rediff.com: The first-ever encounter with insurgent leader Sana Yaima

Day 3

The man they call Sana Yaima

COLD and stiff, we wake up to mugs of hot tea. No sooner is breakfast dispensed with, the man we are all waiting for walks across.
Tall and erect, his gait confident, Sana Yaima, dressed in jungle fatigues and surrounded by armed men, stops in front of us.
"Hello. Welcome to our makeshift camp," are his first words.
We introduce ourselves and sit around the fire. But for his olive green fatigues, Meghen could easily be mistaken for an academician.
Soft-spoken, erudite and impeccably mannered, he assumed the ancient Meitei name Sana Yaima in his avatar as an insurgent leader. He is far removed from the image of a gun-totting, fiery revolutionary.
Sana Yaima is extremely articulate, his reasoning convincing, his facts solid. A post-graduate in international relations from Calcutta's Jadavpur University, he had graduated from the Scottish Church College in the same city.
He brings a scholar's approach to insurgency. Also sophistication. His cadres have the best of weapons and equipment, which include laptop computers.
For a quarter of century, he had shunned the media. Now, after over 36 years of its existence (of which he has been associated for 31 years), the UNLF is ready to let the world know what it is all about.
Sana Yaima's upbringing and education in the late 1960s in Calcutta, during the run-up to the Naxalite uprising, have had a lasting affect on his outlook. I know that he is liberal, given to respect other ethnic groups and their distinct identities.
No wonder, I say to myself, that he has been leading the UNLF for the past 16 years, first in the capacity of general secretary between 1984 and 1998 and now as chairman. I try to recollect what I know of him.
IF I am not mistaken, he returned to Manipur in the early 1970s and got married.
In 1975, having become an important member of the outfit's think tank, he went underground. Since then, he has remained in the jungles, away from family, meeting them occasionally in hiding.
Sana Yaima's wife and two children have taken his absence in their stride. His wife, he is to tell us later, "keeps busy by teaching in a school while both my sons are pursuing higher studies".
The elder is doing his doctorate in remote sensing application in Manipur University and the younger is in Pune, studying computer science.
Twenty-five years in the jungles have kept the 55-year-old leader fighting fit. For him, this has become a way of life.
Except for making brief forays to Geneva to make a representation on the UNLF's behalf to the UN Sub-Commission on Indigenous People, and an occasional trip to South-East Asian countries, Sana Yaima has stayed with his 1,000-strong army, which comprises 100-odd women.
And now, after preliminary pleasantries are over, Sana Yaima is saying, "Let's have the interviews one by one."
And so it begins.
Photographs: Nilayan Dutta
Part 2
'Our fight is against the Indian State, not the Indian people'
Return to Rendezvous With The Rebel
The Rediff Specials
Mail us your comments

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	Day 3 The man they call Sana Yaima COLD and stiff, we wake up to mugs of hot tea. No sooner is breakfast dispensed with, the man we are all waiting for walks across. Tall and erect, his gait confident, Sana Yaima, dressed in jungle fatigues and surrounded by armed men, stops in front of us. "Hello. Welcome to our makeshift camp," are his first words. We introduce ourselves and sit around the fire. But for his olive green fatigues, Meghen could easily be mistaken for an academician. Soft-spoken, erudite and impeccably mannered, he assumed the ancient Meitei name Sana Yaima in his avatar as an insurgent leader. He is far removed from the image of a gun-totting, fiery revolutionary. Sana Yaima is extremely articulate, his reasoning convincing, his facts solid. A post-graduate in international relations from Calcutta's Jadavpur University, he had graduated from the Scottish Church College in the same city. He brings a scholar's approach to insurgency. Also sophistication. His cadres have the best of weapons and equipment, which include laptop computers. For a quarter of century, he had shunned the media. Now, after over 36 years of its existence (of which he has been associated for 31 years), the UNLF is ready to let the world know what it is all about. Sana Yaima's upbringing and education in the late 1960s in Calcutta, during the run-up to the Naxalite uprising, have had a lasting affect on his outlook. I know that he is liberal, given to respect other ethnic groups and their distinct identities. No wonder, I say to myself, that he has been leading the UNLF for the past 16 years, first in the capacity of general secretary between 1984 and 1998 and now as chairman. I try to recollect what I know of him. IF I am not mistaken, he returned to Manipur in the early 1970s and got married. In 1975, having become an important member of the outfit's think tank, he went underground. Since then, he has remained in the jungles, away from family, meeting them occasionally in hiding. Sana Yaima's wife and two children have taken his absence in their stride. His wife, he is to tell us later, "keeps busy by teaching in a school while both my sons are pursuing higher studies". The elder is doing his doctorate in remote sensing application in Manipur University and the younger is in Pune, studying computer science. Twenty-five years in the jungles have kept the 55-year-old leader fighting fit. For him, this has become a way of life. Except for making brief forays to Geneva to make a representation on the UNLF's behalf to the UN Sub-Commission on Indigenous People, and an occasional trip to South-East Asian countries, Sana Yaima has stayed with his 1,000-strong army, which comprises 100-odd women. And now, after preliminary pleasantries are over, Sana Yaima is saying, "Let's have the interviews one by one." And so it begins. Photographs: Nilayan Dutta Part 2 'Our fight is against the Indian State, not the Indian people' Return to Rendezvous With The Rebel The Rediff Specials Mail us your comments
HOME \| NEWS \| CRICKET \| MONEY \| SPORTS \| MOVIES \| CHAT \| BROADBAND \| TRAVEL ASTROLOGY \| NEWSLINKS \| BOOK SHOP \| MUSIC SHOP \| GIFT SHOP \| HOTEL BOOKINGS AIR/RAIL \| WEDDING \| ROMANCE \| WEATHER \| WOMEN \| E-CARDS \| EDUCATION HOMEPAGES \| FREE MESSENGER \| FREE EMAIL \| CONTESTS \| FEEDBACK