KSO seeks govt intervention for safe release of Manipuris arrested by Myanmar Army
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, December 06 2014 :
Kuki Students Organisation (KSO) has sought intervention of the Government of India to secure safe release of four Manipuris who were arrested by Myanmar Army on November 19 last from a place near Vaivet village in Myanmar, while the four persons were hauling firewood for a Myanmarese chief.
A statement issued by Laxmon Serto, Information Secretary of KSO General Headquarters said that the four persons who were arrested by Myanmar Army hailed from Churachandpur and a Myanmarese village chief hired their vehicle with assurance that they would be safe and secure.
The 4 arrested Indian citizens are Mr Thangliankhup of New Lamka, Mr Khaisianmang of Changlian, Mr Pausonlian of Chongchin and Mr Khaizakham of New Lamka.
They were requested by the Myanmarese chief to help him haul fire-wood as the chief had trouble finding local trucks for his use.
When the 4 persons were arrested the chief tried to negotiate their freedom, but he was also arrested on his arrival at the spot, the KSO statement narrated, while alleging that all their belongings including cell phones, wallet, driving license and whatever cash they had were confiscated by the Myanmar Army.
The 4 persons including the truck owner have been plying in the area around Behiang transporting household commodities like rice, tin-sheets and cements on the Indian side of the border for the past 3 years to earn their livelihood.
The arrested persons are just innocent truckers who are not connected in any way to smuggling or illegal trading, claimed KSO, while clarifying that the fire-wood hauled by them were not meant for sale, they were just providing help out of courtesy to the Myanmarese chief who is well known to them.
Lately it has been reported that the 4 persons who did not possess passports at the time of their arrests were handed over to the Myanmar Police of Tonzang township and held under the country's Foreigners Act, informed the statement.
The statement further said that the plight of the 4 unfortunate men went unreported in local newspapers as their arrest was kept secret for the past several days by the Myanmar authority.
The men are now reeling under acute health problem as they have been tortured and deliberately starved.
Their poor families at home are now running from pillar to post to get them back.
Whether they would succeed depends on the intervention of the Indian Government authorities for which the KSO appeals the authority concerned to immediately act so that those unfortunate persons can be re-united with their families.