There is no stopping in the Manipur's ethnic violence. Everyday violent incidents occur in Manipur which are backed by ethnic hatredness, ethnic division and ethnic conflict. Given the situation in Manipur, the US embassy marked these incidents as a concern and it said it was ready to intervene if asked. However, India made its stand clear and considered the violence as its internal issue.
We understand, violence is a serious violation of human rights. Human rights are meant to safeguard the human lives, their dignity and their freedom at every point of time. Human rights have categorized the forms of violence into many types. It can be defined from State-sponsored to traditional to individual. However, ethnic violence in Manipur falls under traditional form of violence.
Lack of political empathy and majority appeasement in Manipur are also responsible for its regular occurrence.
It is reported that as many as 150 people died, countless people were affected and 40,000 people were displaced since the violence has flared up in Manipur. The background of this violence was originated when a tribal solidarity march was organized by All Tribal Student Union Manipur (ATSUM) in hill districts to protest against the ST status of Meitei community. The landscape and ethical composition of Manipur is unique.
Imphal , at the centre of Manipur , is called as Imphal valley. Imphal Valley is circled by hill districts. Imphal valley is having only 10% of Manipur’s land but it is largely dominated the Meitei community which constitutes 64% of total population. This community sends 40 MLAs to the 60 seated State Assembly. In comparison to the valley area, circled hill areas or hill districts comprise 90% of total land , send only 20 MLAs to the State Assembly and constitute 33% of total population. Meiteis are basically Hindus whereas hilly areas are dominated by Christians with two major tribes groups such as Any Naga and Any Kuki tribes.
Since 2012, Meiteis had been demanding the ST status for two reasons such as storing the cultural values of their community and rights to buy and sell ancestral lands as well as other lands in hill areas. Other tribal groups are opposing the Meiteis on the ground of their existing educational and economic dominance. Further to this, they fear that Meitei reservation will lead to Neo-Zamnidar system and would create a highly privileged community in Manipur.
Ethnic violence in Manipur has deep dark history. From the formation of the United National Liberation Front in 1969 to rise of the PLA , Manipur along with India as a whole successfully controlled the insurgency. Even in the 1990’s Naga and Kuki conflict was also suppressed effectively. Despite having such experience in controlling the violence, still the State and Central Governments have failed to curb the tensed situation.
Sensing the gravity of the violent system in Manipur, internet service had been shut down throughout Manipur. The shutdown was meant to curb the violence by controlling the online communication. However, recently the High Court Manipur has urged to provide partial internet service to the State.
It is to understand here that the order to shut down internet comes under the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 and is governed by the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017. This internet shutdown in Manipur has led to socio -economic setbacks. As per a report by Accesss New and KeepitOn Coalition , out of 187 global internet shutdowns in 2022 ,India had 84 internet shutoffs during that period. Surprisingly, India occupied top post in internet shutdowns since 2018. The UN has a grave concern over internet shutdown. The UN further says that the barring of internet and information put citizens as well as human rights in stake.
Civil society and community engagement are considered as the immediate solution for violence. The traditional communities are losing their grip on citizens, their socialization, value incorporation and local policy making. So the new forms of civil society should come forward to ensure the citizen's wellbeing. The emerging forms of new communities are moulding the intra and inter relationship among the individuals. Over all, the civil society and community can compel the moral obligations as active citizens and engross the social justice. In a recent development, indigenous Tribal Leader Forum has cleared the misunderstanding with Meitei community and apologised for misguidance.
Human conflict in the form of violence has distorted the values of human lives. The ongoing violent situation has led to many human casualties. Not only violence in Manipur but also any form of violence is pathological. It asphyxiates the human relationship, human lives and wellbeing. It shuns the value of human equality. We need a response to handle this. This response can be achieved only through community and interpersonal based social action.
There is no stopping of violence worldwide. Starting from post panchayat election violence in West Bengal to civil war in Africa, everywhere human conflict in violent form is let loose. Currently, as many as 40 counties are fighting wars in different fronts globally. Only in the 20th century, it is estimated that as many as 191 million people lost their lives due to armed conflict. Out of these, nearly fifty percent people are civilians. Further to this, it is revealed that approximately 9 people died per 1 lakh population due to interpersonal violence every year.
Interpersonal violence covers a vast range of violent behaviour covering physical to psychological. Some global reports reveal that over 1.6 million people die due to violence every year. It is to mention here that people in 15 to 44 years age group suffer the most. Needless to say , violence causes physical and psychological injuries to a larger section of people globally. Both injuries and violence have a negative impact on national economy by putting a burden on healthcare and law enforcement systems. Injuries and violence are responsible for an estimated 10% of people living with disability. Indicating the deaths due to violence, it is further reported that males suffer and die more than the females. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) has emphasized on prevention of violence and injuries. Preventing these will help the countries to achieve the goals.
(Dr Parida is an Assistant Professor in Sociology. email id: abash.parida@gmail.com, 8456879522)