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If you cannot answer, (and what it
seems obvious to the netters) people will understand, but you don't have to
change the subject now to independent Assam and bring old issues trying to show
how bad a person I am by showing what I wrote in the past and what I did
not. This is rather an old trick to camouflage your inability to
address the questions. Exactly like your inability to address the question how
to achieve independence of Assam from India, you are trying to take the same
escape route. Our present discussion on the issue was not based on an
independent Assam, and if you are thinking netters have a short memory, I wish
you luck. Even than you did not answer many questions which directly
pertains to independent Assam. So no Bengalis in your independent Assam
unless they become Assamese etc. No Bodos in independent Assam they identify
themselves as Assamese etc....
So what do you say, let us close
the chapter and put in in archive?
RB
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Wednesday, December 28, 2005 9:44
AM
Subject: Re: [Assam] Assam is for
Assamese
You asked just one question that needed answering:
>8) Don't you think your
policy will take away the basic freedom of an Indian to live anywhere freely
in any state in >India? Today an Assamese can live in Gujarat, buy
property, and remain as Assamese. Don't you think your >policy will take
away this basic freedom?
*** Indians can live in India, their homeland. Assam will welcome
limited number of immigrants, like you are in the USA, in a controlled manner;
will be my guess about how an independent Assam will deal with the issue.
Similarly India may or may not allow immigrants from Assam in their midst. But
contemporary realities will dictate that both, an independent Assam and India
will retain cultural contacts and will have mutual economic interests,
resulting in a friendly and neighborly existence.
This has become necessary due to the ABSENCE of the checks and balances
of a democratic Indian state the people of Assam hoped for and banked on when
they agreed to join India when the British left, leaving them exploited and
robbed of their rights in their own homeland.
*** Everything else you ask are questions contrived to keep Assam as a
colony for Indian interests. Your concerns for the rights of the indigenous
peoples of the region is, and their cultural/language identities are at
best, affected ones and lack sincerity, as could be well ascertained from some
of your own arguments right here in this forum; as in your taunting of Tarun
Gogoi et al, for NOT having the GUTS to enforce Assamese as the state language
of Assam, 'even after India has given Assam the permission' or some such
assertions.
Your arguments, as seen often here, are attempts to have it both ways;
demonstrating an underlying need for recognition driving you, and not
necessarily for the best of the people of Assam.
At 12:44 AM -0600 12/28/05, Barua25 wrote:
"Assam IS for the Assamese --
those who BELONG to Assam. It is their homeland. It includes many
different ethnic groups. Ahoms, Bodos, Dimasas, Misings, Karbis-- etc.
etc. Assam is NOT the homeland for Biharis, not for Marwaris, not for
B'deshis. They can be guests there. And become Assamese in time thru a
process of assimilation. But they cannot REMAIN itinerant Marwaris and
Biharis and B'deshis but claim to be Assamese at the same time. That is
the difference" - Chandan Mahanta (Jan 26, 2005)
Chandan:
No I have not asked
you the questions yet. Many questions arise out of your above
statement; Following are some.
1) What exactly the
slogan : Assam IS for Assamese mean? What is the definition of an
Assamese.
Mr Dhiren Bezbarooah
told me this time that they had been asked at one time to leave Assam as
some people donot consider them to be Assamese. Where do you think this
Assam for Assamese will end?
2) Does Assam for
Assamese mean that only Assamese language will be considered as the
national language of Assam? What about other languages?
3) You mentioned
about being assimilated into Assamese to be an Assamese. With what
yardstick, you measure the process of 'assimilation"? Ability to
speak Assamese and dance Bihu Dance? Does it mean those who have not
assimilated into Assamese by your standard will not get equal right in
Assam? Will they have voting right? Will they be taxed more than an
Assamese?
4) Will the children
of Assamese parents living outside Assam be considered as Assamese
although they donot know how to speak Assamese and dance Bihu dance (that
is if that is the yardstick)?
5) Some ethnic groups
like the Bodos have not assimilated into the Assamese, and never intend to
and most of them actually claim not to be considered as Assamese at all
but to be considered as Bodos and are claiming for separate Bodoland.
Where they will fit in your scheme for Assam for Assamese? What about the
Dimasas, Mising and others? What if they donot want to be considered as
Assamese? Do they have any freedom in choice, or is ir a leave it or take
it policy by force?
6) You have not shown
the Bengalis in Assam who have been living in Assam for ages and who love
Assam but who want to remain as Bengalis, maintaining their
separate culture, where they will fit? Can they claim Assam as their
homeland? Will they be second-class citizens in Assam?
7) Same thing goes
for Nepalis, Marwaris, Biharis, Bangladeshi and others who have been
living in Assam for aghes, have landed property in Assam but donot want to
assimilate and claim as Assamese, what will be their fate? Why you want
them to assimilate into Assamese? Again what is the crieria of
assimilation? Speaking Assamese and dancing Bihu dance?
8) Don't you
think your policy will take away the basic freedom of an Indian to live
anywhere freely in any state in India? Today an Assamese can live in
Gujarat, buy property, and remain as Assamese. Don't you think your policy
will take away this basic freedom?
9) Don't you think
your above policy will farther divide the people of Assam? Is this not
the reason why we lost the Khasis, the Nagas, the Lusais, the Garos and
others because of Assamese hegemony among them.
10) Do you find such
policy in any country? Texas for Texans only etc? Thus is it not against
basic individual freedom of people?
Anyhow this is flatly
not my Assam. Later I will tell you what policy will be in force in
my Assam.
RB
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