Shillong’s lucky charms

The history of archery in India is quite evident from the two great epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Though highly prized at one time and long considered an ultimate sport, archery in the region is now limited to rural areas.
In Shillong, Meghalaya as well as other interior parts of the Northeastern states, archery and gambling go hand in hand. There is a game called ‘Bola’ in Meghalaya where a large number of residents gather to bet on their much-loved archers. The game is held daily for two hours with two rounds, where archers aim for the perfect shot.
In the midst of the hustle bustle is Abortion Rynjah, a 55 year old. Hailing from a small village in Meghalaya, Rynjah is one of the dying breeds of traditional arrow makers. Using thin bamboo reeds along with kite feathers to stabalise the vanes, he makes 20 pieces a day. “Most of my customers are ex-army personal across India. By selling these arrows I make around Rs.100 (USD 2.5) everyday. Each piece requires special attention and fine tuning with care,” says Rynjah as he deftly prepared an arrow that could be a gambler’s lucky charm. – Text and photos by Pal Pillai
Pal Pillai is an Indian photojournalist based in Mumbai.

Meghalaya government asked to compensate families of police firing

Shillong, Jul 7 : The Shillong Bench of Gauhati High Court has asked the Meghalaya government to pay adequate compensation to the families of four victims killed by police personnel in 2004 in the Garo Hills.

After the incident, the government had constituted a magisterial inquiry headed by R P Marak, Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) in-charge of Dadenggiri civil sub-division, to find out the reasons leading to the incident.

Pronouncing the verdict here yesterday, Chief Justice Madan B Lokur and Justice A Hazarika upheld the findings of the magisterial inquiry on the incident which indicated the involvement of police personnel in the incident.

''Having considered the enquiry report, we have no hesitation to record that the police personnel resorted to firing without any reasonable or acceptable explanation,'' the verdict said.

The court, in its judgment, said the enquiry report submitted by the ADC showed that the evidence of all the witnesses was found to be consistent, credible and corroborative.

''Thus we are of the view that there is no illegality, infirmity or irregularity found in the findings of the said enquiry and the same is accordingly accepted and approved,'' the court stated.

It also said that no objection had been filed by the police against the enquiry report submitted by the ADC.

The court directed the government to pay Rs 3 lakh each to the families of the victims and another Rs 5,000 to be paid by state respondents.

However, since the state government had earlier paid Rs 1 lakh to the victims’ families, the court said the balance amount of Rs 2 lakh along with Rs 5,000 should be paid within three months of the receipt of the court order.

On February 13, 2004, a police party surrounded the compound of one Bilestone Sangma at Bikkonggre village, West Garo Hills, and resorted to firing in which four persons were killed.

The police had earlier claimed that the four persons were shot dead as they were hiding at night with sophisticated weapons in the residential compound of Mr Sangma.

Exploring Synergies between Protected Areas and ABS

From 6-8 July, Natural Justice, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) are co-hosting an expert meeting to explore synergies between access and benefit sharing (ABS) and the governance and management of protected areas. The Nagoya Protocol on ABS was adopted in 2010 by the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Many countries have already developed or are in the process of developing legislation to enact the provisions. To date, there have been very few discussions or publications addressing the potential linkages between the Nagoya Protocol and the other processes and Programmes of Work under the CBD, both at the international policy level and within the domestic context of implementation. For example, the Programme of Work on Protected Areas (PoWPA), which was adopted in 2004 at the 7th COP, is generally seen as the CBD's most successful Programme, with specific and time-bound targets and progressive elements that address governance, participation, equity, and benefit-sharing. However, implementation of PoWPA is also lacking in many countries, particularly in aspects relating to Indigenous peoples and local communities.

Given the cross-cutting nature of the CBD's objectives to conserve, sustainably use, and equitably share benefits of biodiversity, it is imperative for the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol within domestic frameworks to be harmonized with existing frameworks on protected areas, among others. This meeting, held at the IUCN headquarters in Gland, aims to explore the potential synergies between protected areas and ABS in law, policy, and practice, potential conflicts and concerns, and how these could be addressed in practice.

The meeting report is available for download on the Natural Justice website.

