard, board chair of the Global Partnership for Education, said: “Education is a longterm investment - not an expense. We owe it to the children of the world - particularly the poorest and most marginalized - that both international donors and developing country governments step up and commit more funding to education.” The paper shows that aid is still vital for many countries, making up over

a quarter of public education spending in 12 countries. Yet with aid flows to the sector falling by 10% - far more than the 1% decrease in overall aid levels - donors are clearly backing away from education as a development priority. The two countries with the largest cuts in aid to basic education from 2010 to 2012 were India and Pakistan, even though both sit among the top five countries in the world with the most children out of school. Cuts to these countries resulted in South and West Asia being the region with the largest decline in aid to basic education, with disbursements falling by 26% between 2010 and 2012. “This worrying fall in aid is in the context of a US$26 billion annual finance gap for education. Unless this negative trend is reversed, the likelihood of reaching the global education goals is put at great risk - all the more so if new education targets are set for 2030,” said Aaron Benavot, director of the EFA Global Monitoring Report.

Al Qaeda releases video claiming jihadists now headed towards Kashmir: Report

New Delhi., JuNe 15 (AgeNcieS): In a chilling reminder to India’s new government under Narendra Modi of the perils that be, al Qaeda has reportedly released a video calling upon Muslims in Kashmir to follow example of Iraqis and Syrians and revolt against the authorities. This is for the first time that the al Qaeda has specifically targeted Kashmiris in the video that is titled “War should continue, message to the Muslims of Kashmir”, reports Guardian.com. The video is being seen as an effort by marginalised guerilla leaders of the al Qaeda in Pakistan to rear their heads as they call upon Kashmiris to seek inspiration from the “new Afghanistan being

created in Syria.” A recent UN report corroborates the lurking danger as it states that the al Qaeda affiliates from Pakistan and Uzbekistan that are participating regularly in attacks on Afghan military forces, could pose “a direct terrorist challenge” for Afghanistan, south and central Asia and the international community. If the claims made in the video hold any water then it leaves to be speculated whether the al Qaeda affiliates plan to ‘look eastwards’ towards Kashmir. Another noteworthy fact is that the Pakistani Taliban operates closely with al Qaeda, which has senior commanders deployed in the tribal areas of Pakistan,

as well as the Afghan Taliban, who provide their Pakistani comrades with funding and logistical support. Under the leadership of Egyptian-born militant Ayman al-Zawahiri, who took over the reins after Osama bin Laden’s death in May 2011, the al Qaeda has time-and-again tried to mobilise support in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. The video that reportedly mentions Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Algeria among other countries of Islamic extremism to make a case for militancy in the northern reaches of India will definitely make the authorities sit up take notice of the clear and present dangers threatening Kashmir.

Tech savvy new government to use and track social media New Delhi, JuNe 15 (iANS): Social media, especially Twitter, is becoming the vehicle of information dissemination of the new government - beginning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself, who has two Twitter handles that are a constant source of information . Modi, one of the most tech savvy of politicians, made the Bharatiya Janata Party tech savvy much before the party came to power. He is now doing the

same with the government, pushing the use of social media for information dissemination. When Modi formed government on March 26, nearly 90 percent of his ministry was already on social networking. The prime minister made it clear that social media was set to be the medium to take their word instantly to the people. BJP ministers are now using their own twitter handles and Facebook pages as well as the official twitter handle of Press Information

Bureau (PIB) to communicate with the people. The connecting with people does not end there. The government is also studying the impact of the tweets and social media trends. According to official sources, a report is to be compiled every day on the trends on Twitter and other social networking sites. The report is to be submitted to the Prime Minister’s Officer (PMO), home ministry and other ministries. “Since social network-

ing is being used in a big way, its impact assessment is also necessary. So far some ministries have been doing this at a small level for individual topics. We will soon have a proper mechanism for such kind of assessment,” a government official told IANS, requesting anonymity. Among the ministries that have already undertaken impact assessment of social media are the information and broadcasting ministry and external

affairs ministry. Modi has two twitter accounts, a personal one - @narendramodi with 4.8 million followers so far - and the other one as prime minister - @PMOIndia which has logged 1.61 million followers in less than a month since he became prime minister. Social networking played a major role in the election for the BJP, led by Modi himself. Modi, who was then Gujarat chief minister, had a blog, Facebook page and Twitter handle

which relayed his speeches, programmes, and comments. In fact, Modi is the first Indian leader to address public gatherings through virtual 3D rallies. Prominent BJP leaders, including party president Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, and nearly all spokespersons used Twitter and Facebook throughout the election, and got widespread positive reactions. “This government is different from the previous one in which few ministers

were on Twitter, and that too attracted controversy. This is not just the first time that social media is being used on a massive scale by the government, but it is set to create a precedence,” an official from the information and broadcasting ministry, who did not want to be named, told IANS. “Most ministers already have Twitter handles and Facebook pages. Those who are not proactive use the official PIB handle to communicate,” the official added.

Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi is among those who recently joined Facebook. Nirmala Sitharaman has opened a new Twitter handle as commerce minister for official tweets. Some other ministers have Twitter handles without an icon affirming it to be an official account. Some of them include Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh, Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram, and Railways Minister Sadanand Gowda.

InternatIonal

the Morung express

Monday 16 June 2014

Dimapur

Afghans ignore Taliban threats to vote again in final test

Afghan men, whose fingers have been cut off by Taliban fighters as a punishment for voting, rest in a hospital in Herat, west of Kabul, Afghanistan on June 15. A roadside bomb killed many people in Afghanistan, including election workers, and the Taliban cut off the fingers of nearly a dozen people to punish them for voting in this weekend’s presidential runoff, officials said Sunday. (AP Photo)

KABUL, JUNE 15(REUtERs): Millions of Afghans turned out for a second time on Saturday to elect a successor to President Hamid Karzai on Saturday, a decisive test of the country’s ambitions to transfer power democratically for the first time in its tumultuous history. Most foreign troops will leave by the end of 2014, and whoever takes over from Karzai will inherit a troubled country plagued by an assertive Taliban insurgency and an economy crippled by corruption and

the weak rule of law. The run-off pitted former anti-Taliban fighter Abdullah Abdullah against ex-World Bank economist Ashraf Ghani after neither secured the 50 percent majority needed to win outright in the first round on April 5. Violence spiked on the day as militants launched hundreds of attacks with rockets, explosives and gunfire, leaving at least 20 civilians dead, along with a further 11 police and 15 army personnel, the interior ministry said. But clashes did not de-

