Chandel, March 20 \u2013 The All Naga Students\u2019 Association Manipur (ANSAM), along with 19 Naga student bodies from across the state, organized a large-scale peace rally at N Satang village in Tengnoupal district on Wednesday. The demonstration was held in protest against the Indian government\u2019s decision to scrap the Free Movement Regime (FMR) and construct border fencing along the Indo-Myanmar border.<\/p>\n
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The rally, held under the banner of the People\u2019s Movement Against Scrapping of FMR and Imposed Border Fencing in Naga Homeland, saw hundreds of students and leaders demanding the reinstatement of FMR and an immediate halt to the border fencing project.<\/p>\n
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Chanting slogans such as \u201cReinstate FMR,\u201d \u201cRespect the Framework Agreement,\u201d and \u201cStop Imposed Border Fencing,\u201d the protestors argued that the arbitrary border division has historically separated the Naga people. They asserted that Nagas should not be required to carry identity cards or Aadhaar cards to move within what they consider their ancestral land.<\/p>\n
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ANSAM President Calls for Respecting Naga Rights<\/p>\n
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Speaking at the event, ANSAM president Th. Angteshang criticized the government\u2019s move, stating that the fencing and the scrapping of FMR violate the rights of the indigenous Naga people.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe Indian government has divided Nagas using an arbitrary line. Today, we stand here in Satang village to oppose the scrapping of FMR and the border fencing. Why should Nagas have to prove their identity to enter their own land?\u201d he questioned.<\/p>\n
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He also emphasized that the demonstration was part of a larger movement to safeguard the rights of the Naga people and called on the Indian government to honor the Framework Agreement signed between the Centre and Naga representatives.<\/p>\n
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Student Leaders Demand Implementation of UN Declaration on Indigenous Rights<\/p>\n
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The student leaders also invoked Article 36 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), which recognizes the right of indigenous communities divided by international borders to maintain social, cultural, and economic ties.<\/p>\n
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Quoting the declaration, they stated:<\/p>\n
\u201cIndigenous peoples, particularly those divided by international borders, have the right to maintain and develop contacts, relations, and cooperation\u2026 with their own members as well as with other peoples across borders.\u201d<\/p>\n
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They urged the Government of India to uphold these principles and engage in meaningful dialogue with the Naga people instead of imposing unilateral decisions.<\/p>\n
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Call for Unity and Resistance<\/p>\n
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ANSAM leaders urged all Naga communities to unite and resist the fencing project, which they view as a direct threat to their territorial and cultural integrity.<\/p>\n
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\u201cOur forefathers fought to protect this land, and now it is our turn to continue the fight. If we don\u2019t stand up for our land, no one else will,\u201d declared a student leader.<\/p>\n
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Sr. Andria Anal, ANSAM\u2019s speaker, also lauded the resilience of the eastern Maring community and the villagers of Satang, who have actively resisted the border fencing project.<\/p>\n
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\u201cYour spirit keeps this movement alive. Because of your determination, victory will be ours,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
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March to Border Fencing Site<\/p>\n
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The protestors marched through the village and towards the area where land has been cleared for border fencing construction. Holding placards and banners, they continued chanting slogans to express their firm opposition to what they called an \u201cimposed\u201d decision by the Indian government.<\/p>\n
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The demonstration concluded peacefully, but ANSAM warned that the movement would continue until their demands are met.<\/p>\n
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This protest comes amid growing opposition from various indigenous communities in the Northeast against the border fencing project, which they argue disrupts their traditional way of life and severs familial and cultural ties across the Indo-Myanmar border.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chandel, March 20 \u2013 The All Naga Students\u2019 Association Manipur (ANSAM), along with 19 Naga student bodies from across the state, organized a large-scale peace rally at N Satang village … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2412,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_joinchat":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[32,33,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-inn","category-state","category-uncategorized","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2411"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2411\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9153,"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2411\/revisions\/9153"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ichelnewsnetwork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}