Shillong, July 31: With the movement for peace talks in the Garo hills gaining momentum, the Garo Baptist Convention has offered to mediate between the Centre and the banned Garo outfit, the Achik National Volunteers’ Council (ANVC).

In a meeting lasting over two hours, the convention last evening discussed the problem of militancy in Garo hills with Meghalaya home minister Robert G. Lyngdoh at Tura.

The Congress-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government had recently recognised the Khasi Jaintia Church Leaders’ Forum as official negotiator in talks with the Khasi outfit, Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council.

The move is being seen as an assertion by the MDA of its exclusive right on any peace process in the state. Chief minister D.D. Lapang and the home minister have said that peace talks with militant outfits of the state would have to take the state government into confidence. So far, the government has refused to recognise any other group or individual except the churches to assist in the proposed peace process.

Convention chairman G.R. Marak said the meeting was “cordial” and that the home minister had proposed setting up of a peace committee to which they had agreed. He said today that they would wait for the government’s formal approval before beginning the “exercise of taking the peace process forward”. The convention would confine itself to the Garo hills and attempt to bring the ANVC and other splinter groups to the negotiating table, he added.

The convention is chalking out a plan of action to make the peace process successful. “We will give full cooperation and try our best to reach out to the groups (the ANVC and other militant outfits). We are fully prepared to take up the job,” Marak said, adding that they had no objection to other mediators trying to establish contacts with the ANVC.

Refusing to comment on the tug-of-war over the proposed peace process in Garo hills between the government, former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno A. Sangma and Mizoram chief minister Zoramthanga, Marak said they would concentrate on their role and not meddle in other affairs.

Lyngdoh, who is on a whirlwind tour of Garo hills, reiterated the need to end militancy in the area. In all his meetings with various sections of the public, including women’s groups, nokmas (local chiefs) and public representatives, he stressed the need for the public to come forward and take a firm resolve against militancy.

“As long as the public does not respond positively and comes forward to help the police, they are condemning the future generation to live in worse conditions than what they are in today,” Lyngdoh said in a meeting at Dalu. He said if the public extended full cooperation, militancy could be completely wiped out by 2004. He warned that if militancy was allowed to continue to choke the economic development of Garo hills investors’ apathy and the unemployment scenario would not end.

Lyngdoh also attended the renaming function of a police public school yesterday. The school was renamed as Pechon A. Sangma Police Memorial School in memory of the deputy superintendent of police of Baghmara who was killed with five other policemen at Chokpot on September 9 last year.