|
|
 |
  |
| Sunday, 10 October 2004 |
 |
|
 |
World |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Tribal rebels declare 6-month truce in Indian state GUWAHATI, India, (Reuters) A separatist tribal guerrilla outfit responsible for bombings and violence that have killed nearly 50 people in India's northeast in the past week has called for a unilateral truce for six months. The National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) said the ceasefire would begin from Oct. 15, in a step towards initiating talks with the government. "We have instructed our commanders to immediately stop hostilities against India and abide by the ceasefire announcement," the front's chairman, D.R. Nabla, said in a statement late on Friday. The NDFB, formed in 1985, is fighting for an independent homeland for the Bodo tribespeople who make up about 13 percent of Assam's population of 26 million. They accuse the government of neglecting the development of Bodo areas and the welfare of tribal people. Experts said the group has announced the ceasefire to reduce the pressure of intensive operations against it. "They now want to reduce the pressure from government troops and also negotiate with the government from a better position," said Tapon Lal Barua, a former home commissioner of Assam, who held talks with several rebel outfits in the early 1990s. Government officials said they had yet to verify the statement. |
|
| News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
| Produced by Lake House |
