New Delhi: A group of women from Kuki-Zomi-Hmar-Mizo communities from Manipur on Saturday appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his intervention to bring an end to violence in Manipur. In a memorandum sent to Modi, the women from Manipur also highlighted as many as 15 cases of atrocities and violence perpetrated against women from these four communities in the State.
“Women in Manipur have been used as instruments to take revenge on the other community, and all this is happening in a modern society and this has to stop,” said Annie Raja, secretary of the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) to ETV Bharat. She said that the violence, which started on May 3 is continuing. “The government both at the Centre and State have failed to control the situation. And the Home Minister Amit Shah has also failed to bring the situation under control,” said Raja.
“We hope that at least now, the Prime Minister will intervene to bring the situation under control,” said Raja. Through this memorandum, we appeal to the authorities not just to hear, but heed the cries of justice and rehabilitation for women, who have borne the brunt of the conflict, she said.
“We seek full justice for women, who have been victimised during the ongoing violent conflict in the state of Manipur at the earliest," read the memorandum. The document elucidated the distressing mental health toll on survivors, many of whom grappled with fear and anxiety, dwelling in dilapidated relief camps without adequate healthcare facilities. “It underscored the urgent need for compensatory measures, rehabilitation, and a conducive environment for the affected women to reclaim their lives,” stated the memorandum.
The memorandum recalled that the viral video of the two sisters, who were paraded naked, assaulted, raped and shamed by the Meitei mob is more than enough proof of how our sisters and mothers are being subjected to extremely inhumane forms of violence in the ongoing conflict between ethnic communities in Manipur.
Highlighting 15 such cases of assault and violence perpetrated against women, the memorandum said that Chinghoikim and Dongi from Lamka, Lamminchong of Kangpokpi and Shoikhonei are still missing and untraceable. It is worth mentioning that a clash between the Kuki and Meitei communities of the State already claimed the lives of hundreds of people besides rendering thousands of people homeless.
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