Siege within

The government in Manipur is caught in a bind as a blockade enforced by a Naga organisation cuts off supplies for Imphal. The `great June uprising' in Manipur was a direct fallout of the previous National Democratic Alliance government's declaration of the extension of the ceasefire with the National Socialist Council of Nagalim - Isaac-Muivah in 2001, without territorial limits and beyond Nagaland, which was seen as a prelude to conceding the rebel group's demand for integration of the Naga-inhabited areas of Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh, including the four Naga-inhabited hill districts of Manipur that account for two-thirds of the territory of the troubled State. While the decision to declare June 18 as "State Integrity Day" prompted ANSAM to resort to the indefinite blockade, the agitation by the Naga students' body in Manipur has come in the backdrop of NSCN leaders' return to their bases abroad after eight months of negotiations with the Centre. The unequivocal support of these Naga polticians of Manipur and the ANSAM- The NSCN, however, refuted the Manipur government's claim that it was involved in the current agitation by Naga students in that State, but said it could not remain a "silent spectator" if New Delhi allowed Ibobi Singh to continue using "brute force" against unarmed Naga civilians. As ANSAM turned down pleas of the government for withdrawing the blockade, the Chief Minister tried to placate the Naga students' body by stating that the "State Integrity Day" had not been placed on the official list of general holidays and that no concrete decision had been made on whether it would be retained as a general holiday next year.