May I Have a Few Minutes?

I am a woman, who belongs to that gender, upon whom are inflicted the greatest suffering, upon whom atrocious attacks on their body and soul by sexualising, harassing, molesting and raping is seen as a sadistic “victory”, undermining the physical and psychological damage it does to the victim in their pursuit to assert their DOMINANCE. I belong to that gender who became a mourning mother, a widow, a fatherless daughter and a weeping sister not by choice but by circumstances. Despite the sufferings I have gone through, my sufferings, concerns and voices have little to no space in the DECISION MAKING both by the central government and the state government. Thus, through this platform, I would like to make my voice heard so I request you all to please spare a few minutes of your time, to know what goes on in my mind as a woman towards the government and political leaders on their approach and opinions on Manipur today. I have questions I need an answer to and concerns I need a redressal of.

One would feel rather funny on why the ethnic strife in Manipur happened if they don’t know the background. Why a protest by tribals against the ST status demand of the Meiteis and the burning of tyres at a centenary gate exacerbated the tension beyond control. Thus, let’s get into the background first. Well, you have to go back a few years to understand the entire context. The environment for anti-Kuki sentiments amongst the public was set for years by organisations like Federation of Haomee, Imphal based television channels on their live debates and newspapers becoming agents to feed the public the majoritarianism politics of Meitei and the hate for Kukis in the name of free speech. Last but not the least, the CM and the BJP youth wing leaders, spared no stone to demean Kukis and racially slur at them. As an example, rather than celebrating Anglo-Kuki war centenary celebration, the CM created a political drama in the state and played dirty politics to demean the Kukis over the historical events they took pride over, which didn’t go well with the Kuki common netizens. Rather than tackling the menace that created the environment for communal disharmony, the Chief Minister immaturely resorted to social media war against those belonging to Kuki, using a vile tone of language. The list can go on, but the Government justification on their actions that were seen as targets on Kukis as regular administrative activities will be seen as one by the Kukis too, had the environment in the state been harmonious and loving for the Kukis as well. Like the sound of a gun firing during a gun salute for our brave Jawans and gun firing in a war torn area sounds the same. However, one instills pride and the other fear, thus the same thing or actions can have different meanings and emotions based on the circumstances.

I have no doubt on the genuine claim of the Kuki areas as Kukis’ Ancestral land, but I will not go into the historical context, as on 15 August 1947, the long battle for India to rewrite its own history as a Sovereign and Democratic Republic country was finally attained only after the selfless sacrifices of lakhs of our ancestors who wanted a better future for us than they had. So I believe we must respect their aspirations and ideals. Thus I think it is the duty of every citizen of India to remind themselves that we are no longer subjects of kings but citizens of a country. So the question as to who is indigenous and who is not, is rather ironic, as it portrays the fact India fails to impart the nationalistic and patriotic feeling of being Indian to certain sections of its citizens. The minority feel the brunt of this failure - they are made illegals in their own country. Aren’t we offspring of the same Mother India? Thus my question is why does the government of India give the breeding space for the existence of two types of offspring from the same Mother i.e.India in the first place?

It is said that the Prime Minister will visit Manipur only when a solution for Manipur is found. So my question to the Prime Minister is, does it mean that until then, will the children of these Indian women who belong to the Kuki community, whose ancestors fought the great Anglo Kuki War in 1917-1919, And were proud members of INA Who fought alongside Subhas Chandra Bose, continue to be persecuted and branded Illegal Immigrants and unwanted Indians in their own country that their forefathers fought for its liberation? What stops the Prime Minister from taking a stance against racial and ethnic oppression and attack the Kukis?
Is it not his party that is in government in the state too? A strict warning from his could have stopped the discrimination. And he can do so at the comfort of his office without having to take a single step into Manipur. Or are Kuki women's wombs seen as a cursed by the PM that her sons and daughters are named shamed without their fault but the PM turns a blind eye? Or is the Meitei community more powerful than the Constitution of India and the parliament that they can dictate and decide in the citizenship of other Indians?

Had President Rule been imposed from the beginning, many women would have been saved from becoming a widow, many families from a broken one, many children from being orphaned, thousands from being refugees in their own country, hundreds and thousands of youth won’t be standing there in the borders to protect their tribe but rather pursue their future education. When lakhs of people are affected due to the failure of the state government and their machinery, what stops the Prime minister from advising the president to impose President Rule in the state? Is Biren’s CM Position more valuable for the government of India than millions of people who got directly or indirectly affected due to his failure? And the Prime minister need not come to Manipur, his strong action from his office could prevent the injustices, casualties and sufferings aftermath 3rd of May.

