Press Communiquà©
Solidarity Meeting for Iraqi Resistance
Guwahati, September 25, 2004: On the occasion of “International Day of Action for the Iraqi Resistance” a protest meeting, was held today in Nagaon, Assam. The meeting was organised byManab Adhikar Sangram Samiti (MASS), under the aegis of North East Coordination Committee for Human Rights (NECOHR), an umbrella organisation of several human rights groups of the Northeast. The citizens at the meeting condemned the brutalisation of Iraq and its people under the neo-colonial agenda instigated by the United States of America and its allies. The citizens also said that this was a moment of great hope people who have been resisting the occupation of their lands and the killings of their loved ones, by occupation forces. They also mentioned that like in Northeast India, the western press was trying to demonise and de-legitimise the political content of the movement. In Iraq, the western media have shamelessly distorted facts and twisted the truth to serve the needs of those who wield global power.
The citizens meeting also sent a clear signal to the authorities in India by reiterating that the problems in the Northeast cannot be wished away by politicians and bureaucrats in India. The often used military option has to be ended, they said. Extending solidarity to the struggle against Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in Manipur and also calling for the government to initiate dialogue with the armed opposition groups, the citizens meeting adjourned and went on its proposed march into the town. However, sensing the outrage of the large numbers of citizens who had gathered there, the district administration refused them permission to carry out the march.
Lachit Bordoloi
Secretary General, NECOHR
