Newmai News Network
Senapati | July 20
The United Naga Council (UNC) has objected to the government’s policy for setting up and operation of semi-permanent relief camps in Naga areas.
In a statement issued today, the UNC said that ever since the beginning of May 3, 2023 "mayhem in the state of Manipur", Naga people have been maintaining neutrality without being biased to the communities involved in the unending chaos and violence with prayer and sympathy to all the victims from both the communities.
Under the aegis of UNC, a peace committee was constituted to foster peace building with the hope and belief that any problem can be settled by sitting across the table, it said. "Moreover, we too have been consciously and continuously restraining ourselves from reacting to the provocations from both the warring communities. Accordingly, our concerns over the prevailing situations had been shared across the two communities and the leaders of Manipur state including the Central government to restore normalcy in the state," it added.
The statement said, "Manipur being a home of mixed communities with different political aspirations and overlapping of claims despite having established and distinct historical positions over the land and rights of the people, the authority in the helm of affairs need to handle cautiously and proactively". The Naga body also said that any steps initiated by the government to mitigate the crisis should not harm the positions of other communities or purportedly pose threat to them.
While appreciating the relief activities and measures taken up by the government, the UNC said it took strong exception to the recent government of Manipur guidelines for setting up and operation of semi-permanent relief camps for the displaced persons “which poses serious threat and can cause breach of peace in the future due to various problems attributed to the adverse demographic imbalances in different districts of the state.”
"UNC would discourage the government’s policy for setting up and operation of semi-permanent relief camps in Naga areas", it said. Further, the Naga body said it will not allow anyone to set up any permanent structure or semi-permanent relief camps apart from "immediate temporary relief arrangements in Naga areas to address the plight of the displaced persons".