Airstrikes in NW Pakistan kill about 100 militants IsLAMABAD, JUNE 15 (AP): Pakistani military jets pounded militant hideouts in the northwestern tribal region bordering Afghanistan early Sunday morning, officials said, killing as many as 100 militants in the second strike on the region since a deadly attack on the Karachi airport a week ago. The Pakistani government has been under pressure to combat the resilient insurgency that has plagued the country for years after the shocking attack on the country›s busiest airport that left 36 people dead, including 10 assailants. Government efforts that started months ago to negotiate with the militants appeared to be going nowhere and the airport violence has made negotiations even less likely to succeed. Pakistani air force jets targeted eight militant hideouts in the North Waziristan tribal area, two intelligence officials said. Many of the dead were believed to be Uzbeks and other foreign fighters, they said. One of those killed was Abu Abdul Rehman al-Maani, who is believed to have helped orchestrate the five-hour airport siege last Sunday, said two other officials. Uzbek fighters and the Pakistani Taliban both claimed responsibility for the attack on Jinnah International Airport, and the Pakistani Taliban said the two had worked together to carry it out, marking a disturbing increase of militant groups working together. When the jets struck, the militants had been gathered to discuss a deadline given by authorities for militants to leave the area, said two of the Pakistani officials. All the officials did not want to be identified because they were not authorized to speak to the media. The information could not be independently verified. The tribal areas are remote, dangerous and difficult for journalists to access. Sunday›s airstrike was the second against militants in the northwest. On Tuesday, Pakistani military jets targeted nine hideouts in the Tirah Valley, where the military said 25 suspected militants were killed, but the

information could not be independently verified. The area is part of a lawless terrain along the Afghan border that is home to a mix of local militants and al-Qaida-linked foreign fighters. The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan›s claim of responsibility for the airport attack marked a rare instance of the group striking within Pakistan. The militant group was formed in 1991 to overthrow the Uzbek government and install an Islamic caliphate there but later expanded that goal to include all of Central Asia. The organization is believed to be based in North Waziristan and from there have attacked U.S. and NATO targets in Afghanistan. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was elected last year in part for promising to end the years of militant violence through negotiations instead of military operations. But only one round of direct talks between the government and the Pakistani Taliban has taken place and efforts have floundered in recent weeks. Now the question is whether Sharif will authorize a much more aggressive military operation against the militants. In another act of violence this weekend, a guard for a provincial Christian lawmaker shot and killed the legislator Saturday, police said. Lawmaker Handery Masieh was meeting with supporters from the ruling National Party outside his home in the southwestern city of Quetta when the guard opened fire, police officer Abdul Razzaq Cheema said. One of the Masieh›s nephews was wounded in the attack, he said. Cheema said it was not clear why the guard opened fire. Government spokesman Jan Mohammad Buledi said the guard fled after the attack and police were trying to arrest him. Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan, where nationalists groups have waged a low-scale insurgency to get a greater share of money earned from resources there, like natural gas. Pakistani Taliban and al-Qaida-linked militants also hide in Baluchistan.

ter millions of voters from turning out and feared high-profile attacks did not materialise. Instead, voting ended at 4 p.m. (1130 GMT) with a palpable sense of relief, at least in the Afghan capital. “I’m from this country so I am never afraid of threats,” said Lajiullah Azizi, a hospital worker who voted in western Kabul just minutes after a small bomb exploded at his polling station. “I hope this election will bring peace.” Officials immediately began counting ballots, al-

though Afghanistan’s difficult terrain, where ballot boxes have to hauled by donkey from some of its remotest corners, means preliminary results will not be known until July 2. Karzai, standing down after 12 years in power marked by increasingly sour relations with the West, is certain to retain a hand in politics but has been tight-lipped about his plans. “Today Afghanistan takes a step towards stability, development and peace. Come out and determine your destiny,” Karzai, clad

in his trademark green Afghan robe, said after casting his ballot. Karzai’s relationship with the West has deteriorated sharply over his refusal to sign a security pact with the United States allowing a small contingent of U.S. forces to remain in the country beyond 2014. Both Abdullah and Ghani have promised to sign it promptly. Twelve million voters were eligible to cast ballots at 6,365 polling centres across Afghanistan, from windswept deserts on the Iranian border to the rugged Hindu Kush mountains. Despite the outbreaks of violence, voters defied threats and long queues snaked out of polling centres in urban areas soon after voting began at 7 a.m. Turnout was more than seven million, election commission chief Ahmad Yousuf Nuristani said, roughly the same as in the first round of voting in April. The turnout was so high that some 333 voting centres ran out of ballot papers, sparking minor protests by disgruntled voters. The

election commission said additional materials were later distributed and calm was restored. “Security is a concern but the people of Afghanistan have defied security threats so far,” Abdullah said. Further afield, the picture looked less rosy, however, with voters in provinces such as Wardak refusing to come out to vote. “Maybe it’s because in the second round people have lost belief in the election,” said Masuma, a school teacher in Wardak. “The reason is fraud, they think that their vote is useless.” RISKY STAND-OFF The election has been fraught with accusations of fraud by both candidates and many fear a close outcome will make it less likely the loser will accept defeat, possibly dragging Afghanistan into a risky, protracted stand-off over the vote. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry acknowledged the concerns by saying that now the voting was finished, the work of the Afghan electoral authorities was paramount.

“It is essential that the process of tallying votes, adjudicating complaints, and finalising the results be transparent and accountable and that the candidates and other stakeholders work with the electoral commissions and respect their conclusions,” he said in a statement. Both candidates have complained repeatedly that electoral organisers are incompetent and biased. Late on Saturday, Abdullah again raised the issue, questioning the turnout figures provided by the electoral commission, saying he doubted they had been as high as reported. Officials are concerned by the prospect of a close outcome that could, in the worst-case scenario, propel the country back into war along ethnic lines. “We ask everyone to prevent and discourage people from fraud and vote-rigging so that we can have a transparent, free and fair election,” Ghani said after casting his vote in west Kabul. The United Nations has urged candidates not to attack the organisers, to safe-

guard the process. “There’s a short-term gain only in trying to undermine or bully the institutions at the expense of their legitimacy,” said United Nations deputy chief in Afghanistan Nicholas Haysom. “It’s going to be the legitimacy of the elections which will give legitimacy to the new head.” Abdullah polled 14 percentage points ahead of Ghani in the first round with 45 percent of the vote, but Ghani, who is ethnic Pashtun, stands to gain a portion of the Pashtun vote that was splintered in the first round. Pashtuns are Afghanistan’s biggest ethnic group, making up about 45 percent of the population. While Abdullah is partly Pashtun, he is identified more with the ethnic Tajik minority. The chance of an equal split between candidates is hard to gauge because there are few reliable polls. ACSOR research centre, asking respondents to choose between Abdullah and Ghani, predicted a 50:50 split before the first round.

Israel PM says Hamas kidnapped missing teens JERUsALEM, JUNE 15 (AP): Israeli troops on Sunday arrested some 80 Palestinians, including dozens of members of Hamas, in an overnight raid in the West Bank as the prime minister accused the Islamic militant group of kidnapping three teenagers who went missing nearly three days ago. The crisis escalated already heightened tensions between Israel and the new Palestinian government, which is headed by Westernbacked President Mahmoud Abbas but backed by Hamas. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned Abbas› agreement with the militant group, and said he would hold him responsible for the safety of the youths, who disappeared apparently while hitchhiking in the West Bank late Thursday. The three, one of whom holds American citizenship, have not been heard from since then.

