January 12th, 2017

C M Y K

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ThursDAY • JAnuArY 12 • 2017

DIMAPUR • Vol. XII • Issue 10 • 12 PAGes • 5

T H e

ESTD. 2005

P o W e R

o F

We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light

Lion’s Club Longsa celebrates Platinum Jubilee

Obama pushes values in final emotional address PAGE 09

T R u T H

— Plato

NASA-D 25th Sports Meet underway

PAGE 02

PAGE 12

nagaland UlB Polls: 535 valid nominations 188 women candidates with valid nominations as calls from tribe orgs to stop polls continue

DIMAPUR, JANUARY 11 (MExN): All nominations filed across 26 municipal and town councils in the state of Nagaland for the upcoming Urban Local Body (ULB) polls have been scrutinised by the State Election Commission. The nominations of 535 candidates have been declared as validly nominated.

Of the 32 town/municipal councils in the state, Kohima, Mokokchung, Tuensang, Mon, Medziphema and Changtongya have registered nil nominations, as apex tribe bodies had prevented intending candidates from doing so.

In the remaining 26 town/ municipal councils, a total of 549 nominations were filed, of which 535 were declared as validly nominated. According to the Directorate of Information and Public Relations, in Dimapur one nomination was ejected and one double NPF candidate withdrew. In Zunheboto one nomination was rejected. The difference in figures, it meanwhile informed is due to the “standby candidates.”

The number of women candidates from across the 26 town/municipal councils is 188. The polls are scheduled to be held on February 1.

Meanwhile, opposition to the polls and the fallout of several townships and municipalities opting to file candidates continues. The Sumi Hoho, Ao Senden, Zeliang People’s Organisation, Meluri Area Public Organisation and the Central Nagaland Tribes

reflections

By Sandemo Ngullie

Council issued statements today reiterating their opposition to the ULB elections with 33 percent reservation.

Postpone polls: CNTC The Central Nagaland Tribes Council (CNTC) has demanded immediate postponement of the ULB elections, warning that conducting the polls despite widespread objections of tribal bodies, will invite unprecedented ramifications.

Asking all candidates to withdraw their nominations, the CNTC said that the “hard earned rights and provisions of Article 371A for the state of Nagaland cannot be compromised under any circumstances.” It said that the Municipal Act though enacted for developmental purposes, is “detrimental to our rich traditional values and customary rights bestowed by the Almighty on our forefathers since time immemorial.”

There is a clear demarcation between the Indian laws and our Naga customary laws indicated

by Article 371A, it stated, and urged people not to be misled by “vested individuals twisting, distorting and manipulating to suit their interests.” “Those in power today must keep in mind that they are not going to be in their chairs forever and one day they too will become public,” it meanwhile reminded.

Town/Munici- No of valid pal Council candidates Dimapur 60 Jalukie 17 Kiphire 20 Peren 15 Phek 21 Tseminyu 21 Zunheboto 21 Longleng 24 Pfutsero 27 Chumukedima 14 Naginimora 14 Tuli 14 Wokha 33 Mangkolemba 13 Longkhim 22 Bhandari 22 Tobu 16 Tizit 20 East Dimapur 15 Tening 13 Pungro 18 Chozuba 21 Shamator 18 Aboi 18 Noklak 19 Meluri 19 TOTAL 535

NPF Male Female 15 8 6 3 6 4 5 2 7 4 6 3 9 4 7 4 5 4 `5 6 6 3 6 3 7 5 5 1 4 2 6 2 6 3 5 4 7 4 6 3 6 3 6 3 7 4 6 3 5 2 6 3

ecutive meeting today and resolved that all the candidates of Zunheboto Town Council who have filed nominations must withdraw nomination immediately.

It cautioned that any candidate failing to withdraw their nomination paper shall be ‘excommunicated’ from the Sumi society for a period of 10 years.

It further stated that unless the Government of Nagaland reviews the existing Municipal Candidates told to withdraw Act, the Sumi Hoho would continue to oppose the Urban Loor face excommunication The Sumi Hoho held an ex- cal Body Election.

INC Male 2 2 1 2 2 0 0 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0

BJP

Independent

Female Male Female Male Female 2 8 2 16 7 0 1 0 3 2 0 1 0 6 2 1 0 0 3 2 0 0 0 5 3 0 3 1 5 3 1 0 0 5 2 1 1 0 6 3 3 0 0 5 6 0 0 0 2 1 0 2 2 1 0 0 1 0 3 1 0 8 5 5 3 0 1 2 2 2 0 6 3 3 4 2 5 3 1 2 0 2 0 3 2 0 6 3 2 0 0 2 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 1 0 4 4 0 0 0 9 3 0 2 1 2 2 0 5 1 1 1 0 0 0 9 3 0 0 0 7 3

In the Sumi jurisdiction of Dimapur district, it directed that the Western Sumi Hoho coordinate with the Central Nagaland Tribes Council and Naga Council Dimapur to ensure the withdrawal of nominations by all the candidates.

The Ao Senden held a Federal Assemble today reiterating its earlier directive that any Ao bonafide member who has already filed nomination should withdraw their nomination on or before January 17. Failing to do so, the Ao Senden cautioned would invite ex communica-

life years (DALYs) associated with SBP of at least 110 to 115 mm Hg -- China, India, Russia, Indonesia and the US. The new analysis, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, was based on 8.7 million people from 154 countries across 844 studies. The largest numbers of SBP-related deaths were caused by ischemic heart disease (4.9 million), hemorrhagic stroke (2 million), and ischemic stroke (1.5 million).

“These estimates are concerning given that in 2015, an estimated 3.5 billion individuals had an SBP level of at least 110 to 115 mm Hg,” the authors write. The global obesity epidemic may further increase SBP in some populations, the findings showed.

Systolic blood pressure of at least

MAPO refutes Pochury Hoho’s statement The Meluri Area Public Organisation (MAPO), in their statement urged all the intending candidates for Meluri Town Council to withdraw their candidature. While stating that it is a part and parcel of Pochury Hoho, the MAPO however said that “the recent imbroglio of the Hoho in supporting 33% women reservation in ULB election Minister acting against will has no iota of truth.” of Ao people: Ao Senden “The fact that, the so called Regarding the quit notice resolution made on 13th July served to the Nagaland Minis- 2016 read as that if any group

110 to 115 mm Hg was associated with more than 10 million deaths and more than 212 million DALYs in 2015 - a 1.4fold increase since 1990.

Compared with all other specific risks quantified in a 2015 study, SBP of at least 110 to 115 mm Hg was the leading global contributor to preventable death in 2015.

“Both the projected number and prevalence rate of SBP of at least 110 to 115 mm Hg are likely to continue to increase globally. These findings support increased efforts to control the burden of SBP of at least 110 to 115 mm Hg to reduce disease burden,” the researchers noted.

The new study suggests blood pressure should be kept low with diet control, exercise and stress reduction.

‘Indo-Myanmar border fencing against int’l law’

C M Y K

DIMAPUR, JANUARY 11 (MExN): The NPNG/NNC (Non Accord) today cautioned that the recent policy of erecting international border fencing by the governments of India and Burma will create “more disastrous division among the Nagas.”

A press note from the NPGN/NNC (NA) said that the Treaty of Yandabo of 1826 signed between British Indian government and the Burmese Kingdom is “totally against the International law which gives legitimate right to entire nationals for self determination and territorial integrity.”

It lamented that divide and rule policy has badly affected the Naga land owners. This policy it stated has been continued by the Government of India as it erected “imaginary boundary fencing much against the aspiration and legitimate right of the land owners in 1973, without consulting the Nagas.”

The NPNG/NNC (NA) said that this is an act that violates human rights. It reminded that the Nagas did not make any treaty/agree-

ACAUT questions Nagaland govt’s position on border fencing move

DIMAPUR, JANUARY 11 (MExN): The Against Corruption and Unabated Taxation (ACAUT) Nagaland today stated that the “future of the villages, families and people in a far corner of Nagaland hangs in uncertainty and despair,” as a result of the border fencing move in the Indo-Myanmar border.

A press note from the ACAUT said that the arbitrary fencing of Naga land between India and Myanmar at Pangsha is against the will of the Naga people, and will tear apart villages and families who have lived together since time immemorial. It cautioned that this will have serious ramification for the Naga people’s struggle to live as one.

The ACAUT however lamented that despite the hue and cry of the people, the state government seems to be “oblivious to ment with the British India Government nor with the Burmese Kingdom at any point of time. “Therefore no country has any legitimate right to occupy or divide the Naga ancestral territories,” it added.

“Naga political groups and entire bonafide Naga citizens vehemently condemn the proposal for the

this episode since it hasn’t come out with its official position.” It questioned whether this border fencing is being done with the knowledge and the consent of the state government. “If not, why isn’t the government taking up the issue with the Central government at the highest level? Or was the recent trip of the Chief Minister of Nagaland to Myanmar about border fencing at Pangsha?,” the ACAUT posed.

It demanded that the Government of Nagaland set the record straight and make an official statement to the people Nagaland on this very serious matter. It meanwhile extended support to the stand of the Khiamniungan people in particular and the Naga people in general that the fencing work at Pangsha should be immediately stopped.

said project and we shall never allow any foreigners to interfere nor subjugate the rights of Nagas,” it asserted.

The NPNG/NNC (NA) said that it is fully committed to protect Naga ancestral land and shall not compromise with any anti-Naga policy.

The Indo-Myanmar boundary issue, it said,

has inflicted great division among the entire Naga community and violates “international human rights.”

It further pointed to International Legal Law Framework Article 1 and 55 and UN charter regarding development of friendly relation among nations based on respect for principle of equal right and self determi-

19 5 6 5 7 7 7 8 13 7 5 4 13 5 9 9 5 7 5 6 7 6 7 5 5 6 188

ter for Highways, Nuklutoshi, it claimed that the Minister was “acting against the will of Ao people.”

“He was arranging to gather the candidates to file the nomination of Changtongya town council from Tuli Town; however due to intervention of the people of Tuli Town he could not do so. Applying the same tactics, he tried to pursue to get the nominations done from his home town, Chuchuyimlang town,” it alleged. The Ao Senden further stated that the Minister’s convoy was “caught red handed by the volunteers of the movement.”

“On learning of his activities, the people’s anger was triggered and thereby decided to attack him personally. Thus, the Ao Senden with clear sense decided to move him away for the day taking into account for his own safety as well as to salvage the situations at hand,” it claimed.

tion from Ao citizenship for a term of 30 years.

Under this, the Ao Senden informed that the person “would not be allowed to participate in any Ao society; debarred from the rights of Aos for holding any position both in government and private; and debarred from the rights of Aos to participate in all Naga civil societies and organizations.”

Blood pressure rising globally including in India: Report

NEW YoRk, JANUARY 11 (IANS): The rate of elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) has increased substantially across the globe between 1990 and 2015, researchers report, warning that the situation has put more people at an increased heart attack and stroke risk including in India. In 2015, an estimated 3.5 billion adults had systolic blood pressure of at least 110-115 mm Hg and 874 million adults had SBP of 140 mm Hg or higher, said Christopher JL Murray from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), University of Washington in Seattle.

Systolic is the top number and diastolic is the bottom number when it If you elect me, I promise I comes to measuring blood pressure.

Five countries accounted for more will fulfill everything my opthan half of global disability-adjusted ponent promised you

Women candidates

nation of people; the International Covenant of 1966 and the UN General Assembly resolution 2644 (XXV) which gives legitimacy to the struggle of people for independence, territorial integrity, national unity, liberation from colonial power, foreign domination foreign occupation and armed struggle; and the UN General Assembly Resolution No. 1542 (XV) recognizing that desire for independence is the rightful aspiration of the people under colonial subjugation.

The NPNG/NNC (NA) said that the governments of India and Myanmar should respect the Nagas right and international law, and not take any step that would create division within the Naga families. They should instead promote universal peace and unity, it hoped.

It however cautioned that the Nagas would not tolerate any forceful act done by foreigners to divide the Nagas and “shall fight for the integrity of Nagas and their land which is the birthright of Nagas inherited from time immemorial.”

of people or organization of Pochury is taking an initiative step for social upliftment and community development, the Pochury Hoho shall not stop/ sabotage them from doing their job in the interest of the people of Pochury. This resolution is not within the knowledge of the executive council and for that matter, no discussion or deliberation was made. Therefore, the so called 13th July 2016 resolution remains null and void,” the MAPO claimed. This statement, it added “does not reflect the views of the Hoho or the Executive Council.”

ZPO for dialogue The Zeliang People’s Organisation said that going ahead with the ULB elections with 33% women reservation would “cast the entire system into a lame duck scenario.” “No entity nowhere in a democratic world more so in Nagaland, be it the state government or the tribal organisations can imagine to exist on their own or with severed relationship as is prevalent now. A healing to this condition can only be brought about through consultation and dialogue.” It stated.

The ZPO demanded that the polls be put on hold, and also asked the intending candidates who have already filed nominations in various towns and especially of Peren district to withdraw their nominations “to be able to pave way for drawing an acceptable and conclusive decision.”

Nagaland has ‘lowest’ rate of accidental deaths in India Morung Express News Dimapur | January 11

Accidental deaths are a rarity in Nagaland, if one goes by the latest report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), India’s Ministry of Home Affairs. The report titled, ‘Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India, 2015’ was released in the last week of December 2016.

According to the report, at 3.7%, Nagaland holds the distinction of having the lowest rate of accidental deaths among the States and Union Territories in the Indian Union.

The highest rate of accidental deaths was reported from Chhattisgarh (75.1) followed by Puducherry (73.4), Maharashtra (54.2), Madhya Pradesh (52.7), Haryana (48.8) and Tamil Nadu (48.7).

17 out of 36 States/UTs have reported higher rates of ‘Accidental Deaths’ as compared to All India Average of 32.8 deaths per one lakh of population, it stated.

However, while the accidental deaths at national level decreased by 8.5% during 2015 as compared to 2014; Nagaland at 49.2% reported the second highest percentage increase in total accidental deaths in the year 2015 as compared to 2014, behind Uttarakhand (121.1%).

Tripura reported a decline of 44.7% in total accidental deaths in the year 2015 as compared to 2014 followed by Chandigarh (41.2%), Mizoram (40.2%) and Manipur (36%).

NCRB classifies all accidents into three categories - natural accidents, un-natural accidents and other causes of accidental deaths (sudden deaths with no apparent cause of death like heart attacks, deaths during pregnancy, poisoning, etc. i.e. accidents not falling into either natural accidents or unnatural accidents).

Traffic and Road accidents Likewise, in the case of traffic accidents, Nagaland had the lowest numbers at 51 cases, out of which there were 56 reported deaths.

Apparently, bad road condition has its perks if one looks at the data on State/UTs wise road accident in 2015.

At 42 cases of road accidents, Nagaland has the lowest number among the States/UTs. The road accidents also resulted in 47 fatalities.

However, a worrying trend was that, out of the 47 deaths – 22 were due to ‘over speeding’ and 8 due to ‘dangerous and careless driving.’ No one reportedly died driving under the influence alcohol.

Most of the death occurred in National highway (22) and other roads (15) while most of the vehicles involved were SUV/Station Wagons and Cars, resulting in the deaths of 27 persons.

Second least suicidal state With a suicidal rate of 0.9% against the National average of 10.8 %, Nagaland also has the second lowest percentage of suicide just behind Bihar at 0.5%. The State had 21 suicide cases in 2015.

Nationally, Maharashtra holds the distinction of being the state with the highest number of suicides in the country last year where 16,970 people committed suicide in the state in 2015.

The total number of suicides in the country grew by 1.5 per cent from 1, 31,666 lakh in 2014 to 1, 33,623 lakh in 2015.

In a worrying trend however, Nagaland was among the top 5 States/UTs which witnessed significant percentage increase in suicides in 2015 over 2014. There were 13 suicides in 2014.

The top 5 were Uttarakhand (129.5%), Meghalaya (73.7%), Lakshadweep (66.7%), Nagaland (61.5%) and Jammu & Kashmir.

The highest percentage decrease was reported in Jharkhand (35.8%), Bihar (28.2%), Manipur (26.0), and Rajasthan (22.5%).

The most suicides per population happen in Puducherry and Sikkim. On an average, 432 out of every 10 lakh people commit suicide in Puducherry, the number is 375 per ten lakh in Sikkim.

In case of Nagaland, men showed more suicidal tendencies with 15 cases while there were 6 female suicides in 2015. All died by hanging.

Self-employed, unemployed and unmarried persons (21) constituted most of the suicides victims with most cases occurring due to financial matters.

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ThursDAY 12•01•2017

NAGALAND

Co-ordination meeting for Republic Day celebration today KohiMa, January 11 (dipr): A Co-ordination meeting to chalk out the programme in connection with work distribution and ground arrangement etc for the ensuing Republic Day Celebration at Kohima on 26th January 2017 will be held on January 12, 2017 at 1:00 P.M in the Deputy Commissioner’s Conference Hall Kohima.

In connection, all the following officials are requested to make it convenient to attend the meeting without fail: Director, Youth Resources & Sports, Nagaland, Kohima; Director Art & Culture; Commandant, 4th NAP, Thizama; Commandant, 3th Assam Rifles, Kohima; Superintendent of Police, Kohima; Commandant, CRPF/BSF/Home Guards; Commandant, NCC Group HQ, Kohima; State Commissioner, Bharat Scouts & Guides, Kohima; Administrator, Kohima Municipal Council; Chief Engineer, PWD (Housing), Kohima; Station Director, Doordarshan/AIR, Kohima; CMO, Kohima; District Sports Officer, Kohima; District Information & Public Relation Officer, Kohima; District Education Officer, Kohima; Executive Engineer, PHE/Power/PWD (Secretariat Complex); Secretary, Indian Red Cross, Kohima; Regional Transport Officer, Kohima and President of Nagaland Contractors & Suppliers/ Puliebadze Club/ Lions club/Royal Club/Classic Club/Rotary Club/Kerela Club/Gorkha Public Panchayat, Chandmari/ Kohima Press Club/ Hindu Kalyan Samthi/ Indian Red Cross Nagaland State Branch/ Nagaland Voluntary Women Association/ Beauty and Aesthetic Society of Nagaland/Nagaland Adventure Club/Nagaland Flying & Adventure Sports Association/ Kohima pester Union/ NAAME/ Kohima Chamber of Commerce; Secretary, Zilla Sainik Board, Kohima and all HQ Administrative Officers, Kohima. This was informed by Additional Deputy Commissioner, Kohima, Lithrongla Tongpi.

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Lion’s Club Longsa celebrates Platinum Jubilee

Longsa, January 11 (MExn): Lion’s Club Longsa, which is one of the oldest clubs in Mokokchung district, celebrated its 75th year anniversary at its office premises here on January 11 which was attended by MLA & Advisor to CM, Merentoshi R Jamir as the guest of honor and a host of dignitaries.

The Lion’s Club Longsa, which was established way back in 1942, by youths of Longsa Sangpu Mepu (Khel) predominantly as a sports club, went on to become one of the most active clubs in the village involving in different activities like social, economic, religious and educational fields.

Today’s Platinum Jubilee celebration witnessed an array of activities that traced back the origin of the club, its growth during the sixties and seventies, and the present day. It was also an occasion to remember the contributions of the pioneers, paying tribute to the departed souls and adopting a three-point resolution to march ahead beyond the 75th year anniversary.

The main speaker at the pro-

Guest of Honour, Merentoshi R Jamir, Advisor to CM and others after unveiling the Lion’s Club Longsa Platinum Jubilee monolith at Longsa village (Mokokchung) on January 11. (Photo by Sashi Jamir)

gramme, ex-MLA S Supongmeren Jamir speaking on the topic ‘progress of young generation’, urged the youths to look towards economic self-sustenance through hard work and harnessing the rich natural resources. In this regard, he pointed out that the land has sufficient resources for those work hard, for instance like collecting and exporting the broom grass, plantain leaves, or

rearing livestock etc. Nonetheless, he called for judicious use of the natural resources and called preserving the rich biodiversity. Besides, he also urged the youths to kick off the habit of laziness, abuse of alcohol etc so that the Longsa village can become more vibrant by the time Lion’s Club celebrate its centenary year.

Guest of honour, Merentoshi

R Jamir also exhorted the Longsa villagers to maintain the spirit of unity like before so that the village can witness more development in the days to come. He also acknowledged the Sangpu khel for producing eminent personalities in the stature of two ex-MLAs, bureaucrats, doctor engineers, artists etc. He attributed all this blessings on the Sangpu khel as blessings from God because of

the astute character of the forebears. He therefore urged the youths to emulate the truthful an honest character of our forefathers so that God would bless more. Also while underscoring the importance of culture and tradition, Merentoshi said that clubs in the village can be equated with the Morung system of the past days, the only different being that Clubs mostly focus on sports and entertainment. He, therefore, suggested that it would be good if the clubs can also be a centre for teaching about culture and traditions to the younger generation in the society.

Others who poke at the programme were Longsa VC Chairman, Pongenmeren, ex-MLA Aolepden and retired Addl Dev Comm. Dr Temsuwati. A special number was presented by 2014 Naga Orpheus Hunt winner, Meyinungsang while Sangpu Lemtuongerna yimsüsür presented a traditional song. Meritorious achievers in different fields like music, arts and academics were also felicitated by the Lion’s Club on the occasion of its Platinum jubilee celebration.

