Manipur govt promises to honour peace pact with Kuki-Zo groups

Imphal, September 5: Manipur Chief Secretary Puneet Kumar Goel on Friday said that the agreements signed with Kuki-Zo groups would be honoured, while asserting that the Government was making all efforts to restore normalcy in the ethnic strife-torn State.

Two prominent Kuki-Zo armed groups on Thursday signed a Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with the Government on renegotiated terms and conditions under which they agreed on maintaining territorial integrity of Manipur, relocating designated camps away from vulnerable areas, and working for a solution to bring lasting peace and stability in the State.

Besides, civil society group Kuki-Zo Council (KZC), following a series of meetings in New Delhi between its representatives and officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs, decided to “reopen” the Dimapur-Imphal National Highway-2 for free movement of commuters and essential goods.

Meanwhile, Meitei body COCOMI protested the signing of the SoO agreement, while Kuki-Zo organisations condemned the KZC for taking the decision to reopen the highway “unilaterally” without consulting other stakeholders.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Teachers’ Day function in Imphal, Chief Secretary Goel said, “The Government is making all efforts to bring back normalcy in Manipur. Everything is on the paper... whatever agreement has been signed will be honoured.”

The KZC’s decision, however, has been condemned by several Kuki civil rights and armed organisations that iterated that “Meiteis will not be allowed to enter Kuki-majority areas”.

The Village Volunteers Coordination Committee (Eastern, Southern and Western Zone) condemned the “unilateral decision” of KZC and claimed it was taken “without any consultation with the general public or the primary stakeholders directly affected by the ongoing conflict”.

Militant outfit United Kuki National Army (UKNA) also expressed strong resentment over the KZC’s decision. UKNA, a non-signatory to the SoO pact, said no discussion and peace agreement should be signed till the demands for separate administration are met.

The KZC, however, asserted that the question of “reopening” NH-2 does not arise as the road was never closed or blocked, and cautioned that its decision must not be misinterpreted as an endorsement of unrestricted or free movement across the Meitei and Kuki areas.

On the other hand, Imphal Valley-based Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), an umbrella body of civil society organisations, voiced its opposition to the Centre’s decision to extend the SoO agreement with the Kuki-Zo armed groups and termed it an “anti-people move”.

Officials, however, said that the signing of the SoO agreement with the Kuki National Organisation and United People’s Front on Thursday is set to have a positive impact on the peace efforts in Manipur.

The move comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s likely visit to Manipur next week, the first since ethnic violence broke out between the Meiteis and Kukis in May 2023, claiming over 260 lives and rendering thousands homeless.

– PTI