Palestinian officials condemned the overnight crackdown and rejected Netanyahu›s contention that they are responsible. Hamas, meanwhile, praised the apparent kidnapping but stopped short of accepting responsibility. Speaking to his Cabinet Sunday, Netanyahu said there was no doubt who was responsible. «Those who perpetrated the abduction of our youths were members of Hamas, the same Hamas that Abu Mazen (Abbas) made a unity government with. This has severe repercussions,» he said. Netanyahu did not say how Israel determined Hamas was responsible. Palestinian militants have repeatedly threatened to kidnap Israelis, hoping to use them as bargaining chips to win the release of prisoners held by Israel. This would be the first time three civilians have been taken at the same time. Deputy Defense Minis-

ter Danny Danon said Israel «will extract a heavy price from the Palestinian leadership» and will «do everything necessary to return the boys to their families.» «We are not ruling out any options when it comes to possible actions against the Palestinian government in both Gaza and Ramallah,» he said. The overnight raid was concentrated in the southern West Bank city of Hebron, in the area where the youths disappeared. A Hamas website said more than 60 of those arrested were members, including senior figures in the movement. The Israeli military also detained supporters of Islamic Jihad, a smaller Palestinian militant group. «Palestinian terrorists will not feel safe, will not be able to hide and will feel the heavy arm of the Israeli military capabilities,» military spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said. The Palestinians› self-

rule government, which administers 38 percent of the West Bank, has insisted it is not to blame, saying the teens went missing in territory under full Israeli control. «The Israeli government cannot blame the Palestinians for security issues in areas that are not controlled by them,» said Ehab Bseiso, the spokesman of the Palestinian unity government. Asked about Netanyahu›s claim that Hamas carried out the kidnapping, Hanan Ashrawi, a senior Palestinian official, said that «this is something we have no information on.» In its first statement on the issue, Hamas praised the kidnapping but did not claim responsibility. In a message sent to journalists, it referred to «the success of the kidnapping» and said that «the movement pays tribute to the heroes who are behind the kidnapping.» In the Gaza Strip, se-

nior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri dismissed Netanyahu›s claims of Hamas involvement in the abductions as «silly.» Hamas governed Gaza for seven years before striking the unity deal with Abbas. It remains in de facto control of the coastal territory, which is separated from the West Bank by Israel. Despite the exchange of accusations, security officials from Israel and Abbas› forces have been cooperating closely in the West Bank trying to find the kidnappers. Abbas met with his security chiefs late Saturday and urged them to do anything they can to contribute to the search, said a senior Palestinian official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not allowed to brief journalists. Hamas, branded a terrorist group by the West for its long history of attacks on Israeli civilians, has been involved in past

abductions. But this time around, there are other potential suspects. In recent months, there have been growing signs of the emergence in the West Bank of small groups of militants who identify with al-Qaida. One of several claims of responsibility for the kidnapping came from a group that said it was linked to an al-Qaida splinter group, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which controls parts of Syria and overran parts of northern Iraq last week. A Palestinian group representing prisoners said about 100 were arrested in the raid, including some who have been jailed in the past. The military also said its aircraft struck several targets in Gaza overnight in retaliation for Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel. Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf alKidra said a girl was lightly wounded.

Colombia cliffhanger a referendum on peace Malaysia vows to BOGOtA, JUNE 15 (AP): Colombians vote Sunday in the nation’s tightest presidential contest in two decades, an election that President Juan Manuel Santos deems a referendum on peace talks to end the Western Hemisphere’s longest-running conflict. His right-wing rival, Oscar Ivan Zuluaga, has challenged the slow-going negotiations with rebels in Cuba, accusing Santos of selling out to an insurgency that is already on the ropes. Zuluaga is the handpicked candidate of former two-term President Alvaro Uribe, who has played a major role in what has been Colombia’s dirtiest campaign in years. A former Uribe finance minister who stresses his provincial roots as a contrast to Santos’ blue-blood lineage, the 55-year-old Zuluaga won the most votes in a five-candidate field in the election’s May 25 first round. The last Invamer-Gallup poll gave Zuluaga a slim 48.5 percent to 47.7 percent lead over Santos, with 3.7 percent of respondents saying they would choose neither. Its margin for error was 3 percentage points. The challenger has capitalized on widespread distrust for the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, and has set what seem to be impossible conditions for

“Unable to shake the image of an out-of-touch Bogota aristocrat who will promise everything and deliver little” continuing the peace talks launched 18 months ago in Havana. The insurgents must halt all military activity, says Zuluaga, with some essentially having to agree to jail time. He and Uribe accuse Santos of offering impunity to the rebels, who have killed and kidnapped for five decades, sown antipersonnel mines and forcibly recruited minors. Santos, 62, denies he would let war criminals go unpunished. And he is certainly no dove. As Uribe’s defense minister and then president, he wielded Colombia’s U.S.-backed military to badly weaken the FARC, including killing its top three leaders. The bulk of Colombia’s left has endorsed Santos as, says political scientist Arlene Tickner of Universidad de los Andes, he steered the nation to “a historic juncture at which the possibility of putting a peaceful end to the conflict needs to be seized.” Santos won important endorsements last week and may have regained some momentum. He got the backing of 80 top

business leaders and announced exploratory talks with the National Liberation Army, Colombia’s other, far smaller rebel band. Yet the U.S.-educated incumbent has a “severe likeability and trust problem,” says analyst Adam Isacson of the Washington Office on Latin America, and has been “unable to shake the image of an outof-touch Bogota aristocrat who will promise everything and deliver little.” Santos is opposed by Colombia’s cattle ranchers and palm oil plantation owners, beneficiaries of a deal Uribe made with farright paramilitaries that dismantled their militias. Large landholders had by then consolidated control over territory that the militias had largely rid of rebels while driving at least 3 million poor Colombians off the lands. They dislike Santos’ peace process. The slow pace of talks has not helped Santos. Framework agreements have been reached on agrarian reform, dismantling the illegal drug trade and a rebel role in national politics.

But analysts say Santos could have done much better at communicating the gains and building public support. The peace process also ranks relatively low on most Colombians’ list of priorities. The Gallup poll found less than 5 percent of respondents to believe the FARC will be the next president’s main problem. Spreading the benefits of a growing economy is more important to many. Economic growth averaged 4.5 percent annually during Santos’ four years and 2.5 million jobs were added. But analysts say the president has done little to improve education, health care and infrastructure. Less important, apparently, to supporters of Zuluaga and Uribe are the multiple scandals of the latter’s presidency. They include extra-judicial killings of innocent civilians to boost military body counts, illegal spying on judges and journalists and the funneling of agricultural subsidies to wellheeled ranchers. Uribe won a Senate seat in March after being constitutionally barred from another presidential run. The campaign’s mudslinging, meanwhile, has been fierce. In its final days, the Zuluaga camp accused Santos’ campaign of a votebuying push on the Caribbean coast “without precedent in Colombia.”

