HIMALAYAN GUARDIAN March 28, 2012
United Opposition to Oppose Bill
Gangtok, March 27: The recent introduction of the Sikkim Disposal and Destruction of Documents and Records Bill in the State Legislative Assembly has united the Opposition.
At an all-party meeting held here last weekend leaders of the Congress party, BJP, CPI(M), Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad Party and Sikkim Liberation Party have decided to approach Governor BP Singh not to give his assent to the Bill.
Representatives of social organizations – Sikkim Bhutia-Lepcha Apex Committee, Nagarik Adhikar Suraksha Sangathan and National Sikkimese Bhutia Organisation – also attended the all-party meeting.
SPCC President Nar Bahadur Bhandari, who recently called for opposition unity to take on the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front, said the Bill was “undesirable and unnecessary”.
AD Subba-led Himalai Parishad held a 24-hour hunger strike here in protest against the Bill.
Tibetan Parliament in exile highlights Tibet situation, seeks international help
Dharamsala, March 27: The Tibetan Parliament-in-exile here has passed a resolution that highlights the grim situation within Tibet and sought the international community's help to end the ongoing crisis.
Protests by self-immolation are becoming more common in Tibet and in restive, ethnically Tibetan regions of China.
Outlining the atrocities faced by the fellowmen, Tibetan Prime Minister-in-exile, Lobsang Sangay, said on Friday that the resolution highlighted the deteriorating condition of the Tibetans, ANI reported.
"The resolution makes it very clear; the Tibetans are in really critical condition. Thirty Tibetans have self-immolated, of which 22 have died and many are in critical conditions. The reasons are very clear, the self-immolators and the peaceful protestors are showing their resentment against the continuing occupation of Tibet and repressive policies of the Chinese government. What the self immolators and those who have died and those who are imprisoned are demanding or seeking that His holiness the Dalai Lama returns to Tibet and freedom be restored for Tibetans inside Tibet," said Sangay.
China has tightened security in Tibet after a series of self-immolation took place in the Himalayan country..
Thirty Tibetans have set themselves alight in protest, and at least 22 are believed to have died from their injuries, according to rights groups. Most of them were Buddhist monks.
Calling for a worldwide vigil to protest against the Chinese crackdown in Tibet, Sangay said Tibetans deserve freedom.
"As per appeals, repeated appeals, by the Tibetan Parliament, the Kashag, many NGO's, Tibetans included, have urged the United Nations to send a special rapporteur or an envoy to Tibet to investigate the real conditions inside Tibet,” Sangay said.
China non-committal on stapled visa issue
Beijing, Mar 27: Ahead of its Chinese President's visit to New Delhi next week, Beijing, for the first time, indicated that it has discontinued the policy of issuing stapled visas to residents of Jammu and Kashmir.
Though there was no categorical answer to a question whether China has stopped issuing stapled visas to those from Jammu and Kashmir, Deputy Director General of China's Foreign Ministry Li Kexin said; “Have you seen any such reports (of issuance of stapled visas to Kashmiris) in recent times?” indicating that Beijing has stopped the practice, reported Great Kashmir.
The comments on the contentious issue by the top official came ahead of Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to New Delhi from March 28 to participate in the fourth BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit.
However, on issuance of stapled visas to people from Arunachal Pradesh, Li referred to the boundary dispute between the two countries and said the issue should not affect the overall bilateral relations.
“The issue should not affect the overall bilateral ties. Both the countries have different positions on the boundary issue and we must continue our efforts to resolve the issue through dialogue,” he told a group of visiting Indian journalists.
China had in 2008 started the practice of issuing visas on loose sheets of paper to people from Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, drawing India's ire.
China's Ambassador to India Zhang Yan had last year dropped hints of reversing the practice but there was no clear official word on it.
Seeking better people-to-people contacts, another top official in the Foreign Ministry said the number tourists visiting each other's country was quite low compared to the size of their population
Concern over China's rail link along India's border in RS
New Delhi, March 27: Concern was expressed in Rajya Sabha last Thursday over China developing strategic rail links along India's border and demands were raised for developing the same on the Indian side on war-footing.
The small State of Himachal has been demanding the Bilaspur-Joginder Nagar-Manali-Leh rail link along the Indo-China border, which also holds strategic significance for the defence, but was being ignored for long, Shanta Kumar (BJP) said participating in the discussion on Rail Budget, PTI reported.
Kumar said Himachal Pradesh which shared its border with China, was being continuously ignored ever since Independence and not a single kilometre was being added over the years.
He cautioned that neighbouring China was fast developing rail links on its side from Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh, but nothing was being done by India to augment its border infrastructure.
Demanding that the issue be looked into seriously keeping in view the humiliating and shameful defeat suffered by India in the 1962 war with China, he said it was unfortunate that not a single km of rail network was added in Himachal Pradesh, which has got only 163 km of train lines built by the British.
PM told of ‘repeated Chinese incursions’ in Himachal
Shimla, March 27: Drawing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's attention to "repeated Chinese incursions" into Indian territory, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has asked him to take steps to tone up infrastructure network close to Sino-Indian borders located in the hill state.
