ON July 22, a thousand strong student demonstration violated curfew in Imphal, the capital of Manipur. Led by the Students Federation of India (SFI), the demonstrators demanded immediate withdrawal of the extension of ceasefire and protested the killing of a student by the police a day before.

The SFI organised the demonstration and curfew violation in support of the civil disobedience movement called by the United Committee of Manipur (UCM).

200 activists including Ibemcha Chanu and Ibetombi, respectively the general secretary and acting president of the SFI’s Manipur state committee, courted arrest as part of the Jail Bharo programme.

The SFI and DYFI (Democratic Youth Federation of India) extended full support to the UCM’s call to observe a general strike all over Manipur on July 23.

The SFI’s central secretariat has called upon its units all over the country to organise solidarity demonstrations in the campuses on July 30 in support of the Manipur people’s movement demanding the withdrawal of the extension of ceasefire. SFI president and general secretary have sent fax messages to the president of India and the governor of Manipur, demanding immediate withdrawal of ceasefire extension.

All the SFI units have been asked to send telegrams to the president of India and the governor of Manipur in order to press the demand.

The SFI’s Assam unit will burn copies of the accord signed by the union government and NSCN (I-M), all over Assam on August 1.

On July 23 again, SFI activists courted arrest in all other districts of Manipur. On that day, 151 activists of the SFI’s and DYFI’s Manipur state units were arrested as part of their Jail Bharo agitation for the second consecutive day, in protest against the extension of ceasefire agreement between the government of India and the NSCN(I-M) beyond Nagaland. These activists were kept under a temporarily arranged captive room somewhere in Lamphel at Imphal.

However, late in the night when these activists were holding a meeting, a police party came and fired a number of teargas shells. In this incident, 15 students were injured, 3 among them seriously. Ashabala Chanu’s condition was critical by the time we go to the press. SFI state secretary A Ibemcha Chanu and acting state president Ibetombi Devi also sustained severe injuries in this brutal attack.

This act of state-sponsored police violence to crush the democratic movement, and the semi-fascist terror unleashed by the police, have been condemned by the SFI and DYFI central executive committees as well as others. They have also demanded an immediate inquiry in the incident and punishment to those who committed such a notorious act.

The SFI’s and DYFI’s central executive committees have also demanded a stop to all repressive measures which are taking place in Manipur, and immediate withdrawal of the ceasefire extension beyond Nagaland, as agreed between the GOI and NSCN(I-M). They said the union government must immediately intervene in what is going on in Manipur. (INN)