As the Home Minister declared that Manipur integrity would not be broken during his election campaign in Manipur, the first thought that came to my mind was, “So, electoral victory is more important than the justice and safety for Kukis even for a powerful personality like the Home Minister, shri Amit Shah”. After some time, images of the suffering the Kukis were inflicted with re- surfaced in my mind like a movie, instances like how they were mob-lynched to death in front of their relatives, how women folk themselves gave away Kuki women to be raped to their male counterparts, how some got burned alive, how they were unsafe inside the universities and even inside the military vehicles, how hundreds and thousands attacked the localities inhabited by Kukis in Imphal areas, how they were terrorised from outside during their shelter in police and military bases, how the young and old alike had to flee from their villages and spend the night in the forest, how they had to march forth on foot to a safety place, no vehicle or protection were arranged by the government and many more of such images came to my mind. So many questions come up in mind such as, why is the Kukis’ suffering so invisible to those occupying power in Delhi? Where do they get the confidence that Kuki lives henceforth would be secure and protected when the attacks against Kukis were still ongoing? Why are they hell bent on binding us in this violent relationship which discriminates and oppresses the minority? With the scale of radicalisation for anti-Kuki sentiment which spreads in the bone, soul and minds of the ordinary majority community citizens, do they want us to go back and become a perfect victim, is my question. As a woman I do not have the courage to go back nor do I have the confidence to come back safe and sound. Is my concern not worth considering??

As the prime minister and home minister of the country, they are one tap away from every factual information of the ground realities if they wish to update themselves. Thus it is my belief that they will be well aware of the fact of who attacks and who acts in self defence. Had they spared the time for processing and rationalising the whole situation, they would have realised this is not a communal riot or conflict but an attempt to ethnically cleanse the Kukis from the state of Manipur. The unfolding of certain events landed us to that conclusion, events such as, why is it that mobs that targeted Kukis systematically figure out the houses that belong to Kukis in a cosmopolitan residential area like National Game village? With the announcement of a protest rally by ATSUM, why were counter- protests announced by Meiteis in areas close to Kukis like Moirang and not in Naga areas? Why did a conflict in Kangvai and a fake social post by someone cause the atrocities against Kukis and spread like wildfire almost across all the states inhabited by Kukis and Meiteis? And how can Arambai Tenggol immediately resume the leadership role across the state had it not been pre-planned before? Why was the chief minister silent until exodus from both sides got completed? And why is the state’s failure, if at all there are unrecorded refugees from Myanmar, made a crime against the Kukis? Why did he let non-state actors capture the state armoury? The narrative in social media changes daily while the core questions at the advent of the turmoil remains unanswered, these questions need an answer to know the reality of the present problems in Manipur.

Mr. Rahul Gandhi’s opinion on love and not violence and hate for the solution is well appreciated but does his party members in the state share ideological values as he does, is the question. The speech by Bimol Akoijam was well received as he was inclusive and speaks for Manipur as a whole but what was forgotten amidst the applause was why he shied away from touching the sensitive and problematic issues. There are certain questions I feel he needs to answer before portraying himself as a leader of all, questions such as why he doesn’t condemn Arambai Tenggol or the state government. What is his stance on the defamation of Kukis as illegal immigrants by his folk? What is his stance on the demeaning of Kuki women as a sex tool for Assam Rifles and the lewd references in the many songs to defame Kuki women by their renowned singers like TAPTA whose sentiment in the song is shared alike by the old and the young from his community? Will he still defend the atrocious acts of Arambai Tenggol like he did before, and why doesn’t he condemn a rally that called for total annihilation of Kukis? Forget him, even old party loyalist like the former chief minister of Manipur, Shri Okram Ibobi Singh never dwelt on these issues and questions. Thus my question to Shri Rahul Gandhi is, does he think that Kukis will be safe and secure in a united Manipur when his party in the state are either complicit or too fearful to address the issues? He needs to install the idea of love and peace first and foremost amongst his party cadres, and the idea of DARO MAT so that they can speak against the hate manufactured in their courtyard first.

I often thought as to if the Meitei community has the moral right to ask for the integrity of Manipur, while on the one hand they are not only complicit in the crimes done against them and want their complete annihilation as seen from the recent rally organised by COCOMI, and on the other hand they demand for integrity of Manipur which implies the inclusion of Kuki inhabited areas in the political territories of Manipur. So I could not help but draw the conclusion that they want our lands and not us. Thus my question as to if they have the moral right to ask for the integrity of Manipur.

Thus, despite the glaring evidences of injustice and sufferings of the minorities, the attempts by the central government to still bind us together as one, I felt as a woman brought up in patriarchal society like India that there is an evident presence of patriarchal colouring on their means in handling the present situation in Manipur too. Like in all patriarchal society, there is an attempt to bring a forceful peace and stability towards a violent or toxic relationship at the behest of the victims suffering as honours and continuity of Family Institution as one are given more importance than the justice for the victims. In the present context of

Manipur, integrity of Manipur is given more importance to save the central leadership ability and honour than the victims, as the yardstick for the leadership abilities of New Delhi in handling the problem for its success must have been made by them in their ability to keep the integrity of Manipur intact. Amidst the process, they forget the human suffering and injustice inflicted. When hate and violence becomes as systemic as it is now, whose withdrawal from the bone, soul and minds will take decades, divorce and separation is the moral and more viable solution if humanism, empathy and justice is rather made the yardstick.

It is thus my request for the central authority to give a humanistic and empathetic approach in their strategy to ensure normalcy in Manipur as their decision decides the fate of lakhs of women and their offspring, they need an assurance that she and her family are safe and secured.