track down MH370

KUALA LUMPUR, JUNE 15 (PtI): Malaysia today vowed to hunt Flight MH370 missing for the past 100 days with “renewed vigour”, even as two authors of a yet to be released book on the plane sensationally claimed that its disappearance was “deliberate” and “calculated“. “It has been 100 days since MH370 went missing. More than 14 weeks have passed since the Malaysian Government first coordinated the search operations for the missing plane. This search effort is unprecedented in sheer scale and complexity involving 26 countries at its peak,” Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said. “Indeed, as the search transitions to a more challenging phase, we reaffirm our commitment with renewed vigour to locate the missing MH370,” he said in a statement to mark the 100 days of the plane’s disappearance. Hishamuddin hoped that Malaysia will be credited for doing its best under “near-impossible” circumstances and history will judge it favourably for that. “100 days after MH370 went missing, its loss remains a painful void in the hearts of all Malaysians and those around the world. We cannot and will not rest until MH370 is found. We cannot and will not abandon the families of the crew and passengers of MH370. We will, with the grace of God, find this missing plane and so with it begins the process of healing,” he said. The Beijing-bound Boeing 777-200 — carrying 239 people, including five Indians, an Indo-Canadian and 154 Chinese nationals — mysteriously vanished on March 8 en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur. Meanwhile, two authors from New Zealand who are set to publish a book about the disappearance of the flight MH370, claimed that the tragedy was no accident. Using a process of elimination, authors Ewan Wilson, a commercial pilot and Hamilton City Councillor, and journalist Geoff Taylor lead readers toward the assertion that the tragedy was not an accident. They said the conclusion of their book ‘Good Night Malaysian 370: The truth behind the loss of Flight 370’ will shock the travelling public. “What happened to MH370 was no accident. It was deliberate and it was calculated and it should never have been allowed to happen,” Taylor was quoted as saying by New Zealand—based news website stuff.co.nz. “For the first time we present a detailed analysis of the flight, the incredible route it took, and who we believe was in charge of the aircraft as it plunged into the Indian Ocean,” Wilson said. Their book begins at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on March 8 and intertwines the lives of 239 passengers and crew who ultimately met their fate on board what they thought would be a routine flight to Beijing.

10 Costa Rica upsets Uruguay at WCup Dimapur

SPORTS

Monday

16 June 2014

The Morung Express

Balotelli, Pirlo power Italy past England Drogba inspires Ivory Coast to 2-1 win over Japan

RECIFE, JUNE 15 (AP): Didier Drogba came off the bench to inspire Ivory Coast to a 2-1 comeback victory over Japan in a World Cup Group C match on Saturday. Drogba, who had been carrying an injury, came on in the 62nd minute when his team was losing 1-0. Ivory Coast coach Sabri Lamouchi said it was "very correct to say when Didier Drogba came on the pitch, everything changed." "You could see that it was very influential when he was on the pitch," LaMouchi said, highlighting the attention Drogba drew from Japanese defenders. "He created space for the players." A mere two minutes after the talismanic striker's arrival, Wilfried Bony and Gervinho scored with headers two minutes apart. Both goals were set up by curling crosses from defender Serge Aurier. "It's true that after (Drogba) came in, they had more confidence," said Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima. "It changed the match." Lamouchi's inspired substitution negated Keisuke Honda's first half goal that had given Japan the lead in a group that also includes Colombia and Greece. Colombia beat Greece 3-0 earlier on Saturday. "I didn't think we were able to play as quickly as we normally play and needed to do," Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni said. "We really have to take stock of the situation rather quickly." The 36-year-old former Chelsea star started for Ivory Coast in the last two World Cups, but neither of those sides made it out of group play. He probably lacks the fitness to play 90 minutes these days, but his impact as a substitute can be dramatic, as was shown on a rainy night in Recife. "It's a beautiful victory. We are happy with the result. It's important to start well," Drogba said. "One can only be disappointed not to start a World Cup match, but I must respect those who did start. ... If we can say I had an impact on the match, that much better. It's important for me to add an advantage to the team." Lamouchi said it wasn't easy for him to leave Drogba on the bench from the start, but credited Drogba for the way he handled the decision. "To see the joy he experienced at the end of the match ... I am convinced he's a champion and we need him," Lamouchi said. Now the Ivory Coast is in good shape to advance to the second round for the first time. Next up is Colombia, the group leader by virtue of goal difference. That match is Thursday, as is Japan's next test against Greece. "We have to keep morale high because we know we can play better," Zaccheroni said. Japan had the better of the play in the first half, taking the lead through Honda's hard left-footed strike from about 12 yards in the 16th minute. Yuto Nagatomo slid a pass across the edge of the penalty area to Honda, who settled the ball cleanly with his right foot before belting his 21st career international goal under the cross bar and inside the near post. Japan had several chances to widen its lead in the opening 45 minutes, and will rue missing them.

Fans of Uruguay's national soccer team hug each other as they watch World Cup match between Costa Rica and Uruguay in downtown in Montevideo, Uruguay, Saturday, June 14. (AP Photo)

RIO, JUNE 15 (AP): England knew surviving a group with two other former World Cup champions would be tough, but the team never expected to be trailing Costa Rica after the opening games. The small Central American nation with a minor World Cup pedigree came from behind to shock 2010 semifinalist Uruguay 3-1. Then Mario Balotelli — who else? — scored the decider for Italy in a 2-1 win over England. If anything, it showed the value of special players at the World Cup. While Italy thrived with Balotelli on the pitch, Uruguay suffered with Luis Suarez sitting on the bench with a bad knee. Uruguay was powerless for the last hour of the match against an underdog without marquee players, but with no fear of playing against traditional powers. "What we take into the next games is confidence," said Costa Rica coach Jorge Luis Pinto. For a third straight day, the World Cup in Brazil lived up to its samba billing as goals kept pouring in, with Colombia punishing Greece 3-0. Ivory Coast scored twice in two minutes for a 2-1 come-frombehind win over Japan to grab a share of the lead in Group C. The leaden Amazon 30C (86F) heat in Manaus was supposed to stifle play, but Italy and England produced a display of attacking and tactical football. Wily Andrea Pirlo, at 35, set up the first goal with a deft stepover to give Claudio Marchisio room for a long-range shot. In injury time, when players much younger than him had already come down with cramps, Pirlo sent a swerving free kick that hit the bar. Balotelli undid the equalizer from Daniel Stur-

ridge with a 50th minute header. Earlier, he almost scored from an extreme angle, getting the ball past goalie Joe Hart only to see Phil Jagielka head it off the line. "We take our hats off to their skill," England coach Roy Hodgson said. Italy now faces Costa Rica in its next match with another victory likely assuring it progress into the second round. "We won but now let's keep our feet on the ground otherwise we're not going anywhere," said Balotelli. After the Netherlands spectacular 5-1 rout of defending champion Spain on Friday, it was another day of football at its best. Teams from the Americas are 5-1, with victories by Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Costa Rica and Mexico. Uruguay's loss to Costa Rica is the only defeat for a team from this side of the globe. Even though Costa Rica had looked strong in qualifying, few expected a victory over Uruguay, especially after Edinson Cavani scored the opening penalty. Costa Rica then conjured up the spirit of 1990, when it upset Sweden and Scotland to reach the second round in its first World Cup. Striker Joel Campbell tied the game in the 54th and Oscar Duarte scored on a diving header just three minutes later. Substitute Marcos Urena added the third with six minutes left. "We spotted that they had weaknesses and we looked at those. We worked hard on headers and ways to dominate in the air and we did that tonight," Costa Rica coach Jorge Luis Pinto said. Diego Forlan won the Golden Ball as best player four years ago, but at 35, he was a shadow of his former self and was replaced as Uruguay went looking for a way back into the game.

