Kimura - The Nellie Massacre of 1983

I visited Nellie for the first time in 2001 to do fieldwork for my PhD research on the antiforeigner movement in Assam. I wanted to learn about how indigenous peoples (tribes) had participated in the movement and a friend suggested that I visit Nellie, where indigenous peoples had joined the movement and lent a hand in attacking Muslims in 1983. At the time, I did not have much of an idea about the Nellie incident. I knew that an attack had taken place there, but I never imagined it to be one of the largest cases of mass killings in contemporary India. I had no idea then that I would visit Nellie and central Assam (Morigaon and Nagaon Districts) time and time again, and then write a book on the incident.

The reason I continued working on the Nellie incident and the issue of collective violence in India was perhaps because I could not fully understand how ordinary people in peaceful villages around Nellie could take part in the killings. Why do people participate in killing their neighbors? And how do they live with those memories? My search for answers to such questions is what led me to write this book, which is an attempt to answer these queries.

Many people supported and helped me while I researched the antiforeigner movement and the Nellie incident. At the outset, I would like to thank Professor Tiplut Nongbri of Jawaharlal Nehru University, who supervised my PhD research on Assam's antiforeigner movement. I am grateful to the examiners of my thesis, Professor Virginius Xaxa of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (Guwahati campus) and Professor Monirul Hussain of Gauhati University. Their comments were greatly beneficial to me as I began reworking the manuscript of this book. It was a great joy to interact with Professor Sanjib Baruah of Bard College and his family, who hosted my stay in Guwahati. Professor Baruah also kindly gave me opportunities to present and publish my articles on the Nellie incident.

I was fortunate enough to interact with scholars who were very active in either supporting or opposing the antiforeigner movement. I would like to thank Professor Basant Deka, who shared his views on the movement as well as some important documents published at the time. Professor Amalendu Guha and Professor Hiren Gohain also took the time to read some of my articles and give their comments, and it was a great privilege to receive their feedback.

Professor Masami Sekine of Keio University was my teacher in my undergraduate years, and initial years of graduate studies. I would not have chosen to proceed to higher studies if I had not met him. Dr Nariaki Nakazato, Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo, kindly gave me institutional affiliation when I was a postdoctoral fellow at the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. I have learned a lot from his strict attitude and passion towards research. Had it not been for his advice that I publish my work in English, this book would not have taken its present form. Professor Chiharu Takenaka of Rikkyo University kindly provided comments on my first article on the Nellie incident (now of this book) and has since been a tremendous source of support and encouragement.

Most of this book was written when I was working as a Research Associate at the International Peace Research Institute of Meiji Gakuin University. It was a great pleasure to interact with my senior colleagues there, and they always showed understanding of and interest in my work. I would like to express special thanks to Professor Makoto Katsumata, Director of the Institute, and Professor Shigeki Takeo, former Director, as well as the many staff members who supported my work.

The research in this book would not have been possible without my interviews with survivors and attackers in the Nellie incident. I would like to thank both these groups of people for sharing their painful experiences with me, a foreigner. This book is dedicated to them. I am grateful to Mrs Rina Pator, who hosted my stay in Nellie, and her brother Mr Pranab Pator, who accompanied me on most of my interviews in the Nellie area. Also, Dr Rejaul Karim accompanied me to Nellie in 2007 and helped me interact with Muslims in the area. I gained a deeper understanding of Muslim society in Assam through him.