Myanmar Citizens Demand Removal of Manipuri Meitei Extremists from Region

Tedim, December 4, 2019:

The locals of Tedim township in Chin state of Myanmar carried out a massive protest on November 30 demanding that the Myanmarese Government remove Meitei extremists from Manipur, who have reportedly taken shelter across the border.

Chin, which borders the northeastern states of Mizoram and Manipur, has been witnessing a rise in insurgent activity in recent times, and as many as six armed groups under the umbrella group CORCOM are believed to have their bases in the area.

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The rally, jointly organised by 28 Zomi civil society groups including the Zomi Student and Youth Organisation (ZSYO), had over 500 protesters, and they demanded justice for a local school teacher who had reportedly been killed by a Meitei militant. As many as 40 Manipuri extremists are reportedly staying in Tonzang town, while over 1,500 militants are believed to be hiding in the jungles.

On November 17, a militant who has been identified as M. Isaba Binod, reportedly shot dead a schoolteacher called Dim Lun Mang (aged 27), after she had complained that he was playing music too loudly. The incident sent shockwaves across the region, and the ethnic Chin populace is demanding an immediate solution to the problem that has been plaguing the border-area for over a decade.

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It has been alleged that a Meitei group has set up its base in Chin after a raid by the Indian Army led it to vacate its camps in Sajik Tampak in Manipur’s Chandel district. The locals of Chin have alleged that the extremists are allowed to continue their nefarious activities by the Myanmar Govt in exchange for large sums of cash. Moreover, it has also been alleged that the insurgents' main source of income is 'drug money' earned by cultivating opium.

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