Nagas, Meiteis hold peace meeting in Imphal to diffuse tension following woman's death

Manipur chief minister N. Biren Singh also joined the meeting between the United Naga Council and the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity, representing the Nagas and the Meiteis respectively 

Umanand Jaiswal, TT, Guwahati, 20.07.23 : The tension triggered by the killing of a Naga woman in Imphal East district on July 15 has been “defused amicably” following a marathon meeting in the Manipur capital between two leading organisations of Nagas and Meiteis.

Manipur chief minister N. Biren Singh also joined the meeting between the United Naga Council and the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity, representing the Nagas and the Meiteis respectively.

United Naga Council information and publicity secretary James Hau told The Telegraph that the government has sanctioned Rs 10 lakh in compensation to the family of the 57-year-old deceased, Rs 5 lakh for her funeral and a one-time payment of Rs 5 lakh for the education of her daughter, who is in Class X.

“The situation has been defused amicably following a long meeting between the two sides starting around 12.30pm (on Tuesday) and ending around 6.30pm, including a joint meeting with chief minister N. Biren Singh which lasted for one-and-a-half hours,” Hau said.

The United Naga Council (UNC) is the apex body of 20 Naga tribes living in Manipur while the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) is a conglomerate of five valley-based civil society organisations. Both the UNC and the COCOMI are spearheading the demand for the early implementation of the National Register of Citizens in Manipur.

The body of the deceased was to be handed over to her family on Wednesday after completing all formalities and the funeral would be held in her native Chandel district, about 62km from Imphal.

The deceased, M. Lucy Maring, was shot dead on Saturday evening in Imphal East and her face disfigured, sparking widespread resentment and leading to the imposition of a 12-hour shutdown in the Naga areas of Manipur by the UNC on Monday.

In a joint memorandum, the UNC and the COCOMI said: "The COCOMI, by owning up moral responsibility, expressed regret over the brutal killing of M. Lucy and tendered sincere apology berfore the Naga delegates led by the UNC".

"It was agreed that COCOMI shall initiate efforts to ensure that no such untoward incident/ harassment is given to any community in the future. The UNC has agreed to suspend all forms of agitation and extend cooperation to the police to facilitate early completion of investigation," the memorandum said.

The UNC had demanded justice for the deceased and said the Nagas must not be dragged into the ongoing conflict between the Meiteis and the Kukis that has left at least 152 dead and over 60,000 displaced. The Naga community has remained "neutral" in the conflict that erupted on May 3. Like the Kukis, the Nagas mostly live in the hills. The Meiteis mostly inhabit the valley.

The UNC had demanded the setting up of a judicial committee to probe the killing, the immediate arrest of those involved, including “those Meira Paibis (women torch-bearers) complicit in the crime”, and justice for the victim according to Naga customary law within 48 hours.

The police had arrested nine persons in connection with the killing on Sunday. The UNC also wanted Meitei civil society organisations to clear their position on the incident.

The COCOMI had on Monday condemned the killing and the BJP-led state government had issued a statement on Tuesday denouncing the "killing of innocent individuals, regardless of their religion, community and gender".

COCOMI spokesperson Khuraijam Athouba said in a text message that the joint meeting resolved the matter related to the killing of a Maring Naga woman after a six-hour discussion and both parties taking the matter to the government.

The situation on the ground remains tense since May 3 with reports of sporadic incidents of firing, arson and congregation of unruly mobs in some places, the police said.