National conference at Medziphema on Jan 13 Preparation for Chakhesang Sükrünye festival in Kohima

MEdziphEMa, January 11 (dipr): Governor of Nagaland, P.B. Acharya will grace the inaugural function of the 3 day National Conference on “Advance in Indian Floriculture with focus on North East & Hill Region” as the chief guest on January 13 at Central Institute of Horticulture Medziphema.

The conference would be jointly organized by Indian Society of Ornamental Horticulture, New Delhi and Department of Horticulture, Government of Nagaland with the objective to provide impetus to the floriculture industry in the North East and Hill Region.

The conference will have focused deliberations on the issues in the floriculture sector by experts, poster would be presented on advanced technologies in floriculture and exhibitions would be organized highlighting the activities/programmes in the floriculture sector in NE states.

Agriculture and Horticulture Commissioner, Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, New Delhi, Dr. S.K. Malhotra and Ex-DDG (Hort), ICAR & Founder Chairman, CHAI, New Delhi, Dr. H.P. Singh will be the guest of honors at the inaugural programme.

Our Correspondent Kohima | January 8

Hectic preparation is going on for the forthcoming Chakhesang Sükrünye festival at the Kohima Local Ground, scheduled for January 14. Sükrünye is the premier festival of the Chakhesang Nagas.

Sükrünye will be celebrated on January 14 at the Kohima Local Ground under the aegis of Chakhesang Hoho Kohima (CHK) with the theme ‘Strengthening unity & harmony.’

The celebration will start from 11:00 AM onwards.

Greetings will be shared

by Medoselhou Keretsii, chairman Kohima Village Council, Dr. Vinito Chishi, president Sumi Hoho Kohima and Kekhwengulo

Workers put up decorative flags at the Kohima Local Ground on January 11 in view of the forthcoming Chakhesang Sükrünye festival. (Morung Photo)

Lea, president Chakhesang Public Organization.

Welcome address will be delivered by CHK president Theja Therieh while

significance of Sükrünye will be given by ex-minister Z. Lohe. Rev. Pusazo Chiizho will invoke God’s blessing to the community.

The festival will witness cultural presentations from Phusachodu village and Chakhesang Cultural Research Insti-

tute and will conclude with Sükrünye feast.

All the members of Chakhesang community residing in the state capital Kohima have been requested to make available themselves at the various gathering points on that day by 9: 00 AM and march to the festival venue.

The designated gathering points include; T. T stadium, Officer's Hill, PWD office junction, Keziekie Taxi Stand, CBCK Kitsubozou and TCP gate.

Meanwhile, the CHK informed that the next round of social work will take place on January 13 at 10:00 AM at the Kohima Local Ground. All the concerned members have been requested to turn up for the same.

‘Youths can eliminate lawlessness in society’ ‘Resurgent through education’

phEK, January 11 (dipr): The 11th general session of Hebron-1 colony youth, Phek Town was held on January 7 under the motto ‘Victory in peace.’ Viketou Nienu was the main speaker.

Viketou stressed on how the present young generation should deal with adversities of the present situation. Referring to past experiences during the last Kohima Village Youth Organization (KVYO) undertakes face-lifting/renovation works of Ko- decade where there were a lot of robberies, quarrels and extortions, he spoke on hima Local Ground’s gallery and rostrum. (Morung Photo) how the dynamic participation of youths will eliminate unwanted lawlessness and

chaos in the society. He also opined that youth should be the role model in every good deed so that younger generation will follow their footsteps for a bright future.

Colony Chairman, Venuta S. Venuh in his short speech cited the fast changing technology which plays a huge vital role in the present generation and encouraged the youth to cope with all sorts of modern advanced knowledge. He also lauded the youth members led by President Kedupa Venuh for giving fullest cooperation to the welfare body.

Dimapur to begin preparation of ensuing Republic Day

diMapur, January 11 (dipr): Deputy Commissioner Dimapur, Kesonyu Yhome convened a meeting today January 11 in the Conference Hall of DC Dimapur. The meeting was held in connection for the preparation of the coming Republic Day celebration.

Various works assignments were entrusted to different departments. In the meeting it was informed that parade rehearsal would commence from January 18. Taking the advantage of the meeting where the head of departments were present, DC reminded that retreat programme held in the evening was very much part of the National event and requested all the HODs and government

employees to attend the afternoon session winding up the day with the retreat.

He further sought for the services of the officers with regard to the Civic Polls where hectic preparations are on and reminded that the first round of training for all the polling officials would commence on January 12 at Dimapur College. He also asked the officers to ensure that their staff's whose name has been listed for election process to carry out their assignments and not to request for replacement.

Under unavoidable circumstances ensure that replacement is done from your end, Kesonyu maintained.

Parliamentary Secretary L. Khumo addresses the 41st general session Lengnyu Students Union held at the local ground on January 10. (DIPR Photo)

ThonoKnyu, January 11 (dipr): Parliamentary Secretary for Land Revenue, VG & Women Resources Development L. Khumo graced the 41st general session Lengnyu Students Union under the theme ‘Resurgent through education’ at the local ground on January 10.

Speaking at the occasion Khumo urged upon the students community to work

hard towards achieving one’s goal in life and encouraged them to be responsible citizens of the state. He also emphasized on peace and respect among the neighbors for all round development.

Presidential address was given by P.Langshe, President LSU. Short speeches were delivered

by Panso K.Shongmao and T.Puming. Special number was presented by S. Pukho.

DG AR visits headquarters 6 Sector Assam Rifles Nagaland Chief Secretary visits SNIC

Section of spectators during the inaugural function of 71st wrestling cum sports meet of Viswema Youth Organization at John Government Higher Secondary School Ground, Viswema in Kohima district on January 10. The meet will go on till January 13. (Morung Photo) diMapur, January 11 (MExn): Pankaj Kumar, Chief

Secretary, Nagaland, visited the national level Special National Integration Camp (SNIC) of National Cadet Corps at Patkai Christian College, Chumukedima on January 11.

A press release stated that the smartly turned out cadets presented an impressive Guard of Honour followed by traditional folk dances by cadets of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Nagaland. The Chief Secretary expressed his amazement at the enthusiasm and proficiency of cadets in putting up a Mini India in such a short stay in the camp.

In his talk to the cadets, the Chief Secretary exhorted them to break free of traditions and develop curiosity, creativity and innovativeness. He stressed upon consistent hard work throughout life as mantra for success. The Chief Secretary quoted anecdotes from human history which have taken human civilization towards development such as computers, internet and smart phones and increased the speed of change of human civilization.

He advised the cadets to develop greater capacity to not get offended and have greater tolerance, follow the rule of law and remember human cooperation. The Chief Secretary advised the Cadets, as future generation leaders, to optimise technology, develop clean sources of energy, exploit microchip and 3D printing technology as well as genome mapping and driverless cars - all of which will be available for the new generation. He complimented the cadets on A “No Parking” public display signs by PWD (R&B) is placed at the site of the ongoing road their spirit of adventure, discipline and the keenness to preserve the ‘Unity in Diversity’ of our great country. repairing work at Upper PWD Kohima. (Morung Photo)

Lt Gen Shokin Chauhan, DG AR interacting with jawans during his visit to the headquarters 6 Sector Assam Rifles on January 11.

diMapur, January 11 (MExn): Lt Gen Shokin Chauhan, Yudh Seva Medal, Sena Medal, Vishist Seva Medal, Director General Assam Rifles (DG AR) on January 11 visited headquarters 6 Sector Assam Rifles as part of familiarization visit to all Assam Rifles Sectors after his assumption of command as Director General Assam Rifles.

A press release stated that the Director General was briefed at the Headquarters 6 Sector Assam Rifles. He also had an interaction with jawans at Kashiram Basti, during which he felicitated individuals for their outstanding performance in various fields. He exhorted the jawans to live up to the reputation of ‘Friends of the Hill People.

Thursday 12•01•2017

NORTH-EAST 3

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Women organisations demand Naga bodies accuse AR of sacking of Meghalaya Home Minister assaulting UNC volunteers Shillong, January 11 (PTi): Women's organisations in a rally today demanded that Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma sack Home Minister HDR Lyngdoh, whose son's guest house in Shillong was allegedly used for sexually abusing a minor girl.

The rally, which was attended by several activists, was organised

by Civil Society Women Organisation and the Thma U Rangli here.

"You should seek the immediate resignation of your Home Minister HDR Lyngdoh to ensure

an independent enquiry into this case, as the guest house owned by his immediate family was the place where the minor girl was trafficked and assaulted twice," conveners of the rally Agnes Kharshiing and Angela Rangad said in a memorandum to the Chief Minister.

The activists also demanded that all guest houses and hotels named by the victim as places where she was exploited should be immediately shut down pending inquiry. Other demands placed before the Chief Minister includ-

arrested. Altogether nine persons have been arrested in this case.

In the past two weeks, several cases of sexual exploitations have been reported from across the state. On January 1 at a village in East Khasi Hills district, a 17-yearold girl was raped allegedly by six persons, including the relative of a locality headman.

The village chief and the locality headman have been arrested for abetment of the crime and the six accused surrendered before a court.

Rijiju blames Congress government in Manipur for economic blockade

Manipur: BJP, Congress to make blockade main election issue iMPhal/guwahaTi, January 11 (nDTV): With the economic blockade in Manipur imposed

by United Naga Council over the creation of seven new districts completing 70 days, the ruling Congress government in the state as well as the BJP are ready to turn the blockade into the main election issue. Manipur will go to polls in March. Last week in Guwahati, top Congress leaders across northeast brainstormed with central leaders. The party has already lost both Assam and Arunachal Pradesh to the BJP and with elections in Manipur a month away, the Congress knows it will also face the anti-incumbency of the 15 years rule apart from the blockade blues.

"Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh is a capable chief minister; he has created new districts for better governance so you cannot say that we are trying to take political mileage," AICC general Secretary In-charge of Northeast CP Joshi told NDTV at Guwahati.

Today, Ibobi is in Delhi to finalise party candidate list for the 60 seats legislative assembly which goes to polls in two phases on March 4 and 8.

Attempts by both centre and state have failed and the Nagas living inside Ma-

ed setting up of fast track/special courts in all districts to ensure speedy and time bound justice to victims of violence and trafficking.

The sex racket came to light last month after the 14-year-old victim was rescued from the guest house of the Home Minister's son and one of its employee was arrested.

The victim has named various persons who had exploited her following which at least four of them and an Independent legislator Julius Dorphang, who supports the ruling Congress government, were

nipur have only intensified the economic blockade, which started on November 1.

"We understand that elections are going to take place but first our issues have to be heard. Both centre and state government have not been responsible. Nagas have a major say here," said S Milan, the general Secretary of the UNC. BJP's national executive that also met last week at the national capital decided to promise voters blockade-free governance.

BJP wants to go alone in Manipur and thus its northeast strategists are aiming barbs even at Naga groups. "We consider what UNC and Nagas are doing is wrong. People in the state are suffering due to lack of essential and medical and health services and this not a democratic way," said Himanta Biswa Sarma, Convenor, BJP-led Northeast Democratic Alliance.

The Congress feels holding the polls in March would help it but the BJP's 'no blockade slogans' might catch up. "We welcome this call for blockade free governance by BJP and we are looking forward to it," said a young voter from Imphal.

Another senior citizen with whom NDTV spoke to lamented that Manipur still lacks basic infrastructure.

guwahaTi, January 11 (ianS): Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday said that he blamed the Congress-led government for the deteriorating law and order situation in Manipur, saying the maintenance of law and order is the "constitutional obligation" of the state government. Rijiju, on the sidelines of a function organised by the BJP-led alliance government in Assam, also appealed to the Manipur government as well as the agitating United Naga Council (UNC) for joint efforts to call off the economic blockade to allow free and fair elections in the state.

On November 1, the UNC imposed an indefinite economic blockade on the Imphal-Dimapur (NH 2) and ImphalJiribam (NH 37) highways in protest against the Manipur government's move to upgrade Sadar Hills and Jiribam to full-

fledged districts by bifurcating the Nagadominated areas.

"I had visited Manipur two weeks ago and held a very positive meeting with Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh. The Central government is ready to intervene and assist the state government in any matter but maintenance of law and order is the constitutional obligation of the state government," said Rijiju.

"It is unfortunate that the blockades in Manipur are still on, causing problems to the common people. I also appeal to the UNC to sit for talks so that the problems and issues could be resolved for good," he said. "At the same time I also appeal to the state government not to aggravate the situation. Let us not think of taking political benefit out of a humanitarian crisis," Rijiju appealed.

I, Master Baby S/o Shri. Wetezo Mekrisuh, R/o Firing Range, Dimapur shall be known as W. Hepe Mekrisuh

by Affidavit Regd.

No. 34/2017, Dated 11/01/17.

VACANCY

Field supervisor (Required at Kohima) Min. Qlf. 10+2 with Diploma in Computer. (Any Stream) Contact no.: 0370-2292033 +91 9774382306 CONDITIONS APPLY

The Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce, headed by Shri Bhupender Yadav, M.P., Rajya Sabha has taken up the subject "Trade with Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN)" for detailed examination and has, accordingly, decided to invite memoranda thereon within 15 days of publication of this advertisement. Those desirous of submitting the memoranda or giving oral evidence before the Committee may visit the website of the Rajya Sabha (http://rajyasabha.nic.in) under the link 'Committees' for details. All correspondence may be sent to Shri Narendra Kumar, Joint Director, Rajya Sabha Secretariat, Room No. 222, Parliament House Annexe, New Delhi — 110001 (Tel.No. 011-23034057, Fax No. 011-23093317) Email: narendra.rs@sansad.nic.in .

Davp 31202/11/0009/1617

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Dimapur | January 11

Two days after Indigo Airline has decided to offer free transport of coffins and "Human Remains (HUM) of poor North East people" from Delhi to the North Eastern States, the airline will carry its first coffin of a youth from Manipur on Thursday.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Robin Hibu, Nodal Officer for NE people in Delhi informed Newmai News Network this evening that a coffin containing the mortal remains of one youth from Ukhrul district will be transported to Imphal from New Delhi by Indigo Airline without any charge on Thursday.

"I'm touched by the response of the Indigo Airline officials for such humanitarian service," said Hibu. The IPS officer also said that many Northeast people who died in Delhi have been buried in the city in 'unmarked graveyards' due to high cost of airfare. "I have no words to thank on behalf of the North East people to Indigo Airline led by Aditya Ghose," Robin Hibu expressed.

Meanwhile, in his letter to IGP Hibu, Indigo Airline chief Aditya Ghose wrote, "We would transport the Human Remains (HUM) free of cost on your authorization," while adding, "I personally believe that it is our honour to co-partner with Delhi police to take the underprivileged citizens of North Eastern States back on their final journey."

“I look at life as a gift of God. Now that He wants it back, I have no right to complain”. Joyce Cary

T

he children of Late Mhonshan Murry, would like to express their sincere gratitude to all our extended families, churches, relations, neighbours and friends, who showed, helped and supported us during his illness and in the time since he left us on 01/01/2017.

Thank you to all his colleagues, friends and members of the public who visited, sent condolences and called following his passing, offered empathy to us and tributes to him.

We are sorry that we did not get the chance to speak to everyone at his funeral but are so pleased and proud that you were part of such a special day.

As it will be impossible to thank all those concerned individually please accept this press acknowledgment as a token of our heartfelt appreciation.

LT. MHONSHAN MURRY

Monthly allowance NAGALAND TOOL ROOM & TRAINING CENTRE (A Govt. of Nagaland Society, Deptt. of Industries & Commerce) for poor cancer ISO 9001: 2008(QMS), Approved By AICTE, patients in Tripura T

ES

*

20

TD

06

C

New Industrial Estate, Sub-Jail (Tinali), Nh-36 Road, Dimapur: Nagaland

N

T

NAGALAND : DIMAPUR

admission notice

Community College Programme for Diploma in Electrical (Voc) under AICTE, Ministry of Human Resource Development, New Delhi for Academic Year 2017-18. Course duration is for 3 years i.e.

Eligibility

Class X Electrical Pass and equipment above maintenance

AFFIDAVIT

DEPARTMENT RELATED PARLIAMENTARY STANDING COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE

Newmai News Network

Diploma in

Naga civil organisations have accused the Assam Rifles of physically assaulting leaders of the All Naga Students' Association Manipur (ANSAM) on January 9 who are also volunteers of the UNC. Strongly condemning the incident, the United Naga Council (UNC), the Naga People's Movement for Human Rights (NPMHR-South Sector) and Naga Women Union (NWU) alleged that the Assam Rifles led by Colonel G.K. Mahindra, CO of 34 Assam Rifles, Maram, apprehended and physically assaulted UNC volunteers including ANSAM President Seth Shatsang, Finance Secretary of the association Joseph Adani and the Naga student body’s Education Secretary AC Thotso.

Narrating the sequence of event, the three Naga organisations stated that military convoys are exempted from the purview of the economic blockade imposed by the United Naga Council to protest creation of new districts by the Government of Manipur 'arbitrarily and without consulting the stakeholders'. They also said that the UNC volunteers in the past have also witnessed civil commercial vehicles plying along with the military convoy with

“On Army Duty” label pasted on them.

"On January 9, 2017, UNC volunteers on learning about the movement of vehicles which do not belong to the military, checked the authenticity of the vehicles and identified eight vehicles plying without documents issued by the Army authority which was admitted by the convoy Commander Major Nishan. However, the mentioned ANSAM officials were physically assaulted by the CO himself with other jawans joining him. They were detained for several hours before being release following protest of the public and leaders of various organisations," the UNC, NPMHR and NWU alleged in their joint statement. "It has been established beyond any doubts from the circumstantial evidence about the involvement of the Army Officer in facilitating the movements of commercial vehicles other than the assigned Military vehicles", the statement added.

"Hence, we demand the concern authority to take appropriate action against the said Army officer for his brutal action of physical assault on the ANSAM officials and his undignified involvement of facilitating movement of other commercial vehicles with the military convoy," the three Naga organisations demanded.

राज्य सभा सिचवालय RAJYA SABHA SECRETARIAT

First coffin arrives in Imphal on Thursday

Name of the course

Senapati | January 11

भारतीय संसद PARLIAMENT OF INDIA

Indigo to ferry HUMs for free

agarTala, January 11 (ianS): The Tripura government has introduced a monthly allowance of Rs 600 for poor cancer patients, a minister said on Wednesday. "The allowance is being given to cancer patients whose annual income is less than Rs 150,000 and have no family member in government service," Tripura Health and Family Welfare Minister Badal Choudhury told IANS. He said the scheme is being operated through the Social Welfare Department and the money has been handed over to the homes of those patients who are in critical condition. Among the eight northeastern states, the number of cancer patients was the lowest in Tripura and highest in Mizoram.

Newmai News Network

Duration

Syllabus

Date of class start

• Basic electrical training • House wiring Dip. Level I - 1000 Hrs. & its components • Repair of home Dip. Level II - 1000 Hrs. appliance • Repair of electrical power tools 15/02/17 • Maintenance of batteries • Transformer Dip. Level III - 1000 Hrs. winding • Armature winding • Rewinding of AC/DC motors

IMPORTANT INFORMATIONS:

1. Application forms can be obtained from the office of 4. Intake capacity 50 nos. Admission to the course will NTTC, New Industrial Estate or Kudatech Skill Centre, be on first come first basis.

Walford. (Near Purna Bazar), Dimapur.

5. Free tool kits.

2. Issue of Application forms starts on 16th Jan 2017.

6. Hostel seats available.

3. Tuition fee Rs. 600 per month

VENuE:

Jointly conducted at NTTC, New Industrial Estate & Kudatech Skill Centre, Walford. (Near Purna Bazar), Dimapur.

For more information please contact:

Mobile no: 8258977353/8413829114(Between 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM) Email: nttc.communitycollege@gmail.com Sd/- Er. Petehetuo Miasalhou, Principal

4

ThursDAY 12•01•2017

business

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

news File

Election Commission to decide on Budget date in a week

Railways to go on revenue track with ads, music, films Passengers can access paid entertainment in trains, draw cash at station ATMs

MuMbai, JaNuary 11 (DNa): The Election Commission will take a call on the date of the Union Budget presentation within the next week, according to Cogencis. The Opposition had raised concerns and complained against the Centre’s intention to present the Budget on February 1. They said the elections in five states were slated to start only three days after the Budget date which would give undue advantage to the government as it could announce pro-people measures that could influence voting behaviour. Responding to the complaint, a government source said that the Centre had written to the Election Commission defending the Budget date.

The source said the Centre would not announce poll-bound state specific Budget sops, according to Cogencis, adding that a change in the date would only upset the fiscal calender.

New Delhi, JaNuary located at the end of plat- sengers on their personal 11 (The hiNDu): The In- forms or at a prominent electronic devices inside dian Railways will put up place in the circulating area trains and on platforms.

Some of these services will ATMs on platforms in sta- of stations.

“ATMs require round- be chargeable to passentions, offer music and movies in trains and ‘brand’ the-clock security so set- gers and Railways hope trains to boost advertising ting up such facilities at rail to mop up more than Rs. platforms will reduce the 6,000 crore by the end of a revenue.

These and other initia- security cost,” Prabhu said 10-year contract period.

Under the train brandtives to get revenue from at a press conference here.

“The Railways have ing policy, advertising in non-fare sources were announced by Railway Minis- captivity and we can use the form of vinyl wrapping ter Suresh Prabhu on Tues- it in multiple ways. For in- of train exteriors (includstance, one can watch vid- ing windows of AC coachday.

