Manipur's Meitei And Thadou Tribe Organisations Make A Peace Breakthrough

Two influential civil society organisations of Manipur's Meitei community and the indigenous distinct tribe Thadou in a joint press conference today called for working toward bringing peace in Manipur.

Members of the Meitei Alliance and the Thadou Inpi Manipur called the joint announcement in Delhi today a "significant and historic moment" as they met for the first time on a common platform and for a common goal since the outbreak of ethnic violence in May 2023.

The Meitei Alliance, an umbrella body of Meitei civil society organisations globally, and the Thadou Inpi Manipur, which says it is the apex body of the Thadou tribe in the state, in a joint statement gave a six-point agreement that they said could work as the foundation on which successive small steps can be taken to restore peace and rebuild lives in the state bordering Myanmar.

"From the perspective of the Thadou right from day one it is very clear that we want peace... Unless and until you identify who are Kukis in Manipur, there won't be any solution," Thadou Inpi Manipur General Secretary T Michael Lamjathang Haokip told reporters.

"First, identify who are Kukis. You must have come across many hyphenated Kuki dash Zo not accepted by Zomi Council, Kuki dash Zo not accepted by Hmar... these types of things have been going on... so who exactly are Kukis and who are these people who are causing violence? Until and unless you don't define these people, it is like a timebomb. Another eruption will happen anytime again in the name of Kuki," Mr Haokip said.

Meitei Alliance founding member Dr Malem Ningthouja said if there are people who don't want peace and co-existence in Manipur, there are also people "who are crying for peace, crying for addressing the grievances of people affected by the disturbance in Manipur".

"As we looked for durable solutions, we came across various forces and among them we came in touch with Thadoi Inpi Manipur. We believe that they have genuine grievances vis a vis supremacists and sectarian forces... Meitei Alliance having full faith in addressing specific democratic concerns of coexisting communities and in the collective identity of Manipur, we should also acknowledge their aspirations and concerns while calling for peace. This is how we came together," Dr Ningthouja said.

Diverse Communities

In the joint statement, the two organisations said the meeting reaffirmed the exigency of taking up initiatives towards promoting the peaceful and harmonious relationship and understanding among diverse communities that shape the cultural fabric of Manipur.

In the first point, the joint statement sought the preservation and promotion of Manipur as a cohesive and harmonious multi-ethnic society with a sense of unity, integrity, peace, respect and safety among all members of the society.

The joint statement asked for delisting of "vague or fake nomenclature such as 'Any Kuki tribes'" from the Scheduled Tribes (ST) list of Manipur, and demanded recognition of the original inhabitants of Manipur, including all its original communities, and updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The last two points are: "acknowledgement of the bold leadership and aspiration of Thadou Inpi Manipur to preserve and promote Thadou identity as independent and distinct from Kuki. Joint initiatives and collective efforts to overcome community identity misidentification and misinterpretation."

'Milestone Achievement'

The Thadou Inpi Manipur says Thadou is a distinct tribe with their own distinct identity, language and culture, and is not part of the Kuki umbrella. The Thadou Inpi Manipur is also seeking the removal of 'Any Kuki Tribes' from the ST category, which was inserted in 2003 with a recommendation to the Centre by the then Congress government in Manipur.

"It is a milestone achievement for the Thadou people because right from the beginning we have been hoping others would understand us. We hope this collaboration with the Meitei Alliance would be well-received by the people of Manipur. We also hope people on the ground understand who Kuki and Thadou are. Meitei and Thadou have no conflict. It was about mistaken identity," Mr Haokip told NDTV.

Recent Developments

Another civil society organisation of the Meitei community and the Thadou Students Association (GHQ) extended support to the Centre's recent decisions on bringing peace in the violence-hit state. The Thadou Students' Association (GHQ) termed the Centre's order to ensure free movement of people on all roads in Manipur from Saturday "a light at the end of the tunnel."

