Guwahati, April 30: The Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP) has strongly condemned Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh’s government’s actions against ethnic Zo people. MZP said it is closely monitoring the problems being faced by ethnic Zo people living under the government of Manipur.
The origin of these problems is the Manipur government’s alleged attempts to evict ethnic Zo people from their various settlements to apparently take over their lands, and declare these tribal lands as reserved forest, protected forest, wildlife sanctuaries and wetlands.
The MZP is of the opinion that the Manipur Chief Minister’s initiatives are inimical to Northeast unity. “While the Inner Line Permit (ILP) is required for non- Mizoram residents, we never demand it from or create problems for Manipuri (Meitei) people, whom we treat without discrimination,” it said in a press statement.
The MZP has been and will continue to promote unity among ethnic Zo people because it wants to preserve the brother/sister-hood of the community, it said.
“Despite this, the Manipur Government is attempting to expel our brothers and sisters, who are people of the Northeast, from their own villages, and we are unable to accept this. We demand that the Manipur government immediately stop such initiatives that can be detrimental to ethnic Zo people,” MZP further said.
Stating that demanding ILPs from those who are entering Manipur from Mizoram is detrimental to ethnic Zo peoples, it said this situation can lead to discord between the Mizoram and Manipur governments.
“We therefore demand that the Manipur government stops demanding ILP from our ethnic brethren. If the Manipur government continues to take action that is not safe for ethnic Zo people, we will not be responsible for anything that happens to Manipuri (Meitei) people in Mizoram. The MZP will continue to work for the safety of ethnic Zo people in Mizoram’s neighbouring states and around the world,” MZP stated.
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