'Can't Hold Peace Talks': Kukis Object to CM's Inclusion in Manipur Committee

The formation of the committee was announced by the Ministry of Home Affairs on Saturday, 10 June .

Manipur has been witnessing unrest and ethnic violence between the Kuki and Meitei communities since the beginning of May, that has claimed almost 100 lives and displaced at least 35,000 people.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

A day after the Home Ministry formed a peace committee in Manipur, the state which has been witnessing ethnic violence, several representatives of Kuki communities announced that they will boycott the panel.

Details: On Sunday, 11 June, some representatives of the community stated that members of the committee had been appointed without their consent.

• They said that the Centre should be a part of the committee as they can't sit with the Manipur government for the peace talks.

About the committee: The committee, headed by the Manipur governor, includes the chief minister, a few ministers in the state government, MPs, MLAs & leaders from different political parties, civil servants, educationists, artists, social workers, and representatives of different ethnic groups.

"The mandate of the Committee will be to facilitate peace making process among various ethnic groups of the State, including peaceful dialogue and negotiations between conflicting parties/groups," a statement by the Ministry of Home Affairs said.

Bone of contention: Reacting to the committee's appointment, Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM) president Ajang Khongsai told The Hindu, "The panel includes COCOMI (Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity, a civil society group in Imphal) that has declared war against the Kukis. We want peace but at this critical junction, when violence continues, we cannot hold talks with the Manipur government."

A retired Indian Defence Accounts Service officer J Lhungdim, who is also also named as a part of the committee told The Indian Express, "This is an important question as without my consent, why and how did they add my name to the peace committee. I have spoken with several Kuki representatives and they told me that their names were also added to the committee without talking to them and they are also not happy with this act."

He further added that the central government should be part of this committee, instead of leaving everything to CM N Biren Singh.

Meanwhile, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) condemned the inclusion of CM in the committee.

"His (N Biren Singh) constant rhetoric and hate speech against the Kuki-Zo community, the wholesale tagging of Kuki-Zo community as drug peddlers, terrorists, and illegal immigrants directly shadow the open declaration of genocide by the Meitei Leepun’s chief Pramot Singh on National Media and the declaration of proxy war of “Chin-Kuki Narco-terrorism” by fringe Meitei groups," the ITLF statement said.

Background: Manipur has been witnessing unrest and ethnic violence between the Kuki and Meitei communities since the beginning of May, that has claimed almost 100 lives and displaced at least 35,000 people.

(With inputs from The Hindu and The Indian Express.)