Italy's Mario Balotelli (9) celebrates with Italy's Marco Verratti (23) after Balotelli scored his side's second goal during the group D World Cup soccer match between England and Italy at the Arena da Amazonia in Manaus, Brazil, Saturday, June 14, 2014.(AP Photo)

MANAUS, JUNE 15 (AP): The heat and humidity of the jungle made its mark on the first World Cup match to be played in the Amazon rainforest, and so did Mario Balotelli. With players from both sides slowing as the game wore on, it was the man with the mohawk that headed in the deciding goal early in the second half to give Italy a 2-1 win over England and a decided advantage in Group D. "We won, but now let's keep our feet on the ground, otherwise we're not going anywhere," said Balotelli, an often volatile and often brilliant striker who was nearly dropped from the starting lineup after struggling for AC Milan this season. Balotelli

was left unmarked at the far post in the 50th minute, giving him plenty of space to head a cross from Antonio Candreva past goalkeeper Joe Hart for the winning goal. The match was played in the Amazonian city of Manaus, the most exotic of the 12 World Cup venues for this year's tournament. According to FIFA, it was 30 degrees C (86 degrees F) with humidity at 61 percent for the match. "At times it felt like having hallucinations due to the heat," Italy midfielder Claudio Marchisio said. Marchisio gave the fourtime champions the lead with a long shot through a crowded area and past a diving Hart in the 35th minute. Daniel Sturridge

equalized for England two minutes later, tapping in a cross from Wayne Rooney. In the other Group D match, Costa Rica beat Uruguay 3-1. So both England and Uruguay, who meet Thursday, have plenty of work to do to advance. "We all need time to digest what happened on the field," England coach Roy Hodgson said. "My gut feeling is that we did very good things. There were some very good individual performances." Both teams complained about the heat in Manaus, with Italy coach Cesare Prandelli questioning the decision to not have official timeouts during play. "We had to slow down our pace to regain our breaths," Prandelli said. "It was impossible to maintain

the intensity." The choice of Manaus as a World Cup host city has been under scrutiny for years, mainly because of the weather conditions and the lack of a top football team in the city. Besides Saturday's game, there will be three more World Cup matches played in the jungle, including Cameroon vs. Croatia on Wednesday. The United States will then face Portugal in Manaus on June 22 and Honduras will play Switzerland on June 25. But the city's debut on the World Cup stage was one of the most high-profile matches of the group phase, and one of the most high-profile players on the field made the difference. "This was a very difficult (game) because England

are a good team and there was the climate as well," Balotelli said. "We suffered, but then that's typical for Italy. The important thing is to win. " Although he is one of the most talented strikers in football, there were some predictions heading into the World Cup that he would be dropped in favor of Ciro Immobile. Immobile, who plays for Torino, scored a hat trick last weekend in a warm-up match against Brazilian club Fluminense. Prandelli, however, decided to stick with his main man. Balotelli was born to Ghanaian immigrants and raised by Italian foster parents, and has often been forced to deal with racist chanting in Italy. However, the abuse hasn't prevented

him from becoming a key player for the national team, including scoring two goals in the semifinal win over Germany at the 2012 European Championship. Balotelli also nearly found the net in first-half injury time, running deep into the area and enticing Hart to come off his line. The Italy striker stopped, looked toward goal and sent a chip over the keeper's head but Phil Jagielka headed the ball over the bar. England's attackminded lineup made frequent runs into the Italy area throughout the match, and came close to scoring several times. When Sturridge did score, England team physio Gary Lewin dislocated his ankle while celebrating the goal.

Federer beats Falla for 7th Faith in Action team brings laurels India cruise to sevenwicket win in first ODI Gerry Weber Open title

Switzerland's Roger Federer lifts the trophy after winning the final of the Gerry Weber Open tennis tournament in Halle, Germany, Sunday, June 15, 2014. Federer beat Colombia's Alejandro Falla 7-6 and 7-6. (AP Photo)

HALLE, GERMANy, JUNE 15 (AP): Roger Federer won the Gerry Weber Open for the seventh time by defeating Alejandro Falla 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3) in the final on Sunday. Federer fired five aces and saved three of the five break points he faced to win in 1 hour, 28 minutes. It was the 14th title on grass and 79th overall for the 32-year-old Swiss. The seven-time Wimbledon champion improved his record to 46-5 in 12 appearances at the tournament where he made his debut 14 years ago. “I’ve left a little bit of my heart there,” Federer said after his ninth Halle final. “My big goal for the week was to collect the title, play good tennis and have fun. I’ve done that.” Federer broke to go 5-3 up in the first set, only for Falla to respond with a break and take it to the tiebreaker. Federer then started the second set with a break, but a forehand error allowed Falla respond with a break in the next set. Both held serve to set up the second tiebreaker, where Federer’s experience saw him through. It was Federer’s seventh win from seven meetings with Falla. “He’s the king of kings of tiebreaks,” Falla said. “Overall I played very well throughout the whole week and I want to keep it up.” The 69th-ranked Falla was the first Colombian to reach the final of a grasscourt tournament. He was playing his second on tour after he finished runnerup to Ivo Karlovic at Bogota in 2013.

Members of the Faith in Action team who participated in the recently concluded Indi-Nepal International Taekwondo Championships.

DIMAPUR, JUNE 15 (MExN): Faith in Action Taekwondo Academy, Nagaland returned home with 4 Gold, 4 Silver and 3 Bronze Medals from the recently concluded IndoNepal International Taekwondo Champions held on 6th and 7th of June 2014 at Kathmandu, Nepal.

The team from Nagaland went under the banner of Taekwondo Board of India to represent the Country for the first time and brought laurel to the Academy by clenching 11 medals in the International Taekwondo Championship. The Faith in Action Foundation thanked-

Sandeep Surya, President, Taekwondo Board of India and all the parents, schools, and well wishers for their support and contributions to make it happen internationally. The team also gave special thanks to Yehoto Zhimo, GB of Y Zhimo Colony and his wife for honouring the team.

MIRPUR, JUNE 15 (PTI): Ajinkya Rahane anchored his innings to perfection in the company of comeback man Robin Uthappa and guided India to a comfortable sevenwicket victory in a raintruncated first ODI against Bangladesh here Sunday. Chasing a target of 273 in 50 overs, India were cruising along at 100 for one in 16.4 overs when the heavens opened up leading to a nearly two-hour delay. This lead to a revised target of 150 in 26 overs courtesy of D/L method, which India achieved with seven balls to spare. The foundation was laid by Rahane, who scored 64 off 70 balls and shared a 99-run opening stand with Uthappa, who smashed a quickfire 50 off 44 balls. The delay affected the momentum and there were umpiring howlers from Bangladesh umpire Enamul Haque Moni. Ambati Rayudu (16) and Suresh Raina (15) were at the crease when the winning run was achieved. The decision that Uthappa got was a poor one as Shakib`s armer hit

the bat first before hitting the pad. Nevertheless it was an impressive comeback for Uthappa in India colours after a break of six years. He seemed to carry his IPL form into international cricket, hitting three fours and as many sixes. The best shot was the one when he reached to the pitch of a flighted delivery from Shakib al Hasan to loft him effortlessly over extra cover. The other two were hit off left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak and medium pacer Ziaur Rahaman. While facing pacers Mashrafe Mortaza and AlAmin, Uthappa showed full face of the bat. Rahane was also a delight to watch as he stepped out to lift Mortaza over extra cover and then pulled him towards mid-wicket for a boundary. He also used the sweep shot against Razzak. Cheteshwar Pujara (0) would consider himself unlucky as he got another howler from Moni, who adjudged him leg before off Shakib with ball hitting him on the thigh pads and clearly going above the stumps.

