Huge cache of arms recovered in Aizawl

Aizawl, July 31 (PTI) A huge cache of arms, including eight US-made M-16 rifles and one .9 mm Beretta pistol, were seized from a house rented by a Myanmarese national at Saron Veng locality here, police said today.

"The weapons were brought here from Myanmar and were suspected to have been ordered by Dimasa rebels of the neighbouring Assam's North Cachar Hills," a senior police officer told PTI.

Besides this, 14 bullets, one telescope and 12 sets of Chinese-made walkie talkies were also recovered yesterday.

Investigations have been launched to arrest the arms smugglers as the Myanmarese national Lalnempuii is residing in her native Tahan village in Myanmar since May, the official said.

Mizoram's largest church decries gay ruling, says homosexuals only 0.3%

Some were for it and few others were against it, but for the largest Church in northeast state of Mizoram there is no discomfiture in its stance against the recent gay ruling.

The Mizoram Presbyterian Church has strongly opposed the HC ruling that de-criminalised gay sex among consenting adults and called on Law Minister Veerappa Moily to review the judgement that overturned a 149-year-old colonial law.

"Homosexuality is against all religious ethics and the culture of Indian society. We feel that the Indian society is safeguarded by the IPC Section 377 from unnatural and anti-social behaviour. Hence we are of the opinion that there is no need of legalising homosexuality in our country," the Church wrote to Union Government.

It pointed that homosexuality was fundamentally against the family structure and legalising it will destroy the fundamental nature of family unit of life.

It continued: "Homosexuality is against the natural order of God’s purpose in creating both sexes. Anything that goes against the natural order does not last over time and will have negative impact on the lives of the people and society."

"The society has the right to consider the ethical and moral aspects in an individual’s life. We are of the strong opinion that legality should never challenge ethical and moral standard of the society. It is on this basis that the Church finds this judgement unacceptable."

What's more, homosexuals comprise only 0.3 per cent of the population, so the right of rest 99.7 per cent to lead a decent and moral life must not be ignored.

Therefore, it pleaded the law minister to "seek a thoughtful review of the verdict and retain a good standard of social ethical values in our country, known for upholding its traditional values for centuries."

Earlier, there were reports indicating that the Christian-dominated state of Mizoram might disregard the Delhi High Court's gay ruling and rather stick with an 100-year-old British law that rigidly criminalises homosexuality.

The British law formulated in 1909 by superintendent of then Lushai Hills HWG Cole strictly opposes homosexuality and also punishes chiefs who fail to "report all cases of unnatural offences".

Mizo church leaders also support the 1909 order that was framed with Christianity in mind.

Reverend Zosangliana Colney, executive secretary of the Mizoram Synod, says the British order was strongly supported by the church as "homosexuality is directly against the ethics of Christianity and the Bible."

Meanwhile, the National Council of Churches in India - an ecumenical forum of the Protestant and Orthodox Churches - after its Chennai symposium on homosexuality Tuesday, told Christian Today that it would soon release an official statement that would present the unequivocal view of the Church on the issue.

Mizo Govt not to tolerate obstacles to development: CM

Aizawl, Jul. 17  Noting that 20 years if insurgency had crippled development, Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla today said no disruptive element would be allowed to act as an impediment to growth.

"Unless we take up infrastructure development in earnest we will remain backward as 20 years of insurgency had obstructed us to undertake developmental works while the rest of India was moving forward," he said on the event of the 'home coming' of 64 militants of Sinlung People's Liberation Army (SPLA) here.

The militants gave in to authorities along with their arms and ammunition.

Mentioning some of the infrastructural projects in the state, Thanhawla said that the government is going ahead with the Multi Modal Transport Project linking the state with Sittwe port in Myanmar and construction of railroad up to Sairang, about 30 km from Aizawl city.

Mizo leaders

Imphal, July 9 : Mizo People Convention, an apex body of the Mizos in the State is planning a tour of Mizoram to meet political party leaders and other philanthropic organizations to strengthen its policies and discuss the various challenges it often faces, reports our Churachandpur correspondent.

The MPC, according to F Lalnunmawia, Secretary I&P does not indulge in arms culture, neither support nor against any other communities and non-political body with no political agenda; striving for the integrity of different communities in Manipur.

