Kohima: The two day long 75 km “Walkathon against AFSPA” from Dimapur to Kohima concluded today by submitting a memorandum to Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India through Governor of Nagaland at Raj Bhavan Kohima.
The copy of the memorandum was also sent to Amit Shah, Minister for Home; Rajnath Singh, Minister for Defense and JP Nadda, President, BJP.
The 75 km long ‘Walkathon Against AFSPA’, began in Dimapur on January 10 at 6:00 AM and reached Kohima on January 11 afternoon. People from different walks of lives joined the Walkathon.
The citizens were seen holding placards some of the playcards read as: “India show your sincerity to peace”; “Enough is enough! Repeal AFSPA”; “No justice no peace!”; “Remove draconian laws-AFSPA” etc and shouting slogans against AFSPA and demanding immediate repeal.
The memorandum requested the urgent action of Prime Minister on the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and the brutality and injustice that have accompanied its operations in “our homeland for the last 63 years.”
“Everybody knows what happened last month in Oting, Mon, was not an isolated incident. Among other abominable things, AFSPA has repeatedly deprived innocent civilians of their right to live, which contradicts the very concept of human rights and the reason for governments to exist in the first place,” the memorandum stated.
It requested PM to take cognizance of the serious human rights crime committed by Indian armed forces in the Oting massacre, by bringing justice to the victims, their families, and the injured.
It demanded that the perpetrators be brought under civil court for criminal prosecution, and immediate and adequate compensation be given to the families of the victims and to the injured.
It also appealed Prime Minister to repeal AFSPA, 1958, in toto from the Naga homeland and the North East.
It also requested Prime Minister to take cognizance of past atrocities and excesses committed by the Indian military, and adequate compensation be given to the victims or to the nearest kin, to help initiate the process of justice and of righting past wrongs by bringing the perpetrators under civil court for criminal procedures.
It also requested the later to recognize the state government’s role of handling law and order of the state, and make provisions that “henceforth AFSPA 1958 will not be enforced in Nagaland.”
The memorandum was jointly submitted by Global Naga Forum, Naga Students’ Federation, Naga Mother’s Association, Eastern Nagaland People’s Union Dimapur and Konyak Union Dimapur.