Shillong, Oct 31: The Association for Democracy and Empowerment(ADE) and the sincere citizens of the greater Garo Hills region, today submit the memorandum to the Chief Executive Members of the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council demanding for the implementation of the Inner Line Permit (ILP) in garo Hills.
ADE in the memorandum said that the most significant issue of the state before you as the news of KHADC advocating and tabling the Inner Line Permit bill on the first day of the Council’s Special session. The CEM of the KHDAC declares that booming migration of the non-tribal in various parts of the Khasi hills has become a intimidating threat for the ethnic people of the region.
The Organisation also echo this thought and it is clearly visible that the threat is more eminent for the Garo Hills Region than the rest of Meghalaya. As we can already see many parts of the GHADC bordering Assam and Bangladesh, the local people have become minority. Migrants and non tribal have become the deciding factor even in the process of selecting MLAs. If this goes with the same pace it’s going to create havoc in the demographic pattern of the state.
The issue of influx and infiltration has long been a contentious issue in Meghalaya. Sharing a border of 443 kilometers with a neighbor that is already jostling for breathing space is unnerving even as the hilly terrain accompanied with the largely unfenced border adds to the woes.
Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to the Northeast conceded to the fact that the Northeast has been destabilized due to the influx from Bangladesh. The recent ethnic violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, which due to the communal overtones of the conflict could have potential security implications for Northeast India as refugees will cross the border and infiltrate into this region.
The recent development in the form of National Registration of Citizens in the neighboring state of Assam, has now added fuel into fire of already deplorable condition of heavy influx in the bordering areas of our state. We have strong belief that it may lead to demographical imbalance in the region if the people from Assam who were not able to make to include their names in the NRC of Assam somehow tries to infiltrate in the bordering areas. The huge population, almost 40 lakhs, could create an unthinkable disorder in the prevailing system of our century old social structure.
The debate surrounding non-tribal migrants has always been a volatile one. The spectre of the Bangladeshi migrant continues to haunt Meghalaya. ADE always prefers the implementation of an Inner Line Permit like structure already in existence in the states like Arunachal Pradesh.
After prolonged and arduous agitation taken by the NGOs, instead of ILP, previous Government of the state promised the NGOs of Meghalaya that a comprehensive mechanism to check influx would be set up. But nothing concrete has been done yet on the ground. Even the marking of entry exit points, creation of facilitation centers, deployment of checking authorities has not been provided.
Whenever a public awareness is for the implementation of Inner Line Permit in Meghalaya is somehow initiated the state machinery always forcibly tries to subdue the same. People all over the Meghalaya, wants the Government to do something concrete in this regard as to safeguard the interests of the ethnic people. Because, anyone can perceive the future perils of the next generations of ours to come. They say ILP will hinder in the path of globalization and development, but what’s the use of that development when we ourselves couldn’t harvest the fruit of it.
If we do not control the flow of influx and subjugate like Tripura, the non – indigenous people will control every avenue of life and opportunities and they will benefit from the development. One more biased argument is raised time to time is that ILP will strangle trade and activities in various fields of progress and development is not correct.
ILP does not say that businessman can’t come for trade and other activities into ILP implemented areas. They simply have to obtain permit, register themselves and go back when their business is complete. They simply will not be accepted as permanent residents in our God given country.
The ILP solely concerned with ownership of, possession and alienation of land and trading in products of land. Everything else is beyond its ambit. Land is the most precious which needs to be retained at any cost because a person who settles in a plot permanently get equal rights one way or the other.
Permanent settlements give rights and equalities which automatically accrued as a citizen. With citizenship comes the voting rights, next political rights and thus outsiders becomes the deciders of fate of the people living there.
With sufficient population they become the decision makers. This is the harsh reality of the present. Until we take some immediate measures to safeguard the indigenous people’s rights, this can become reality within a very short time.
The Organization strongly believes that following the exemplary step taken by the KHADC, the Garo Hills District Council should also initiate some supporting measures for securing the sovereignty of the ethnic people of the Garo Hills region.