Monday

Entertainment

The Morung Express

16 June 2014

Silent Screen Star Carla Pi ppa Laemmle Dead At 104

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Dimapur

11 C M Y K

Middleton

Pippa Middleton and brother James kick off epic charity bike race in California which will see them cover 3,000 miles in eight days

ilent movie star CARLA LAEMMLE has died at her home in Hollywood. The 104-year-old silver screen star, who appeared in The Phantom of the Opera, passed away on Thursday night (12Jun14). Laemmle was the niece of Universal Studios co-founder Carl Laemmle. Among her many credits were appearances in 1931’s Dracula, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, The Broadway Melody and Mystery of Edwin Drood. She also played a ballet dancer

Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman donate signed guitar to Melbourne children’s hospital during special star visit

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ountry superstar Keith Urban and his Hollywood heavy weight wife Nicole Kidman left more than a good impression at Melbourne’s Monash Children’s Hospital over the weekend. After singing a soulful rendition of a musical classic, the Australian power couple left a piece of themselves in a heartfelt gift to the lifesaving institution. Signed: ‘With love Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman’, the pair donated an acoustic guitar to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care ward ahead of Friday night’s Celebrate Life Ball. The hospital tweeted their thanks for the star-studded visit and the donation of the precious guitar. ‘Thank you again to the amazing Nicole Kidman and @ KeithUrban for brightening the day of our patients this afternoon. #celebratelifeball’. The charitable duo also took time out to take photographs and chat with young patients, including Christina Legogiannis. Earlier on in the day they sung Amazing Grace for the patients, families and the hospital staff. Grammy Award-winning Urban, 46, whipped out his acoustic guitar and started the well-known tune, while Kidman, also 46, stood to the side singing along to all of the words. She watched over

her husband proudly in a black pullover and grey skirt, while everyone else around them recorded the unique performance by the husband and wife duo on personal devices. It’s not the first time the pair have performed publicly together, with the couple - who married in 2006 - previously jumping up on stage at the G’Day USA ball in 2010. They sung a tribute to fellow Aussie actor Simon Baker, reworking the lyrics of Men At Work’s famous hit Down Under. Their Children’s Hospital duet was much less comedic, however, but the married duo - who have children Sunday and Faith together - still couldn’t help share a sneaky smile at each other. Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban sing for sick children The visit came before the Hollywood actress and country crooner took to the red carpet as the guests of honour at the Swisse Celebrate Life Ball in Melbourne. The pair made a striking couple as they cosied up in front of cameras, even sharing the odd kiss in front of photographers before making their way inside. Despite the loved-up couple drawing plenty of attention, it was Kidman’s plunging neckline on her figure-hugging nude Prada gown which was the main attraction.

in 1939 movie On Your Toes. It was 70 years before her next screen credit in 2010’s Pooltime and her final film, Mansion of Blood, is still in post-production, according to IMDb.com. Actress Sally Kirkland narrated a documentary about Laemmle’s life, Among the Rugged Peaks The Carla Laemmle Story, in 2011. The film followed the actress as she returned to the soundstage where she shot The Phantom of the Opera.

ustin Bieber

Accepts Plea Deal to End Dui Drama

ustin Bieber has dodged another massive legal headache after working out a plea deal with prosecutors in his Florida DUI case, according to reports. The Baby singer was arrested after Miami Beach police officers allegedly caught him drag racing with a pal in January (14). Bieber was taken into custody and charged with resisting arrest and a DUI, but it appears he won’t be facing trial anymore. A source tells Us Weekly magazine that the charges against him will be dropped if he completes an anger management course. It has been a lucky week for the 20 year old, who learned on Thursday (12Jun14) that a felony cellphone stealing charge against him had been passed to Los Angeles’ City Attorney officials following an in-

vestigation into the May (14) incident. Bieber was accused of taking a cellphone from the handbag of a fan’s mother after he caught her taking pictures of him at an arcade in Sherm a n O a k s, California. The woman filed a police report but no witness actually spotted Bieber grabbing her phone. City Attorney officials will now determine if there’s enough evidence to file a misdemeanor charge against the star.

Eve Has Got Married The 35-year-old rapper - whose full name is Eve Jihan Jeffers - tied the knot with Gumball 3000 founder Maximillion Cooper earlier today (14.06.14) in Ibiza, Spain. Speaking to E! News, Maximillion said: “I’m so happy to make Eve my wife. The whole experience has been amazing and we are both so happy to have tied the knot. The couple, who have been dating for four years, took part in this year’s Gumball 3000, which saw them travel across two continents and five countries in seven days in separate cars, as part of the run-up to their wedding celebrations. Maximillion explained: “We met on the 2010 Gumball 3000 rally so it only seemed right to have the wedding at the finish of this years rally in Ibiza, which was the final stop on this years event. We couldn’t be happier to celebrate such a special day with all our family and friends.” The pair got engaged last Christmas (25.12.13) and Eve later broke the news by posting a picture on Instagram of herself wearing a diamond ring on her left hand. Meanwhile, this is Eve’s first marriage, but marks the second for Maximillion, who has four children with his exwife Julie Brangstrup.

Vidya Balan Will do a Film With Shah Rukh Khan Only on One Condition

ctress Vidya Balan, who has always expressed her desire to work with superstar Shah Rukh Khan, says she would love to work with him provided both the actors’ presence in the film is justified. “If any good script comes where the presence of both the actors (Shah Rukh and I) is justified, then definitely I would love to do (it),” Vidya said here on June 13 at the launch of a promotional blog for her upcoming film Bobby Jasoos. (Also Read: Other actors on Vidya’s wishlist too) “If the script will be such where

I won’t have much to do, then I will not do it,” she added. The 36-year-old is currently busy promoting her soon to release Bobby Jasoos, where she is in the lead role. Asked if there is anything left for actresses to do in films starring Bollywood’s Khans, the National Award winning actress said: “Not always. But most of the times there is not much to do (for the actresses).” Directed by Samar Sheikh, produced by Dia Mirza and her fiance Sahil Sangha, Bobby Jasoos also features Ali Fazal. It will release on July 4.

