Following the imposition of total shutdown for 48-hours in all Kuki-Zo dominated areas in Manipur by top Kuki-Zo tribal bodies, a public protest was also held at different locations in Kuki-Zo dominated Kangpokpi district against the alleged forceful occupation of Moreh by the Meitei.
All shops and business establishments, and educational institutions, in Kangpokpi district remained closed while the important National Highway-2 wore a deserted look as vehicles stayed off the road except those exempted from the purview of the total shutdown imposed by KSO-General Headquarters and Committee on Tribal Unity Sadar Hills Kangpokpi.
Volunteers were seen enforcing the total shutdown and blocking the highway at various places.
The public protest organized by CoTU was held at Kangpokpi District Headquarters, Saparmeina and Gamgiphai where thousands of people mostly womenfolk took part in the protest at the three locations.
The public protest was held under the same banner, “Protest against the forceful occupation of Moreh by Meiteis” in the three locations while shouting similar slogans, “Save Moreh from N. Biren Singh”, “Save Kangpokpi from N. Biren Singh”, “Save Churachandpur from N. Biren Singh”, “Save Kuki-Zo from Meitei insurgents”, “Remove Meitei militants from Moreh”, “We want political solution”, “We want Separate Administration”, etc.
The protestors also hold placards that read, “We want immediate withdrawal of partisan forces”, “The ill-design of N. Biren Singh costs innocent lives”, “Meitei insurgents are incorporated in the state forces”,”Six months of unrest, where is peace?”, “Double Engine or Humanity?”, etc.
At Gamgiphai, CoTU’s Media Cell Coordinator, Ng. Lun Kipgen said that following the declaration of 48-hour Total Shutdown by COTU, the Kuki-Zo people mostly women across Kangpokpi district gathered to protest against the deployment of Meitei militants in guise of State Police Commandos in Moreh and immediate removal from Kuki-Zo areas.
While drawing the serious attention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Ng. Lun Kipgen said that your Chief Minister of Manipur has misused his executive power in deploying state security forces in Kuki-Zo dominated areas including border town Moreh.
He also conveyed to the PM and Union Home Minister saying that it is a known fact that the state police commandos deployed in the border town Moreh are not the actual commandos and we know that some of the Meitei militants from Myanmar have been harbouring in the bordering places, and the Chief Minister of Manipur, N. Biren Singh is trying to disguise those militants in police uniform and while trying to do that there has been so much collateral damage.
Modiji, we appeal to you, “Enough is Enough” and it is high time you intervene, if you really want India to remain as one, Kipgen added.
He then clarified that the protest and the total shut down is not imposed against the Government of India but against the excessive use of executive power by one of your Chief Ministers.
He said that there has been a complete “Constitutional Breakdown” in the state of Manipur for a long six-months and the Prime Minister silence wondered us as what really constituted a constitutional breakdown.
While urging the Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh not to play politics, Ng. Lun Kipgen asked Manipur Chief Minister to at least have a resemblance of responsibility.
He also said that the Chief Minister of a democratic state has to be very careful as to whatever he does or said in terms of law and order, or in terms of the welfare of the society in the television has a compounding effect.
“The selective treatment or the prescriptive treatment over another community is a mockery of our constituted state”, he added.
He then urged the Prime Minister to instruct the Chief Minister of Manipur to withdraw or remove the state forces who are in the Kuki-Zo dominated areas, especially from Moreh, which could be one solution.
He further said that the ongoing conflict has ensured a total separation of the two warring communities and there are already a buffer zones, therefore, the state forces have no reason to go into the Kuki-Zo dominated areas as there are enough central forces.
He then appeals to the Centre Government not to give the Kuki-Zo people a step-motherly treatment and begs Prime Minister Modi to intervene, do the right thing which is under the Constitution of India and ensure the Kuki-Zo people could feel they are Indian too.
One of the women among the protestors said that unless our demand for removal of the state forces from Moreh and our demands for a political solution are met, we will not stop our protest.
She also said that the Meitei militants in the guise of state police commandos create havoc in Moreh by burning of houses, vehicles, looting of even Church money, and harassing the innocent Kuki-Zo people.
She appealed to the Union Home Minister to remove the Meitei militants and the state forces from Moreh while conveying that the Kuki-Zo women will not stop their agitation unless their demands are meted.