The Minister unveiled eos of one’s choice in trains es) and inside the coaches the Railways’ first non- or listen to radio for enter- would be allowed on contract basis for a 10-year fare revenue policy, out- tainment,” he said.

The Railways will soon period. Each train offers of-home advertising policy, train branding policy, provide entertainment an average 25,000 sq. ft., of content-on-demand and services through audio and space for advertising and New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (PTi): Average down- rail radio policy, besides an video systems bringing can potentially generate load speed on Jio network reached 18.16 megabit per ATM policy. movies, shows and educa- revenue worth Rs. 5 crore, second in December 2016 which was its highest since ATMs are likely to be tional programmes to pas- Prabhu said. launch of its commercial 4G services in September, as per the Trai data. The monthly average mobile data speed published by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India showed that the download speed on Reliance Jio Network was 5.85 mbps in November 2016 which was lower than peak speed of 7.26 mbps tion up to Rs.1.5 lakh only. The certificate in September. Among other networks, download Here are 4 investment options issued for NSC can be used as security speed on Vodafone network increased to 6.7 mbps for you for availing a loan. If you buy NSC every in December from 4.9 mbps in November. Idea netmonth for the next five years and on each work showed average download speed of 5.03 mbps, New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (FiNaN- maturity re-invest the same, on retirement Bharti Airtel’s 4.68 mbps, BSNL’s 3.42 mbps, Aircel’s cial exPress): If you want to save tax it will provide you monthly pension in3 mbps and Reliance Communications’s 2.6 mbps in without taking any market risk, then post come. The interest rates are compounded December. In November, download speed on Airtel office schemes may be a good option for semi-annually but accredited annually. network was 5.93 mbps followed by Jio at 5.85 mbps, you. Post office schemes are much secure The interest rate for 3rd & 4th quarter of FY Vodafone 4.9 mbps, Idea 4.36 mbps, BSNL 3.54 mbps, investment options than those available 2016-17 for 5-year NSC is 8% per annum.

Aircel 3 mbps and RCom 2.3 mbps. Trai collects and in the market today. You will not get high computes speed of mobile data from subscribers returns compared to the market linked in- Public Provident across the country with the help of MySpeed appli- vestment products, but the returns are as- Fund (PPF) sured which are subject to change as per cation on real time basis.

It is one the most preferred tax saving government policies. options, which gives the exempt- exempt Post office schemes, which provide – exempt benefit. The contribution, intertax-saving benefit, should have an invest- est and the maturity amount are tax-free. ment horizon of 5 years.

Withdrawals are allowed from the 7th year from the date of opening the account.

Term deposit (TD) However, the loan can be taken from the A term deposit account is opened by an 3rd financial year. The maturity period is New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (PTi): The petrol-run individual. The account can be transferred 15 years, which can be extended further Range Rover Evoque is powered by a 2.0-litre engine from one post office to another. There is for 5 years. It is one of the best instruments with a power output of 177 kW. Tata Motors-owned no limit to open a term deposit account. A for retirement planning savings. The interJaguar Land Rover (JLR) launched a petrol variant of minor who is above the age of 10 years can est rate is compounded annually. The inits premium SUV Range Rover Evoque in India priced operate the account. The investment made terest rate for 3rd & 4th quarter of FY 2016at Rs 53.20 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). Available in for 5-year term deposit will be qualified for 17 is 8% per annum.

SE Trim, the new variant is powered by a 2.0-litre petdeductions under 80C. There is again no rol engine that delivers a power output of 177 kW. The limit for deposit money in the TD account. Senior Citizen company already sells diesel variants of SUV in InInterest is payable annually, but calculated Savings Scheme (SCSS) dia since December 2016. “The addition of the petrol quarterly. The interest rate on 5-year TD for An individual who is above the of 60 derivative reinforces our commitment towards cus3rd & 4th quarter of FY 2016-17 is 7.8% per years can open the account. Some who is tomers who aspire to drive this fabulous vehicle with annum. on superannuation or on VRS can open a powerful petrol engine,” Jaguar Land Rover India the account at the age of 55 years. MatuLtd President Rohit Suri said in a statement. In India, National Savings rity period is 5 years. A joint account can the Land Rover portfolio comprises Discovery Sport Certificate (NSC) be open with a spouse in any number of at a starting price of Rs 47.59 lakh, Range Rover Sport The scheme is specially designed for capacity. Investments made against SCSS tagged at Rs 1.18 crore to the flagship Range Rover government employees, businessmen, can be claimed under section 80C. The costing Rs 2.13 crore besides the Range Rover Evoque and the salaried person whose salary is interest is payable quarterly. The interest priced at a starting price of Rs 49.10 lakh (all prices taxable. There is no maximum limit for rate on 5-yr SCSS for 3rd & 4th quarter of ex- showroom, Delhi). investment. However, you will get deduc- FY 2016-17 is 8.5% per annum.

Jio network average download speed at 18 MBPS in December

Along with the existing identified sites, the Railways will allow advertising along tracks, Road Over Bridges and level crossing gates.

The advertising rights are expected to generate Rs. 6,000 crore during the contract term.

Prabhu had said in his Railway Budget 2016-17 speech that the Railways earned less than five per cent of revenues from non-tariff sources. “In Japan, 25-30 per cent of revenue comes from non-fare sources. We aim to reach that level in seven to eight years and it will be a new revenue stream for the Railways,” he said.

World Bank cuts Indian GDP growth for fiscal to 7% washiNgToN, JaNuary 11 (iaNs): In its first projection on India post-demonetisation, the World Bank has lowered the country’s GDP growth estimate for this fiscal to 7 per cent, from its earlier estimate of 7.6 per cent made in June last year.

“Growth in India is estimated to reach 7 per cent in financial year (FY) 2017...reflecting a modest downgrade to India’s expansion,” the multilateral lender said in its Global Economic Prospects report released here on Tuesday.

“Unexpected demonetisation - the phasing out of large denomination currency notes - weighed on growth in the third quarter of FY 2017,” it said.

“Weak industrial production and manufacturing and services purchasing managers’ indexes further suggest a setback to activity in the fourth quarter of FY 2017,” it added.

Last week, India’s official statistician in New Delhi also lowered the country’s gross domestic product growth estimates for 2016-17 to 7.1 per cent, compared with the 7.6 per cent growth in 2015-16.

While announcing its monetary policy review last month, the Reserve Bank of India acknowledged the demonetisation factor and lowered their gross value added (GVA) growth estimates for the current fiscal to 7.1 per cent from the 7.6 per cent forecast earlier.

On November 8, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the demonetisation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes, saying the move was aimed to eliminate black money, counterfeit currency and terror financing.

Tax saving through Post Office schemes Lenovo P2 with 5100 mAh battery

JLR launches petrol Range Rover Evoque at Rs 53.2 lakh

FiRe StatiOnS

KoHIMA soUtH: 0370-2222952/ 101 (O) 9402003086 (OC) KoHIMA nortH: 7085924114 (O) dIMAPUr: 03862-232201/ 101 (O) 9856156876 (OC) CHUMUKedIMA: 7085982102 (O) 8732810051 (OC) woKHA: 03860-242215/101 (O) 8974322879 (OC) MoKoKCHUnG: 0369-2226225/ 101 (O) 8415830232 (OC) PHeK: 8414853765 (O) 8413822476(OC) ZUnHeBoto: 03867-280304/ 101 (O) 9436422730 (OC) tUensAnG: 8414853766 (O) 9856163601 (OC) Mon: 03869-251222/ 101 (O) 9862130954 (OC) Kiphire: 8414853767 (O) 9436261577 (OC) Peren: 7085189932 (O) 9856311205 (OC) LonGLenG: 7085924113 (O) 9862414264 (OC)

Civil Hospital emergency-

232224 229529 229474 MH Hospital 227930 231081 Faith Hospital 228846 shamrock Hospital 228254 Zion Hospital 231864 224117 227337 Police Control room 228400 Police Traffic Control 232106 east Police station 227607 west Police station 232181 CIHsr (referral Hospital) 242555 242533 dimapur Hospital 224041 248011 Apollo Hospital Info Centre 230695/ 9402435652 railway 131/228404 Airport 229366 Indian Airlines 242441 225212 Chumukedima Fire Brigade 282777 nikos Hospital and 232032, research Centre 231031 nagaland Multispecialty Health & research Centre

248302, 09856006026

eden Medical Centre

248288

W AVerAGe CertAIntY CHeerY CLInIC CLotH CoUnt deter esCAPe FeArLess HAnGer HInt JUdGe LedGe LInen LItHe LUnCH nAtUre noUrIsHMent nUdIst nUtrItIon

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08822911011 WOMen HeLPLIne 181 CHiLD weLFAre CoMMIttee Toll free No. 1098 childline

taHaMZaM (formerly senapati) Police station Fire Brigade

KoHIMA Ps/oCs

R

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222246 222491

KOHiMa Fire Brigade naga Hospital oking Hospital Bethel nursing Home northeast shuttles

north Ps Officer-in-Charge south Ps Officer-in-Charge Zubza Ps Officer-in-Charge Chiephobozou Ps Officer-in-Charge tseminyu Ps Officer-in-Charge Khuzama Ps Officer-in-Charge Kezocha Ps Officer-in-Charge women Cell Officer-in-Charge Control room

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stdcode: 03871

std code: 0370 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202 08974997923

New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (ageNcies): After much anticipation, Lenovo launched its latest smartphone, the Lenovo P2 in India. The smartphone known for its huge 5100 mAh battery is available on Flipkart exclusive sale. The device with 3GB RAM and 32GB ROM is priced at Rs 16,999 and the 4GB RAM and 32GB ROM variant have been priced at Rs 17,999. Both the variants will go on sale in the country from midnight (11:59 pm). The Vibe P2 by Lenovo was first introduced at IFA last year. The company has recently been continually rolling out smartphones in the country including the Lenovo K6 Note and the K6 Power devices. 2017 will see the launch of the latest, Lenovo P2.

The Lenovo P2 has one of the biggest batteries in its range and on-togo charging is also supported by the device. The smartphone users can also charge other smartphones, like a power bank.

The device has a camera of 13 megapixels at the back

MOKOKCHUnG

and 5 megapixels on the selfie shooter. The device has a plastic back along with a metal finish and frames on the sides.

The P smartphone series has always had the battery as its most notable feature and this time too it will not disappoint with the huge 5100mAh battery. The Lenovo P2 features a 5.5-inch FHD super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1920×1080 and has a similar design to the Vibe smartphones. The

std code: 0369

Police station 1 Police station 2 Police station Kobulong Police station tuli Police station Changtongya Police station Mangkolemba Civil Hospital

9485232688 9485232689 9485232690 9485232693 9485232694 9485232695 2226216

woodland nursing Home

2226263

Hotel Metsüpen (tourist Lodge) 2226373/ 2229343

smartphone is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor with a clock speed of 2GHz. The phone comes in two RAM variants: 3GB of RAM and 4GB of RAM, and two colour variants: gold and grey. The internal memory is 32GB and can be expanded up to 128 GB. The Vibe P2 also has a fingerprint scanner placed on the front side, and the device runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS and has NFC support.

CURRenCY nOteS

Us dollars sterling Pound Hong Kong dollar Australian dollar singapore dollar Canadian dollar Japanese Yen euro thai Baht Korean won UAe dirham (Aed) Chinese Yuan

BUY (rs) 66.52 80.88 8.3 49.01 46.35 50.3 57.29 70.54 1.81 0.0538 17.53 9.36

seLL (rs) 69.52 84.79 9.24 51.42 48.62 52.75 60.50 73.93 2.01 0.06 19.52 10.43

leisure

Contact numbers

8575045501 8575045510 8575045502 8575045520 8575045508 8575045518 8575045506 8575045516 8575045507 8575045517 8575045505 8575045515 8575045549 8575045538 8575045509 8575045519 8575045500 (Emergency No. – 100)

& 4GB RAM goes official in India

CROSSWORD # 3826

H

SUDOKU

Simple Rules - Fill in the grid so that every row, every column, and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9.

Game Number # 3821

Answer Number # 3820

ACROSS 1. Was indebted 5. Hindu Mr. 9. A pouch in some birds 13. Hindu princess 14. Graphic symbols 16. Expect and wish 17. Offers 18. Triangular formation 19. Lack of difficulty 20. Ancient Greek unit of length 22. Drooled 24. Apprehends 26. Mixture of rain and snow 27. Readable 30. Fears 33. Implements 35. Motif 37. Needlefish 38. Secret schemes 41. Tear 42. Velocity 45. Put up with 48. Trim 51. Otalgia 52. Menacing look 54. Dry riverbed 55. Exuberant 59. Egyptian peninsula 62. French for Finished or Done 63. Locale 65. Serene 66. Antiaircraft gun 67. Habituate 68. At the peak of 69. Swing around 70. Drop down 71. Dregs DOWN 1. . Spheres 2. Pause 3. Imperilled 4. Scorn 5. Offer

6. Cards with 1 symbol 7. Cotton seed structures 8. Countless 9. Long-legged spotted cat 10. Lion sound 11. Church alcove 12. Noxious plant 15. Cavalry weapon 21. Wanes 23. Red vegetable 25. Faux pas 27. Totes 28. French for “Storehouse” 29. L 31. Displace 32. Metalworker 34. Drunkard 36. Type of sword 39. Foot digit 40. Shredded cabbage 43. Ovular 44. Pickle flavoring 46. Historical periods 47. Revolutionary 49. Unsophisticated 50. Putting surfaces 53. Boredom 55. F F F F 56. Tab 57. Two-toed sloth 58. Change direction 60. ___ vera 61. Rapscallions 64. Startled cry Answer to Crossword 3825

Thursday 12•01•2017

NAGALAND

Dimapur Police registers 1,113 cases in 2016

DimaPur, January 11 (mExn): Dimapur Police registered a total of 1,113 cases (see table for details) in 2016, the highest amongst the districts within Nagaland.

A press release from Addl. Deputy Commissioner of Police/PRO, Dimapur stated that the increase in the case registration is largely attributed to the various pro-active policing as evident in the increased number of cases detected for offences under the NLTP (Nagaland Liquor Total Prohibition) Act; increased detection

of cases of extortion by the Anti Extortion Cells; other offences.

Pointing out that all missing reports and complaints are to be registered as regular cases as per the guidelines of the apex court, he said, “The increase in number of cases under the crime head ‘Kidnapping & Abduction’ thus, is attributed to this factor.”

Offence under ‘Theft’, the release added, continues to constitute the bulk of the cases registered. These cases include lost/theft of all types of items reported.

data of cases registered by dimapur Police in 2016 CasEs rEGIstErEd POLICE statIOn WIsE Police station no. of Percentage Case registered East PS 364 33% West PS 230 21% Diphupar PS 303 27% Sub Urban PS 143 13% GRPS 16 1% Medziphema PS 22 2% Niuland PS 22 2% Women PS 13 1% Total 1113 100% CrIME UndEr IPC- dIMaPUr 2016 Crime head no. of Percentage Case registered Murder 11 1% Attempt to murder 22 3% Culpable homicide not amounting 1 Below 1% to murder Rape 11 1% Kidnapping & abduction 82 10% Dacoity 1 Below 1% Robbery 20 2% Burglary 69 9% Theft 306 38% Criminal breach of trust 18 2% Cheating 45 6% Counterfeiting 1 Below 1% Extortion 94 12% Causing death due to negligence 27 3% Others IPC 101 13% TOTAL 809 100% CrIME UndEr sPECIaL LaW- dIMaPUr 2016 no. of Crime head Case reg- Percentage istered Arms Act 81 27% NDPS Act 12 4% DC Act 6 2% NLTP Act 145 48% Explosive Substance Act 3 1% Foreigners Act 1 Below 1% PIT Act 0 0% Others IPC 56 18% TOTAL 304 100% FIGUrEs OF OthEr data Particulars Total number of persons arrested for offences under IPC/ special laws Total number of motor vehicles/ two wheelers seized /recovered Quantity of contraband ganja seized Quantity of liquor seized

Figures 984 69 969 Kgs 89,562 bottles

Naga society has today become ‘individualistic': MLA Chuba laments Morung Express news Mokokchung | January 11

Nagaland Parliamentary Secretary for Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Service, S Chuba Longkumer on Wednesday said that Naga society has today become “individualistic” where everyone “think and do for themselves.” He was addressing the 41st general conference of the Asetkong Kaketshir Telungjem Mungdang (AKTM), the students’ union of Asetkong range of Mokokchung district, at Sungratsü village.

Longkumer, who was the chief guest at the triennial conference, added that because of people's “individualistic mentality” there are fewer individuals who are dedicated to work for the betterment of the society as a whole.

He also lamented the “explosion of many groups and societies” and said that such mushrooming of groups for their personal leverage is causing turmoil in the society today.

In this regard, he opined that students’ bod-

Kohima, January 11 (mExn): Lieutenant General Shokin Chauhan, YSM, SM, VSM, Director General Assam Rifles (DGAR), visited Kohima on January 10 and paid homage to the martyrs at the Kohima War Cemetery.

He also visited Headquarters IGAR (North) in Kohima and the Assam Rifles garrison at Chiswema, where he reviewed the security situation, informed a press release from Assam Rifles.

During his visit to the Kohima garrison, he complimented the troops of the Force for their dedication and devotion to duty and felicitated six outstanding personnel with the Director General Assam Rifles Commendation Card.

Parliamentary secretary s Chuba Longkumer (center) along with Parliamentary secretary Dr Imtiwapang Aier, AKTM officials and other dignitaries at the 41st triennial general conference of aKtM at süngratsü village, Mokokchung on January 11, 2017.

ies should be intellectual groups to bring change “in our present torn society.”

He also urged the civil society organizations not to let “politics” interfere in the organizations so that mandates of people can be fulfilled.

Chief host of the conference, Parliamentary Secretary for Geology & Mining, Dr Imtiwapang Aier stressed that Naga society is going through a transitioning period where “disunity, -ism and clans issues have become a chronic disease in our

society.” He called upon the students to inculcate the “mentality of oneness” among the Naga brethren and usher in unity among the Naga family.

He also expressed appreciation to the Clean Election Campaign initiated by Langpangkong Kaketshir Mungdang and encouraged the AKTM to emulate the good work initiated by their counterpart and initiate the same campaign in the range too.

He appealed to the students to work for the success of the five-year plan-

Englan Range Students’ Union holds 26th general conference

DGAR visits Kohima; meets Gov, CM

One NSCN (IM) cadre apprehended Kohima, January 11 (mExn): The Longding Battalion of Assam Rifles under the aegis of DAO division apprehended an NSCN (IM) cadre with a pistol, live ammunition and opium at Niausa village in Arunachal Pradesh on January 11. The cadre was identified as Corporal Phawang Wangsu. The cadre was apprehended during an operation launched based on specific intelligence about presence of “one cadre trying to terrorize and attempting forced extortion” in Niausa village, a press release from Col C Konwer, PRO (Defence) stated. According to the release, the cadre admitted allegiance to NSCN (IM) and divulged that he had joined the group in 2010 and also underwent training in an NSCN camp in Dimapur.

AR apprehend NSCN (K) cadre

tation project of Greening Asetkong launched under his initiative last year in association with AKTM. Others who spoke at the function included AKTM president, Rongsennukshi Aier, A Nungsang Jamir, president, Asetkong Mungdang and Shilukaba Longchar, Assistant General Secretary, AKM. The conference began on January 10 and will culminate on January 12. The three-day conference is attended by 400 delegates from the various AKTM units.

Home Minister encourages student orgs to submit report of institutions

Kohima, Jan 11 (mExn): Home Minister Y Patton has urged the teaching community across Nagaland state to rededicate themselves and sacrifice for the students to excel.

Addressing the 26th general conference of Englan Range Students’ Union (ERSU) at Old Changsu Village on January 10, he also urged the student organisations and leaders to sternly check the institutions’ administration and attendance of teachers, especially at the rural and remote areas, and submit their report to the government for further action and strengthening of the institutions.

MEx FILE

home Minister y Patton addressing the ErsU general conference held on January 10.

Stating that students are regarded as the intellectual community in the society, he asked the students to elect or choose their leaders democratically and intellectually in every aspect, including the State general election and town council election or any other NGO leaders.

Meanwhile, the Home

Minister regretted the diminishing of the rich cultures and traditions of Nagas. If the present generation does not take it seriously to preserve them, he stated, Nagas will be nowhere one day. Therefore, he encouraged the students’ community in general to revive the losing cultures and traditions.

The conference was also graced by Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) president, Subenthung Kithan as the guest of honour.

Kikon said the present generation is endowed with full of opportunities due to the advancement in science and technology. In this regard, he urged the students to take full advantage and use the facilities wisely to compete with the rest of the world in every aspect.

The conference theme “Discover your talent” was elaborated by Dr. Phyoben Odyuo, Professor, Fazl Ali College, Mokokchung as the theme speaker. Stating that talents are inborn as well as developed through individual’s handwork, he encouraged the students to dedicate themselves.

Success waits for everyone who works hard, he told the students.

Kohima, January 11 (mExn): Troops of 41 Assam Rifles and 3 Assam Rifles along with police representatives apprehended an NSCN (K) cadre during a search operation in Jail Colony, Kohima on January 10. One .22 mm pistol was also recovered from the apprehended person identified as Velasayi Sapuh (35), informed a press release from Assam Rifles. The individual along with the recovered arm was handed over to Kohima (South) Police Station for further investigation, it added.

