12-hr shutdown in Kangpokpi, mass burial today
Source: Chronicle News Service

Kangpokpi, December 14 2023: Kuki-Zo community in Kangpokpi district is set to conduct a mass burial at the Martyrs' Cemetery in Phaijang village, Kangpokpi district on Friday under the theme "You Sacrifice Your Today For Our Tomorrow" .

As part of the mourning event, there will be a 12-hour total shutdown on Friday from 5 am through out Kangpokpi district, as instructed by the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), Sadar Hills.

Additionally, CoTU has directed all Kuki-Zo households in Kangpokpi to hoist black flag, symbolising a day of mourning.

The mass burial ceremony is scheduled to commence from 11:00 am.

This event follows the despatch of 19 Kuki-Zo bodies, transported by an Indian Air Force chopper from Imphal, after almost eight months since the violence erupted in the state on May 3 .

In total, 23 Kuki-Zo bodies, including the 19 received on Thursday and four still untraceable, will be accorded an honourable burial as per Kuki-Zo customs and traditions.

During the burial ceremony, Kuki-Zo volunteers will pay their respects with gun salute.

CoTU information and publicity secretary Thangtinlen Haokip expressed gratitude to the Supreme Court for intervening and understanding the sentiments of Kuki Zo communities.

He noted that the long-awaited homecoming of the Kuki-Zo brethren, after months of despair, heartbreak, and hopelessness, has finally arrived.

In conjunction with the burial ceremony, a 12-hour total shutdown has been announced, with Thangtinlen Haokip appealing to the general public for cooperation.

Emergency services and funeral parties would be exempted from the shutdown, he said.

Throughout the night, Kuki-Zo people across the district will mourn at the Martyrs' Cemetery, where the bodies would be laid to rest, paying their respects to the departed souls, he added.

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