Dimapur, August 28 (MExN): The International Work Group for International Affairs (IWGIA) has sent out an ‘urgent alert’ on August 25 calling for emergency relief for Nagas in Myanmar’s Naga Self-Administered Zone who have been hit by a food crisis. The IWGIA expressed deep concern of the food crisis and called upon strategic international bodies to intervene in humanitarian aid of the people. It viewed the “blockage of food supply” to the people by both the governments of India and Myanmar as a “gross violation of the right to food of the indigenous Naga communities in the area.” The IWGIA particularly called on the international community to raise the issue with the Government of Myanmar as a matter of urgency. It appealed the following institutions to address the situation: The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Indigenous Peoples, The National Institute for Human Rights in Myanmar, The International Labor Organization (ILO), UN World Food Programme, FAO, Rome, Myanmar Red Cross, The Danish Ministry for Development Cooperation, The Embassies of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Holland, Germany, Switzerland and the European Union. The measures it appealed them to apply can be seen in the box. Food shortage According to the Council of Naga Affairs (CNA), reported IWGIA, the mountainous townships of Lahe and Nanyun routinely deal with food shortages, particularly during wet season when routes are flooded. But this year, the situation has been intensified as the region struggles to cope with the aftermath of a measles outbreak, the destruction of more than 1,000 acres of paddy fields by insects, and military blocks on both sides of the borders cutting off supplies. “Food shortages in the area are not only in the villages, but also in Nanyun town,” said Nanyun MP U Sein Maung to IWGIA. “I’ve already reported it to the township administrator but have had no response yet. Locals recently shared food with many of those who were in need.” According to Lahe MP U Law Yone, residents of Lahe town have rice, but its surrounding villages have little food. “Lahe elders discussed the crisis with a member of the Indian parliament and asked for the [Indian military] gate to open for the supply of food and basic commodities,” U Law Yone said. CNA also called on the Myanmar government to negotiate with its Indian counterpart about allowing for the flow of supplies and aid across the border to stop the suffering of the people in Nagaland. According to IWGIA’s report, CNA spokesperson Ke Jung said, “The [Myanmar] government is well-informed of this problem. It is shocking to see that it has no proper plans to address the matter.” The struggle for food has been exasperated by a measles outbreak last year, which drove locals to abandon their crops. Meanwhile, residents in Pangsau town in Nanyun saw insects destroy more than 1,000 acres of paddy fields. Further IWGIA reported that after clashes with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) last December, the Myanmar Army imposed a strategy in line with a “four-cuts” policy, blocking access to food, funds, information, and recruitment in the area around the historic Stilwell Road, the main transportation route for supplies to Nanyun. “In its handling of a local insurgency, Indian security forces have blocked border points between Pangsau and Nampong town of Arunachal Pradesh and other areas in Mon and Lahe since January 2017,” stated IWGIA.
