Kuki bodies oppose scrapping of FMR
Source: Chronicle News Service / Kaimuanthang Mangte

CCpur, February 08 2024: Kuki organisations, namely Zomi Council Steering Committee (ZCSC), United Zou Organisation (UZO) and Kuki Inpi Manipur.

(KIM) have expressed discontentment over the central government's decision to.

scrap the Free Movement Regime (FMR) along the Indo-Myanmar border.

The Kuki bodies said that scrapping the FMR is unfortunate and painful, as this would be breaking up the ties with their brethren, living on the other side of the border (i.e., Myanmar) .

If the government wants to maintain peace and security, it could do so with close cooperation and support of the people living in the region, otherwise any programme or policy undertaken by the government is doomed to fail, the organisations expressed.

They continued that FMR allows movement of people up to 16km on either side of the border.

Additionally, many people living in the border area belong to the same family or tribe.

As such, ending the FMR would lead to break up of families and close relationships.

Furthermore, FMR is in congruent with Article 13 of United Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous People and scrapping the same is a violation of the rights of not only the Kuki tribes but also of the Naga tribes.

Thus, the union home minister's decision to scrap FMR at the behest of the chief minister and a particular community of the state is going to cause immense hardship to the people living in the border area, specially the Zomi Kuki tribes.

Also, the removal of FMR will obstruct the government's own Act East policy, which is quite discouraging for the BJP government.

The whole move is basically an appeasement policy of the central government towards the Meetei community.

Strongly condemning the central government's decision, the Kuki bodies affirmed that they will do whatever it can to dissuade the government from fencing the border.

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