ITANAGAR, Oct 31: The Arunachal Indigenous Tribes Forum (AITF) has appealed to organisations, community groups, student bodies and individuals to maintain peace and exercise restraint amid the prevailing tensions over the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) in parts of the Siang belt.
Expressing concern over reports of violence, insecurity and the deployment of heavily armed forces in Upper Siang, Siang and East Siang districts, the forum said the developments were detrimental to the interests of Arunachal Pradesh and called for resolving differences through peaceful dialogue.
In a statement, the AITF said it had constituted a seven-member Peace Committee on October 28 to engage with all concerned stakeholders, hear their grievances and facilitate constructive and lawful dialogue to restore trust, peace and normalcy.
With the formation of the new committee, the eight-member fact-finding committee constituted on January 30, 2025, has been dissolved, it said.
The forum urged all organisations and individuals to extend cooperation to its peace initiative and provide an opportunity for dialogue, expressing hope that the Peace Committee would be acceptable to all contending parties.
It called for resolving differences through mutual understanding and collective wisdom, keeping the larger interests of the people and the state above all other considerations.
The AITF also appealed to people not to circulate unverified information or take the law into their own hands. It urged organisations and individuals to refrain from activities such as dharnas and bandh calls that could aggravate the prevailing law-and-order situation.
Citing past instances, the forum said peaceful protests and bandh calls could sometimes be disrupted by anti-social elements, resulting in hardship for ordinary people, particularly those requiring medical attention or facing emergencies.
Stressing that violence would only cause suffering while dialogue could create a conducive atmosphere for resolution, the AITF appealed to all stakeholders to uphold brotherhood, mutual respect and harmony and ensure that differences of opinion do not disturb the peace of the state.