GUWAHATI: The Paresh Baruah-led United Liberation Front of Assam-Independent (ULFA-I) and the Yung Aung faction of National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) have called for the boycott of the Independence Day.In a joint statement, the two insurgent groups said this “so-called” celebration of freedom holds no significance for the indigenous people of Western South East Asia (WESEA) – region straddling parts of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur.They alleged that “colonial” India gave nothing to the indigenous people of WESEA other than deceit, humiliation, exploitation and oppression.“The British imperialists exploited, repressed and deprived this region and similarly, for the past 79 years, colonial India has maintained an even more pervasive domination in the name of independence,” the statement alleged.The outfits said the highlight of their protest on August 15 would be a total bandh in WESEA. They appealed to people to extend their support to make the bandh successful.The ULFA-I and the NSCN’s Wung Aung faction call for the boycott of India’s Republic Day and Independence Day celebrations every year. But despite the boycott call, people go out in large numbers to take part in the celebrations.
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