In a letter to Singh, Dhumal put emphasis on building the strategic Bhanupalli-Bilaspur-Mandi-Kullu-Manali-Leh-Ladakh rail link at the earliest, broad gauging of Pathankot-Jogindernagar railway line and also a strategically world class air field on the India side in Himachal Pradesh in view of growing threat from the neighbouring country.
While long range missiles on the Tibetan soil were a constant threat, large number of Chinese troops have been spotted in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (POK), Dhumal said.
"Chinese soldiers have forced the stoppage of road construction in Leh-Ladakh area and China disputes the sovereign integrity of India by protesting against your visit to the state of Arunachal Pradesh which is a matter of concern," the letter said.
Apart from a state-of-the-art railway network, China has commissioned an ultra modern air-field on the Tibetan soil and it was understood that strategically important massive installations have come up on the other side of the border which could not be taken lightly, he said.
GTA elections in July: GJM
Mamata-Gurung meet eases tension in hills
Darjeeling, March 27: A day after meeting West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee o, Gorkha Janmukti leaders said polls would be held in the hilly areas of Darjeeling district in late June or early July.
"Polls for Gorkha Territorial Administration will be held in the hill areas initially," GJM secretary Roshan Giri said in a rally at Chakbazar in Darjeeling town. Polls would be held in Dooars and Terai regions if they are included in the GTA, he said, PTI reported.
GTA will have a total of 50 seats. Polling would be held in 45 seats and five members would be nominated by government. As per the demands of the GJM, the Justice Shyamal Sen Committee had been formed to see whether 398 mouzas - 196 mouzas in Dooars, 3 mouzas in Rajganj and 199 mouzas in areas near Siliguri - would be included in the GTA
A delegation of Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) led by its president met Mamata on Saturday and held talks on holding elections to the GTA and inclusion of several areas in the Dooars and Terai in the GTA.
After the meeting Gurung told reporters that "I am happy with today's meeting with the chief minister. Elections to the GTA will take place in July this year."
"The chief minister has agreed in principle to include 398 mouzas in Terai and Dooars in the proposed GTA. After these areas are included in the GTA, we will go for polls in July this year," Giri said.
Editorial
OPEN BORDERS
Pursue Look East Policy Vigorously
The Arunachal Pradesh Government’s eagerness to open its borders with Bhutan in the west and Burma Bhutan for construction of a road from neighbouring West Bengal to the State through Bhutan , it is likely to reiterate its demand for reopening of the historic Stilwel Road China through Burma Burma
Assam BJP supporters burn Chinese flag in protest against incursion
Guwahati, March 27: The youth wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Assam on recently burnt a Chinese flag, protesting against Chinese military incursion into India's northeast.
The protesters also denounced the Congress-led central government for not taking action against Beijing's repeated claims over Arunachal Pradesh and other parts of the region, IANS reported.
The protest came after an English daily here published pictures of Google Earth, showing a thin red line marked as China Claim Line passing over areas of north of Brahmaputra river in Assam.
The map sought to give an impression that these were Chinese territory.
"Initially it was Arunachal Pradesh and now the Chinese have started claiming the north bank of Assam," said PS Dey, the Yuva Morcha secretary.
"It’s a matter of shame that a prime minister elected from Assam is not taking any action," he said.
Manipur worst militancy-affected State in India
Imphal, March 27: Manipur is now the worst militancy-affected state in the country, overtaking Jammu and Kashmir and other northeastern states, while Mizoram and Tripura are among the most peaceful.
In a reply to a question in Lok Sabha on Tuesday, minister of state of home affairs Jitendra Singh said a total of 246 militancy-related incidents have occurred in Manipur in the first three months of 2012 against just 34 incidents in Jammu and Kashmir.
Similarly, 21 militants, five security personnel and seven civilians have been killed in the State this year which went to polls last month, while J&K recorded killings of six militants and four civilians.
Among the northeastern states, numbers of militancy-related incidents have come down from 424 in 2009 to 251 in 2010, which further reduced to 145 in 2011 and 26 in the current year.
Meghalaya is turning out to be a disturbed state with the number of militancy-related incidents increasing every year. In 2009 there were 12 incidents, which rose to 29 in 2010 and then to 56 in 2011. In the first three months this year alone 35 incidents have taken place.
In Tripura just one incident has been reported in this year till now. In 2009 there were 19 incidents, 30 in 2010 and 13 in 2011, while no incident has taken place in Mizoram since 2010. There was just one incident in 2009 in Mizoram. In Nagaland, the numbers of incidents have been declining from 129 in 2009 to 64 in 2010, 61 in 2011 and 37 so far in the current year. In Arunachal too, which does not have any militant outfits but is infested with outfits from neighbouring Assam and Nagaland, 53 incidents have taken place in 2009, 32 in 201, 53 in 2011 and 13 so far in 2012.
The minister added that the Centre in association with the state government have adopted a multi-pronged approach to check infiltration on international borders by carrying out round the clock surveillance, construction of fencing, installation of floodlights and upgrade of intelligence networks along the international border with Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan.
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