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The media
persons in Northeast India, bordering Bhutan, Tibet (China),
Burma and Bangladesh live with hazards. While covering a
troubled zone, the journalists of the region often face excesses
from various state agencies. However, united under the banner of
state bodies in Assam (now Asom) and Manipur, the journalists
have also shown their mettle in protesting against those
elements as and when needed. Two recent (of course, separate)
incidents of assaults to Guwahati based scribes by the police
and security staffs, while they were on duties, remind some
wonderful examples how the media persons are subjected to
harassment by the state agencies in Asom.
First it was a
disgraceful example, where the security staffs of Guwahati
Medical College Hospital in the city ruthlessly assaulted a
female reporter. Ms Afrida Hussain, who works for the NE
Television, a Northeast based private satellite channel, was
physically attacked by the guards, while she tried to interview
a group of agitating ladies at the hospital on March 31 last.
The young reporter even broke one of her hands during the
merciless dragging and punching of the staffs. Incidentally the
agitating ladies were the wives of six missing ULFA (United
Liberation Front of Asom) rebels, who had been fasting since
March 21 demanding satisfactory information about their spouses.
The missing rebels were allegedly arrested by the Royal Bhutan
Army during their operation against ULFA cadres taking shelter
in the thick jungles of southern Bhutan during December 2003.
Manhandling of
a female reporter by a group of male security persons, when she
argued for the access to the agitating ladies, invited strong
words of protest from local journalist bodies to the
international media forums. Expressing shock at the incident,
the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) president
Christopher Warren said in a press statement, "It is disgraceful
that security guards can beat a female journalist into
submission to suppress a story, and they must not be allowed to
get away with this," adding that IFJ demanded the authorities
launch an immediate investigation into this violent attack.
More recently,
a group of journalists were humiliated by a state police
officer, while they were arrived to cover a Prime Minister's
function in the city. It is learnt that the journalist team were
officially invited by a government agency (Press Information
Bureau) to cover the function that was organized on April 8 at
Amingaon with an aim to lay the foundation stone of the 2nd
bridge over Brahmaputra at Saraighat, Guwahati. The function was
attended by Dr Manmohan Singh with some of his ministerial
colleagues and also the state chief minister Tarun Gogoi. A
senior PIB officer escorted the invited journalists to the venue
after necessary security procedures were strictly observed.
But
unfortunately, the invited journalists were prevented from
entering the venue (even after producing their formal press
invitation) by the district police head. The senior
superintendent of police of Kamrup (Metro) named SN Singh not
only prevented the journalists, but also abused and insulted the
journalists with unparliamentary words. Frustrated with the
shameless behaviour of a mere district level police officer (in
a function attended by the highest authority of the country)
the media persons decided to boycott the programme.
Later, the
media persons under the banner of Journalists' Action Committee
(JAC), Assam issued a 72-hour ultimatum (beginning from 3 pm
on April 9) seeking stern actions against the unruly SSP and
also demanded a public apology from the state government. With
the consensus of a general meeting held at Guwahati Press Club
on April 9, the media also boycotted all government functions
and news during the period. The newspapers of the state carried
a black space in the front page on April 10, while the
journalists wore black badges as a mark of protest that day.
The JAC, Assam
had also sent a memorandum to the Prime Minister for his 'kind
information and necessary action'. Arguing that Northeast is 'a
trouble-torn area and the media persons in the region have to
suffer a lot in performing their duties with dignity and honour',
the journalists' right body asserted that they 'never expect
such unwarranted behaviour from any officer of the government'.
The memorandum, simultaneously copied to IFJ, CPJ, RSF and
different journalists' bodies also argued that 'being the Prime
Minister of the largest democracy in the world' would step in
'to protect and ensure free and fair atmosphere for the
journalists to carry out their duties'.
The conduct of
the police officer was condemned by different organizations
including the All Assam Students Union, Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba
Chatra Parishad, and Peoples’ Committee for Peace Initiative (in
Assam) with Assam Press Correspondence Union. Following the heat
of increasing protests, Asom chief minister Mr Gogoi ordered a
probe into the incidents. The state additional Chief Secretary
PP Verma had been ordered to investigate into the matter and
submit the report as early as possible.
Earlier, All
Manipur Working Journalists' Union (AMWJU) adopted the path of
agitation protesting against the atrocities on two journalists
by the men in uniform. The incident took place at Kotlien in the
Senapati district of Manipur, when the victim journalists were
covering an outrage against the alleged rape of a tribal girl by
an Assam Rifles (AR) soldier. In the March 14 incident, the
local residents carried out a protest rally against AR for the
said rape that previous day. The security personnel affectively
controlled the mob, but they asked the journalists not to report
about the event. They even detained two reporters and forced
them to wash out their cameras loaded with pictures of the
protest.
The
journalist community in the state, following an emergency
meeting at Manipur Press Club condemned the misbehaviour of the
security personnel and even resolved to boycott all the coverage
related to Assam Rifles (AR). They also accused the state
government for its failure to influence the security forces
under its authority and decided to boycott the Assembly session
commencing from next day. Moreover, all dailies, published from
Imphal valley along with ISTV, a local cable channel of Manipur
suspended publication and telecasting for one day in protest
against the incident.
April
2007 |
