Dedicated to the lands and people who have suffered tortures and death, delivered by the hands of extra judiciary troops in the name of peace..
Ima, Ima, Khamu.....
-MANORAMA DEVI THANGJAM, 11 july 2004.
The silences of this forest can never be mine.
In Kangleipak flowers bloom everywhere
In springtime
The earth and the sky bends in grief,
11 july 2004: your despairing cries still haunts a Mother's heart.
That day, every Mother became your Mother.
The ' Meira Paibais '....Imas,
14 fearless Imas, naked to this very day die slowly waiting for Justice.
Protesting for each violated daughter and son.
Randomly Murdered by uniformed men hiding behind a flag.
To maintain law, peace and order.
Whose Peace, whose law and order.
Revolted, ' the torch bearers' wept.
Enraged, they flung away their clothes,
Reclaiming,
" No we wont sleep , we will burn
Each soul in this land will burn
We wont sleep, we will burn
Till the myth of Truth will burn,
Contenance smeared with ashes
Of our murdered children
Now, immortal on our faces
We will burn down your lies.
Naked we ll walk till we re heard.
Hear us India, Great Mother,
Of vedic puranas , eruditions , and Wisdom.
Hear us Grand Father, of Ramayana and Mahabharata
Nights dont sleep
Days dont wakeup
in Kangleipak.
Our Land is injured
Our voices -- the helpless screams
Of our defenceless children
Raped, shot, and abandonned. "
11 july 2004: 05h30 am.
They found You.
Lifeless, in the rice fields
Thats where the Lawless Law left you.
They found you
Your brothers and family,
with a bullet riddled vagina.
17 Assam rifles , a wretched name to be mentioned.
" Forgiveness -- is'nt a word we ll remember, each time we think of you , your brutality, acts and deeds .
Human rights violaters , may you be disgraced forever. "
Nightmare after midnight, the extra judiciary unit descended
Guet à peun, At Bamon Kampu
Your executioner barged in
Pushing your Mother, they grabbed you by your hair, muffled you like a criminal
Forged memos, Determined to hurt, ' on suspicion ' they said
Dragging to the courtyard
They waterboarded you,
Mercilessly, assaults followed assaults
Dishonouring You in every possible ways.
The saying goes,..." when you want to drown the dog, you accuse him of Rage. "
The set you up, slit your Phanek, cut your thighs.
Everything was wrong, everything being Wrong.
You realise your tragedy,
Not every Draupadi has a standby Krishna
No looming palms to miraculously drape
You.....to protect You.
They took turns the ghastly troop.
Helplessly your family witnessed and heard
Your poignant cries and shreiks.
Cries and shreiks
Cries and shreiks .
Today, an old Woman bereives her daughter
Enclosed in a fortress of pain, imprisonned till she dies.
A broken Mother
gathers, shattered pieces of her daughter.
That night they took you places to places
Pretending, evidences somewhere.
Then they faked what they could'nt find
The mad psychopaths beat you
Terroised, you repeated
" Ie Khangde, Ie Khangde "
No you didnot know
They knew you didnot know.
Unconceivable, to the cursed 17 Assam rifles, that you sold the clothes you sew at the village market for a living .
That you were only a bread winner.
They ridiculiously forgot
A bread earner has more responsabilites to be a " terrorist ".
'A Soldier '-- represents
Honour and Bravery
A proud gardian to a Nation .
But not these men, no not these men
How much do they know of Honour
How much they know what its to be brave.
How alone You felt
Alone on that bench on the verandah.
In an unamed Solitude.
While decisions were made at your back.
Reminded me, a similar despairing cry
From a bearded man put on a cross.
Ima, Ima....Khamu.
Ima, Ima....Khamu....are spears that bled the heart of Kangleipak.
"Here, grief is without ceasefires. "
A Mother cries ...
Can i be proud of you, my country
Can the silences of this forest be mine
Where can i bury these children of Kangleipak.
Tears are gems,
Now painfully built from these mourning eyes,
for a necklace
That can never be worn .
Manorama Devi, in Kangleipak, your memory perpetuates
on every Woman's faces
Its Springtime again in my country
Blossoms on branches are so beautiful
And each tree bears your name.
