Finding new solutions to old problems

President of the All Manipur Working Journalist Union, A Mobi Singh was in his kitchen when an explosion wiped out part of his house. He was more fortunate than many others, and escaped unhurt from the attack on August 11 this year.  Six journalists have been killed in Manipur, three injured grievously, dozens assaulted for reporting freely, with several scribes being arrested by the authorities as well.

The media in Manipur is under constant threat. The editors are under tremendous pressure to write for state or non-state, or to censor news, or to ensure that specific reports are not carried. Those who resist are attacked, and the threat has grown to such a point that now most media establishments are under heavy security that makes movement difficult, and also brings them under a new kind of surveillance.

Journalists find themselves caught in the midst of the ongoing and decades old conflict between the 20 odd militant groups operating from the state and the overpowering presence of the security forces. In fact Mobi Singh who was now attacked by militant groups had, not so long ago, been arrested by the state police on the false charge of being an underground activist. This was in December 2010 and he was kept in police custody without the basic facilities. The Manipur media went on strike for nearly a week until he was finally released.

As a possible way out of this vice, the All Manipur Working Journalist Union has framed its own code of conduct that basically allows the censoring and editing of press releases as a joint, and not an individual exercise. In that the editors of the various publications have given up their individual right to the collective whole in deciding what press releases should be carried, what should be censored, and what portions should be carried or not according to this code of conduct. This is to ensure that no single editor or publication is targeted, and the militants and the authorities both have to bow to the larger media will.

This is indeed a novel way out and at the moment seems to be working as the threats have brought about rare unanimity amongst the journalists most of whom are under police ‘protection’. The media offices are heavily secured with barricades, bunkers and police personnel around the clock.  Every visitor is frisked and searched leading to a loss of privacy that is creating considerable concern amongst journalists who find it difficult to contact, or for that matter protect, their sources.

Unfortunately there seems to be no end in sight with the freedom of the media in Manipur remaining compromised at both ends.