Lay off, CoTU tells Liangmais
Source: The Sangai Express

Kangpokpi, January 09 2025: Amid the ongoing conflict between the Kuki-Zo and Meitei communities, the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) has issued a strong call to action, urging all communities claiming neutrality to reassess their stance and uphold their responsibilities during this critical juncture.

CoTU called on all organisations representing the Liangmai Nagas in Manipur to "immediately cease spreading ideas that foster discord or misunderstanding between the two tribal communities through misleading information and fabricated narratives in the press or on social media platforms" .

Such actions, it stated, risk exacerbating animosity among tribal communities.

The committee emphasised that any boundary dispute between villages, such as Leilon and Konsakhul, should be resolved directly by the respective village chiefs or stakeholders.

Elevating localised issues into communal debates is counterproductive and unnecessary and should not be allowed to take on a communal dimension, it said.

Highlighting the struggles of the Kuki-Zo community, CoTU reminded the Liangmai Nagas of Manipur "not to mistake the Kuki-Zo community's restraint in responding to their press releases as weakness" .

The Kuki-Zo people have been courageously defending their "rights, culture, and land against oppression and aggression for nearly two years, standing firm in the face of unrelenting tyranny," it said.

Vehemently condemning an incident that occurred on the evening of January 8, CoTU expressed deep sorrow and disbelief, stating that "the act of poking a corpse inside a coffin for verification is not only disrespectful but utterly unbecoming of a true Christian.

"Such actions betray the sanctity of life and death, and any funeral procession on the roads must be treated with the utmost respect and reverence.

This tragic and senseless incident, which occurred in the late hours of January 8, 2025, is condemnable in the strongest possible terms," said CoTU.

In a final call to action, the committee urged "the Nagas of Manipur, who claim neutrality in the ongoing communal conflict, to uphold their good samaritan values and take firm action against members of their own community, such as the Liangmai bodies, who are actively undermining the neutral stance held by the broader Naga community" .

The safety and security of public commuters travelling through Naga-dominated areas�now the sole lifeline for the Kuki-Zo community�must be prioritised above all else.

Failure to do so will threaten to escalate the conflict further, it warned.

The committee unequivocally warned the Liangmai Nagas against "inflaming tensions with unsubstantiated claims or inflammatory rhetoric" .

"Any untoward incidents arising from such actions will be the sole responsibility of the Liangmai Naga organizations," CoTU said.

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