Amended draft e-roll for Kohima Kohima, January 11 (DiPr): The ADC of Kohima, Lithrongla Tongpi has notified that the list of amendments to the draft electoral roll for the 8- Western Angami, 9- Kohima Town, 10- Northern Angami-I, 11- Northern Angami-II, 12- Tseminyu, 14- Southern Angami-I and 15- Southern Angami-II assembly constituencies has been prepared with reference to January 1, 2017 as the qualifying date and in accordance with the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. A copy of the said roll together with the said amendments has been published and will be available for inspection at the ADC’s office with the Booth Level Officer.

AR conducts veterinary camp Kohima, January 11 (mExn): 3 (NH) Bn Assam Rifles under the aegis of Headquarters IGAR (North) along with 14 Mobile Field Veterinary Hospital organized a veterinary camp in Viswema village on January 10 under Operation Sadbhavana. The veterinary doctor gave tips on how to care for domestic animals and advised about winter care management of the livestock, a press release from Assam Rifles informed. The villagers were also advised on caring and breeding of domestic animals and to take up animal husbandry activities to augment their income. More than 32 cattle, 163 dogs/ cats, 256 pigs, 65 sheep/ goat, 345 poultry besides other livestock and birds numbering a total of 861 animals were treated in the camp. Free veterinary medicines, vaccines and tonics were distributed.

Tuensang DPDB meeting held TuEnsang, January 11 (mExn): Tuensang District Planning and Development Board (DPDB) held its monthly meeting on January 11 at DC’s conference hall, Tuensang. The meeting began with an invitation information to all the officers on behalf of the Chang Khulei Setshang (Chang Tribal Hoho) to grace the Puang Lum Festival to be celebrated at Loyem Ground on January 12 and 13. The house further discussed renewal of registered societies and concluded with the work distribution for the Republic Day celebration on January 26, 2017. Chaired by Alem Jongshi, Deputy Commissioner of Tuensang, the meeting was attended by almost all the members of the board.

Child Missing

Meetings & AppointMents DDGBA meeting Dimapur District GB Association (DDGBA) has called an emergency meeting on January 13, 12:00 noon at the office of Dimapur GB Union (SADAR) at Super Market. DDGBA in a press release issued by Akhu Gangmei, I&P Secretary has requested all its six units’ presidents/ secretaries, executive members, advisors and DDGBA office bearers to attend the meeting without fail to discuss important issue.

ACWA 21st general conference

Wangsam, a 12-yearold boy from Arunachal Pradesh, staying at a house at Artang Ward, Mokokchung has been missing since January 10, 2017. Anybody who finds him has been requested to inform the Child Welfare Committee at 9436018611/ 9436647076.

The Angami Catholic Women Association (ACWA) will be hosting its 21st general conference from January 13 to 15 at the Holy Cross Church in Chedema Village, Kohima.

Over a thousand women delegates are expected at the three days conference. The panel of speakers comprise of Most Rev. Bishop James Thoppil, Vicar General Rev. Fr. NeisalLieutenant General shokin Chauhan, dGar with the hou Carolus Kuotsu, Rev. Fr. Sony Puthiyedam, Rev. Vemedo Joseph Kezo, Rev. Fr. Alex Governor of nagaland during his visit to Kohima on Jan- Vizo, Vilanuo Angela and Rocus R. Chasie. This was informed in a press note issued by uary 10.

Ketoulesieü Irene, President and Rüüngubino Rita, General Secretary of ACWA. DimaPur, January The DGAR also called eral Shokin Chauhan on 11 (mExn): The president on PB Acharya, Governor assuming the coveted apof BJP Nagaland, Visasolie Aai Sagi festival 2017 and TR Zeliang, Chief Min- pointment of DGAR and Lhoungu has issued an orister of Nagaland. They had conveyed their apprecia- The Aai Sagi festival 2017 of the Mech Kacharis of Nagaland will be celebrated on Janu- der that every party mema discussion on wide range tion for the contribution of ary 13 at Mandeville Garden, Juraphuri, Purana Bazaar, East Dimapur. The Governor of ber must support and vote of issues during the inter- the Assam Rifles towards Nagaland, PB Acharya will grace the festival as chief guest and Deputy Commissioner of for the party’s candidates action. The Governor and maintaining peace and Dimapur, Kesonyu Yhome will be the guest of honour. All the Kacharis of Nagaland and in the ensuing municipal the Chief Minister compli- tranquillity in Nagaland, well wishers have been invited to the festival, according to a press release from Dharma and town council elecmented Lieutenant Gen- the release stated.

Dhaj Sonowal, Chairman, ASFCC. tions, and should not engage in any acts or intentions that could hinder the Rengma Hoho consultative meet party candidates’ success.

The Rengma Hoho has convened an emergency consultative meeting on January 14, 10:00 “Failure to comply shall am at Rengma Hoho office to discuss on important issues. Therefore, all the frontal organi- amount to Breach of Discizations’ office bearers, advisors, Hoho executive members and all the union office bearers pline and attract disciplinfrom the respective villages have been requested to attend the meeting without fail. ary actions in accordance with the Bharatiya Janata

Every party member must vote for party candidates in civic polls: BJP president

Patton inaugurates gate, panchayat court

Combined picnic of Dimapur Tenyimi organisations

The combined picnic of Tenyimi Union Dimapur, Tenyimi Women Union Dimapur, Tenyimi Youth Organisation Dimapur, Tenyimi Students' Union Dimapur will be held on January 14, 11:00 am at T.L Angami Park. All the tribal representative units and their office bearers, seniors and all the executives have been invited to the picnic, which is sponsored by Tenyimi Union Dimapur. There will also be a discussion hour under the theme ‘True Brotherhood’ followed by informal session, informed a press release.

United Village emergency meeting The United Village comprising UNTABA and FIRMS will have an emergency meeting on January 14, 11:00 am at State Stadium, near DC Court junction in Dimapur. A press release from UNTABA Media Cell has requested all the working committee members, villagers.

Later, Patton also in- group leaders with 5 members and frontal leaders to attend the meeting without fail. augurated the gate of Old Changsu village, which was Annual session of Tragopan Club Viswema constructed under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Tragopan Club Viswema will hold its 34th annual session on January 28 at Rachumi Employment Guarantee Panchayat Hall at 11:00 am. Dr. Zhanei-o Rhutso and Viswedel Kin will be the speakers.

All club members have been requested to attend the session without fail.

Act 2015-2016.

Patton and others during the inauguration of Old Changsu village gate on January 10.

Kohima, January 11 (mExn): Home Minister Y. Patton inaugurated a newly constructed Panchayat Court at Old Riphyim under Wokha district on January 10.

The Panchayat Court was constructed under

TFC 2013-14 by the Department of Forest & Environment.

Speaking on the occasion, he urged the village council members to use it judiciously and customarily for the good will of the

Party’s Constitutional provision of Article XXV: Disciplinary Action; Breach of Discipline Clause (b), wherein disciplinary actions could be initiated against party members ‘Opposing the official candidate of the party in elections to public bodies excluding those where party symbols are not allotted’,” stated a press release from Jaangsillung Gonmei, General Secretary (Media) & Spokesperson, BJP Nagaland. The order comes into immediate effect.

BIrthday GrEEtInGs

G

ood morning my darling wife Dr Ranjana. Wishing you a happy and wonderful birthday (January 12).

Also wishing you good health in this new year 2017.

With lots of love from Sanjay Pandey (Sanju), Sangeeta, Riyon, Rishi, Shards, Thuli chema, pita TB Karki and Max, Bharat, Bhawani, and all family members.

Sanjay Pandey Nepali Basti, Dimapur

6

thursday 12•01•2017

IN FOCUS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express volume XII Issue 10

By Aheli moitra

We are protectors, not protestors

Learning from Standing Rock & each other

T

he campaigners protecting their indigenous lands have come a long way. They have sustained a powerful movement to protect their land—the source of life and livelihood for the indigenous peoples—but power blocs have refused to acknowledge the current and past injustices that have led people to transform their lives in the spirit of the campaign. These people, in the past and now, have not just protected their land but stood by the land and rights of other indigenous peoples too.

This is a summary of the nonviolent resistance that the indigenous people of Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota, United States of America, are waging to protect their lands from a proposed oil pipeline that will destroy their ancestral water sources and other cultural artefact.

Many nations away, however, it is also the story of the peoples of Manipur State in the Indian Union. This time, it is a protest to protect the indigenous lands from forceful bifurcation by the Government of Manipur (GoM). Yesteryears saw the indigenous communities in Manipur State form a strong alliance, much like the one we saw over the past few months at Standing Rock, to protect people from getting alienated from their land—this was the result of a sustained campaign against the three bills passed by the Manipur Legislative Assembly in lieu of an ‘inner line permit’ system without drawing any consent from the people. It gave way to a powerful nonviolent campaign wherein the communities refused to bury their dead (since 2015) to protect their lands—with prayers offered by people coming in from near and far to the morgue, the campaign was rooted in spirituality that was a hallmark of the Standing Rock campaign too.

In Manipur, however, justice remained evasive though the said ‘inner line permit’ could not be implemented in its current form.

In 2016, much like the US government’s failure to adhere to various treaties made with the Native Americans, the GoM bifurcated lands in the hills in direct violation of several memoranda of understanding, thereby causing indirect grief to all peoples who inhabit the State. Yet the issue has been constructed in ways, particularly by the Manipur and Indian national media, that project the protectors as the violators—any line of defense of them is met with abhorrence on the hegemonic front.

While this aspect remains to be acknowledged, the scenario also reflects a failure on the part of campaigners in the hills of Manipur—the inability to empathise with the people of the Imphal valley who have become co-victims to the violence of the State.

This has created the inevitable divide between peoples that the Manipur State Government, as well as the Government of India, has been directly responsible for over the decades.

It has now become pertinent that the various peoples and nationalities that inhabit Manipur begin to protect each other.

A brilliant example of this was shown by various community students and apex organisations from the hills that called for restraint on the part of the people when they were attacked in the valley; at various points in history, valley based organisations have also come out to resolve thorny issues that emanated in the hills. The values that gave rise to these initiatives must be kept at the core of developing new friendships. Possibilities should be explored, as the Native Americans did at Standing Rock, to bring the peoples of the region together to protect one another first in order to discuss and deliberate on issues of land and resources that have reached a pressing point.

At a peace activists’ meet held recently through the initiative of the North Eastern Social Research Centre in Guwahati, various peoples’ representatives from the region convened to deliberate on the issues unfolding in Manipur. Given the helpless situation of the times, it was exhilarating to witness that people from the valley and the hills of Manipur could sit together on a panel and lay out the problems as faced by each of them without losing their cool, or the sense of a shared future.

While it may take time for everyone to truly start listening to each other by going beyond immediate suffering, the NESRC’s initiative showed that it is possible to create spaces that spark peoples’ dialogues. Here, the presence of other communities of the region, for instance the Adivasi community which has also survived extreme violence and injustice, could help in lending that essential ear to the discussion thereby avoiding a “dialogue of the deaf.” In turn, they could transform into a community of peace builders.

Listening and developing empathy towards one another, not just as individuals but whole communities that are suffering in lopsided degrees, could lead to a process of healing and reconciliation, a step to restore faith in each other while moving towards a just and peaceful society.

The state making project in this region has created extreme violence and hardened ideological positions, but time has come to prepare nonviolent campaigns that lay the foundation of renewed relationships rooted in the peoples’ imagination of JustPeace. In that, Manipur can lead the way if its leaders can look beyond the state as a means to a solution, and become protectors instead of protestors.

Other suggestions may be sent to moitramail@yahoo.com

lEfT wiNg |

IANS

AIDS virus almost half a billion years old: Scientists

R

etroviruses, the family of viruses that includes HIV, are almost half a billion years old -- several hundred million years older than previously thought, claim scientists from Oxford University. New research suggests that retroviruses have ancient marine origins, having been with their animal hosts through the evolutionary transition from sea to land. Until now, it was thought that retroviruses were relative newcomers -- possibly as recent as 100 million years in age.

"Our research shows that retroviruses are at least 450 million years old, if not older, and that they must have originated together with, if not before, their vertebrate hosts in the early Paleozoic era," explained Dr Aris Katzourakis from Oxford University's department of zoology. Furthermore, they would have been present in our vertebrate ancestors prior to the colonisation of land and have accompanied their hosts throughout this transition from sea to land, all the way up until the present day.

Retroviruses are a family of viruses that includes the HIV virus responsible for the AIDS pandemic. They can also cause cancers and immunodeficiencies in a range of animals.

In this study, the researchers unearthed genomic fossils for foamy-like retroviruses in highly diverse hosts, including ray-finned fish and amphibians in which they had not previously been found. "We need to consider the adaptations that vertebrates have developed to combat viruses, and the corresponding viral countermeasures, as the product of a continuous arms race that stretches back hundreds of millions of years," Katzourakis noted in the journal Nature Communications. The findings will help researchers understand more about the continuing 'arms race' between viruses and their hosts.

C O M M E N T A R Y

Alessandra Pigni

Work: it’s time for a new year’s revolution Feeling burned out in your work for peace and social justice? A new book provides essential guidance

S

o here we are, a brand new year like a blank canvas, a fresh start full of resolutions. No doubt many people will resolve to invest in their ‘work-life balance.’ But more than New Year’s resolutions which hardly ever work beyond the first week of January, I think we need something much more radical akin to a new year’s revolution in our workplaces—and in the ways we organise for social change.

We don’t need a better work-life balance—we need a new way of working that’s fully integrated into our lives so that work doesn’t destroy our souls.

I’ve grown weary of big mission statements in non-profits about making a difference or empowerment, sustainability and equality. They end up by becoming platitudes, providing an unintentional cover-up of some sort: anything goes in the office because we are ‘doing good’ out there. I’m fed up of big ideals and crabby people who are too busy fixing the world to be kind to their colleagues; too busy making a difference ‘out there’ to look within; too occupied changing others to change themselves. When this happens organisations become unfriendly places that breed burnout—preaching justice and equality but practising very little of either in reality.

Take humanitarian organisations: they are full of resilient people on the verge of burnout. All the signs are there: exhaustion, loss of purpose, cynicism and disillusionment. This quote from a Syrian aid worker working with people fleeing from war puts it in a nutshell: “Do I have to fight to deliver services or do I have to fight my managers? We’re fighting the discrimination on the ground but not in the office.”

But burnout isn’t just a personal issue, it’s a structural one. We can’t deal with it unless we are prepared to rethink the way we work, and acknowledge that the quality of relationships that we craft in the office really matters.

It matters to our mental health and to the kind of work we want to do.

Many idealists find themselves wondering if the work they are actually doing matches what they imagined when they started out, full of passion to make the world a better place. Humanitarians, activists, teachers, health professionals and non-profit workers may have different personal and professional paths, but they share a common thread: starting out with wide horizons and big ideals, and often ending up jaded and burnedout. Wanting to make the world a place where healthcare, justice and education are not just the privilege of a few but fundamental rights, yet discovering that the road to doing good and meaningful stuff is paved with terrible managers, shortsighted organizational visions, and power relations that can bend your soul.

How we can break out of this mess?

The Idealist’s Survival Kit was born out of my own attempts to find ways to keep sane while serving others, to avoid becoming cold-hearted while

being exposed to overwhelming human and humanitarian crises, and to avoid drowning in cynicism while maintaining awareness of my own drives and needs as well as keeping a critical eye on the whole, flawed humanitarian enterprise.

My first humanitarian assignment was as a psychologist in Nablus, Palestine, serving with Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders. The experience was an eye-opener and the beginning of a love story—not so much with institutionalized humanitarian work but with the Middle East and with people who do work that matters, often at the margins of big institutions and sometimes in spite of them.

As I prepared myself psychologically for the field, my fears were about political violence and possible traumatic incidents, like being caught in the shooting or shelling and becoming disabled. But none of that reflected the realities I met on the ground, which were intense, enriching, inspiring and challenging, though not always in the ways I had expected.

What became clear was that many aid workers’ biggest trials, stressors and traumas came not from so-called ‘frontline work’—in my case listening to the tragic and harrowing stories of people who had lost their homes and loved ones—but from the petty stresses of organizational life, from controlling managers trying to micromanage, or from the burden of bureaucracy and office politics, or losing sight of a larger purpose or the real meaning of the work.

After some years I realized that I needed strength and self-care tools when I stepped into the office, not when I stepped out of it. In fact, the people I was meant to ‘help’ became examples of everyday resilience and courage—and my sources of inspiration. Did I need their help more than they needed mine? I often think that was the case. They certainly enabled me to find my way and my place in the world, and to face my own challenges with more confidence.

I realized that the humanitarian lifestyle might seem charming from a distance but that close-up, it had flaws that were hard for me to digest. The idealism that propelled me and many of my colleagues dimmed the longer we spent in the field. Many lost compassion and became cynical. It was clear that to serve others we needed a certain degree of mental and emotional fitness, as well as enough self-awareness to avoid helping others becoming a form of escapism in which we end up doing more harm than good.

Burnout, not post-traumatic stress disorder, and bad human resource practices, not war, are the things that wear so many people out who work for nonprofits. These are issues over which we have some control, unlike wars or natural disasters. So we need to rethink our organizations and our relationships to work if we don’t want to end up exhausted, jaded and ineffective.

The aim of my new book is to help everyone understand, address and if possible prevent burnout, especial-

ly when working as an activist or in other demanding situations of social change. I don’t have a simple recipe for healing, and anyone who advertises a ‘life-changing’ method almost certainly doesn’t have one. As the writer Rebecca Solnit puts it, “We are constantly given one-size-fits-all recipes, but those recipes fail, often and hard.

Nevertheless, we are given them again.

And again and again. They become prisons and punishments.”

Nevertheless, there are plenty of concrete ways to resist a culture that turns busyness and exhaustion into a barometer to assess our value as human beings, and lots of steps we can take to take care of ourselves while serving others. We can resist by searching for meaning amidst a chaotic yet fulfilling personal and professional exploration. We can begin to take care of ourselves by recognizing that small things matter and by deliberately stepping out of the blender of compulsive busyness. Mental health isn’t something that experts give to you.

For example, something as simple as having lunch together with your colleagues can become an informal yet structured vehicle for emotional debriefing. Over and over again, the people I interviewed told me about the importance of creating forums that breed a culture of respect, care and learning. A meal together doesn't fix the problem or make the pain go away, but it can open up a space to acknowledge that we are not alone in facing what life throws at us.

We can “learn and practice the art of saying no” as a Syrian emergency adviser put it, or “practice yoga (or your favourite body-mind activity) every day, even if you work in a place like Gaza, in fact especially if you work in a place like Gaza.” Other non-profit staff added their own ideas: “keep a journal, write about your experiences, about how you feel;” “connect with a group or an activity that has nothing to do with your work.” “Practice mindfulness and go on a silent meditation retreat; “go on digital detox” or just “go for a walk.”

As the late activist Tooker Gomber puts it in his Letter to an Activist: “Be sure to hike and dance and sing. Keeping your spirit alive and healthy is fundamental if you are to keep going.” Do your your work, but don’t overdo it. “If you burn out, you’ll become no good to anyone.”

While these strategies may not save you from burnout if you are immersed in a toxic workplace, they may help you to stay sane and realize that it may be worth knocking on new doors in search of a more humane organisation—or at least a place where lunch-time happens around a table and not behind a computer screen. Instead of pledging commitment to some banal new year’s resolution and running after that ideal but impossible work-life balance, we can all embrace a more radical approach that transforms work by starting within ourselves and our own workplaces.

Alessandra Pigni’s new book is The Idealist’s Survival Kit. 75 Simple Ways to Avoid Burnout

The New Silk Roads and Indian Alternatives

A

Anita sengupta

cargo train from Nantong, China reached Hairatan a town on Afghanistan’s border with Uzbekistan on 9 September 2015. Earlier, in February a similar ‘Silk Road’ trainreached Tehran from Xinjiang covering a distance of 9500 kms in fourteen days. Closer home India signed an agreement for the construction of 69 bridges in Myanmar (during the Myanmar President’s first visit) along the Trilateral Highway that will provide better connectivity between India and South East Asia, along the traditional ‘southern Silk Road’.

These recent examples show that connectivity has replaced division as the new paradigm of Asian organization and Asia has re-emerged as a useful case study for exploring economic development through infrastructural advancement. Over a century ago global navigation and trade was reshaped by the construction of the Suez and Panama Canals. Subsequently, efforts to shape infrastructure across Asia have been underway for more than a century in initiatives like the Russian railway systems,the Asian Highway and Trans Asia Railways. The popularly named “New Silk Road” initiatives refer to a variety of visions for formalising transit flows across Asia.

Various Silk Road imaginations are on their way to becoming reality.

Among them is the Chinese led One Belt One Road (OBOR) the American ‘New Silk Roads’ and the Russian led efforts to reconnect through the Eurasian Economic Community. These logistic developments are now supported by financial institutions like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) that

A train in Astana, Kazakhstan, that's part of a service linking northern China's Inner Region with Kazakhstan.

was set up with 57 Asian, European, South American and African states including China and India.AIIB supports China’s logistic vision of the One Belt One Road (OBOR) with the aim to bring South Asian economies closer to China, Central Asia and West Asia.

While global logistic visions that span entire continents and beyond is one part of the contemporary logistic story, the other part of logistics are the significant geo-political and geo-economic challenges to connectivity in areas that are the operating environments for these infrastructural projects and the Indian neighbourhood is no exception.

