No Kuki-Zo person killed by Naga armed groups in Manipur shall be buried until further notice”: KZC

The Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) on Tuesday declared that no Kuki-Zo person killed by Naga armed groups in Manipur shall be buried until further notice.

The KZC made the declaration following a resolution adopted by its Cabinet on Tuesday.

“In view of the continuing and unabated violence against Kuki-Zo civilians perpetrated by Naga armed groups operating in Manipur, the Kuki-Zo Council hereby notifies all concerned civil society organisations (CSOs) across all Kuki-Zo districts, with immediate effect, that the mortal remains of every such victim shall instead be preserved in the nearest available cold-storage facility until further directions are issued by the Kuki-Zo Council,” the council said in a release on Tuesday.

The KZC stated that the decision is a deliberate and collective measure of protest and resistance against the continuing killing of Kuki-Zo civilians and the failure to ensure justice and accountability for these attacks.

The KZC said it cannot allow the deaths of Kuki-Zo people to be reduced to isolated incidents, forgotten after burial, while those responsible continue to operate with impunity.

The council directed all civil society organisation leaders to strictly adhere to the resolution and extend full cooperation in its implementation until further notice.

In a separate release, the KZC also condemned the incident in Tamenglong and Noney, in which two more Kuki-Zo women from Leisangphai village in Tamenglong were reportedly shot dead by cadres of the NSCN-IM and ZUF-K.

Demanding immediate government action, the KZC stated that the repeated killing of Kuki-Zo civilians has assumed an unacceptable and alarming pattern. “These can no longer be dismissed as isolated incidents,” it said.

The KZC stated that the incident occurred barely a day after four Kuki-Zo civilians, including two women, were killed in Tamenglong and Noney.

The latest victims are Phalneichong @ Chonga Sitlhou, 70, and Kimjalhing @ Kimneo Singson, 28. Chonga Sitlhou was reportedly gathering firewood on her farm when she was killed. Kimneo Singson, who had recently completed her nursing course and returned home to help her parents with farming, was also shot dead at the same location.

“Both were unarmed women engaged in ordinary civilian activities. Their killing is an unconscionable act of brutality and a grave threat to the safety of Kuki-Zo communities,” the release stated.

The KZC stated that it views these killings, reportedly involving NSCN-IM and ZUF-K, as part of an escalating pattern of attacks against Kuki-Zo civilians in Manipur. The continued targeting of civilians raises serious concerns about attempts to terrorise and drive Kuki-Zo communities from their settlements.

The KZC further stated that the Government of India and the Manipur government must end this impunity, protect vulnerable civilians, bring the perpetrators to justice, and take firm and lawful action against armed groups attacking civilians.

“Condolences after every killing are not governance. Silence is not neutrality. Inaction is not peace. The Government must act now before more innocent lives are lost,” the KZC stated.