17 families ostracised for filing RTI

Shillong, July 06 : A traditional village council in Meghalaya has ostracised seventeen families for filing an RTI questioning the village authorities why they were denied of their right to avail food grains supplied by the government in the village. Immediately after receiving a complaint, deputy commissioner J Lyngdoh has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the matter, official sources said on Wednesday.

The traditional village chief of Dongrum locality of Mawsynram village in East Khasi Hills district, Artowel Kharshandi convened a village council meeting on Monday and ostracised the families, the sources said.

B Rani, a villager, questioned the village authorities after he came to know of the "misdeeds" of the headman and his wife after he received a reply to his RTI application in the supply department.

Rani and 16 other families in the locality were denied 72 months of supply of food grains meant for families living below the poverty line, as per the RTI reply received by him.

It stated that the village authorities were issued the quantities of rice regularly every month since 2002 till 2010. Based on the RTI findings, an FIR was lodged in this regard.

The magisterial inquiry will be headed by Additional District Magistrate CD Lyngwa, to probe into the incident.

Incidentally, the fair price shop in the village is run by the village chief's wife Asorda Marbaniang.

The food grains lifted by the shop from 2002 onwards were not distributed to the villagers on a regular basis, the FIR alleged.

The affected victims from the locality had earlier met officials from the supply department here and filed a complaint.

Last year, three women had to face an order ostracising them from their Jongksha village for trying to bring to light the wrong doings in the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme through an RTI.

The Meghalaya State Women's Commission had to intervene before the trio were bestowed their social rights.

Deconstructing Protected Area Governance at IUCN

From 4-5 July, Holly Shrumm (Natural Justice) attended a meeting at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) headquarters in Gland about a draft resource kit on protected area governance. This kit, which will include a content-focused guide and a training-of-trainers guide, has been under development by partners from the IUCN Secretariat, the IUCN Commission on Environmental, Economic and Social Policy (CEESP), the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), and the German development cooperation organization (GIZ). It explores a variety of issues including the emergence and realization of the new conservation paradigm since the 2003 World Parks Congress; the Programme of Work on Protected Areas (PoWPA) under the  Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and relevant CBD Decisions; protected areas management types and governance categories; and a compilation of case studies, resources, and tools.

The meeting was intended to bring together different partners who have been involved in the development of the kit to revisit what has been accomplished so far and to chart a way forwards. It is intended to be ready for use in regional PoWPA training workshops in collaboration with the CBD Secretariat in 2012.

Poetry - 29th July - Speakers Announced

The speakers for the next Cardiff sciSCREEN – Poetry, Friday July 29th at 5.45pm, sponsored by Cesagen – have been confirmed. Speaking at the post-film discussion will be:

Professor Julie Williams (MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University) will talk about what the scientific community is doing to try to prevent the development of Alzheimer's disease in future generations.

Dr Andrew Edgar (Centre for Applied Ethics, Cardiff University) will explore the role that art has in allowing us to acknowledge and engage with the potential meaninglessness and tragedy of life, and to articulate our sense of loss when meaning and and beauty are absent.

Dr John Anderson (School of Biosciences, Cardiff University) will discuss the way in which people with Alzheimer’s can learn to do new things despite memory problems, and how this contrasts with the current government strategy for caring and treating individuals with dementia.

Clare Potter (Poet) will discuss the way in which poetry makes us remember, but also lets us experience as if for the first time.

In addition, Dr Martin O’Neill (Cesagen, Cardiff University) will distribute a short article on the subject of dignity and the care of older people.

Tickets for the film can be purchased from Chapter. The post-film discussion is free to attend.

New TWN Book on Nagoya Protocol Negotiations

The Third World Network (TWN) has released the second edition of "The Road to an Anti-Biopiracy Agreement: The Negotiations Under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity". Comprised of a series of reports and articles, the book provides detailed descriptions and analyses of the 14 sets of negotiations since 2004 that led to the adoption of the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing in 2010. It also provides initial analysis of the potential of the Nagoya Protocol to stop and prevent biopiracy of biological resources and traditional knowledge and to contribute to the fair and equitable sharing of benefits and the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.