So the new cargo train, with which this article began, is now returning empty from Afghanistan to Uzbekistan on its way back to China. Uzbek authorities have forbidden cargo to arrive into their country from Afghanistan via the railway, citing security concerns. Uzbekistan wants goods to leave the Af-

ghan border city of Hairatan on ships instead of rail, and cross the Uzbek border via the Amu River, where it can be screened by Uzbek security forces. Only then would the cargo be reloaded onto the Sino-Afghan train thereby negating all advantages of time that the overland route has in comparison with the longer maritime one.

It is within this context that one needs to examine India’s ability to connect with broader and sometimes competing logistic visions (the China Pakistan Economic Corridor for instance, that provides an alternative north south connect to International North South Transport Corridor that India supports and in which the Russians have recently shown some interest). Given the global reality of a China centered trade network overlapping with a Russian led economic community engulfing both Asian overland and maritime routes on the one hand and the emerging rules and

wRiTE-wiNg

regulations that would govern global trade on the other, either the development of an logistic alternative or connecting with the existing frameworks would be an essential enabler for India’s agenda of economic development and urbanization.

India’s Act East policy in a newly created Indo Pacific space is a work in progress that awaits conceptual clarity but also policy consensus among a large number of stake holders including sub regions, cities, ports and civil society actors. A meticulous balancing act between these realities call for recognition of India’s pivotal geographic position enabling developments both on the South East and East but also towards the West and Northwest and would require an integrated and coordinated approach which would make use of past linkages, present assets and also the possibilities of future development. While the translation of logistic visions into strategic spaces cannot be taken for granted, taking note of changing global networks, linking with other Asian logistic frameworks, keeping in mind the ‘slip roads’ that local mobilities traverse are just some of the imperatives that India would have to keep in mind as it negotiates its own development in a future that belongs to fluidity.

Anita S engupta is S enior Researcher, Calcutta Research Group and Visiting Fellow, Observer Research Foundation The article is the outcome of a research project titled ‘Social Mapping of Logistics,Infrastructure and India’s Look East Policy’ conducted

by Mahanirban Calcutta Research Group (MCRG) in collaboration with Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung (RLS).

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.

thursday 12•01•2017

PERSPECTIVE

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

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Vietnam: The War That Killed Trust The legacy of the war still shapes America, even if most of us are too young to remember it Karl Marlantes

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NYT

n the early spring of 1967, I was in the middle of a heated 2 a.m. hallway discussion with fellow students at Yale about the Vietnam War. I was from a small town in Oregon, and I had already joined the Marine Corps Reserve. My friends were mostly from East Coast prep schools. One said that Lyndon B. Johnson was lying to us about the war.

I blurted out, “But … but an American president wouldn’t lie to Americans!”

They all burst out laughing.

When I told that story to my children, they all burst out laughing, too. Of course presidents lie. All politicians lie.

God, Dad, what planet are you from?

Before the Vietnam War, most Americans were like me. After the Vietnam War, most Americans are like my children.

America didn’t just lose the war, and the lives of 58,000 young men and women; Vietnam changed us as a country. In many ways, for the worse: It made us cynical and distrustful of our institutions, especially of government. For many people, it eroded the notion, once nearly universal, that part of being an American was serving your country.

But not everything about the war was negative. As a Marine lieutenant in Vietnam, I saw how it threw together young men from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds and forced them to trust one another with their lives. It was a racial crucible that played an enormous, if often unappreciated, role in moving America toward real integration.

And yet even as Vietnam continues to shape our country, its place in our national consciousness is slipping. Some 65 percent of Americans are under 45 and so unable to even remember the war. Meanwhile, our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, our involvement in Syria, our struggle with terrorism — these conflicts are pushing Vietnam further into the background.

All the more reason, then, for us to revisit the war and its consequences for today. This essay inaugurates a new series by The Times, Vietnam ’67, that will examine how the events of 1967 and early 1968 shaped Vietnam, America and the world. Hopefully, it will generate renewed conversation around that history, now half a century past.

What readers take away from that conversation is another matter. If all we do is debate why we lost, or why we were there at all, we will miss the truly important question: What did the war do to us as Americans?

CYNICISM Vietnam changed the way we looked at politics. We became inured to our leaders lying in the war: the fabricated Gulf of Tonkin incident, the number of “pacified provinces” (and what did “pacified” mean, anyway?), the inflated body counts.

People talked about Johnson’s “credibility gap.” This was a genteel way of saying that the president was lying.

Then, however, a credibility gap was considered unusual and bad. By the end of the war, it was still considered bad, but it was no longer unusual. When politicians lie today, fact checkers might point out what is true, but then everyone moves on.

We have switched from naïveté to cynicism. One could argue that they are opposites, but I think not. With naïveté you risk disillusionment, which is what happened to me and many of my generation. Cynicism, however, stops you before you start. It alienates us from “the government,” a phrase that today connotes bureaucratic quagmire. It threatens democracy, because it destroys the power of the people to even want to make change.

A Strong Leader’s Rule or a Strong Constitutional Democracy

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American soldiers watching helicopters landing as part of Operation Pershing in South Vietnam in 1967. (Getty Images)

You don’t finish the world’s largest highway system, build huge numbers of public schools and universities, institute the Great Society, fight a major war, and go to the moon, which we did in the 1960s — simultaneously — if you’re cynical about government and politicians.

I live near Seattle, hardly Donald J. Trump territory. Most of my friends cynically deride Mr. Trump’s slogan, Make America Great Again, citing all that was wrong in the olden days. Indeed, it wasn’t paradise, particularly for minorities. But there’s some truth to it. We were greater then. It was the war — not liberalism, not immigration, not globalization — that changed us.

RACE In December 1968, I was on a blasted and remote jungle hilltop about a kilometer from the demilitarized zone. A chopper dropped off about three weeks of sodden mail and crumpled care packages. In that pile was a package for Ray Delgado, an 18-year-old Hispanic kid from Texas.

I watched Ray tear into the aluminum foil wrapping and, smiling broadly, hold something up for me to see.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“It’s tamales. From my mother.”

“What are tamales?”

“You want to try one?” he asked.

“Sure.” I looked at it, turned it over, then stuck it in my mouth and started chewing. Ray and his other Hispanic friends were barely containing themselves as I was gamely chewing away and thinking, “No wonder these Mexicans have such great teeth.”

“Lieutenant,” Ray finally said. “You take the corn husk off.”

I was from a logging town on the Oregon coast. I’d heard of tamales, but I’d never seen one. Until I joined my company of Marines in Vietnam, I’d never even talked to a Mexican. Yes, people like me called people like Ray “Mexicans,” even though they were as American as apple pie — and tamales.

Racial tension where I grew up was the Swedes and Norwegians squaring off against the Finns every Saturday night in the parking lot outside the dance at the Labor Temple.

President Harry Truman ordered the integration of the military in 1948.

By the time of the Vietnam War, the races were serving together. But putting everyone in the same units is very different than having them work together as a unit.

Our national memory of integration is mostly about the brave people of the civil rights movement. Imagine arming all those high school students from Birmingham, Ala. — white and black — with automatic weapons in an environment where using these weapons was as common as having lunch and they are

all jacked up on testosterone. That’s racial tension.

During the war there were over 200 fraggings in the American military — murders carried out by fragmentation grenades, which made it impossible to identify the killer. Almost all fraggings, at least when the perpetrator was caught, were found to be racially motivated.

And yet the more common experience in combat was cooperation and respect. If I was pinned down by enemy fire and I needed an M-79 man, I’d scream for Thompson, because he was the best. I didn’t even think about what color Thompson was.

White guys had to listen to soul music and black guys had to listen to country music. We didn’t fear one another. And the experience stuck with us. Hundreds of thousands of young men came home from Vietnam with different ideas about race — some for the worse, but most for the better. Racism wasn’t solved in Vietnam, but I believe it was where our country finally learned that it just might be possible for us all to get along.

SERVICE I was at a reading recently in Fayetteville, N.C., when a young couple appeared at the signing table. He was standing straight and tall in Army fatigues. She was holding a baby in one arm and hauling a toddler with the other.

They both looked to be about two years out of high school. The woman started to cry. I asked her what was wrong, and she said, “My husband is shipping out again, tomorrow.” I turned to him and said, “Wow, your second tour?”

“No, sir,” he replied. “My seventh.”

My heart sank. Is this a republic?

The Vietnam War ushered in the end of the draft, and the creation of what the Pentagon calls the “all-volunteer military.” But I don’t. I call it the all-recruited military. Volunteers are people who rush down to the post office to sign up after Pearl Harbor or the World Trade Center gets bombed. Recruits, well, it’s more complicated.

When I was growing up, almost every friend’s father or uncle had served in World War II. All the women in town knew that a destroyer was smaller than a cruiser and a platoon was smaller than a company, because their husbands had all been on destroyers or in platoons.

Back then it was called “the service.” Today, we call it “the military.”

That shift in language indicates a profound shift in the attitudes of the republic toward its armed forces. The draft was unfair. Only males got drafted. And men who could afford to go to college did not get drafted until late in the war, when the fighting had fallen off.

But getting rid of the draft did not

solve unfairness.

America’s elites have mostly dropped out of military service. Engraved on the walls of Woolsey Hall at Yale are the names of hundreds of Yalies who died in World Wars I and II. I counted three who died in Vietnam and none since.

Instead, the American working class has increasingly borne the burden of death and casualties since World War II. In a study in The University of Memphis Law Review, Douglas Kriner and Francis Shen looked at the income casualty gap, the difference between the median household incomes (in constant 2000 dollars) of communities with the highest casualties (the top 25 percent) and all the other communities. Starting from almost dead-even in World War II, the casualty gap was $5,000 in the Korean War, $8,200 in the Vietnam War, and is now more than $11,000 in Iraq and Afghanistan. Put another way, the lowest three income deciles have suffered 50 percent more casualties than the highest three.

If these inequities continue to grow, resentment will grow with it. With growing resentment, the already wide divide between the military and civilians will also widen. This is how republics fall, with armies and parts of the country more loyal to their commander than their country.

We need to return to the spirit of the military draft, and how people felt about service to their country. The military draft was viewed by most of us the same way we view income tax. I wouldn’t pay my taxes if there wasn’t the threat of jail.

But as a responsible citizen, I also see that paying taxes is necessary to fund the government — my government.

People would still grumble. We grumble about taxes. People would still try to pull strings to get more pleasant assignments. But everyone would serve.

They’d work for “the government,” and maybe start to see it as “our government.” It’s a lot harder to be cynical about your country if you devoted two years of your life making it a better place.

Let the armed services be just one of many ways young people can serve their country. With universal service, some boy from Seattle could find himself sharing a tamale with some Hispanic girl from El Paso. Conservatives and liberals would learn to work together for a common cause. We could return to the spirit of people of different races learning to work together in combat during the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War continues to define us, even if we have forgotten how.

But it’s not too late to remember, and to do something about it.

Karl Marlantes, the author of “What It Is Like to Go to War” and the novel “Matterhorn,” was a Marine in the Vietnam War.

hroughout history, most people have lived in societies in which a small group at the top imposed its will on others. And those at the top would always justify their actions by saying that people are too weak to govern themselves; they need to be ruled. Thus neither in Castro’s Cuba nor in the military regime of North Korea, neither in Iran nor in Saudi Arabia, do ordinary people have much personal choice or political freedom.

Our Naga people, in my opinion, are also slowly shifting towards the autocratic style of leadership. For example, many of our elected leaders are becoming too high-handed and egocentric, not people-centered. And we also like to push them upon a pedestal and call them “dynamic leaders.” My suspicion is that we are applauding such leaders, because they sometimes get things done through the use of their sheer force of personality or some political aura about them. Or, is it just our praise for their charismatic appeal?

To be sure, there’s really nothing wrong with having a strong personality or a charismatic nature. But what about the bullies who impose their strong will into having whatever they want? Or, what about certain salespersons, entertainers, or beauties whose charismatic smiles can even win you over in a minute? Are they to be considered the preferred breeds for leadership? My point is this: strong personality or charisma isn’t enough. A public leader must also possess a strong sense of right and wrong, in addition to depth of knowledge.

Strictly speaking, many so-called “leaders” are just skilled managers. They are concerned with doing things the right way. Their focus is more on efficiency and process, especially routine and standard operating procedures. Leaders, in contrast, are concerned with doing the right thing. Their focus is more on goals, purposes, and a vision for the future. They are able to attract and mobilize people to undertake tasks they could never do on their own. They empower others to accomplish the seemingly impossible. More than that, they enable their followers to become leaders in their own right. They recognize the fundamental wants and needs, including the unexpressed ones, of their followers. By bringing their followers to a fuller consciousness of their needs, they help convert their hopes and aspirations into realities.

Leadership thought of as an engagement among equals can empower people and enlarge their opinions, choices, and freedoms. The answer for building a healthy society lies not in producing a handful of great, charismatic, super-hero-type leaders but in educating a citizenry who can boast that we are no longer in need of such “dynamic leaders”, because we have become a nation of citizens who believe each of us can make a difference and contribute our unique share of strengths towards our common vision.

No doubt, leaders will always be needed. However, our system of government should be designed to prevent strong, autocratic-type behavioral tendencies, lest too much political power be placed in the hands of too few individuals. Our governing system should be such that the potential abuse is checked not only by an involved citizenry but also by the very structure of our constitutional system in the form of separation of powers, federalism, bicameral legislature, checks and balances, and the rule of law.

But what exactly is a Constitutional Democracy? It is a system of government in which the power of political authority is defined, limited, and distributed by a body of fundamental laws called "the Constitution." Under this system, the people are empowered with the means to hold their elected representatives accountable for their decisions and actions while in public office. Thus, the advantage of Constitutional Democracy is this: it transcends the individual personalities and even supersedes political parties. Sometimes a leader, for example, may become too powerful and act according to whims and fancies rather than on constitutional principles. In a situation like that, the people can bring checks on such leaders by invoking established laws in the Constitution. As a matter of fact, the supremacy of the Constitution is such that all national and state officers, including judges, must be bound by oath to abide by the Constitution. This is called the rule of law as opposed to the rule of a strong leader or a strong political party.

In closing, let me repeat my two main points: (1) Constitutional Democracy is to be preferred to a leader-centered rule, and (2) constitutional supremacy is critical for the stability and smooth functioning of any government.

ISIS Violence Fuels Culture Wars James Dorsey

where that favor a society based on a puritan interpretation of Islam’s social mores. Praising the attack, IS y attacking a nightclub in noted that its “heroic Caliphate solTurkey, the Islamic State’s dier tore down one of the most fastrategy may have back- mous nightclubs where Christians fired. celebrated their polytheistic feast.”

The Islamic State’s (IS) bombing of an upscale nightclub in Istanbul Death of Arab-Israeli The funeral of Lian Zaher Nasser, on New Year’s has fueled culture a 19-year-old from the town of Tira wars in Turkey and Israel, and laid bare aspirations among youth in so- in the Galilee, Israel, gunned down cially restrictive Muslim societies for in the Reina attack, provided an antidote to the Islamic State’s assertion. more liberal lifestyles.

In doing so, the bombing of the In doing so, it spotlighted the strugReina restaurant cum nightclub— gle for Islam’s soul in Arab-Israeli which killed 39 people, mostly tour- society. Thousands, including Arabists—highlighted wider societal Israeli members of the Knesset and tensions that underlie the wave of representatives of the Palestinian jihadist attacks that have hit Turkey Authority, attended the funeral.

So did many young women, and other Muslim countries in recent years. They show a struggle that, bent on defending Nasser’s and more often than not, is fought by their right to enjoy life in the face of youth who opt for individual ways of criticism that she had violated Iscarving out spaces in which they can lamic mores by visiting a nightclub circumvent restrictive social mores and celebrating the New Year. Their struggle often marks a rejection of rather than organizing politically.

To be sure, the Islamic State’s the more traditional social mores of multiple attacks in Turkey intend to their elders.

It is fought not only by defying primarily raise the cost of Turkish intervention in neighboring Syria’s traditional codes, but also by young civil war. They are, nevertheless, a women seeking higher education in violent effort to strengthen those much the same way that soccer has

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in Israel as what football scholar Tamer Sorek calls an “integrative enclave,” which allows them to escape Israeli discrimination and Palestinian societal inhibitions. Their ambitions are fueled by the fact that, unlike youth in predominantly Muslim societies elsewhere in the Middle East and North Africa, they are exposed to Israel’s more open society.

“This attempted slander is another murder of Lian,” Ala’a Abdulahi, a native of Tira who survived the attack on Reina, told Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, referring to conservative criticism of their visit to the nightclub. “We arrived in Istanbul as independent young women and it is our right to celebrate the New Year’s in a well-known and exclusive club, and whoever this does not fit can go and break their head.”

Her words were echoed by municipal leaders of Tira. “We are proud of Lian and her friends,” Mayor Mamoun Abd el-Hai said in a eulogy at Nasser’s funeral. “We take pride in a young generation that is steadfast against the symbols of darkness and obscurity. We strive for life and young people among us who decide what is good and what is not. No one will force them to do

their views, tell them: your position is unacceptable. These dark forces will not deter the young lovers of life. We represent true Islam. There is no place for those who adopt a false jihad.”

Secularism and Islamism The defense of Nasser’s right to shape her own life reflects the divide aggravated by the Reina attack between secular and religious segments of society in Turkey, which like Israel is far more open than most societies in the Middle East.

The impact of creeping ultra-conservatism in Turkey was evident in a statement in December 2016 by the Turkish government’s Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), declaring the celebration of New Year as “alien” to Turkish values.

The statement followed an Islamist campaign seeking to persuade Turkish Muslims not to celebrate Christmas. In one incident, posters pictured Santa Claus being publicly punched by faithful Muslims. In another, ultra-nationalists organized a protest in which they pointed guns at the head of Santa Claus.

To be fair, Islamist groups in Turkey have a long history of opposi-

and New Year without resorting to violence. There is, moreover, no love lost between IS and the Diyanet, which the jihadists view as apostate.

The bombing has, nonetheless, sharpened the battle lines in Turkey where many secularists feel that the government’s promotion of conservative values and sweeping crackdown on critics in the wake of a failed coup in July 2016 has divided rather than united the country and deepened the social divide.

While Arab-Israelis and Turks openly challenge conservative mores, Saudis need to be more circumspect even if they embrace the same values. Seven Saudis were among the victims of the attack on Reina.

Speaking to Al Arabiya, Saudi journalist Mona al-Nasser stressed that Reina’s nightclub was in a separate section from the restaurant and criticized those who had condemned Saudis who frequented the establishment. “I had personally dined at Reina before and like any other restaurant in Europe or in other Western cities, there are alcoholic beverages and music being played. Reina is one of the most elitist restaurants in Istanbul that is visited by many Arabs over the years,” Nasser said.

egy may have backfired by attacking Reina. If anything, it has emboldened Muslim youth, particularly in countries whose nationals were among the victims, to stand up for their right to craft lives that reflect a more liberal, less restrictive interpretation of Islam. More often than not, they take a stand individually in the quiet choices they make rather than in efforts to effect change collectively.

This article is reproduced with the permission of Fair Observer. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.

James M. Dorsey is an awardwinning journalist and commentator on foreign affairs who has covered ethnic and religious conflict and terrorism across the globe for more than three decades. Over his career, Dorsey served as a foreign correspondent for, among others, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor and UPI in the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Central America and Washington. He is currently a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and the author of the blog, "The Turbulent

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ThursDAY 12•01•2017

INDIA

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

'Modi first Indian PM to be ridiculed globally' ‘Acche din’ promised by Modi will actually come with the return of the Congress to power, says Rahul New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (iaNS): For the first time in history, an Indian Prime Minister is being ridiculed across the world for his "incompetent" decision of demonetisation, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi said on Wednesday.

Addressing a party convention here, Gandhi also charged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) with weakening the country's constitutional institutions.

Dubbing demonetisation as Modi's "personal decision", Gandhi said "world's biggest financial experiment" was undertaken on the whims of the Prime Minister and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat.

"For the first time in history, the Prime Minister of India is being ridiculed world over.

"Never before has every single economist of any repute said that the Prime Minister has taken an incompetent and badly thought out decision," said Gandhi about the November 8 decision to demonetise Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes.

Gandhi also asserted that the "acche din" (good days) promised by Modi during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls will actually come with the return of the Congress to power.

"Every single institution that we constructed, be it the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), judiciary or

Rahul's note ban rant reflects his own pain: BJP

Congress VP Rahul Gandhi addresses at the party's Jan Vedna Sammelan at Talkatora Stadium, New Delhi on Janauary 11. (PTI Photo)

the Election Commission, the BJP, RSS and Modi have weakened them. Today, there is no institution in this country that is respected," he said.

"We did not do this over the last 70 years," he said pointing to Modi and the BJP. "The RBI, an institution that is the financial bedrock of the country, has been ridiculed, position of the RBI Governor has been ridiculed.

"The reason is that the RSS and the BJP are under the impression that nobody's opinion matters in the country except their own," said Gandhi claim-

ing that demonetisation was not a decision of the apex bank.

Further ridiculing Modi, he went on to add: "Having failed to hide behind 'Make in India', 'Skill India' and 'Swachh Bharat Mission' campaigns, Modi tried hiding behind his home-made economists like Baba Ramdev... and broke the country's financial spine."

