Peacekeeping Efforts Through Force Will be Immaterial Unless Centre Finds Solution to Kuki-Zo's Political Problem

Any attempt to restore peace through force by the Government of India in the already divided State of Manipur will neither resolve the ongoing ethnic tension between the Meiteis and Kukis nor bring permanent peace in the state.

To rush additional central security forces to contain the escalating violence will be impractical and untenable. Instead, the Government of India should have the political will to resolve the problems through formalization of separate administrative units for each warring party.

In a recent press conference, the State’s Security Adviser, Mr. Kuldeep Singh had said that the Centre is sending over 10,000 more soldiers to ethnic violence-hit Manipur, taking the total number of companies of the central forces to 288 in the northeastern state.

With the addition of 90 companies, or approximately 10,800 personnel of the central forces, the total number of companies deployed in Manipur has reached 288, Kuldiep Singh had told reporters in the state capital Imphal.

If the mayhem in Manipur can be resolved by directing some instructions to bureaucrats and cops or reviewing security measures, it would have been sorted out in May 2023 itself. It needs political will to act which is totally absent in the BJP-led Narendra Modi’s government on critical national challenges.

Deploying more central security forces sans addressing the core problems or reading the sentiments of the people will undoubtedly invite more violence and could probably cost more lives and properties in the escalating violence.

Ways to resolve Crisis:

If the Centre has to show real sincerity to resolve the crisis, it is very simple. First, it should acknowledge that the incumbent narcissistic Chief Minister N. Biren Singh is the main cause and architect of the violence and he should be removed immediately from the top of the helm. Secondly,  AFSPA needs to be reimposed in all valley areas and subsequently, all looted weapons should be retrieved back after banning Biren’s private militia groups like Arambai Tenggol, Meitei Leepun, etc., under the UAPA Act. Thirdly, the Kuki-Zo people’s political demand, which is genuine and legitimate, should be taken up sooner than later.

It is more understandable that the Meiteis and the Kuki-Zo can no longer coexist under one administrative unit as the two communities now live in their own ancestral homelands, separated through buffer zones. Physically, ethnically and emotionally, they are already separated following completion of an unprecedented population exchange last year.

One of the best evidence that the Meiteis and Kukis can no longer co-exist is that even the Meitei small kids are brainwashed to annihilate the Kuki-Zo people from their own soil. The brainwashing and radicalisation of Meitei children against Kukis clearly demonstrates that the present genocide is just a prelude, and the future where Kukis and Meiteis will coexist is clearly a myth. More than Kukis, Meiteis are very clear that Kukis cannot live with them anymore.

In a footage which recently got viral on social media, the Meitei minor kids are indoctrinated into hating and annihilating  entire Kuki-Zo people. They were let to chant genocidal words - “Annihilate Kukis” - along the roadside in full public glare. This radicalisation shows the inevitability of the Separate Administration for the Kuki-Zo people. This represents the most severe ethnic violence the country has witnessed and the two warring communities cannot coexist under a single administration.

Truth must prevail:

Since the beginning of the state-sponsored ethnic cleansing pogrom, false narratives have been created in Manipur, suggesting that the Kukis are not original Manipuris but are from Myanmar. This propaganda, supported by the state government, aims to demean the Kukis and their history. The fascist regime of N. Biren Singh has laid the foundation for such misinformation.

Even after 19 months of majoritarian persecution against minority tribals, it is unlikely that N. Biren Singh, along with his coteries, will change his stance, as he enjoys support from the insane Meitei populace who share his views. He is responsible for the deep divide between communities and has blood on his hands. He needs to be tried for serious criminal charges as per the law of the land.

For peace to prevail, truths have to be acknowledged and justice must be done. Anyone who bears responsibility must be held accountable. Peace cannot be built on lies and ethnic cleansing.

More importantly, Kuki-Zos’ political demand for Union Territory with Legislative power should be granted for permanent peace in the region so that the warring communities can co-exist as good neighbours.