CoTU Challenges Govt to Enforce August 28 Anti-Blockade Order “Without Bias”, Warns Against Inaction

The Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), Sadar Hills, challenged the Manipur government to enforce its August 28 anti-blockade order “without bias”, warning that continued inaction over what it described as a selective blockade targeting the Kuki-Zo community could further escalate tensions in the state.

The Sadar Hills-based tribal body said the government’s order, issued by Commissioner-cum-Secretary (Home) N Ashok Kumar, strictly prohibited road blockades and warned that violators could face prosecution without notice.

“The order must be implemented immediately and without bias,” CoTU said.

The committee said it had demonstrated its commitment to peace and humanitarian principles by lifting all blockades on humanitarian grounds despite “immense hardship”, maintaining that the move was intended to ensure the free movement of essential commodities, medicines and people for all communities in Manipur.

However, CoTU alleged that despite the unilateral humanitarian gesture, groups from the Liangmai and Tangkhul communities continued to enforce what it described as a “targeted and communal blockade” against the Kuki-Zo community.

The committee termed the alleged blockade “utterly condemnable, inhuman and provocative”, alleging that Kuki-Zo civilians, vehicles, essential supplies and medical emergency movements were being stopped and harassed despite national highways being declared open for movement.

“This selective blockade is not a protest—it is a direct act of ethnic persecution and collective punishment,” CoTU alleged.

The organisation accused the government of failing to ensure equal and impartial enforcement of its own anti-blockade directive and demanded immediate action to remove the alleged blockade.

CoTU warned that failure to act could compel the Kuki-Zo community to impose reciprocal restrictions on the movement of Tangkhul and Liangmai people in Kuki-Zo-dominated areas.

The committee said its demand for action was also rooted in the broader issue of violence in the state, asserting that justice must be ensured for victims from all communities.

Referring to the killing of six Liangmai people, CoTU alleged that hundreds of innocent Kuki-Zo civilians had also been killed during the conflict, including a pastor, women and a newborn baby.

It attributed some of the alleged killings to groups it described as “Tangkhul-led NSCN and ZUF-K”.

CoTU said responsibility for any further escalation arising from the government’s failure to act would rest with the Manipur government and groups that continued the alleged blockade.

The organisation reiterated its demand for immediate, impartial and uniform enforcement of the August 28 order, warning that selective enforcement could further deepen the prevailing crisis and communal mistrust in Manipur.