The death of a Kuki protester and injuries to several others on March 8, including security forces personnel, shattered four months of relative calm in Manipur. The incident occurred when the protesters resisted the government’s efforts to open the highway from Senapati to Imphal in Kangpokpi district, north of Imphal. The highway connects Manipur with the rest of India through Nagaland and is the lifeline of the state for the movement of goods and personnel to the Meitei-dominated Imphal valley. This, and other highways connecting Manipur to other states, have been blocked for the last 22 months since the ethnic violence started. The other highway that was sought to be opened was the one connecting Imphal to Churachandpur. The bus managed to go up to Kangvai — about 20 km from Churachandpur town — through the Meitei areas but did not go beyond to the Kuki areas.
The incident is confirmation of the fact that the situation in Manipur is far from normal, and the tensions between the two conflicting communities are unlikely to be resolved anytime soon by symbolic actions such as the resignation of N Biren Singh and the subsequent imposition of President’s Rule.
The opening of highways from Imphal to Kangpokpi and Churachandpur was mandated by Home Minister Amit Shah in the security review meeting held on March 1. The Kukis, however, have reiterated that they will not allow the highways to be opened until their demand for an autonomous territory (separate administration) is met.
There is no denying the fact that blocking of highways has put the residents of the Imphal valley through a lot of hardship, leading to shortages of essential commodities. Prices have soared as well. The highways, therefore, must be opened. However, the manner and urgency in which this step has been initiated after 22 months of inaction is an example of the lack of perspective and priorities of the powers that be.
It is imperative that the authority and will of the government be enforced. However, that must be done diligently through a properly conceived plan of action. As has been stated by many experts, the first and foremost step is to ensure that all the weapons looted from the armouries of the Manipur Police and India Reserve Battalions are recovered. The deadline for this has gone by, with only a handful of sophisticated weapons having been surrendered. This is a dangerous situation. The armed forces must therefore be given a free hand to operate to recover these weapons.
Simultaneous action should be initiated to convince the chiefs and respected individuals of each community about the advantages of ensuring peace in general, besides the benefits and necessity of opening the supply routes. As of now, even if the highways are opened, there is no possibility of an individual from one community venturing through an area dominated by the other community. The fact that the vehicle going towards Churachandpur had to stop at Kangvai is proof that people do not feel safe crossing over the barriers that have been put up by security forces to separate the communities. However, by attempting to do so as an initial step, the government appears to be putting the cart before the horse.
Another issue with this approach is that it will involve committing a large number of troops to ensure that the convoys are not attacked. This will leave them with insufficient numbers of troops to conduct operations to recover weapons and dominate the area to ensure law and order. This will also bring troops into direct confrontation with civilians, which may result in casualties and thus cause further discontent.
While it is tempting to say that there is no point in harping on the past and that we must look forward, the impact of the violence of the last 22 months on the psyche of the victims and the communities involved cannot be forgotten easily. The government, therefore, must initiate a large-scale outreach to the people before initiating any coercive action. A ham-handed approach is likely to cause more harm than good
Sanjiv Krishnan Sood
Source: Indian Express, 11, 3/25