Traditional Music Festival

North East Zone Cultural Centre (NEZCC), Dimapur leh Mizoram sorkara Art & Culture Department te tangkawpin nimin khan vanapa Hall, Aizawl-ah ‘Traditional Music Festival’ buatsaih a ni a. FEstival-ah hian Mizoram bakah hmarchhak state pathum dang - Manipur, Assam leh Meghalaya-te an tel a, Mizoram ARt & Culture tangkawpin July ni 29-ah ‘Choral Festival’, Augugst 1 & 20th-ah ‘Costume Exhibition cum sale’, Mizoram Inter-Collegiate Cultural Meet te, November thlaah ‘Art Camp’ leh February 2010-ah Poets Meet buatsaih an tum a ni. Nimina Traditional Music Festival-ah hian Meghalaya, Manipur atangin zai leh lam chi hrang hrang entir a ni a, Mizoram atangin Bungkawn Cultural Club leh Hnahlan Cultural Club ten Mizo hnam lam leh zai an entir bawk a ni. (Courtesy Vanglaini)

Mizoram celebrates 23 years of peace and progress

Aizawl | Tuesday, Jun 30

Mizoram, which stands out as a land of peace amid an ocean of insurgency will maintain the priceless peace at all costs, state Home Minister R Lalzirliana said here today.

Speaking at an observation of Remna Ni or Peace Day that marked the historic Mizo Peace Accord signed on June 30, 1986, at Congress Bhavan here today, Lalzirliana said, ''The peace we have been enjoying for the last 23 years had been earned with toil and blood and it is priceless. The Congress government will spare no efforts to preserve the hard-earned peace.'' ''The government will not allow any part of Mizoram to be used by underground elements as safe haven or even for a temporary shelter.

There will be no leniency on anti-social elements such as armed militants, unlicensed arm holders and gun runners,'' he said.

''As peace is pre-requisite for all forms of development, there is no room for insurgency in Mizoram. We will not allow any Mizo youth to take up arms, neither we will allow armed militant from the neighbouring states and countries to use Mizoram even as a route,'' he said.

On this day, the home minister said, the people of Mizoram remembered the sacrifice made by then Congress Chief Minister of Mizoram Lal Thanhawla who sacrificed his chief ministerial seat to end the 20-year-long insurgency and usher in permanent peace in this northeastern state.

''There could not be peace without surrendering something. Had Lal Thanhawla refused to step down from his seat, there could not be peace we are enjoying today,'' Lalzirliana said.

The Opposition Mizo National Front (MNF), who had signed the Peace Accord under the leadership of the legendary Laldenga with the Rajiv Gandhi government 23 years back, also organised a separate function at its headquarters office here in observation of the Peace Day.

Addressing a huge gathering of party workers, MNF chief Zoramthanga said the Mizo Accord was neither the satisfaction of the Indian government nor the MNF, but a compromise between both the parties.

However, the former chief minister added the Mizo Accord went on to be one of the most successful peace agreements not only in the country, but in the whole world. ''We have seen a number of peace accords which the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi signed with insurgent groups in the country, but none of them has been as successful as the Mizo Accord,'' he said. ''Ours is a time-tested peace accord,'' he added.

''As those who have never been in the dark cannot appreciate the value of being in the light, the new generations who had not witnessed the Mizoram disturbances cannot appreciate the peace. ''It is a must for each and every one of us to preserve this peace,'' Zoramthanga said.

The political disturbances started during the tribulation of the bamboo flowering (Mautam) famine which left a deep scar in the minds of some Mizos and was interlinked with a secessionist movement that was to follow.

A voluntary organisation Mizo National Famine Front (MNFF) took up arms on February 28, 1966 in a bid to achieve its goal to separate the state from India.

Mizoram was immediately declared a 'disturbed area' and security forces were inducted to maintain law and order.

Mizoram CM denies calling Indians racist

NEW DELHI: Mizoram chief minister Lal Thanhawla has denied saying that Indians were racist or that he was a “victim of racism”. The CM was quoted extensively in the media as saying in Singapore that Indians too were racist. He reportedly cited his own example, saying he was asked by people if he was Nepali because of his physical features.

On Friday, the Mizoram government issued a strongly worded denial which said the chief minister was “not correctly appreciated”. “What he had stated was that India is a multi-racial country and there could occasionally be some misunderstanding based on physical features of individuals from particular regions of the country. He did not even distantly suggest or hint that the people of India were racist and that he was a victim of racism,” the Mizoram government said.

Others present at the conference and who had heard the Mizoram chief minister speak said Lalthanhawla did not refer to racism at all, but took a light-hearted look at the “distance” between the northeast and the rest of India.