SA demand means for 'Narcotic Empire': Athouba
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, January 18 2025:
Indigenous People's Social Alliance (IPSA) vice-president, has expressed suspicion that illicit trafficking of drugs from Myanmar into Manipur could be the source to fund the campaign for seeking separate administration.
He also said that the separate administration demand could also be means "to secure their Narcotic Empire across Myanmar and Manipur-Mizoram areas" .
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, Athouba cited report of the seizure of drugs worth Rs 62 crore from two members of a Kuki narco-terrorist cartel in Churachandpur, a Kuki-dominated district that has been advocating for separate administration and said that the drugs, smuggled from Myanmar, could potentially be a source of funding for the cartel's political campaigns, including meetings with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in Delhi.
To contextualise the issue, Athouba pointed out the geographical significance of Churachandpur.
"Its proximity to the porous Indo Myanmar border makes it a hub for drug smuggling and cartel operations," he wrote.
He added that illegal opium cultivation has surged in the region, a trend highlighted in the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) opium cultivation map released last year.
Athouba accused cartel leaders, including members of the recently formed Kuki-Zo Council, village chiefs, and elected MLAs, of opposing border security measures under the pretence of community welfare and tribal fraternity.
He claimed, "The real motive behind this resistance is to legitimise and continue their narcotics empire, which thrives on unregulated cross-border trafficking" .
He also implicated neighbouring Mizoram in aligning with these groups, allegedly benefiting from these illegal activities under the guise of shared tribal and religious identity.
"This is not just a regional issue; it's a national and global crisis," Athouba warned, highlighting the far-reaching implications of narco-terrorism.
He urged the Government of India to take decisive action, stating, "Strengthen the border, fence the international boundary, and scrap the FMR.
The survival of these cartels poses a direct threat to India's internal security, economy, and youth".
The COCOMI spokesperson also called for international-cooperation to dismantle drug networks operating in the Indo-Myanmar region.
"The international community must take cognizance of the drug routes originating from Myanmar, which fuel violence and corruption across borders," he said, emphasising the global nature of the crisis.
He underlined the urgency of the situation in Manipur.
"Manipur stands at the crossroads of survival and destruction.
It is time for India and the global community to act decisively and save this land from the grip of narco-terrorism," Athouba wrote.