KSO demands justice for Kuki-Zo community
Source: Chronicle News Service

Kangpokpi, December 10 2024: The Kuki Students' Organisation (KSO), Sadar Hills, marked International Human Rights Day by urging the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC) to investigate alleged systemic human rights violations by Meetei against the minority Kuki-Zo community.

In a protest held at Gamgiphai under KSO's banner, Kuki-Zo women demanded justice for victims, describing the violence as targeted acts of oppression amidst ongoing ethnic conflict.

The demonstrators highlighted heinous acts, including sexual assaults, murders, and arson, while criticising the failure of authorities to hold the perpetrators accountable.

KSO stressed that such atrocities form part of a deliberate campaign against the Kuki-Zo community, and called on the NHRC to ensure unbiased investigations and uphold the rule of law.

KSO women coordinator Bebeck said, "Human rights in Manipur seem to have been redefined as 'Meetei rights' .

From the right to a dignified life to proper burials, our basic humanity has been denied since 2023" .

She urged national media and agencies to ensure fair probes and called on the NHRC chairperson to take action against the atrocities.

KSO submitted a memorandum to the NHRC chairperson through the deputy commissioner of Kangpokpi district, detailing systemic bias in probes by central agencies like NIA and CBI .

It listed gruesome incidents, including the decapitation of David Thick Hmar, "gang-rape" and murder of Florence Hang-shing and Olivia Chongloi, and the burning alive of 7-year-old Tonsing Hangshing with his mother and aunt.

The memorandum also cited other cases of murder, mutilation, and arson, emphasising that many victims' remains remain unrecovered, denying families their last rites.

Copies of the memorandum were sent to the United Nations Human Rights Commission, the Chief Justice of India, and the Supreme Court's Justice Mittal Committee.

KSO stressed the urgent need for intervention to ensure justice, accountability, and respect for human rights, warning that continued neglect would exacerbate the community's plight.

The students' body reaffirmed its call for impartial investigations and justice to restore faith injudicial and law enforcement systems and prevent further atrocities against the Kuki-Zo community.

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