New Delhi - Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Tuesday it wants
India to stop supporting vigilantes in central Chhattisgarh state and
hold accountable government security forces responsible for abuse of
rights while carrying out armed operations against Maoist rebels.
The vigilantes and security forces were responsible for attacking,
killing, raping, burning down villages and forcibly displacing tens
of thousands of people belonging to indigenous tribal communities who
were caught in the deadly tug-of-war with the Maoists, the New
York-based rights group said in a report.
HRW also said Maoist rebels carried out bombings and had
kidnapped, assaulted and executed civilians suspected of supporting
the state-backed vigilante militia Salwa Julum. It called on the
Maoists to end attacks on civilians and other abuses.
The 182-page report released in Chhattisgarh capital Raipur
documents human rights abuses against civilians by both the state
security forces, the Salwa Julum and Maoist rebels.
The report is based on four weeks of field research in
Chhattisgarh and neighbouring Andhra Pradesh states in late 2007 and
early 2008 and includes accounts from affected villagers, Salwa Julum
leaders, government officials, police and former Maoist rebels, a HRW
release said.
HRW said the Salwa Julum was falsely described as a spontaneous
citizens' anti-Maoist movement.
The conflict has led to one of the largest internal displacements
in India and at least 100,000 people have fled their villages, mainly
in Andhra Pradesh, and are living in forests or temporary camps with
limited access to health facilities, basic sanitation or livelihood
opportunities, the report said.
The government should help those who wished to return home, HRW
said. It called on the Maoists to end attacks against civilians and
allow camp residents to return to their villages without fear of
reprisals.
The report highlighted the abuse of children who were recruited by
Naxalites (Maoists) as informers and for armed operations and were
used by the police to assist security forces. Some children used as
informers were as young as 6-years-old, the report said.
India's federal Home Ministry did not directly respond to the
report but said in a statement: 'India is a thriving democracy and
has adequate institutional mechanisms to ensure that the human rights
of its citizens are protected.'
Maoist rebels, who claim to be fighting for the rural poor, tribal
people and the landless, operate in 13 of India's 29 states. They
usually target police and government installations but civilians have
also been their victims.
Thousands of people, mostly police, paramilitary personnel and
government officials as well as rebels, have been killed in the
insurgency since the late 1960s.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described the Maoist rebels as
India's single biggest internal security threat.
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