Talks, if any, will only be held on their terms and only with the Centre, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum, an umbrella organisation of Kuki bodies, said on Friday, virtually closing the door to negotiations with an emissary appointed by Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh.
Singh while talking to the media revealed that he has appointed Dinganglung Gangmei, a Naga MLA and chairperson of the Hill Area Committee, as an emissary to hold talks with Kuki-zo and Meitei leaders. "Dialogue is the only way,” Singh said.
“We can meet. But this talking will be on our terms,” ITLF spokesperson Ginza Vualzong said, adding that the Kuki-zo community will only hold talks with the Central Government.
“Separation from the Meitei (Manipur) government is the only solution for us. We can no longer be under the same government that killed us, that drove us away and burnt our properties and places of worship,” Vualzong told PTI.
The ITLF view underscores the deepening divisions between the Kuki-zo community and the Manipur state government and majority Meitei community. The ethnic clashes that started last May and cleaved the state along community lines have claimed more than 200 lives and displaced thousands of families.
In his interview with PTI, the chief minister expressed confidence that peace and reconciliation will be restored in five-six months with the Centre playing a key role and applying "finishing touches" in brokering ethnic rapprochement.
To this, Vualzong said there was need for transparency and accountability. He said Kuki-zo Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) remain distrustful of the state government.
The ITLF spokesperson also referred to a 48-minute audio recording, presented to the judicial committee appointed by the Union Home Ministry, in which Singh is purportedly heard discussing bombing Kuki-dominated areas.
The Manipur government has dismissed the recording as doctored.
"Now that the audio clip of Biren has been put under investigation, Biren needs to come up with a good alibi,” Vualzong said.
