UDALGURI, July 13 - �Indigenous people in India are the aboriginal tribes and they must have the right of self determination for their all-round development on all fronts. This should not be misunderstood as a threat to the sovereignty of this country. But these people must have all the rights, like others which has not happened till date.� This was observed by Anjali Daimari, president of the Boro Women Justice Forum (BWJF) while addressing a congregation of people at the Ringu Damsa auditorium on Sunday, in a symposium organised by the Udalguri district committee of the BWJF. The symposium was chaired by Dr Luke Daimari, principal of Udalguri College in the first session.
Daimari in her keynote address, as one of the resource persons, also spoke on the ongoing definition of �Assamese� being given by different sections of the society and said that she was opposed to defining Assamese, as it was a tough job to define a community or a nation. She suggested that the concerned authorities should rectify the Chapter 6 of the Assam Accord by putting �indigenous� or �the sons of the soil� along with the term �Assamese� for its reservation, conservation and security. She also referred to the resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly to look into the issues and problems of the indigenous populations of the world.
Sabda Rabha, senior advocate of Gauhati High Court and director of the Asian Centre for Human Rights (NE Chapter) was the another resource person in the second session chaired by Dr Prasenjit Daimari, principal of Tangla College, to speak on the topic, �indigenous peoples and their right to self-determination,� in which he observed that the term self-determination is a sensitive subject in the present-day context, and it has been influencing the political, social and economy of the region for the last three decades. Rabha said that contrary to the peaceful solution of this burning problem, the political parties were seen engaging in bringing disputes and making it more complicated only in their political interest. �It is ironical to see the indigenous people being rendered homeless in their own soil in the past few years,� he added.
Earlier, John Engti Kathar, advisor of the Joint Action Committee for Autonomous State, spoke in details on �the Sixth Schedule and its viability and the struggle for autonomous state to statehood.� He highlighted the various aspects of the Sixth Schedule and narrated how the hill tribes of Karbi Anglong Autonomous District Council had been accustomed to acute poverty and exploitation since the Sixth Schedule status was conferred to it way back in 1951. �There are various people- friendly constitutional provisions within the Sixth Schedule for the protection of their land, art, language and culture, but they were never implemented in full spirit and that was the reason why the Karbis remained neglected till date on all fronts,� he observed.
The symposium was also addressed by DR Nabla alias Ranjan Daimari, president of the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) as aguest speaker. Appealing to the people of Udalguri, Daimary said that since the world is moving fast, so the people of Udalguri too should move fast to bring about equality. �The world won�t wait for you, if you don�t move with it. Be it a Boro, an Assamese or a Gorkha, the world recognises onlt the fittest and allows for his survival, and if you don�t move with the times, you can�t survive.�
The day-long symposium, organised by the BWJF, witnessed a good congregation of people from all sections of the society. Rwimali Moosahari, the publicity secretary of the BWJF introduced the guests on the occasion while Bimali Daimari, the president of Udalguri district committee of BWJF welcomed the guests.
