'Genocide allowed to continue unchecked'
Slow deaths of indigenes, UN told
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, April 30 2025:
While India has responded swiftly and aggressively against the Pahalgam attack in Jammu and Kashmir that left 26 dead, ironically, it has allowed "genocide" to continue unchecked in Manipur, one of its own States, said Jodha Heikrujam, a human rights activist in the United Nations.
"Is our blood less valuable?" In the same country, there is swift justice for Pahalgam, and slow death for Manipur's indigenous future.
Pahalgam got retaliation, Manipur got abandonment, said Jodha, addressing the 24th United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) at UN HQs in New York on April 29.The session was chaired by Aluki Kotierk, UNPFII Chairperson in presence of the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Dr Albert K Barume.
Seeking the intervention of the United Nations in the Manipur conflict, Jodha said that the prolonged crisis in Manipur is a stark manifestation of the continued marginalization of the indigenous native Meitei people under the garb of National security, militarization, and economic diplomacy.
The conflict which plunged the State into a deep turmoil since May 3, 2023 has killed over 250 persons, including women and children, and displaced more than 60,000 people.
Despite the serious nature of the conflict having human right implications, the Government of India has ironically not taken the same swift retaliatory actions it has taken in the case of the Pahalgam attack on April 22, Jodha said.
The Manipur crisis, marked by drone bombings, surface missile attacks, and genocidal crimes - including brutal rape of women, college girls, killings, and even the murder of infants with their bodies dumped in rivers - remains unaddressed.
This underscores the State's "complicity" in ethnic cleansing by Myanmar-based narco-terrorist groups, exposing geopolitical biases, Jodha asserted.
Despite the Manipur Government's decision to revoke the Suspension of Operation pact, signed with Kuki militant organisations, the Union Government's continued support to the groups has enabled them to control the National Highways and carry out extortion, destabilising the economy.
The State of Manipur has the highest inflation rate in India, Jodha said.
"What we face is not just violence, but cultural elimination, demographic engineering, and economic strangulation - a psychological colonization that continues post-independence.
Our Indian Government's approach mirrors colonial psychology, denying self-determination and perpetuating human rights violations," Jodha said.
Historically, Meitei women have been the backbone of Manipur's socioeconomic resilience.
The Ema Market (Mother's Market), the largest only women-run market in the world, symbolizes their economic agency, where generations have sustained families through weaving and other trade, Jodha said.
The Meira Paibi (torchbearing women), traditionally guardians of community safety, once patrolled villages at night with bamboo torches (Meira) to resist militarization and crimes.
"Today, they are themselves victims, displaced and traumatized.
At least 30,000 women and girls are languishing in refugee camps, surviving on a mere $1.4 per head per day's allowance.
Some have resorted to selling handcrafted items by the roadside, just to afford basic needs, their dignity stripped away, their hopes fading," Jodha said.
He continued that the Manipur crisis also highlights how the Indian Government's imposition of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) has exacerbated human rights violations, granting unchecked powers to security forces and fostering a culture of institutionalized impunity.
"Shockingly, in a militarised zone under the AFSPA, a contractor of the Military Engineering Services has been killed or disappeared inside the largest Indian military base in Manipur, reflecting the law's misuse to suppress dissent rather than protect civilians," Jodha said.
Urging the UN for its intervention, Jodha said a Truth and Reconciliation Commission needs to be formed to address war crimes and ensure accountability for State and non-State actors.
The controversial AFSPA must be revoked, and the SoO agreement signed with militant groups must be scrapped, he said.
Indigenous land rights must be restored and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) must be implemented to curb illegal immigration and protect indigenous demography, Jodha said.
Elimination of all forms of discrimination against women is not possible without resolving the Manipur crisis.
The dignity and survival of the indigenous people are non-negotiable, Jodha said.
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