Terrorist attack aimed at sabotaging reconciliation: MA
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By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Dec 17: The Meitei Alliance has vehemently condemned the firing by Kuki militants on "returning Meitei IDPs" yesterday, and called it "a terrorist attack aimed at sabotaging reconciliation".
The attack was to strike fear in the minds of civilians who had just returned to their homes after more than 2 years of displacement. It was a grave security failure under President's Rule, said the Meitei Alliance in a statement issued to the press today.
The attack yesterday night targeted civilians at Torbung and Phougakchao Ikhai.
Calling it a cowardly act of terrorism, the Meitei Alliance said, unarmed civilians including elderly persons and children were subjected to indiscriminate firing and bomb attacks, barely hours after their return to their homes from relief camps.
The return of the IDPs to their homes was a positive step toward peace, but was turned into a night of terror by the "deliberate, organised and premeditated act of terror", it said.
The attack was a part of a wider ethnocentric politics that caused the Manipur crisis, carried out with the clear intent to instil fear, sabotage reconciliation, and violently prevent displaced citizens from exercising their fundamental right to return to their homes, said the Meitei Alliance.
"The timing of the attack-occurring immediately after a high-level security review by the Director General of Police and under the direct administration of President’s Rule-represents a grave and alarming failure of governance, intelligence, and civilian protection," said the Meitei Alliance.
Targeting civilians with firearms and explosives is terrorism, not ethnic violence, not clashes, and definitely not a law-and-order issue, it asserted.
The failure to neutralise the Kuki armed groups operating freely in sensitive zones constitutes a direct threat to peace, stability, and may even question the role of the security forces in the State, it said.
The Government of India, through the President’s Rule administration in Manipur, bears full responsibility for ensuring that no civilian is exposed to armed terror, the alliance said.
The absence of adequate security cover, permanent deployment, and real-time response mechanisms has directly endangered lives of the people, it added.
"This incident sends a dangerous signal that armed extremist forces can operate with impunity, even under Central administration, and that peace declarations remain meaningless without enforcement on the ground," it said.
The Meitei Alliance said it is demanding an immediate and robust security deployment in Torbung, Phougakchao Ikhai, and all IDP resettlement areas.
Permanent security posts, night patrols, and rapid-response units must be deployed, it said.
The Government must adopt a zero tolerance policy against armed militant groups responsible for terrorising civilians, with visible outcomes and accountability, it said.
There must be a transparent review of security lapses, including intelligence failures that allowed the attack to occur, the alliance said.
Further, the Government must appoint a dedicated senior security officer with clear command authority to oversee the safety of all returning IDPs, it said.
"This attack must be recognised for what it is: a direct assault on civilian life, reconciliation efforts, and democratic norms. We demand security protection, enforcement, and the political will to confront violent extremism without ambiguity," said the Meitei Alliance.
IMPHAL, Dec 17: The Meitei Alliance has vehemently condemned the firing by Kuki militants on "returning Meitei IDPs" yesterday, and called it "a terrorist attack aimed at sabotaging reconciliation".
The attack was to strike fear in the minds of civilians who had just returned to their homes after more than 2 years of displacement. It was a grave security failure under President's Rule, said the Meitei Alliance in a statement issued to the press today.
The attack yesterday night targeted civilians at Torbung and Phougakchao Ikhai.
Calling it a cowardly act of terrorism, the Meitei Alliance said, unarmed civilians including elderly persons and children were subjected to indiscriminate firing and bomb attacks, barely hours after their return to their homes from relief camps.
The return of the IDPs to their homes was a positive step toward peace, but was turned into a night of terror by the "deliberate, organised and premeditated act of terror", it said.
The attack was a part of a wider ethnocentric politics that caused the Manipur crisis, carried out with the clear intent to instil fear, sabotage reconciliation, and violently prevent displaced citizens from exercising their fundamental right to return to their homes, said the Meitei Alliance.
"The timing of the attack-occurring immediately after a high-level security review by the Director General of Police and under the direct administration of President’s Rule-represents a grave and alarming failure of governance, intelligence, and civilian protection," said the Meitei Alliance.
Targeting civilians with firearms and explosives is terrorism, not ethnic violence, not clashes, and definitely not a law-and-order issue, it asserted.
The failure to neutralise the Kuki armed groups operating freely in sensitive zones constitutes a direct threat to peace, stability, and may even question the role of the security forces in the State, it said.
The Government of India, through the President’s Rule administration in Manipur, bears full responsibility for ensuring that no civilian is exposed to armed terror, the alliance said.
The absence of adequate security cover, permanent deployment, and real-time response mechanisms has directly endangered lives of the people, it added.
"This incident sends a dangerous signal that armed extremist forces can operate with impunity, even under Central administration, and that peace declarations remain meaningless without enforcement on the ground," it said.
The Meitei Alliance said it is demanding an immediate and robust security deployment in Torbung, Phougakchao Ikhai, and all IDP resettlement areas.
Permanent security posts, night patrols, and rapid-response units must be deployed, it said.
The Government must adopt a zero tolerance policy against armed militant groups responsible for terrorising civilians, with visible outcomes and accountability, it said.
There must be a transparent review of security lapses, including intelligence failures that allowed the attack to occur, the alliance said.
Further, the Government must appoint a dedicated senior security officer with clear command authority to oversee the safety of all returning IDPs, it said.
"This attack must be recognised for what it is: a direct assault on civilian life, reconciliation efforts, and democratic norms. We demand security protection, enforcement, and the political will to confront violent extremism without ambiguity," said the Meitei Alliance.