Robert Pattinson ‘flirts with close pal Katy Perry’ before confessing that he finds her ‘so hot’ T

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hey are close pals who have been romantically linked from time to time and it appears as if Robert Pattinson does have a crush on Katy Perry. At the afterparty for his new movie The Rover in Los Angeles during the week, the duo were spotted flirting before Robert reportedly told a friend that he finds Katy ‘hot’, according to the New York Post’s Page Six. A source, who witnessed the interaction between the pair at Whiskey Blue at the W Hotel - told the publication: ‘Robert joined

Katy on the patio. They were heavily flirting. At one point, he sauntered to the bar with a pal and was heard saying, “She’s so hot,” while nodding in Katy’s direction.’ Last month Robert, 27, was rumoured to be dating 22-year-old model Imogen Ker, while Katy is believe to have recently enjoyed a romantic vacation with DJ and music producer Diplo. And if Robert is hoping to start a relationship with Katy, 29, he may be disappointed as she admitted last year she seems him as a little brother. ‘He’s my bud, I’m like his big sister,’ admitted the Part of Me singer. ‘We just hang out.’ She even went so far as to tell the gorgeous British actor how she felt. ‘”One of the things I’m most proud of is not sleeping with you, Robert.” And that’s true.’ The outspoken

pop star even has a very stinky way of proving their friendship is purely platonic. ‘OK, so here’s the proof there was never anything going on with me and Robert Pattinson,’ Perry told UK Elle. ‘I fart in front of him. Properly fart. And I never, ever fart in front of a man I am dating. That’s a rule.’ Not only has Katy never gotten under the sheets with the Water For Elephants actor, she even texted his ex-girlfriend Kristen Stewart, 24, following rumours in 2012 that she and Robert had taken their relationship to the next level. Reports at the time claimed heartbroken Kristen felt ‘betrayed’ over Katy’s friendship with Robert, so the singer contacted the actress to reassure her their relationship was strictly platonic. ‘I sent her a text message saying: “I know you’ve seen all this stuff, but you know I would never disrespect you. I’m not that person,”’ she explained. ‘I’m just trying to be a friend to him, but it is unfortunate that I do have a set of t**s.’ She may need to send another text!

heir nephew is the newest heir to the British throne while their sister will one day be Queen but Pippa and James Middleton didn’t stand out from the crowd in San Diego, California on Saturday. The duo posed alongside their co-cyclists as they prepared to embark on the gruelling Race Across America in aid of charity and, dressed in their patriotic charity gear the famous siblings were simply part of the team. However, in her figure hugging cycling shorts, 30-year-old Pippa’s most famous asset was fully on display and she opened up to The Mail On Sunday about how she will protect her pert posterior during the 3,000 mile bike ride across 12 American states in just eight days. Pippa is the only woman in a team of eight and in an exclusive interview just before setting off, Pippa told The Mail on Sunday she had stocked up with special ‘chamois cream’. ‘I think every cyclist including me will be layering it on,’ she said. ‘Once we get going it’s non-stop, with very little sleep. It’s nerveracking but exciting and all for a great cause.’ Chamois cream is usually a shea butter, aloe vera or olive oil-based emollient designed to prevent sweaty bottoms and inner thighs from being rubbed raw during hours in the saddle. The ‘ultra-endurance’ event promises to be a challenge even for ultra-fit Miss Middleton, who regularly takes part in charity races. In the race’s 32-yearhistory less than 200 individuals have successfully completed the event. The cyclists will climb more than 100,000 vertical feet over the course of the route, and will likely be biking on very little sleep in order to reach the finish within 12 days. The team plans to split into two groups of four to ride in a relay for five to six hours at a stretch, taking turns to rest and eat. Pippa said that she was ‘not worried’ about being the only female racer sleeping in the motor home which will shadow the team, saying: ‘Everyone will sleep when and where they can.’ Her 27-year-old brother joked he thought Pippa will be ‘unfazed’ by sweaty gear in the motor home,

saying: ‘We’ll have other things to worry about rather than personal hygiene.’ The famously competitive siblings started training eight months ago for the race, which started in Oceanside, California, and ends in Annapolis, Maryland. The 275 competitors will climb more than 170,000 feet and cross the Arizona desert. Race organiser Rick Boethling said Pippa was one of only a handful of women to ever compete in the race: ‘Riders regularly hallucinate through lack of sleep. Pippa’s a tough cookie.’ The Duchess of Cambridge’s sister will be raising money for the British Heart Foundation (which appointed her an ambassador last week) and The Michael Matthews Foundation, named after a young British adventurer who died in 1999, aged just 22, descending Mount Everest. Michael’s brother James Matthews is a close friend of the Middleton family and is riding alongside the siblings. It is unknown how much the team has raised for the foundation, but they must have had their fundraising hopes set high. According to the Race Across America site, it costs each rider approximately $20,000 to participate. It seems Pippa has been training for the gruelling event for some time. In her now-cancelled column for the Daily Telegraph in January she discussed how clip-in shoes have the propensity to let one pedal faster. She wrote: ‘The major advantage of clip-in (or ‘clipless’, their proper and confusing name) bikes… is that because the shoe is attached to the pedal you can pull up as well as push down. ‘This makes a huge difference to power and efficiency and goes some way to explaining the warp speed of many urban cyclists.’ Pippa is no stranger to charity sporting events and races. In fact, the sporty stunner took part in an endurance ski race in Switzerland in 2012. She also participated in the Highland Cross in 2011 – a fell run that is held in Scotland. Race Across America was officially started in 1982 as the Great American Bike Race. In the last four years, it has raised more than $4million cumulative dollars for charity.

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of Germany seeks impressive start against Portugal Glimpses Brazil 2014

RIO, JUNE 15 (AP): Cristiano Ronaldo and his Portugal teammates can expect to come under massive early pressure in their World Cup opener against Germany on Monday. Germany always prepares meticulously for its opening match at a tournament and has the results to show for it — winning 12 of its 17 World Cup openers and losing only once, 2-1 to Algeria in 1982. Germany bounced back to reach the final that year. Coach Joachim Loew has made little secret of his game plan in the Group G match — to play high-tempo football right from the start and to wear down the Portuguese in the midday heat and humidity of Salvador. Germany is based a short flight away in similar conditions on the Atlantic coast and has been training at the local kickoff time of 1 p.m (1600 GMT). Loew has a healthy respect for Portugal and its star striker, calling Ronaldo's team a "world champion in counterattacking." "They are ranked just behind us at No. 4 (Germany is No. 2), and they are not just about Ronaldo," Loew said. "Portugal is an ex-

tremely dangerous team." Perhaps, but Portugal has not had much luck against Germany. Germany won 3-1 in the match for third place at the 2006 World Cup, beat Portugal 3-2 at the 2008 European Championship and won again 1-0 at the start of its

KITZBUEHEL, JUNE 15 (AP): Franz Beckenbauer has told FIFA he will answer the questions put to him as part of a corruption investigation by June 27 at the latest. Beckenbauer's management said in a statement published Sunday that the commitment to answer questions means there is "no longer a suspicion of an alleged breach of the FIFA code of ethics, so we assume that the provisional sanction imposed against him is lifted immediately." Beckenbauer was provisionally banned by FIFA's ethics committee from all football-related activity on Friday for failing to help to help prosecutor

Michael Garcia's probe of alleged corruption in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup votes. Beckenbauer was a voter on FIFA's board when it chose Russia and Qatar as World Cup hosts in December 2010. The case against him for non-cooperation is being investigated by a member of Garcia's ethics panel. Beckenbauer said he "at no point ruled out answering the questions." "In dealings with the ethics committee's investigators, it was never about whether he would answer the questions, but solely how (he would). Franz Beckenbauer will answer the questions in writing in German," said the state-

Euro 2012 campaign. "Still, they keep on reaching semifinals. They are a hard nut to crack," Loew said. There have been some doubts about Ronaldo's fitness following a leftknee injury but FIFA's player of the year trained normally at the end of the week.