The Delhi Meitei Forum (DMF), an independent civil society group of the Meitei community living in the national capital, in a statement said it "extends heartfelt gratitude to Union Home Minister Amit Shah for his commitment to restoring peace and normalcy in Manipur", especially the order to ensure unrestricted travel across Manipur's roads from March 8, ensuring safety and accessibility for all.

Threat By Kuki Militant Group UKNA

Hours before the event began in Delhi on Friday, the militant group United Kuki National Army (UKNA) issued a threat to the Meitei Alliance and the Thadou Inpi Manipur to cancel it. The UKNA is not a signatory to the suspension of operations (SoO) agreement.

In separate statements, the two civil society groups and many others who supported the joint peace initiative condemned the UNKA and requested the government to take action against the UKNA, which already faces a terror case being handled by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

"The press conference, scheduled for March 7, 2025, at Vishwa Yuwa Kendra, New Delhi, is a collaborative effort to foster mutual respect and peaceful dialogue between our communities. Any attempt to silence these efforts through death threats or intimidation is unacceptable and highly condemnable," the global body Thadou Community International (TCI) said in a statement.

The Meitei Heritage Society, the Thadou Students' Association (GHQ), Meitei Alliance, Thadou Inpi Manipur, and others in separate statements pushed back against the UKNA threat and resolved to hold the joint press conference.

"We are shocked to see the objection from a few Chin Kuki CSO/student body. What is more disturbing is that UKNA, a Chin Kuki militant... has threatened us to withdraw the peace initiative or face dire consequences. We condemn this threat. It only reinforces what we have been saying from the start, that it is Kuki militant groups that don't want peace in Manipur in order to continue ruling over the common people with guns," the Meitei Heritage Society said in a statement.

Kuki Organisations Object To Meeting

The Kuki Students' Organisation (Delhi and NCR) alleged the meeting lacked legitimacy to "unilaterally determine the future of the Kuki people under the pretense of restoration of peace in Manipur."

"Thadou Inpi Manipur, a fringe organisation that persistently foments division within the Kuki community in general and the Thadou tribe in particular, is a body orchestrated by a select few with vested interests that run counter to the well-being of their own people," the KSO (Delhi and NCR) said in a statement.

It alleged Thadou Inpi Manipur's "blatant act of defection comes at the direct expense of the legitimate mother organisation - Thadou Inpi General Headquarters, Manipur, of which it was once an integral part - and runs counter to the very interests of the community it falsely claims to represent."

PRESS CONDEMNATION
The Kuki Students' Organisation, Delhi & NCR (#KSOD&NCR), on behalf of the entire Kuki community-victims of state-engineered genocide in #Manipur-unequivocally asserts that the Joint Press Conference of the #Meitei Alliance and Thadou Inpi Manipur (#TIM), pic.twitter.com/Ig4pzCsCPt

— KSO Delhi & NCR (@KSODelhi) March 7, 2025

The valley-dominant Meitei community and over a dozen distinct tribes collectively known as Kuki, who are dominant in some hill areas of Manipur, have been fighting since May 2023 over a range of issues such as land rights and political representation. Over 250 have died in the violence and nearly 50,000 have been internally displaced.

'Separate Administration Not New Demand'

Meitei leaders have alleged Kuki militant groups that signed the SoO agreement have been working to strengthen themselves over the years by taking advantage of the ceasefire, until a time came to engineer a violent attack for a separate land.

While Kuki-Zo groups pointed at the ethnic clashes that began in May 2023 as the reason why they escalated their demand from an autonomous council to a separate administration, or a Union Territory with an assembly, Meitei leaders have pointed at decades-old evidence of Kuki groups working to form 'Kukiland' carved out of Manipur.

The World Kuki-Zo Intellectual Council (WKZIC) in a memorandum to Manipur's new Governor on January 15 said the Kuki tribes have been demanding a state "since 1946-47."

In the years before May 2023, Kuki protests, gatherings and panel discussions have mentioned the demand for a separate area carved out of Manipur.

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