Newmai News Network
Imphal | June 8
Even as communal violence continues in Manipur since May 3, the United Naga Council (UNC) has appealed to both the “warring communities” for paving a way forward in a peaceful manner.
The UNC is perturbed to witness the “continuous act of vengeance and the perpetual cycle of violence with no end in sight from the warring communities,” the Council stated on June 7.
In a statement issued to Newmai News Network, the Naga body said that despite repeated appeals for the restoration of normalcy in the state, there are occurrences of gunfights in the peripheries of the hill districts and torching of villages in the foothills, leaving other communities at ransom.
“It is easier said than done, and perhaps echoing for peace may be a hard thing for the affected people to take when so many lives were lost and properties destroyed beyond measure. However, the UNC, as an apex body representing more than 20 Naga tribes of the present Manipur state, feels the urgency to express our opinion that, coming to terms democratically for a peaceful settlement is the only solution,” the UNC stated.
Any citizen, big or small, is vulnerable and can be a victim of the strife torn-Manipur due to the fact that all the ethnic communities are living in close proximity, both in the valley and the hills, and there are high chances of senseless violence as and when other communities are provoked or mishandled, it noted.
As such, the UNC reminded “both the communities for paving a way forward in a peaceful manner to ensure that the spark of this communal flare up is not ignited further to other communities as a consequence, as involving other communities will be too costly”.