"After discussing with just two-three people, he undertook the world's biggest financial experiment. And if you question him, he says who are you, the country will be run only by Modi and Mohan Bhag-

New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (PTi): Hitting back at Rahul Gandhi following his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, BJP today said the Congress leader was voicing his own and not the poor's pain, and accused him of being a spokesperson for those with black money.

It also taunted the Congress vice president over his recent foreign visit, saying after a vacation abroad he, like a part-time politician, has chosen to speak about people's sufferings.

"Rahul Gandhi was expressing his and not the poor's pain.

The whole country is today backing Modi in this war against

wat," said Gandhi.

"The Prime Minister jumps from clean India, to surgical strikes, to demonetisation. He keeps jumping from one thing to another and people wonder when good days will come."

"I'll tell them that it will come when Congress comes to power again," he said.

Gandhi also asserted his party's commitment to protecting the country's constitutional institutions.

"We want to tell the country that India's soul is its institutions and we would protect them. We are opposed to Modi

black money.

"He is frustrated and depressed. He repeats the same lines against the Prime Minister but the country is not ready to hear his worn-out dialogues. He has become a spokesperson for those with black money," BJP spokesperson Shahmawaz Hussain told reporters.

Hussain also took a dig at Rahul over his assertion that Congress will return to power in 2019, likening it to a dream and said while the next Lok Sabha elections were far away, the opposition party would fare poorly in the coming assembly elections in five states.

He noted that Congress has

and Bhagwat's mindset that only two-three people can run the country. We will defeat this mindset," affirmed Gandhi.

He also asked Modi to go to the poor and the farmers to know about the effects of his decision and to "feel their pain".

He also said that the media was under "certain constraints".

"We understand their nervousness and predicament.

But, there is a responsibility that you have in highlighting the pain the people are feeling.

You must not shy away from that responsibility," he added.

been on a losing spree since 2014 LS polls and lost in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand assembly elections among others.

"In five states, the country continues to move towards Congressmukt Bharat," he said.

He alleged that Congress did everything to "vitiate" the atmosphere across the country following demonetisation but could not succeed due to popular support for it.

While Congress has kept shouting slogans about the poor and poverty for generations, it is Modi who is working to alleviate the pains inflicted on them by it, he said.

'Worse is yet to come': Manmohan New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (iaNS): Commenting on the demonatisation decision, former Prime Minster Manmohan Singh on Wednesday said that while the economic situation has already become bad, "worse is yet to come". Speaking at the "Jan Vedna Sammelan" of the Congress, Manmohan Singh attacked Prime Minster Narendra Modi, saying it is his solemn duty to tell the people what wrongs Modi is doing. "Demonatisation has hurt the country hard. Things have gone bad in the last two months, but worse is yet to come," he said. "The beginning of the end has come", Singh said, adding that "Modi's propaganda to reflect wrong figures has failed". "Modi's propaganda that the national income of India in the last two years has gone up, has failed... The 7.6 per cent growth rate of country has come to 7 per cent in only a few months as a consequence of steep fall in the GDP of the country," Singh said.

SC throws out case alleging Modi took cash payments Some forces plotting to split party, is sad and unfortunate that the SuNew Delhi, JaNuary 11 party was referring to a case al- Arun Mishra ruled. won't allow that, says Mulayam Attorney General Mukul Ro- preme Court dismissed my plea," (reuTerS): The Supreme Court ready before India's highest court on Wednesday threw out a case brought by anti-corruption lawyer Prashant Bhushan that accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of accepting suspicious cash payments, dealing a blow to opposition leader Rahul Gandhi who had latched on to the case.

A panel of judges found that there was too little evidence to go on, deflating Gandhi's warnings late last year that he would cause an "earthquake" by unveiling proof that Modi was corrupt.

In the event, it transpired that the heir apparent to the leadership of the opposition Congress

that relied on evidence recovered in income-tax raids on two corporate houses.

Citing written records, the plaintiff alleged that an individual called "Gujarat CM" had received cash payments from companies totalling at least 400 million rupees ($5.9 million) in late 2013 and early 2014.

Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat at the time and went on to win election by a landslide in May 2014.

"There is not enough evidence to order an inquiry into the case.

We are dismissing it," a Supreme Court bench headed by Justice

hatgi, the government's top lawyer, told the court that there was no credible evidence to prove that Modi had been paid off.

"Nobody in the country would be safe if such documents are accepted as legal evidence. Anyone can put the name of anybody on such papers," Rohatgi told the court.

Prashant Bhushan, the anticorruption lawyer who brought the case on behalf of a non-governmental organisation called Common Cause, had urged the court to order a probe into the alleged payments made to public officials. "It

Bhushan told Reuters.

Indian politicians are often dogged by sleaze allegations and many of the country's elected officials face criminal proceedings.

Modi has, however, cultivated a clean image as the son of a humble tea seller.

He shook India in November by scrapping high-value banknotes in a bid to purge the economy of "black money" - the proceeds of illicit business, corruption and tax evasion. The move has caused massive disruption to daily life and business throughout the country of 1.3 billion people.

NHRC seeks amendment of Protection of Human Rights Act BhuBaNeSwar, JaNuary 11 (PTi): Unable to come to the rescue of people sandwiched between Maoists and security personnel in different LWE-hit areas, NHRC today sought amendment in The Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.

Speaking at the end of the commission's threeday camp and open session here, NHRC Chairperson Justice H L Dattu said, "There should be amendment in the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 so that the commission can

take action against officials who ignore its recommendations." " The commission should have the power to start proceedings against officials ignoring recommendations," he told newsmen admitting that NHRC has ended up only as a recommending body.

Since its inception in 1993, NHRC has provided justice, liberty and equality to many victims of human rights violation, he said.

On a question on the plight of people sandwiched between the Mao-

SC cracks whip on NGOs getting government funds New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (iaNS): The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the central government to undertake the audit of NGOs and voluntary organisation receiving government funds, and prosecute them in case of misappropriation or embezzlement of the funds.

A bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar rapped the central government for not putting in place a regulatory mechanism to track the accounts of the NGOs and directed it and Council for Advancement of People's Action and Rural Technology (CAPART) to complete auditing of over 32 lakh NGOs and submit its report by March 31, 2017.

The order came in a petition filed by advocate M. L. Sharma, seeking probe into the funds given to NGOs and their utilisation by them.

The bench said the funds given by CAPART and other departments is public money and must be accounted for.

"So much money running into crores of rupees has been given and you say that you don't have records.

"It can't be," the bench said rejecting the government's submission by the Centre that it does not have records of the money given to the NGOs and voluntary organisations.

The government informed the court that of the nearly 33 lakh NGOs which receive government funds, only about 3 lakh of them filed audited accounts.

Amicus curiae Rakesh Dwivedi told the court that government funds in excess of Rs 9,000 crore were given annually to the NGOs and voluntary organisations.

Taking exception to the affidavit filed by a Deputy Secretary, the court said that all future affidavit should be filed by Additional Secretary level officer with approval of the Secretary. The court also ordered the Centre to frame rules and regulations to accredit the NGOs and voluntary organisations.

ists and the police, Justice Dattu said, "Situation is gradually changing. The chief secretary of Odisha has informed me that incidents of Left Wing Extremism are reported from certain pockets of only two districts. Gradually, things will improve."

Asked about how NHRC could come to the rescue of innocent people caught between Maoists and police, Justice Dattu said, "The government has been working to improve situation in the Maoisthit areas. Things may not

change overnight."

Speaking on imprisonment of certain tribal people on the basis of alleged false cases, Justice Dattu said, "The commission will act if it gets complaints in this regard.

Publish these in newspapers and bring them to our notice."

The commission observed that its recommendation to include human rights in the school curriculum has been accepted by CBSE. Odisha Chief Secretary A P Padhi said he has informed the commission

that the state will include human rights as a subject in the schools from 201819 academic year.

Justice Dattu also said the Commission last year took at least 350 cases suo motu and issued notice to authorities, some of which have been responded.

He said the commission has made certain recommendations to the state government on the issues relating to the food security, rehabilitation of bonded labourers, issuance of case certificates, atrocities in police stations and others.

luckNow, JaNuary 11 (iaNS): Samajwadi Party (SP) Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav made a passionate pitch to his supporters and party workers here on Wednesday and said that while some forces were out to split the party, he was doing everything to ensure that did not happen.

"This party has emerged out of a lot of labour, hard work and struggle of party workers and its founding leaders, I will neither allow it to disintegrate nor the party symbol to go," Mulayam told an unscheduled interaction with workers at the party office at Vikramaditya Marg here.

Appearing resigned to the fate of an imminent split in the party he formed 25 years ago, Mulayam Singh also said he has given everything to the party and that he was left with nothing.

"Mera jo bhi tha, maine party ko de diya hai. Par sabne ye manna chahiye ki yeh party sangharshon se yahan tak pahunchi hai (I have given everything to the party and everyone should accept that the party has

reached here after much struggle)," he said in one emotive tone even as his supporters raised slogans in his favour.

He stated how he had gone to jail during the Emergency when Akhilesh Yadav was a kid. He also mentioned how Shivpal Singh Yadav, his younger brother, who was seated next to him, would bring food for him to the prison during his period of incarceration and later hide it at various places.

Targeting his cousin, Ram Gopal Yadav, who is mentoring the Akhilesh Yadav faction, the Yadav chieftain said everyone now knew who was trying to break the party.

"Everyone knows who has met the leaders of our opponents," the 77-yearold leader said and pointed out that while he has mingled with opposition leaders these were "just social courtesies".

He was apparently referring to potshots taken

by Ram Gopal at him with regards to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence at a family wedding in Saifai, Uttar Pradesh.

He also accused the

Rajya Sabha member, who was expelled from the party on December 30 last year, of going ahead to form a separate party -- the Akhil Bharatiya Samajwadi Party (ABSP) with the party symbol of a motorcycle.

Political observers here feel that Mulayam Singh was now reconciled to the fact that all efforts of a patch-up with his son have failed and that a split in the party is imminent.

A section, however, feels that Mulayam's impromptu speech on Wednesday also signalled that owing to the prospects of his party splitting, he might cede to the demands of his defiant son and not retain the party presidency for himself.

With elections to the state assembly just round the corner and nominations for the first phase of polling to begin on January 17, fear of the party symbol being frozen are doing the rounds in both camps.

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, however, seems to have made up his mind and is now trying to stitch up an alliance with the Congress for the crucial polls.

Air pollution causes 1.2 million deaths in India annually; Delhi most polluted: Greenpeace report New Delhi, JaNuary 11 (PTi): As many as 1.2 million deaths take place every year due to air pollution in India, a Greenpeace India report published today says.

Greenpeace's report, titled 'Airpocalypse,' says Delhi is India's most polluted city.

The report is based on information obtained through online reports and Right to Information applications from State Pollution Control Boards across India, and assessments of air quality performed in 168 cities across 24 states and Union Territories. It claims that none of the 168 cities assessed complies with air quality standards prescribed by the World Health Organization (WHO).

It says the number of deaths in India caused by air pollution is only a "fraction less" than the number of deaths caused by to-

According to the report, 1.2 million deaths take place every year in India due to air pollution, which is only a 'fraction less' than that caused by tobacco usage, and 3% of the GDP is lost due to air pollution. (ReuTeRs File Photo)

bacco usage, and adds that three per cent of the GDP is lost due to air pollution.

"We are facing an apocalypse right now due to unbreathable air, deaths due to air pollution are only a fraction less than those due to use of tobacco yet authorities are laying a deaf

ear to the numerous scientific reports that have set alarm bells ringing," said Sunil Dahiya, campaigner, Greenpeace India.

Greenpeace's report says only a "few" cities in southern India comply with air quality standards prescribed by the Central

Pollution Control Board (CPCB), and pinpoints fossil fuels as one of the "main culprits" for the deteriorating air quality across the country.

"The top 20 most polluted cities have PM 10 levels between 268 g/m3 and 168 g/m3 for the year

2015. While, Delhi tops the list with 268 g/m3, it is followed closely by Ghaziabad, Allahabad, and Bareli in Uttar Pradesh; Faridabad in Haryana; Jharia in Jharkhand; Alwar in Rajasthan; Ranchi, Kusunda and Bastacola in Jharkhand; Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh; and Patna in Bihar with PM10 levels ranging from 258 g/m3to 200 g/m3," the report explains The assessment of air pollution levels for Delhi highlighted that PM10 concentrations are 268 g/m3 for the year 2015, which are 4.5 times higher than the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) annual limit set by CPCB, and about 13 times the annual limit set by WHO for PM10.

Detailed observation of the data suggests that PM10 levels have been very high throughout 2015 for Delhi, with October to February being the severely polluted months when the PM10

concentrations touched 500 g/m3.

Public health and economic crisis Greenpeace's report holds that India's air pollution has become a "public health and economic crisis."

"India's pollution trends have been steadily increasing, with India overtaking China in number of deaths due to outdoor air pollution in 2015. India' s deteriorating air quality demands an urgent robust monitoring system," the report says.

Greenpeace explains that the country's pollution reduction strategies needs to be much more "ambitious, systematic and with focused targets with clear timelines".

It has called for accountability and a compliance mechanism, and says fossil fuel-dependant sectors such as power and transport should be shown no leniency.

ThursdAY 12•01•2017

WORLD

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

9

Obama pushes values in final emotional address CHICAGO, JAnuAry 11 (reuters): With a final call of his campaign mantra “Yes We Can,” President Barack Obama urged Americans on Tuesday to stand up for U.S. values and reject discrimination as the United States transitions to the presidency of Republican Donald Trump.

In an emotional speech in which he thanked his family and declared his time as president the honor of his life, Obama gently prodded the public to embrace his vision of progress while repudiating some of the policies that Trump promoted during his campaign for the White House.

“So just as we, as citizens, must remain vigilant against external aggression, we must guard against a weakening of the values that make us who we are,” Obama told a crowd of 18,000 in his hometown of Chicago, where he celebrated his election in 2008 as the first black president of the United States.

Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, proposed temporarily banning Muslims from entering the country, building a wall on the border with Mexico, upending a global deal to fight climate change and dismantling Obama’s healthcare reform law.

Obama made clear his opposition to those positions during fiery campaign speeches for 2016 Democratic presidential

Barack Obama’s final speech in quotes

US President Barack Obama, his wife Michelle, Vice-President Joe Biden and his wife Jill acknowledge the crowd after President Obama delivered a farewell address at McCormick Place in Chicago on January 10. (REUTERS Photo)

nominee Hillary Clinton, but has struck a more conciliatory tone with Trump since the election.

In his farewell speech, he made clear his positions had not changed and he said his efforts to end the use of torture and close the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, were part of a broader move to uphold U.S. values.

“That’s why I reject discrimination against Muslim Americans,” he said in a clear reference to Trump

that drew applause.

He said bold action was needed to fight global warming and said “science and reason” mattered.

“If anyone can put together a plan that is demonstrably better than the improvements we’ve made to our healthcare system, that covers as many people at less cost, I will publicly support it,” he said in another prodding challenge to his successor.

Trump has urged the Republican-controlled

Congress to repeal the law However, Obama said he right away. remained hopeful about the work that a younger generaRACE AND NOSTALGIA tion would do. “Yes we can,” Obama, who came to he said. “Yes we did.” office amid high expecIn an indirect reference tations that his election to the political work the would heal historic racial Democratic Party will have divides, acknowledged that to do to recover after Clinwas an impossible goal. ton’s loss, Obama urged ra“After my election, there cial minorities to seek justice was talk of a post-racial not only for themselves but America,” he said. “Such a also for “the middle-aged vision, however well-intend- white man who from the ed, was never realistic. Race outside may seem like he’s remains a potent and often got advantages, but who’s divisive force in our society.” seen his world upended

On race After my election, there was talk of a post-racial America. Such a vision, however well-intended, was never realistic. For race remains a potent and often divisive force in our society. I’ve lived long enough to know that race relations are better than they were 10, or 20, or 30 years ago.

On Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson, girl of the South Side, for the past 25 years, you’ve been not only my wife and mother of my children, you have been my best friend. You took on a role you didn’t ask for and you made it your own with grace and grit and style and good humour. You made the White House a place that belongs to everybody.

On his achievements If I had told you eight years ago that America would reverse a great recession, reboot our auto industry, and unleash the longest stretch of job creation in our history… If I had told you that we would open up a new chapter with the Cuban people, shut down Iran’s nuclear weapons programme without firing a shot, and take out the mastermind of 9/11... If I had told you that we would win marriage equality, and secure the right to health insurance for another 20 million of our fellow citizens - you might have said our sights were set a little too high.

On democracy Understand, democracy does not require uniformity. Our founders quarrelled and compromised, and expected us to do the same. But they knew that democracy does require a basic sense of solidarity - the idea that for all our outward differences, we are all in this together; that we rise or fall as one.

by economic, cultural, and technological change.”

Trump won his election in part by appealing to working-class white men.

First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, his wife Jill Biden, and many current and former White House staff members and campaign workers attended the speech. Obama wiped his eyes as he addressed his wife and thanked his running mate. They all appeared together on stage

On climate change Without bolder action, our children won’t have time to debate the existence of climate change; they’ll be busy dealing with its effects: environmental disasters, economic disruptions, and waves of climate refugees seeking sanctuary.

after the address.

The Chicago visit is Obama’s last scheduled trip as president, and even the final flight on the presidential aircraft was tinged with wistfulness.

It was the president’s 445th “mission” on Air Force One, a perk he has said he will miss when he leaves office, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.

All told, Obama will have spent more than 2,800 hours or 116 days on the plane during his presidency.

Obama plans to remain in Washington for the next two years while his younger daughter, Sasha, finishes high school. Sasha, who has an exam on Wednesday, did not attend the speech but her older sister Malia was there.

The president has indicated he wants to give Trump the same space that his predecessor, Republican President George W. Bush, gave Obama after leaving office by not maintaining a high public profile.

China changes start date of war with Japan Taiwan scrambles jets, navy as China aircraft carrier enters Taiwan Strait BeIJInG, JAnuAry 11 (reuters): China will bring forward the start date of the country’s war with Japan by 6 years in education textbooks, a move which will bolster patriotic education, state media reported.

The Chinese War Against Japanese Aggression, China’s name for its war with Japan, will be now be 14 years long, from 1931 to 1945, not the previously taught 8 years, China’s education ministry told schools on Jan. 3.

All classes, textbooks and courses in elementary, middle-schools, highschools and universities will be altered to bring them in line with history experts, said a letter published on Tuesday on the WeChat account of the People’s Daily, the Communist Party’s flagship paper.

The changes make the 1931 Mukden incident, an explosion near a Japanese-owned railway line in northern China that led to Japan’s invasion and occupation of Manchuria, into the starting point for the war, the People’s Daily said.

China to merge state media for stronger voice in financial news BeIJInG, JAnuAry 11 (reuters): China is set to consolidate 5 state media companies to create a “modern financial media group” to increase the state’s voice in economic and financial news coverage, the state-run Xinhua news agency said on Wednesday. Since taking power in 2012, President Xi Jinping, who has called for Beijing to take a bigger role in a global governance system, has stepped up media control and scrutiny to project China’s “soft power” and better communicate its message. The State Council, China’s cabinet, has given Xinhua permission to acquire and consolidate China Securities Journal, Shanghai Securities News, Economic Information Daily and Xinhua Publishing House and launch a new company under the banner China Fortune Media Corporation Group. The new financial news-focused company will be launched in Beijing on Thursday next week.

Previously, the 1937 Marco Polo Bridge Incident, a battle between the Japanese army and China forces near Beijing, had marked the beginning of the war. Linking the two events makes it clear how the regional occupation of north China’s Manchuria later lead to the national war, the paper said, adding the move will also bolster

patriotic education.

Sino-Japan relations have long been affected by what China sees as Japan’s failure to atone for its wartime actions.

Japan changed school textbooks in 2016, revising some references to the 1937 Nanjing Massacre, prompting China to lodge an official protest with Japan in March that year.

tAIPeI, JAnuAry 11 (reuters): Taiwan scrambled jets and navy ships on Wednesday as a group of Chinese warships led by China’s sole aircraft carrier sailed north through the Taiwan Strait, the latest sign of heightened tensions between Beijing and the self-ruled Taiwan.

The Soviet-built Liaoning aircraft carrier, returning from exercises in the South China Sea, was not trespassing in Taiwan’s territorial waters but entered its air defence identification zone (ADIZ) in the southwest, Taiwan’s defence ministry said.

As a result Taiwan scrambled jets and navy ships to “surveil and control” the passage of the Chinese ships through the narrow body of water separating Taiwan and China, Taiwan defence ministry spokesman Chen Chung-chi said.

Taiwanese military aircraft and ships have been deployed to follow the carrier group, which is sailing up the west side of the median line of the strait, he said.

Taiwan’s top policymaker for China affairs on Wednesday urged Beijing to resume dialogue with Taipei, after official communication channels were halted by Beijing from June.

“I want to emphasise our government has sufficient capability to protect our national security.

It’s not necessary to overly panic,” said Chang Hsiaoyueh, minister for Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, during a news briefing in response to reporters’ questions on the Liaoning’s movements.

“On the other hand, any threats would not benefit cross-Strait ties,” she said.

China has said the Liaoning aircraft carrier was on drills to test weapons and equipment in the disputed South China Sea and its movements comply with international law.

On the weekend, a Chinese bomber flew around the Spratly Islands in a show of “strategic force”, a U.S. official said on Tuesday.

