Bodies blame ATSUM rally in Ccpur for riots
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, May 19 2023: The newly.

floated Committee on Present Issue of Manipur regretted that the clashes between Meetei and Kuki triggered by the tribal solidarity march held in Churachandpur on May 3 have taken numerous lives apart from torching hundreds of houses and damaging innumerable properties on both the sides.

People of the state are yet to get relieve from pains and suffering of violent clashes between the two communities but rather enduring serious hardships.

Bodies blame ATSUM rally in Ccpur for riots

In order to pre-vent such clashes in future and to fight threat to territorial integrity of Manipur, All Manipur United Clubs' Organisation (AMUCO) along with its like-minded or-ganisations formed the Committee comprising All Manipur Ethnic So-cio-Cultural Organisation (AMES - CO), Committee on Human Rights (COHR), Poirei Leimarol Apunba Meira Paibi Manipur (PLAMPAL), Manipuri Students' Federation (MSF), All Manipur Women Vol-untary Association (AMAWOVA , National Research Centre (NRC , Irabot Foundation Manipur (IFM , Youths Foundation for Fitness and Service Manipur (YOFFS), All Ma-nipur Meitei- Pangal Clubs' Or-ganisation (AMMPACO), All Mani-pur Manpower Uplifment Centre (AMMUC), Pangal Students' Or-ganisation (PSO) and Meira Paibi Welfare Association of Kangleipak (MEPWAK).

Since its inception, the committee has been taking up steps which deem fit to safeguard territorial integrity of Manipur as well as to prevent unwanted communal clash in future and will continue to work in this regard.

In view of the present situation and the need for fighting threat to territorial integrity of Mani-pur, people of the state should not take the situation lightly, the committee said and called upon people to take collective steps with careful study.

Series of incidents like killings, arson and large scale displacement of people since the outbreak of the Meetei and Kuki clashes on May 3 have make clearer in-tentional triggering of the clash by some vested interest people, the committee said and stressed the need for entire communi-ties living together since time immemorial to jointly fight the threat being posed to the path of co-existence and territorial integrity.

The committee main-tained that the entire hills and valley of Manipur belong to indigenous communities of the land and no one can snatch it.

The committee also said that some communities inhabiting in Manipur have always been trying to create communal clashes in the state and even chalked up plans for more in-tense ethnic clash.

Such phe-nomenon, however, will not bring any benefit but would be great loss for entire communi-ties of the land, the committee said while maintaining that collective sustenance, collective fight and inclusive development is the only way forward.

Meanwhile, Relief Mission for Meetei Victims' Families has demanded the state's legislators to take up necessary initiatives to remove/delete "Any Kuki/ Any Mizo" term from the list of Scheduled Tribe communities of the state.

The Mission was formed by WAL United Youth Club with the objective to provide relief materials to displaced Meetei people taking refuge in different relief camps.

On Friday it pro-vided relief materials including food, clothes and medicines to different relief camps located in Andro and Wangkhem as-sembly constituencies.

Interacting with the media, Mission chairman RK Gokul-chandra said that the com-munal clash between Kuki and Meetei erupted after the trib-al solidarity march organised by ATSUM turned violent in Churachandpur district and protestors along with armed Kuki militants started attack - ing, vandalising and burning houses of Meeteis in villages adjacent to Kuki settlement.

He further said that the sep-arate administration demand raised by the 10 Kuki MLAs is not an impulsive demand but outcome of long-drawn policy, which is highly con-demnable.

At the same time, it is commendable that 34 MLAs resolved for unity of the state and raised demand to withdraw Suspension of Operation (So0) agreement with the Kuki mil-itants, he said while urging for their contribution in removing "Any Kuki/ Any Mizo" from the ST list of Manipur.

Regarding the relief assis-tance provided by the club, he said so far essential items have been donated to 35 relief camps.

The club also received cash donation of Rs 4,60,000 from different individuals from within and outside the state as well as the country towards relief for displaced people, he added.