Bearing witness: a report on the impact of conflict on women in Nagaland and Assam

To say that women have faced violence in situations of conflict is to state the obvious but what this means in terms of impacts is something that is still being studied. While the most obvious impact is physical or sexual violence, the psychological scarring as a result of prolonged exposure to brutality has an even deeper impact on their well-being. Women find themselves at the receiving end of violence from three fronts: the state, the militants and a corresponding escalation of domestic violence. The effects of violent acts like rape, sexual abuse and assault lead to emotional trauma and what is known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The major aim of this project is the documentation of the impact of conflict on women in the two states of Nagaland and Assam. The project seeks to place these issues in the larger context of the challenges of nation building, regional growth and also look at broader issues of just laws, the use of state power and the rights of citizens, especially women... The core of the project is the field survey in the two states with specific and detailed questionnaires that were administered to households. The research teams felt it was important to look at individual cases as well as collective fears and tensions that had accumulated in the collective psyche of communities faced with years of armed conflict and insecurity. The subtext of denial, defiance and trauma needed to be especially noted... Besides quantitative presentation of data in the tables, qualitative method of research has also been employed to bring out a fuller understanding of the research topic. A discussion of the experiences and observations of the interviewers/ fieldworkers has also been included