ZSF urges Shah to rectify Parliament speech
Source: Chronicle News Service / Kaimuanthang Mangte
CCpur, February 29 2024:
The Zomi Students' Federation (ZSF) submitted a representation to Union home minister Amit Shah and urged the Central leader to rectify the speech he made in the Parliament linking elements from Myanmar with the present crisis in Manipur.
The ZSF representation signed jointly by president Nengzalian Tonsing and secretary Samuel Taithul sought rectification of alleged fabricated charges levelled against the 'Zo' people by the majority community and expressed resentment over the unfounded tagging of the 'Zo' people built around those fabrication.
According to the ZSF representation, the false narratives and claims against the 'Zo' people are the brainchild of various thinkers and elected representatives belonging to majority community with the fabricated used as justification for the suppression of rights and oppression of the 'Zo' people.
What is profoundly distressing is that the fabricated narratives and claims are finding increasing resonance among Central leaders and ministers, it said.
The ZSF also apprised the Union home minister that it is wrong and a misnomer to characterize the ongoing ethnic conflict in Manipur as a spill over from the civil war in Myanmar and that the unrest in Manipur is due to the un-fenced borders and free cross border movement of people between India and Myanmar and illegal immigration.
The ZSF claimed that the actual causes for the unrest can best be described as persecution of minorities and oppression of the 'Zo' people in the state.
The ZSF also reminded the home minister that statement he made in the Parliament linking elements from Myanmar for the unrest in Manipur hurt sentiments of the 'Zo' people.
It also said that the 'Zo' people are also disappointed with certain Central government policies such as scrapping of Free Movement Regime (FMR), border fencing and NRC.
It also said that the 'Zo' people expected neutral third-party intervention (central government) in resolving the unrest but the failure in maintaining neutrality in recent months and one-sided intervention in favour of the majority community has become a matter of concern for the 'Zo' people.
One of the most appropriate examples of one-sided approach to the unrest is imposition of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in the hill districts while the Act remains removed from 19 police stations in the valley districts, it said.