A tribal body in strife-torn Manipur has urged the Indian government to grant federal territory status for the areas where indigenous Kuki-Zo tribal people live, alleging their “continued ethnic cleansing” at the hands of the majority Meitei community.
The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF) in the northeastern state, in an open letter addressed to Federal Home Minister Amit Shah, appealed to the government “to expedite creating a federal territory with a legislature for the Kuki-Zo community under Article 239A of the Indian Constitution.”
Article 239A provides for the creation of a local legislature, council of ministers, or both for certain federal territories directly administered from New Delhi.
“The majority [Meitei] community is controlling the state’s resources and is continuing its ethnic cleansing campaign against the Kuki-Zos,” the July 13 letter alleged.
“As of now, there is only one solution – a separate federal territory with a legislature – for the Indigenous people who live in the hilly areas of the state,” an Indigenous Church leader told UCA News on July 15.
The Church leader, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the majority Meiteis and tribal Kuki-Zo people “cannot see eye to eye.”
“So how is it possible for them to co-exist,” he asked.
The ITLF pointed out that “the nature of the conflict – the death, destruction and radicalization of Meitei community – means the Kuki-Zo community will not be able to live a safe and dignified life in Manipur even if the military enforces some semblance of peace.”
It further made a strong plea for “disarming everyone in the interest of peace” in Manipur.
The federal government has not yet responded to the open letter, which also took strong exception to labeling of the indigenous tribes as “illegal migrants” and “narco-terrorists” who had migrated to the northeast Indian state from the civil war hit neighboring country of Myanmar.
It urged the federal government “to identify those migrated from Myanmar.” Also, it suggested issuing them identity cards and keeping them in separate refugee camps “to avoid targeting the native Kuki-Zos as illegal migrants.”
The ITLF further claimed that besides tribal people, even the Meiteis were involved in poppy farming. “Meitei propagandists created the myth of ‘narco-terrorists’ to malign the Kuki-Zo community,” it said in the letter.
The Kuki-Zo tribal people, who are mostly Christian, have been targeted by the Hindu Meiteis after violence broke out between them on May 3 last year.
There is no end in sight to the killings and arson for the past 14 months. Some 220 people were killed and more than 50,000 displaced, a majority of them tribal Christians. The mobs also destroyed over 7000 houses, 360 Churches, and other Christian institutions.
The violence began over a state top court order allowing the demand of the Meiteis to grant them tribal status, which would enable them to avail benefits of the government’s affirmative action plans.
The move, according to tribal people, would not only reduce their share of welfare benefits, including educational and job quotas but also enable the wealthy Meiteis to purchase their protected land in the state’s hilly region, leading to their further deprivation.
The Meiteis, who comprise 53 percent of the state’s 3.2 million people, control Manipur’s legislature and administration, while the 41 percent tribal people have little say.
The state is ruled by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The ITLF alleged “high-handedness” by the federal security forces and investigative agencies, calling it a “matter of serious concern for the minority tribes who are facing the brunt of the violence in the ongoing ethnic conflict.”
The letter listed various atrocities allegedly committed by security personnel, including beating up Kuki women, arresting underage Kuki boys, and setting on fire the house of a Kuki leader.
It further alleged a lack of action against the Meiteis and the militants from the Arambai Tenngol group backed by the community.
The federal investigation agencies “should not be used as a tool for suppression,” the ITLF urged Shah.
“While combing operations are in full swing in Kuki-Zo areas, Meitei militants with automatic weapons are freely operating in the state capital and surrounding valley,” it alleged.
The letter also accused both the federal and state security forces of not taking any concrete steps to retrieve “around 6000 weapons and 6.5 lakh rounds of ammunition looted from state armories” allegedly by Meitei militants.
ITLF has threatened to discontinue cooperation with the security forces “if they continue to act in a biased manner.”
“Action cannot be one-sided,” it added.
source : ucanews