The latest Chinese naval exercises have un-

Rohingya crisis: Suu Kyi sends envoy to Bangladesh yAnGOn/DHAKA, JAnuAry 11 (reuters): A special envoy of Myanmar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi will begin top-level talks in Bangladesh on Wednesday, as the United Nations said the Rohingya crisis prompted 65,000 people to flee Myanmar for Bangladesh in the past three months.

Kyaw Tin, Myanmar’s deputy minister of foreign affairs, will make a three-day visit to the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, in a rare diplomatic foray to tackle the biggest challenge facing Nobel Peace laureate Suu Kyi’s nine-month old administration.

The stream of new refugees, and reports that Myanmar’s navy has shot at Bangladeshi fishermen, have further tested historically strained ties between the neighbours, who each see the stateless Rohingya Muslims as the other side’s problem.

The visit marks a shift away from Myanmar’s reluctant approach to cooperation with its western neighbour, which analysts see as key to solving the growing crisis.

Rohingya insurgents attacked Myanmar border posts on Oct. 9, killing nine police. In response Myanmar sent the army into the Muslim-majority northern part of Rakhine State.

Rohingya Muslim refugees in New Delhi, India, hold a banner and placards during a protest against what organisers say is the crackdown on ethnic Rohingyas in Myanmar. (REUTERS File Photo)

Residents and refugees have described summary executions, arbitrary arrests and rape in the operation. Suu Kyi’s government has denied almost all abuse allegations.

During the visit, the neighbours will discuss bilateral relations, but the Myanmar side was unlikely to bring up the “complicated” issue of border security, said Aye Aye Soe, deputy director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“For the border situation, an operation is still in progress to create stability, so I don’t think there

will be a lot of results from this firsttime meeting,” she said.

INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE Kyaw Tin will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday, said a senior official at the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The official, who requested anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media, said Myanmar had initiated the visit “so that Bangladesh does not raise pressure on Myanmar on the Rohingya issue in international forums,”

such as an upcoming meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

Southeast Asia’s Muslim-majority nations, Indonesia and Malaysia, have publicly pressured Myanmar over the crisis.

“Bangladesh has been persuading and pressing in international forums behind the scenes so as not to hamper the relationship,” the Bangladeshi official said.

Talks between the neighbours are complicated by the fact that as many as 500,000 Rohingya who fled to Bangladesh during decades of persecution in Myanmar are not recognised as citizens there either.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that by Jan. 5 about 65,000 more people had arrived in Bangladesh since Oct. 9.

Myanmar’s Aye Aye Soe questioned the U.N. figure, saying anyone claiming to be a refugee from Myanmar would have to be scrutinised.

She referred to a longstanding government policy that repatriation talks can only cover 2,415 people in Bangladesh whom Myanmar recognises as citizens.

“We need to make sure how many people arrived and where they are from, but no one can confirm exactly,” she said.

China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier with accompanying fleet conducts a drill in an area of South China Sea, in this undated photo taken December, 2016. (REUTERS File Photo)

nerved Beijing’s neighbours, especially Taiwan which Beijing claims as its own, given long-running territorial disputes in the South China Sea. China claims most of the energy-rich waters of the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. Neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims.

China distrusts Taiwan

President Tsai Ing-wen and has stepped up pressure on her after U.S. Presidentelect Donald Trump broke years of diplomatic protocol and took a congratulatory call last month from Tsai.

Trump then riled China by casting doubt on the “one China” policy that Beijing regards as the basis of U.S.-Chinese relations.

Tsai drew anger from China again when she met senior U.S. Republican lawmakers in Houston on

Sunday en route to Central America, in a controversial transit stop that Beijing had asked the United States to not allow.

Beijing suspects Tsai wants to push for the island’s formal independence, a red line for the mainland, which has never renounced the use of force to bring what it deems a renegade province under its control. Tsai says she wants to maintain peace with China.

Kremlin says it has no compromising dossier on Trump MOsCOW, JAnuAry 11 (reuters): The Kremlin said on Wednesday it was “total nonsense” that Russian officials had assembled a file of compromising information on U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Two U.S. officials said on Tuesday evening that the heads of four U.S. intelligence agencies had last week presented Trump with classified documents which included unverified claims that Russian intelligence operatives had compromising information about him.

Addressing reporters on a conference call, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the dossier containing the claims was a hoax which had been dreamt up to further harm U.S.-Russia relations, which are already at their lowest level since the Cold War. “It is an attempt to damage our bilateral relations. It is pulp fiction,” said Peskov, who also roundly dismissed as false assertions in the dossier that he himself was heavily involved in running a Russian campaign to undermine defeated presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

“You have to react to this with a certain humour, but there’s also a sad side to this.

Hysteria is being whipped up to maintain a political witch hunt.” Peskov said the

Kremlin did not engage in compiling compromising dossiers on anyone and was focused on building relations with Russia’s foreign partners instead. On Tuesday evening, Trump dismissed the reports that Russia had compromising information on him. “FAKE NEWS - A TOTAL POLITICAL WITCH HUNT!” he wrote in a Twitter post.

Asked to respond to the prospect of new U.S. sanctions affecting Russia’s oil and gas sector, Peskov said such measures, if they happened, would damage Russia, bilateral ties, and the global economy. The Russian energy sector would definitely get compensation if such sanctions were imposed, he added.

Peskov said the Kremlin was unfazed by reports that Trump’s pick for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, would say at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday that Russia posed a danger. It has previously praised Tillerson, who has experience of working with top Russian officials in the oil sector.

Peskov said the Kremlin stood by its assessment of Tillerson as someone who was willing to listen and was constructive, but was aware he was likely to be a tough operator too.

THURSDAY 12•01•2017

SPORTS

10

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Harden plays down MVp talk after latest NbA triple, cavaliers downed

Los AngeLes, JAnuAry 11 (AFP): Houston star James Harden played down talk of being this season's NBA MVP after his latest highscoring triple-double as the Cleveland Cavaliers stumbled to defeat against Utah.

Harden, one of several players excelling in a high-scoring season across the league, on Tuesday finished with 40 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists as Houston improved to 31-9 with a 121-114 win over the Charlotte Hornets.

The Rockets talisman came to Houston's rescue after Charlotte staged a dramatic fourth quarter fightback to take a shock lead.

Houston appeared to be cruising to victory after Corey Brewer's threepointer gave them a 108-90 lead with around eight minutes left.

But Charlotte responded with a 21-2 rally which featured four consecutive three-pointers as the Hornets edged into a 111-110 advantage with just over two minutes to go.

Harden steadied the ship however with an assist for Ryan Anderson's three-pointer before adding two layups to settle Houston's nerves.

Harden's late intervention to secure the game capped another performance likely to ensure he re-

Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) dribbles past Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) during the first quarter of an NBA game at the Toyota Center, Houston. (Houston Chronicle)

mains firmly in the conversation for NBA MVP. The 27-year-old however said he is not thinking about personal glory as he spearheads Houston's drive towards the postseason.

"As long as I play the right way and be unselfish and we win games, all of that is going to come," Harden said of MVP speculation.

"I don't really put too much into that or think about it too much. If it

happens it happens. The most impor- poured on 41 points as the Raptant thing is winning." tors snapped their two-game losing streak with a 114-106 victory over the - LeBron, Cavs stumble Boston Celtics.

In Salt Lake City, LeBron James DeRozan grabbed 13 rebounds scored a game-high 29 points it and made eight of nine shots from the was not enough to prevent the NBA foul line to help the Raptors improve champion Cleveland Cavaliers slipto 25-13 at the Air Canada Centre. ping to defeat against the Jazz, who Toronto's win came courtesy of a improved 24-16 with the win. fourth quarter scoring spree which Cleveland, which fell to 28-9, was saw them go on a 19-4 run that swung undone by a potent all-round scorthe game decisively in their favour. ing display from Utah led by Gordon It was the Celtics' first defeat in Hayward with 29 points and Rodney five games and saw them fall to 23-15.

Hood (18 points). No fewer than six DeRozan's masterclass was Jazz players finished with double figbacked by a stalwart display from ures on the night.

While Cleveland struggled, the center Jonas Valanciunas, who finGolden State Warriors marched on in ished with 23 rebounds and 18 points.

Toronto coach Dwane Casey paid their home game against the Miami tribute to Los Angeles-born DeRoHeat, winning 107-95.

Kevin Durant topscored for the zan's virtuoso display.

"He's a tough kid, he didn't grow Warriors with 28 points while Steph up in Compton for nothing," Casey Curry had a relatively quiet night said. with 24 points.

"He's a tough kid. More than anyThe win stretched Golden State's lead at the top of the Western Confer- thing else, the 41 points is nice, but 13 ence standings at 33-6, with San An- rebounds, the 11 defensive rebounds tonio second on 30-8. when we needed it...

The Spurs meanwhile fell 109"DeMar came in and got some big 107 against the Milwaukee Bucks, rebounds, tough rebounds, so that Michael Beasley top-scoring for the was impressive. That was more of a visitors with 28 points. sign of grit and grind as much as the In Toronto, DeMar DeRozan 41 points."

Knicks fine Rose for Pelicans no-show new york, JAnuAry 11 (reuters): The New York Knicks fined guard Derrick Rose an undisclosed amount on Tuesday, a day after he left the team unannounced due to a 'family issue'.

Rose did not show for the Knicks' 110-96 loss to the New York Pelicans on Monday and the team was unsure of his whereabouts.

The former MVP returned to practice on Tuesday and apologized to the team.

"It had nothing to do with the team or basketball," Rose told reporters, declining to elaborate.

"That's the first time I ever felt like that emotionally and I had to be with family.

"Everybody's on the same page now."

Rose, 28, has had a trying season in his first with the Knicks (17-21). He was benched for the full fourth quarters of consecutive games prior to Monday, but denied that any disgruntlement led to him leaving the team.

The Knicks said they expect Rose to be in uniform on Wednesday against Philadelphia.

public discourse

To Sign or Not to Sign: What does Nagas think about Naga?

Pamreihor Khashimwo

2

017 will be an important but difficult year for Naga. While the world is entering into the brand new year, Naga is expecting from the crucial and protracted peace negotiation which kickstarted in 1997, which are expected to be a fierce intellectual battle. Modi can prove to be “make it or break it” moment in Naga’s relations with the India, which are presently in a watershed moment. The Naga saw her imprisonment (hunger of power, corruption and the focused now on material accumulation for their selfish attainment of artificial status in society) along with the lack of New Delhi political commitment to resolve the issues. This was compounded by a deterioration of democratic values of NSCN (IM), which spearheading the political negotiation. Amid concern over the way the political process was being conducted, many Naga organisations and individual concern have been seriously voicing, that the dialectical approach of both NSCN (IM) and New Delhi and could derail the peace process, which has spent the last 19 years negotiating.

At the first glance, what does Nagas think about Naga? Might seem a strange question. However, it is the one that many populations of Naga as well as the India are increasingly asking themselves and understandably so. After so many years of the negotiation, India seems to have lost interest in it. The primacy that Naga issue once assumed in Indian domestic issues and foreign policy has rapidly vanished. What do the Naga want?

What does Indian think about IndoNaga peace negotiation? Is there any vision left? From start, the ceasefire has rested on a gamble. When Naga leaders opted for a ceasefire in 1997, they wagered that Naga’s could converge toward one another; with all the different tribes demographically living in different states, would have become a little more like one, by accepting each other to form a consoli-

dated “Nagalim” as a one common body. This did not occur. Today, Naga is political, socially, and economically in mess, the true implications of this gamble are becoming clear. The struggle continues with no sign of political pact almost after 20 years of negotiations, which led to vulnerability instead of freedom, indebtedness instead of autonomy, poverty instead of prosperity and a deep political, economic and spiritual crisis instead of hope, optimism, and fraternity. And yet desired for freedom lived on.

James A. Barker III former US secretary of State once said, “Almost every achievement contains within its success the seeds of a future problem.” This political and social mess provides a trenchant example of this phenomenon. When the long sought but uncertain implementation of a cease-fire finally began, as a part of a bundle of deals that produced Naga under one umbrella, it represents a significant accomplishment. The implementation of cease-fire provided the necessary catalyst for all the success of that achievement, however, is left behind fateful seeds, which is sprouting. The mess resulted not only from the Government of India insincerity, lack of political vision and divide and rule policy but also from flaws in our leaders approach and long-term decline in interest in true Naga issues cooperation. We are in muddling through the period.

The Naga leaders have done a remarkable job managing the shortterm symptoms of the chaos, although the costs have been great and tragic. Yet the long-term challenge remains. For this to happen, Naga must align politically, socially and other areas, which will first require Naga to reject the common misdiagnoses of the current mess. It is the result of a fundamental disequilibrium within the single political zone, which the current leaders applies a single political and social policy to diverse tribal groups. Thus, presence leaders must trust in the essentially democratic nature of the Naga society, which

will encourage them to distribute the cost of convergence more fairly within and among the tribes. The burden must be shifted from the topdown public policy to periphery political, social and economic activities of respective tribes who involves in the mainstream of the society. If this does not occur, then survival of the so-called Nagalim will be called into question and Naga will face a longterm social, economic and political catastrophic that could drain its political strength and social coherence for the rest of this decade and beyond.

If the Naga is to continue to function, some damage limitation is needed. Our leaders must show constructive leadership role which includes greater willingness to discuss people contribution in strengthening the nation formation as demanded, as well as the presentation of a vigorous case to the people, that saving the political aspiration and achievement the political aspiration lie at the heart of Naga national interest. Our current leaders have thus far reacted to this stunning loss of momentum by entering a holding pattern. The hope is to buy enough time for new leaders to emerge who will reclaim the Naga project. However, buying time may not be the best the leaders can do for now. The Naga needs a new generation of leaders who can breathe life into a project that is perilously close to expiring in this unthinking generation. For now, they are nowhere to be found. However, history is knocking on our door. So what will determine whether the Naga stalls in its Naga projects or moves forward? The current political negotiation with the government of India narrative is unsure, fragmented and does not provide the necessary political foundation for a wide-ranging institutional capacity building. The lack of consensus about the correct political formula for Naga seriously compromises any further progress. Today we are witnessing a rise of political intolerance, crony capitalism, and social detachment in Naga society. Now is the

time for Naga to produce a constructive result from the crisis with strong political will and creativity to respond with decisive innovation. There has been a striking lack of coordinated political leadership across the Naga area in the face of political pressure.

Dialoguing is the best way to unlock misunderstanding.

Here, look at the history of how the European Union (EU) come into existing, the essential point is not only that cooperation is possible but also that it is, more importantly, desirable to improve economic development, political stability, and social well-being. The fact that the European countries that had been involved in two bloodied devastating wars were capable of cooperating under the umbrella of the EU and the euro has become extremely significance on contemporary politics. The EU has an excellent record of recovering from crisis and moving ahead even stronger than before due to firm political will. It is astounding that the states of Europe, so long used to deals with each other with bayonets and tanks, are now tightly bound together within a series of interlocking laws and institutions. This degree of integration of sovereign nation-states is unprecedented in modern times and has formed the basis of the peace and prosperity of Europe. In pursuing their political integration through institutional and market means rather than warfare and territorial acquisition the EU has created a new type of political entity in the global system, one whose tight institutional linkages and political community will. As the EU’s experience demonstrates, historical reconciliation is a critical element in developing the necessary political will for cooperation.

In stark contrast, there has been no such effort in our struggle. Perhaps, that fresh breeze of air to get the Naga ship sailing again. Only together we can generate the policies and institutions.

Observing under the magnifying lens, collective leader’s policy on

Naga political issue appears to be undefined based on tactics rather than strategy. It lacks a political vision and wisdom and uncomfortable with the active independent participation of people. In the background, three major developments have triggered a change in New Delhi views and policy towards the Naga issue: first, a shifting definition of the Naga national interest, second, new perceptions and priorities alongside a transformed domestic agenda and third, the demise of a responsive political milieu. At no time in the history of the Naga national movement, the leaders have been less popular at home and leadership role has been of less relevance- but even that seems to be of little significance in the political discourse of the Naga. The approval rates of Indo-Naga peace negotiation have been declining and the Naga public and elites would like to see the negotiation as the maximalist end game. The changes in Naga political scenario have certainly influenced the metamorphosis of India’s political landscape. Seemingly, the negotiation has its lowest point and collective leadership finds itself in conceptual disarray. A disruption or breakdown of the hard earn peace process would be a disaster for Naga political movement and India’s domestic political discourse and international image. The strategic approach would be to regain lost public trust over the overdue negotiation.

Such is the Naga dilemma. What Naga’s ready to do didn’t settle the issue.

What could resolve the problem, New Delhi isn’t willing to do.

If the latest Naga accord is everything its most optimistic reading promises, it would underline one of the most resilient truths of ancient statecraft. Many years have passed since the signing of ceasefire agreement and more than one years have passed after the ‘Framework Agreement,’ which provide a closer than ever before to the final settlement and hope in times of no hope to conclude it sooner than lat-

er, this will usher in a new political era for all Naga, unfortunately the agreement has not been finalized yet. The ‘Framework Agreement’ informs that New Delhi has projected it as the first concrete fruition of the peace process in Nagaland, both the parties claimed that now the negotiation has a focus-oriented approach to push for a final acceptable solution. However, both the parties remained tight-lipped on the content of the agreement, calling as ‘sensitive subject’ conceding only that it lays down broad principle within which final agreement will be based. While ambiguity surrounding the ‘hidden contents’ of so-called the ‘Framework Agreement’ persists, some developments give an indication of the course of the talks. One of the major challenges for finalising a settlement is the drafting of an “inclusive solution” with a single Naga group. There are several Naga militant factions, as well as political and tribal groups fighting for. Further, the spreading speculations about the contents of the agreements have also complicated issues on the ground.

Given the current Naga political scenario, any persistence of uncertainty can only feed the forces of destabilisation. Even if a final settlement is not imminent, greater clarity on the status of the peace process, and on the terms of negotiations currently prevailing, can help contribute to a greater sense of calm in Nagaland and its neighbouring states. Crucially, whether the present accord eventually works out as a Naga accord or simply as an NSCN (IM) accord; as a pattern of piece-meal appeared appeasement that the Naga have repeatedly rejected over the past several decades remains to be seen.

This will test the political sagacity of both New Delhi and of the NSCN (IM) leadership.

Pamreihor Khashimwo is a Doctoral Candidate at the Centre for European Studies, School of International Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

Women Empowerment: Indispensable for Human Well-Being Dr. Yelhi Vero

Duncan Basti, Dimapur

H

uman Development Reports have recognized and noted that women play a very important role in building up a society. Also, it argued that women and men share many aspects of living together; collaborate with each other in complex and ubiquitous ways, yet, end up-often-with very different rewards and deprivations. Women played physically demanding role and undergone many challenges and hardships within families as well as in societies.

However, despite their enormous contribution towards refining a society, asymmetry and inequity are unfortunately a fact of life for women.

Paul Streeten, a well known former Professor of Economics at Boston University and a close associate of UNDP Human Development Reports, has stated that the prevailing gender-gap combined with social attitude towards women has resulted

in pushing down the women to the marginal level. Such prevalence has restraint the warranted growth of human well-being.

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in 1994 explains empowerment as a process which divided power from powerful to the powerless. At Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia during 24th -27th October 2005, the United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW), Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) held Expert Group Meeting (EGM) discussion on “Equal Participation of Women and Men in Decision-Making Processes, with Particular Emphasis on Political Participation and Leadership”.

The EGM in their recommendations has given special emphasis on the words ‘ACTORS’ of various agencies like government actors, political party actors, civil society actors, etc. because it is the few ‘actors’ who play major role in formulating and implementing policies and programmes of any organisations.

In Naga society, there is no open discrimination against women, but it is an undeniable fact that the gap between the genders persists particularly in activities like farming, household chores, decision makings, etc.

The gender disparities in areas like education and health are decreasing but in terms of economic workforce participation and decision making, it is still a matter of concern.

For an instance, it has found from the study that in Nagaland, domestic chores such as cleaning, washing, cooking, taking care of children and sickness are mostly done by the womenfolk where the degree of disparity between men and women, in this regard, is as high as ninety-three percent. It is also found that men folk spent much more of his time for social activities like meeting, discussion, planning, etc. where the degree of differences comes out to be as high as ninety percent and what is more distressing is that men, the head of the family, spends almost three hours leisurely on average in a day, while

womenfolk gets only about half an hour rest which shows that the degree of differences between the two is as high as eighty-five percent.

Further, in decision making on family expenditure, it is found that the household expenditure decision making is male domain in Naga society. The study to this effect has confirmed that in thirty-four percent of the households, the decision on family expenditure was made solely by men folk, while that of women was twenty percent. This is mainly due to patriarchal pattern of social system in Naga society, where father is considered as the head of the family. Nevertheless, it is observed that the joint decision in household expenditure is found to be forty-four percent, which is higher than that of men and women alone. This implies that although women participation in household decision making is accommodating, their participation is still much lesser than men in Naga society.

However, in spite of differences and being lesser privileged, there is a

huge contribution of women on human well-being. Study has proved that women education has very significant impact on per capita income, domestic health care as well as availing in medical facilities and stabilizing population growth.

Also, in decision making over expenditure, the management system is found to be different between men and women. Study shows that in Nagaland, when women were given opportunity to participate in decision making on family expenditure, the fund flow is more towards human development such as education, food, medicine and sanitation were higher than that of men. Data shows that in households, when women solely take family expenditure decision, their expenditure towards human development were higher than when taken jointly (by men and women) by four percent and also higher than when taken solely by men by nine percent.

