37 years on, Nagas remember Oinam massacre during Operation Bluebird
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Imphal: Nagas commemorated the 37th anniversary of the Operation Bluebird at the Maram Union Secretariat Complex in Tahamzan (Senapati), Manipur, on Wednesday. They marked the event as the dark day of July 9, 1987, when the Indian Army's counter-insurgency operation turned into what many regard as one of the worst cases of human rights violations in northeast.
The event was organised by the Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights (NPMHR) and hosted by the Paomei Naha Union (PNU) with attendance from key Naga organisations, including the United Naga Council (UNC), Naga Students' Federation (NSF), Naga Women Union (NWU), Naga Peoples Organisation (NPO), ANSAM and other apex Naga tribal bodies, and well-wishers from across Naga districts.
Many speakers revisited the trauma of the incident, describing how in the early morning of July 9, 1987, Assam Rifles personnel descended upon Oinam village and over 30 surrounding villages, following the attack by the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) on an Assam Rifles outpost that resulted in the killing of nine soldiers and looting of arms.
To recover the weapons, Operation Bluebird was unleashed and an unprecedented reign of terror followed. According to testimonies shared, 27 civilians were killed, three women raped, five sexually molested, two women forced to give birth in public view, 340 villagers were tortured, 96 arbitrarily arrested and detained for weeks, 125 houses burned, 172 dismantled, 10 churches desecrated and 6 schools destroyed.
NPMHR secretary general Neingulo Krome described the operation as 'a calculated and systemic assault on the civilian population'. "This brutality gave birth to the NPMHR as a cry for justice and a stand for the dignity of the Naga people," Krome said and reminded the gathering that Operation Bluebird was not just an isolated military crackdown but a historical wound that continues to fester.
The operation, carried out under the draconian provisions of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (
AFSPA
), has since become a case study in extrajudicial killings, torture and impunity.
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