As many as six militant outfits based in Manipur and Tripura want Zoramthanga mediation for talks with New Delhi. They recently approached the Mizoram Chief Minister, according to the Information Minister F. Malsawma. He said in Aizawl that even the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) has shown interest in sitting across the table with the Government of India. A Meghalaya outfit A’chik National Volunteer Council (ANVC) has put out similar feelers. In fact, according to Malsawma, his chief minister has already to kick start the talks between Garo militants and the Centre.

That Zoramthanga enjoys credibility in the region goes without saying. A former rebel, he is now leading the state to peace and prosperity. He knows first hand what hurts the sentiments of the north easterners and how any issue gests complicated in the region. As his articulate information minister Malsawma puts it, the lack of coordination among government of India agencies like army, police and the intelligence bureau thwarts any effort at breaking the deadlock. Entrusting the delicate job to bureaucrats and allowing them to talk to the rebel leadership in far away shores is not the best way of dealing with the problem either.

Malsawma doesn’t spare his own tribe – politicians – from the blame game. ‘We, political leaders, often lack sincerity in our approach and effort. As long as we are guarded and don’t care what happens to the insurgency-hit common people, you cannot expect worthwhile results’, he remarks.

| Mizoram | North East Enquirer (Headlines) | Nena Home Page |