"We struggled a lot to make ends meet, and now he's left us...How will we survive," asked an inconsolable Hatneihoi, speaking to The Quint about her husband's murder.
In Manipur's seemingly unending cycle of violence, two men belonging to the Kuki-Zo community were allegedly killed in an ambush on Monday, 20 November, along the boundary of Imphal and Kangpokpi districts.
The Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), a tribal outfit, identified the deceased as 38-year-old Henminlen Vaiphei and 26-year-old Thangminlun Hangshing.
Thangminlun is survived by his wife and his seven-year-old son. "I am so helpless and desperate. I request everyone to pray and support us. Pray for me, my son, and my family," she said.
'Ambushed By Insurgents': Deceased Had Gone to Repair Roads
Thangminlun further stated that her community had demanded security for the Leimakhong Kangchup area, but the government had not provided any.
"My husband and his friend went to repair the roads that have been affected by the recent rainfall, and on the way, they were ambushed by insurgents," Hatneihoi narrated to The Quint, a fact that was corroborated by the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF), the apex body for the Kuki-Zo community, which confirmed that the deceased were repairing the Lamka-Kangpokpi road.
An FIR (dated 20 November) has been filed at G Saparmeina Police Station against "unknown armed miscreants suspected to be from the Meitei community."
CoTU Declares Shutdown in Kangpokpi District
After dropping off their friends at a designated point, the two men were ambushed while attempting to return to Leimakhong, a mere 50 metres from where they had left their friends.
Since the victims and their friends were unarmed, they were reportedly unable to defend themselves.
The FIR also states that the incident took place in "the deserted forest between Leilon Vaiphei village and Kharam Vaiphei village" in Kangpokpi.
At an emergency meeting held at Kanggui, the CoTU condemned the “unprovoked attack…by the war-mongering Meitei insurgents."
The organisation declared a shutdown in the Kangpokpi district to convey to the Centre that Kuki-Zo tribals are no longer safe "under the partisan government."
More than 180 people have been killed since the violence erupted on 3 May after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
"It has been six months but the union government has still not provided a political solution," Hatneihoi concluded.
The Quint has reached out to Kangpokpi Police for further details on the matter.
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