Ulfa offers talks, but strings attached
Afp, Guwahati
One of the main rebel groups fighting central government rule in northeastern India said Sunday it was ready for new peace talks with New Delhi but stuck by its demand for independence. The separatist United Liberation Front of Assom (Ulfa) called on India to organise a referendum under United Nations supervision to assess public reaction to independence for the oil, timber and tea-rich state of Assam. "We have all along been willing to hold talks for a respectable solution to the problem," the outlawed group said in a statement in its fortnightly newsletter, Freedom. "We once again reiterate that if any proposal (from New Delhi) for a respectable solution to the problem is routed through the People's Consultative Group, we are ready to consider," it said, referring to a now defunct civilian panel it nominated two years ago to hold talks with New Delhi.
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