Thus, it is obvious that in spite of being lesser privileged in many aspects than men, when given the opportu-

nity, women’s ability and concentration towards human well-being is better than that of men.

Thus, empowering women through education and participation greatly enhance human development not only in terms of raising income level and health consciousness but also largely on management system of the financial affairs towards human well-being. Therefore, opportunity extending towards women empowerment cannot be ignored in order to building up the family and hence the society as well. Until such time, there would be lesser progress towards human well-being in the society. In this connection, it is felt relevant to quote an American Suffragist Alice Paul’s (1885-1977) statement that “there will be never a new world order until women are a part of it”.

Also, former United Nations General Secretary Kofi Annan said, “there is no tool for development more effective than women empowerment”. Rise and Build.

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.

Thursday 12•01•2017

EntErtainmEnt

Matt Damon to hit Indian screens on February 3

O

scar-winning actor Matt Damon's 3D action-thriller "The Great Wall" is set to release in India on February 3.

The Zhang Yimou directorial will be released in the country by Universal

Pictures India, read a statement by the studio.

"The Great Wall" also stars Jing Tian, Pedro Pascal and Willem Dafoe.

In the film, Damon stars as William Garin, a battle-scarred mercenary

and master archer taken captive by a secret army of elite warriors known as The Nameless Order.

In a vast military outpost called the Fortress City, they fight to protect humanity from supernatu-

Soulja Boy and Chris Brown to fight in Dubai?

ral forces upon one of the greatest defensive structures - The Great Wall of China.

On his journey, Garin is joined by Pedro Pascal as his sword-wielding sidekick, Pero Tovar, a tough, wise-cracking Spaniard who has become a brother-in-arms to Garin; and Oscar-nominee Willem Dafoe as Ballard, a prisoner inside the fortress who plans his escape from his long-time captors.

The action-fantasy marks Yimou's first English language production.

Elle Fanning stays off social media to maintain 'mystery'

E

lle Fanning says she stays away from social media as she likes to keep a 'little mystery' about her life. The 'Neon Demon' star said she tries not to post too much on Instagram as she wants the public to think about her as the character and not her normal self.

"I recently turned my Instagram public on my 18th birthday, but I still don't post everything I do, and I'm not on Twitter or Facebook. You have to leave a little mystery. "With old movie stars, all you saw were rare interviews where they only shared what they wanted to - that's what made them so interesting. You could separate the characters from the women, so if you watch them on screen you're not thinking about what they had for breakfast," Fanning said.

Source: PTI

Source: IANS

Shilpa Shetty proud to host fundraiser in London

B

ollywood actress, who has associated with British boxer Amir Iqbal Khan to host a charity concert to raise funds for orphans, is proud of the initiative and has urged people to donate. Shilpa on Wednesday tweeted: "Proud to announce my first international fundraiser for Shilpa Shetty Foundation in association with Amir Iqbal Khan. Orphan Aid London. April 29, 2017.

Donate."

Shilpa Shetty Foundation works towards transforming lives of orphan children. The 41-year-old actress also shared a photograph of herself along with her husband Raj Kundra and the professional boxer. The event is slated to be held on April 29.

Now ShowiNg revIseD TICKeT rATes (silver) : `.120 (Gold) : `. 200 (recliner) : `. 400

Source: IANS

Sylvester Stallone to open boxing studio 'Rumble'

A

S

C M Y K

oulja Boy and Chris Brown may take their boxing match to Dubai. The 26-year-old rapper and the 'Loyal' hitmaker who are embroiled in a bitter feud and have exchanged blows on social media were originally meant to settle their differences in the ring in Las Vegas, but are now looking at relocating to the Middle East over concerns the pair wouldn't pass the strict guidelines put in place before the boxing commission gives them the okay to be able to fight.

Regardless of where the fight takes place, the feuding stars are set to show the battle which has yet to be given a firm date, though it is expected to take

place in March on Pay-Per-View television, which according to the New York Post newspaper, could see them rake in millions from across the globe.

According to advertisements, the match will consist of three rounds, and will see the 'Crank That' hitmaker who is being trained by floyd mayweather take on the 27-year-old, who is receiving help from boxing legend Mike Tyson.

Chris and Soulja Boy's feud kicked off after Chris vowed to fight the 'Kiss Me Thru The Phone' rapper - real name DeAndre Cortez Way - for liking a picture of his ex-lover Karrueche Tran.

ction star Sylvester Stallone, best known for his portrayal of boxer Rocky Balboa in the 'Rocky' franchise, has invested in a new boxing studio named Rumble. The 70-year-old actor is expected to make an appearance at the launch of the studio, reported Femalefirst.

Rumble, which is reported to be the "most anticipated group-fitness concept, will open its first studio in New York City. It has already planned two more studio openings in New York City this year, with expansion on the West Coast of America already underway.

Source: PTI

Source: Contactmusic

Karan Johar invited as cultural leader in World Economic Forum

F

ilmmaker Karan Johar has been invited to the World Econonic Forum as a cultural leader. The event will take place in Davos Klosters, Switzerland, from January 17 to 20. "I am honoured to be invited as one of the cultural leaders on this prolific platform. Representing my country and reflecting my ethos and the sentiments of my land on a global level is always exhilarating and empowering.

"Also, it's a solid meeting ground of minds and personalities, which I am looking forward to engulf and experience fully," Johar said in a statement. Personalities such as Amitabh Bachchan, A R Rahman and Mallika Sarabhai have been previously invited to Davos.

03862-237226 Ticket Counter (09:00 AM - 09:00 PM)

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Ward 5 (6) Burma Camp, Landmark - Near J.K Hospital Dimapur.

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Hillstar NOW SHOWING PAsseNGers (3D)

Source: PTI

11:00AM | 05:00PM

DANGAl

Fifth Harmony to debut as a Quartet

T

he girl group became a foursome following Camila Cabello's exit last month (Dec16), shortly after she performed a taped appearance for DICk Clark's New Year's Rockin'

Eve show, which aired in America on 31 December (16). The remaining members of the band released an official new photo of the group last week (ends06Jan17), and on 18 January (17), they'll hit the stage at

the People's Choice Awards. Fifth Harmony won their first People's Choice Award last year (16) for Favorite Group. They are nominated Khrieneituo Kense and friends present jubilee song of the Northern Angami Sports Asin the same category this year. sociation (Group D) 25th sports meet at the inaugural function at Botsa in Kohima district Source: Contactmusic on January 11. (Morung Photo)

02:00PM | 08:00PM

12

THURSDAY 12•01•2017

SPORTS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

NASA-D 25th Sports Meet underway WASA Games and Athletics Meet underway We must protect and promote our indigenous games: Rio Our Correspondent Botsa | January 11

C M Y K

The 25th Sports Meet of Northern Angami Sports’ Association (Group D) got underway here this morning at Botsa Local Ground with Lok Sabha MP Neiphiu Rio as chief guest.

Addressing the inaugural function, Rio said the spirit and the platform of games and sports is like festivals which in turn develop friendship and bring peace and unity among the people.

He also stated that sports not only contribute to one’s physical fitness but it also generate wealth as well as evolve positive mindset of the people.

In this, he called upon the youth to involve in the field of games and sports with seriousness.

He expressed happiness over the determined and jubilant mood of the participants from 12 villages under NASA Group D gathered to compete in various events in the four day long sports meet.

He encouraged them to display sportsmanship spirit and give their best to

D delivered presidential address while Organizing Committee Convenor Er. Kezhazelhou Theiinuo delivered welcome address.

Administration of Oath was led by NASA-D Wrestling Secretary Abei Rio. The four day long meet will be marked by track & field event, football, wrestling, volleyball, Sepaktakraw, badminton, table tennis, bamboo stilt walk and Tholi.

The 12 participating villages in this ongoing sports meet include: Chiechama, Botsa, Tuophe Phezou, Gariphe Basa, Tsiemekhu Basa, Seiyhama, Nachama, Tuophema, Gariphema, Tsiemekhuma, Teichiima and Seiyha Phesa.

The meet will conclude on January 14 with Dr. NeiNeiphiu Rio and others after unveiling a monolith in commemoration of 25th sports meet of phrezo Keditsu, MLA and NASA-Group D on January 11 at Botsa. Morung Photo Chairman NSMDC Pvt. Ltd excel in various disciplines. tional level and urged upon it receives due recognition as the guest of honour.

Rio told them not to dis- them to give due attention from others. continue the sports activity and make it happen.

In this, he said, we must NASA-D Wrestling winners from this level but to carry it Also stressing on the protect and promote our 1st: Keduovilie Zumuforward and aim for higher need promote the indig- indigenous games.

Tuophema village excellence at the district, enous games with special He also unveiled a 2nd: Kezhabou Zumustate, national and interna- reference to Naga wres- monolith in commemora- Tuophema village tional level. tling, Rio said that indig- tion of the 25th Sports Meet 3rd: Kikruvilie ZumuHe said many youth enous games form an inte- of NASA- D. Tuophema village from this area have poten- gral part of protecting one’s Earlier, Er. Neisatuo 4th: Vizoseu Methatial to reach to the interna- culture and traditions and Zumvii, President NASA- Chiechama village.

We deserve more World Cup slots, says Asian boss

Kuala lumPur, January 11 (aFP): Asia's football chief said the region "deserves more slots" at the World Cup, as FIFA's decision to expand the tournament to 48 teams from 2026 was cheered in countries from China to New Zealand.

Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said Asia's size and economic might merited more than its current allocation of four guaranteed spots, which is expected to rise to eight.

Chinese state media said the move could help realise the country's "dream" of returning to the World Cup, while New Zealand, which looks set to be a key beneficiary, called the move "fantastic news".

Many critics have rounded on the decision, complaining it will dilute the quality of the World

Cup and saying it was driven by hunger for profits and political gain.

But Sheikh Salman, president of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), said it would have a "positive impact on Asian football".

"We believe that Asia, as the biggest continent, deserves more slots compared with the current quota, looking at the economic power it has, and the popularity for the game in Asia, in addition to the huge development for football at all levels," he said in a statement.

Sheikh Salman is a vice-president of the FIFA Council, which on Tuesday approved the move to increase the number of World Cup competitors from 32 to 48 teams, the biggest rise in its history.

The expansion was a key election promise of FIFA president Gianni In-

55th SASA MEET

Kohima, January 11 (mExn): The 55th Southern Angami Sports Association (SASA) Meet will be held at Jakhama Ground from January 23 to 26. MLA Er. Vikho-o Yhoshii will be the Chief Host while MLA Er. Kropol Vitsu will be the Guest of Honour.

Lt. Haiziurangbe Memorial Tournament

PErEn, January 11 (mExn): The 1st Open Volley Ball tournament in memory of late Haiziurangbe will be held at Deukwaram village, Peren on January 24, a press release informed. The winning team will receive Rs. 30000 with certificate while the runner up will be awarded Rs. 15000 along with certificate. The Best Disciplined Team and the Best Player will be given Rs. 1000 and Rs. 500 respectively. Entry for the tournament is set at Rs. 1000. Teams, clubs, and youth organisations of Peren district interested in participating can contact at 9436240529/9612472016 for further details.

MDCA Tourney: Suzerain, Rainbow post easy wins

moKoKchung, January 11 (mExn): On a relatively low scoring day, Suzerain CC and Rainbow CC posted comfortable wins in the ongoing 25th Anniversary of the Mokokchung District Cricket Association (MDCA) Tournament at the Imkongmeren Sports Complex on Wednesday.

Suzerain defeated Zero Boys ‘A’ by 6 wickets in the first match while Rainbow CC beat Jovial CC by 7 wickets.

Batting first, Zero Boys ‘A’ scored 108/9 in 20 overs with Temjentenzuk top scoring with 37 runs. Meren of Suzerain was the pick of the bowlers claiming 4/13 in his quota of 4 overs. Suzerain CC in reply chased down the target in 18.3 overs losing 4 wickets.

In the second match, Rainbow’s Viza wrecked the Jovial batting order restricting them to a measly 83/9 in 20 overs. Viza scalped 4 wickets in 4 overs that included a hat trick and conceded just 9 runs.

Rainbow CC chased down the target in just the 14th over with Talikaba leading the attack who scored 43 not out and supported by Asemba (20). Odilemba (3/15) was the only successful bowler for Jovial CC. Today’s Fixture: Brotherhood CC vs Sorvran Kings (8:00 am) Titans CC vs Mokokchung DC XI (12:00 Noon)

fantino, who beat Sheikh Salman to the post in polls early last year.

A confidential FIFA report seen by AFP forecasts a 48-team tournament would bring a cash boost of $640 million (605 million euros) above projected revenues for next year's edition in Russia.

- 'No longer just a dream' Asian countries have largely failed to make an impact at the World Cup, which is dominated by European and South American teams, although cohosts South Korea reached the semi-finals in 2002.

In China, who are 82nd in the FIFA rankings but have set their sights on becoming a global football power, the official Xinhua news agency said FIFA's move represented a big opportunity.

"Even if the levels of skill and strategy in the

Chinese men's football do not grow in leaps and bounds by 2026, the initial objectives of (China's) football reform will have been realised," a Xinhua commentary said.

"By then, with the added bonus of World Cup expansion, it is highly possible that China's return to the World Cup will no longer be just a dream."

Football Federation Australia chief executive David Gallop said FIFA's move "recognised the growth of the game outside of Europe and South America".

"As the quality of Asian football continues to improve, AFC member associations will justifiably deserve greater representation at the FIFA World Cup," he said in a statement.

Japan coach Vahid Halilhodzic said the expan-

sion "makes sense", while Japan Football Association chief Kozo Tashima told local media: "We would like to see the extra profits shared with many countries.

"We will discuss the issue of Asian slots but we would hope they will be increased by one, two or three."

New Zealand look certain to qualify if Oceania, by far the weakest of the six FIFA confederations, get a guaranteed World Cup spot.

New Zealand Football chief Andy Martin hailed the prospect of "giant-killing" opportunities and said any surprise results in the World Cup will "add to the quality of the competition, no doubt".

American Samoa's football body jokingly tweeted: "Congratulations @NZ_Football who have qualified for the 2026 World Cup!"

Our Correspondent Kohima | January 11

The Western Angami Sports Association (WASA) games and athletics meet 2017 commenced today at WAPO ground, Sechü Zubza.

Over 200 sportspersons from the villages under Western Angami region, comprising four groups, are taking part in the threeday event which will conclude on January 13.

The inaugural function was graced by Zhaleo Rio, Member of Legislative Assembly, Government of Nagaland, as the chief guest.

In his address, Zhaleo advised the sportspersons to not merely participate in games and sports, but urged them to take part with commitment having the determination to reach the top.

“In our context, many sportspersons tend to have a ‘very casual approach’ to the annual games and sports activities/tournaments organized at the village or range level. It is time we should do away with this casual attitude,” he said making his observation known that many players only practice during sports event.

“To achieve at the top

level of competition, you need to be fit keep and training yourself all the time,” Zhaleo said mentioning that there is no substitute to hard work and dedication.

Stating that aspiring sportspersons should start training from a very young age, he also underlined the need for guidance and counselling in order to identify and mould them.

“We have to catch them (players) young. Here it is the responsibility of the youth leaders and sports organisations to identify talents at young age and mould them to the fullest. There should not be any space for lackadaisical attitude or approach,” he added.

Although conceding that the sports infrastructure in the State is poor, he observed that our inability to achieve at higher level could be because of our half-hearted approach in doing things.

He also underscored the need for preserving our rich tradition and culture, which he said is our identity. “We are in the 21st century. No doubt we have to import the western culture which comes to our advantage, but that does not mean we have to ignore our culture and traditions,” he said caution-

ing that we will be left unrecognized before the world if we lose our identity.

The inaugural function, chaired by WASA General Secretary Zhasa Sirie, commenced with invocation pronounced by Khriengulie Kuotsu, Pastor, Sechü Zubza Baptist Church.

WASA President Kobou Mezhünyü delivered the welcome address, while a special song was presented by the youth department of Sechü Zubza Catholic Church. WASA Games & Athletics Secretary, Khriesakuolie Khawakhrie administered oath to players.

The teams will be competing in athletic events and games including football, volleyball, sepaktakraw, badminton and table tennis.

The selected players will represent WASA at the forthcoming Angami Sports Association meet to be held tentatively in the month of February.

Meanwhile, it has been announced that the WASA wrestling meet is tentatively scheduled on January 25, 2017 at Kohima Local Ground.

The closing function, on January 13, would be graced by Lhouphrevilie Rino, President, Western Angami Public Organisation, as the guest of honour.

Pacquiao set to return to ring

BriSBanE, January 11 (aP): Manny Pacquiao will add another fight to his long career resume when he takes on Australian welterweight Jeff Horn on April 23 at a venue to be decided.

Promoter Duco Events said Wednesday the location for the fight involving the 38-year-old Pacquiao could be in one of Australia's major cities, possibly Horn's hometown of Brisbane, or the Middle East or United States.

“The preference for all parties is for the fight to be held in Australia, and we are working towards this outcome,” said Duco director Dean Lonergan, who met with Top Rank chief Bob Arum this week to set up the fight.

Arum said he wants Wrestlers in action during 71st Wrestling cum Sports Meet of Viswema Youth Organization at John Government Higher Secondary School Ground, Viswema in Kohima district on Janu- the fight to take place at ary 10. Swedevil Vitsu, Keselvi Mekro, Kevime Vitsu and Tepudi Neikha stood 1st, 2nd, 3rd an outdoor stadium, and it and 4th position respectively. Morung Photo would be beamed into 159

different countries, including the U.S., where it would be shown in a prime-time Saturday night time slot on free-to-air TV. “I would expect 3 to 4,000 Filipinos to fly from the Philippines for this fight down under,” Arum said. “It will be the biggest fight in Australian history but, until the money is secured, we have to keep our options open, including looking at the Middle East and USA.” It is a nine-hour flight from Manila to Brisbane.

Pacquiao, 59-6-2, captured the WBO welterweight title for the third time against Jessie Vargas in November.

He earned a reported $100 million while losing to Floyd Mayweather in the richest fight ever in 2013.

Horn (16-0-1) is a 28-year-old former

schoolteacher who fought at the 2012 London Olympic Games. He is No. 2 in the WBO's welterweight rankings. Pacquiao is the WBO champion in that division while also juggling a career as a senator in the Philippines.

“I feel in his last few fights I've seen some weaknesses that he has and I just think I can get those,” Horn said. “I can beat him because I can see those weaknesses, I know Glen (trainer Rushton) can see those weaknesses.”

Rushton said it would be a “tragedy” if the fight happened anywhere other than Brisbane.

“We really hope the Queensland government and so forth will feel the same way,” he said. “It just makes sense, but also for the future. This can reinvigorate boxing in Australia.”

Ronaldo, Bolt nominated; Messi misses out on Laureus awards nomination monaco, January 11 (ianS): Sprint legend Usain Bolt and football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo were nominated but his great rival Lionel Messi missed out on the shortlist for the Laureus World Sports Awards on Wednesday.

Nominees for the World Sports Awards include Rio Olympic heroes Bolt, already a three-time Laureus winner, 5000 and 10,000 metre champion Mo Farah, tennis gold medal winner Andy Murray, Ronaldo and basketball duo Stephen Curry and LeBron James.

The sportspersons were nominated for the prestigious award following a ballot by the world's media, according to a release.

Ronaldo was nomi-

Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo arrives at the ceremony.

(Reuters Photo)

nated for three awards, individual and through his teams Portugal and Real Madrid.

Olympians fill all six nominations for the World Sportsman of the

Year Award, including Americans Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky and Allyson Felix, German tennis No.1 Angelique Kerber, Jamaican sprint star Elaine Thompson and British cy-

clist Laura Kenny.

Swimmer Michael Phelps, the most successful Olympian ever with 28 medals inclusive of 23 golds, heads the nominees in the Laureus World Comeback of the Year category, after winning another five golds and a silver medal in Rio. Others selected for this award are Spain's high jumper Ruth Beitia, Argentina's Davis Cup winner Juan Martin del Potro, British show jumper Nick Skelton, Mauritius triathlete Fabienne St Louis and Norwegian skier Aksel Lund Svindal.

Formula One's Mercedes AMG Petronas are nominated for the third straight year for the Laureus World Team of the

Year Award, along with three football teams; Euro 2016 champions Portugal, Champions League winners Real Madrid and Olympic gold medal winners Brazil. American teams Chicago Cubs, winner of their first baseball World Series for 108 years, and National Basketball Association (NBA) champions Cleveland Cavaliers were also shortlisted.

Driver Nico Rosberg, who won the Formula One World Championship last year and subsequently retired, has earned a nomination for the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award. Joining him are Olympic world record breaking long distance runners Almaz Ayana and Wayde van Niekerk,

English Premier League Champions Leicester City, Euro 2016 quarter-finalists Iceland and Olympic Rugby Sevens gold medal winners Fiji.

The Rio Paralympic Games provide all six nominees for the World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award -- Swimmers Ihar Boki from Belarus and New Zealand's Sophie Pascoe; visually impaired Cuban sprinter Omara Durand, Iran weightlifter Siamand Rahman, Swiss wheelchair racer Marcel Hug and Italian fencer Beatrice Vio. The eventual winners, as voted for by members of the Laureus World Sports Academy, will be revealed in Monaco on February 14.

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