Moreh Hill Tribal Council demands Union Territory with legislature for Kuki-Zo, citing historic massacres and ethnic tensions in Manipur.
BY PC Bureau
October 13: The Hill Tribal Council (HTC) of Moreh Sub-Division, Tengnoupal District, released a statement today condemning the erection of a monumental structure in Imphal—dubbed the “Indigenous Pillar” by the Federation of Haomee—which bears the names of select communities. The HTC criticized the pillar as a deliberate attempt to sow division among Manipur’s people, exacerbated by the Government’s silence that appears to condone ongoing hostilities between warring communities.
The council argued that history should not be manipulated to serve political ends, emphasizing that no rational citizen would accept the distortion of historical facts. According to the HTC, the Indigenous Pillar has deepened an already fractured society, a divide they claim has been fostered by the state, making any future peace initiatives futile.
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HTC interprets the move by the Federation of Haomee as tacit acknowledgment of the Kuki-Zo community’s aspiration for complete separation from Manipur. The council urged that the Kuki-Zo hill people be placed under direct Central Government administration in their own territory—termed Outer-Manipur—to safeguard them from continued subjugation by the dominant community.
Highlighting past massacres and ethnic cleansing in the Inner-Manipur valley, the HTC stated that coexistence under a single administration has become nearly impossible. The forced displacement of Kuki-Zo communities from the valley, they stressed, proves that their settlement in the hills is no longer compatible with the state framework, and the oppressed Kuki-Zo should not bear the blame.
The HTC called on the Government of India to acknowledge the Meitei community’s preference for separation and, in the mutual interest of both parties, recognize the Kuki-Zo aspiration. They demanded the immediate creation of a Union Territory with a legislature for the Kuki-Zo community, without further delay.
The statement was issued by the Department of Media & Information, Hill Tribal Council, Moreh.
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