Urgent Appeal on Continued Eviction of Floating Hut Dwellers and Destruction of Their Floating Huts

HIC







Date of incident: 23 February 2013

Place of incident: Langolshabi area,Loktak Lake, Manipur,
North East India


Identification
of victims:

  • 200 Floating hut dwellers/Fishing folks belong to the Meitei people of
    Loktak Lake living in forty (40) floating huts
  • Mr. Haobijam Premjit (33), s/o Haobijam Thonglen of Langolshabi Area,
    Loktak Lake, Manipur
  • Mr. Haobijam Bino (49), s/o Haobijam Roto Singh of Langolshabi Area,
    Loktak Lake, Manipur
  • Mrs. Salam (O) Memcha Devi (55) w/o Salam Bino, who collapsed due to police blank firings

Identification of perpetrator:

Loktak Development Authority (LDA) of the Government of Manipur, North East
India and the Manipur Police from Moirang Police Station

Human rights violations:

The burning of the floating huts and the destruction of livelihood of the
indigenous people dwelling in Loktak Lake constitute a serious violation of the
“right to life”, “right to adequate housing” as guaranteed by the Constitution
of India and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and also
the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, both of
which India is party to and has pledged to uphold and practice. The failure to
obtain consent of the affected communities also constitutes a serious form of
discrimination targeting the marginalized communities and violates the UN
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2007 and the UN Convention on
the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination.

Urgent call and recommendation:

That the Government of India and the Government of Manipur to:

·
Stop all forms of Eviction in Loktak Lake targetting the
fisherfolks/floating huts dwellers of Loktak Lake.

·
The Government of Manipur and the Government of India should respect the
Gauhati High Court Order of 25 January 2012

·
Repeal the Manipur Loktak Lake Protection Act, 2006

·
Review the Loktak Multipurpose Hydroelectric Project commissioned in 1984.

·
Investigate and prosecute all officials of the Loktak Development
Authority, the Manipur Police involved in forced eviction in Loktak Lake on 23
February 2013 and for violating the Gauhati High Court Order of 25 January
2013.

·
Respect Indigenous Peoples rights as per the UN Declaration on the Rights
of Indigenous Peoples, 2007 in all development initiatives in Manipur and
Ramsar Conventions in management of Loktak and other wetlands.


Janica Monick Riego
Program
Assistant, Sustainable Development Program

IBON
International

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