"You can't shut him down completely, he is a player who scores 50 goals a season," the Germany coach said. "But we've watched a lot of videos, we know his running patterns, how he likes to lurk behind defenders. "It has to be a team effort against him."

Germany arrived in Brazil a week ago with plenty of injury worries, but Loew exuded confidence in his only news conference earlier this week. "The injury situation is getting better by the day and that's why I am in a good mood," he said.

Still, injuries are forcing Loew to tinker with his lineup. Captain Philipp Lahm, usually right back, is likely to move into a defensive midfield role. Sami Khedira is expected to be the other defensive midfielder but he lacks match practice after missing six months with a knee injury. Lahm himself missed most of the training camp with an ankle problem, while Bastian Schweinsteiger will probably be on the bench as he has been nursing a knee injury as well. With the injured Marco Reus ruled out of the World Cup, Lukas Podolski could return to the starting 11 as an attacking midfielder. Germany's defense could consist of four players who usually play as central defenders, with Jerome Boateng moving to the right flank to take Lahm's place. Boateng defended well against Ronaldo two years ago at Euro 2012. Striker Miroslav Klose, who needs two goals to break the World Cup record of 15 held by Brazil's Ronaldo, is likely to be on the bench, with Loew favoring a "false nine" system with deeplying forwards rather than An Ecuadorean fan waves her country's flag before the group traditional strikers. E World Cup soccer match between Switzerland and Ecuador

it said. Beckenbauer, who served on the FIFA board from 2007-11 after leading Germany's organization of the 2006 World Cup, was quoted as saying, "It was the first time FIFA did not know how to reach me by telephone. Incidentally, I had always presumed that I didn't have to answer the questions, as I no longer fulfilled an official role at FIFA. But that is now all cleared up as well." The Bild newspaper retracted a quote from Beckenbauer saying he would not be traveling to the World Cup. The newspaper said the quote was reported "erroneously" and that the former football great was

awaiting developments over the next few days before making a decision on whether he would travel. Beckenbauer captained and coached West Germany to win World Cups. He now works as Bayern Munich's global ambassador and as a special adviser to FIFA's football committee, while he makes regular TV appearances as a pundit for Sky television. Garcia, a former U.S. Attorney, has said that next month he will deliver a dossier on the World Cup case, which FIFA critics hope will order a revote. Beckenbauer is the first football official to be sanctioned as a result of Garcia's World Cup investigation.

Beckenbauer to cooperate with FIFA investigation

Sepp Blatter and Franz Beckenbauer. (AP File Photo)

ment, which was published by Beckenbauer's manager Marcus Hoefl via Twitter. The statement said Beckenbauer was "surprised" by the ban.

Ana Ivanovic wins first grass court title

"He was never given the opportunity to have his say on the 'suspicion of an alleged breach' in advance. He also was not informed of the decision in advance,"

MotoGP: Marquez in seventh heaven with Catalunya win

BARCELONA, JUNE 15 (AFP): World champion Marc Marquez continued his victorious start to the season and became the youngest rider to win seven races in a row as he took first place in the Catalunya MotoGP on Sunday. Marquez, 21, on his Honda, raced through from third on the grid to take the

lead from Valentino Rossi on the 18th lap and overcame a late challenge from Dani Pedrosa to beat the record that previously held by Rossi. Pedrosa was fastest in practice but made a poor start and Jorge Lorenzo briefly took the lead before Rossi, on his Yamaha, came through on the third lap. The veteran seven-

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BIRMINGHAM, JUNE 15 (AP): Ana Ivanovic captured her first grass court title after almost a decade of trying on Sunday after a straight sets win over Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova at the Aegon Classic. The former world number beat Zahlavova-Strycova, 6-3, 6-2, with her opponent also playing in her first major tournament final. Although Ivanovic started shakily for the second day in succession, and dropped serve immediately, she recovered quickly, her heavy ground strokes and willingness to attack soon dominating her unseeded opponent. It suggested that, at 26, not only can she adapt

to a variable surface, but underlined this as her best year so far since 2008. It was Ivanovic's 37th win and her third title of the year, putting her level with Serena Williams' and Maria Sharapova's three. The Serb couldn't contain her happiness at conquering her doubts about playing on grass. "On grass you really don't have time to hesitate," she said. "I tried to shorten my swing and move forwards. You really have to go after your shots. It's important to be clear in your mind." Ivanovic will move up to world number 11, well positioned to make another move during Wimble-

don, which would lift her back into the top ten for the first time in five years. If she needed an omen suggesting she might continue this streak into the grass court Grand Slam, which starts in eight days, it came with the holding her latest trophy - the Maud Watson Cup, the same one as that presented to the English woman after she won the first ever Wimbledon, in 1884. Could Ivanovic actually win the game's oldest title? She was understandably cautious. "It's exciting and a new challenge," she said, "just knowing that it's never over and you always have a chance."

Australia's Jamie Dwyer, holding the trophy, celebrates with his teammates after winning the men's final of the Field Hockey World Cup between Australia and The Netherlands in The Hague, Netherlands, Sunday, June 15. Australia beat the Netherlands with a 6-1 score to win the World Cup. (AP Photo)

A Italian soccer fan watches a live broadcast of the World Cup match between England and Italy. (AP Photo)

times world champion held off the challenge from Marquez but the Spaniard finally found a gap to overtake. In a dramatic finale, Pedrosa briefly took the lead on the final lap before Marquez responded. Pedrosa then made another attempt which failed and Rossi stole through to take second.

Australia beats Netherlands 6-1 to win hockey World Cup Serbia's Ana Ivanovic holds the trophy after winning the final against Czech Republic's Barbora Zahlavova Strycova at the Aagon Classic at Edgbaston Priory Club, Birmingham central England Sunday June 15. (AP Photo)

at the Estadio Nacional in Brasilia, Brazil on June 15. (AP Photo)

A England soccer fan watches, disappointed, a live broadcast of the World Cup match between England and Italy. (AP Photo)

THE HAGUE, JUNE 15 (AP): Drag flick specialist Chris Ciriello scored a hattrick as defending champion Australia beat the Netherlands 6-1 to win the men's field hockey World Cup. The Dutch got off to a good start Sunday as Jeroen Hertzberger opened the scoring in the 14th minute, weaving past a defender to drive the ball in from near the top of the circle. But that was the high water mark for the Netherlands, as Ciriello equalized on the first of his three successful penalty corners six minutes later. Australia then began a long stretch of dominance, keeping possession and pinning the Netherlands in their half of the field. Kieran Govers, Glenn Turner and Jamie Dwyer also scored for the winners. A Swiss fan wears a fancy hat before the group E World Cup Earlier, Argentina beat Eng- soccer match between Switzerland and Ecuador at the Estaland 2-0 to take the bronze. dio Nacional in Brasilia, Brazil, Sunday, June 15. (AP Photo)

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