Manipur: Kuki-Zo civil society groups warn of potential attack, announce precautionary measures

Imphal, Sept 25: The Kuki-Zo civil society groups have issued a new advisory, citing concerns about possible attacks on their community in the coming days in Manipur. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF) and the Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM) have announced a series of precautionary measures for the safety of Kuki-Zo community, while refuting allegations of 900 militants crossing over in India to attack the State.

The advisory, released on Monday, urges residents in Kuki-Zo-dominated areas of Manipur’s hill districts to remain cautious and avoid travel outside their regions between September 26 and 29, 2024. They have declared the closure of borders during this period, along with a suspension of all schools, institutions, and offices from September 27 to 29. A total shutdown across Kuki-Zo inhabited areas has also been scheduled for September 28, excluding essential services like medical aid, fire, water, and media.

These precautionary steps come in light of a letter from the Secretary to the Chief Minister to the Director General of Police (DGP) and Security Advisor to the Manipur government, claiming that around 900 Kuki militants from Myanmar had infiltrated the state and preparing for a coordinated attack allegedly in the valley areas on September 28.

However, the Kuki Inpi Manipur has denied these claims, describing them as baseless and part of a larger narrative aimed at justifying aggression towards the Kuki-Zo people. “The Kuki Inpi Manipur wishes to inform the general public that such statements are entirely unfounded. Similarly, it is the credence of the Kuki Inpi Manipur that such baseless statements may have been manufactured by the Manipur State Government to justify a planned attack against the Kuki-Zo people,” said Janghaolun Haokip, Secretary in-charge of Information and Publicity for Kuki Inpi Manipur, in a public notice on Tuesday.

In response to the potential threat, the Kuki Inpi and ITLF have instructed village volunteers to be on high alert and to reinforce their positions in buffer zones between Kuki-Zo and Meitei territories. These zones have long been flashpoints for conflicts.

The Kuki Inpi has also announced plans to hold a press conference on September 28, in which they intend to address what they believe are the underlying motives of the Manipur government and certain radical groups.

The ITLF further cited that earlier this year, an assault on Kuki-Zo occurred shortly after the Manipur government announced the presence of 200 Kuki militants in Jiribam.

The ethnic conflict in Manipur between the Meitei and the Kuki-Zo communities has been going on since May last year, claiming over 250 lives and displacing over 50,000 people.

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