Geneva, Switzerland, March 22 (HBTV): The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has urged the United Nations to intervene to address the ongoing ethnic tensions and conflict in Manipur.
Khuraujam Athouba, spokesperson of the organization, presented his contentions during the 55th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.
A copy of the speech that was received here was dated March 21.
Athouba sought the council’s attention to the need for an urgent intervention on the human rights situation in Manipur, where indigenous communities are embroiled in a severe conflict ‘exacerbated by cross-border narco-terrorist groups and armed militants who are under the suspension of operation agreement with the government of India.’
More than 70,000 people have been displaced since the past 10 months, and their fundamental rights are under threat, the statement said.
“The conflict, involving cross-border immigrant armed groups, risks escalating into a full-scale war across multinational regions in South East Asia. The recent attacks against state forces in Moreh border town using heavy artillery are the testament,” the copy stated.
The COCOMI asserted that ‘immigrant armed groups’ have ‘unlimited access to arms from Myanmar and Bangladesh.’
‘The complacency adopted by the Government of India has prolonged the situation. The duplicity of India’s stand and its alleged coordination with several trans-border ethnic armed groups has deepened the conflicts in Manipur. If undermined, it could jeopardize stability in the region further,’ the COCOMI stated.
The COCOMI has appealed to the human rights council to appoint a special rapporteur to assess the human rights situation in relation to the ongoing Manipur conflict; initiate dialogue to address issues of ‘unlimited immigration, drugs and arms trafficking, and illicit cultivation of poppy’; provide immediate aid to approximately 70,000 internally displaced people with focus on vulnerable groups like children, women, and the elderly.
The Manipur organization expressed confidence that the council would prioritize the issue and act decisively to alleviate the suffering of the affected indigenous populations.