Recent clashes in Manipur

(Mains3:Security challenges and their management in border areas - linkages of organized crime with terrorism.)

Context:

• Recently, clashes broke out in different places in Manipur between different communities, primarily the Meitei and members of the Kuki-Zomi tribal group.

Spurt of violence

• The spurt of violence in Manipur that led to mass displacement, the loss of lives, vandalisation of houses, churches, temples besides arson across five districts, might have been a consequence of a long-standing hill-valley identity divide in the State, but it was also avoidable. 
• The trigger was a rally called by the All Tribal Students’ Union, Manipur, on Wednesday, protesting the move to concede a demand for ST status, following a High Court order, to the Meiteis, the majority group. 
• The tribal groups are opposed to this demand which is not uniformly endorsed by all sections of the Meiteis. 

Different demands:

• The Kuki-Zomi people are accused of having largely entered India illegally from Myanmar and occupied State-owned forestlands to cultivate poppies.
• Meitei organisations say the demand for ST status is justified for their survival and protection from the influx of outsiders, specifically from Myanmar. 
• They say the ST tag would help them acquire land in the hills like the tribal people, who have no restrictions in buying land in the “unreserved” Imphal Valley.

Demographic stats:

• Manipur has always had a majority of Meiteis, who were initially the rulers of the Manipur Kingdom.
• The Meiteis comprise about 53% of the population (2011 Census). Most of them are Hindu or Sanamahi; a minority is Muslim. 
• They have mostly lived in the Imphal valley. Around 41% of the State’s population are Scheduled Tribes (ST), comprising Naga and Kuki-Zomi clans, who mostly follow Christianity and occupy the hill districts. 
• As 90% of the State’s landmass comprises the hill districts, less than 10% is occupied by the majorityof the population residing in the valley.

Addressing grievances:

• While the grievance that according ST status would eat into the reservation pie for the hill tribal communities seems to be somewhat valid, their raging concern that this will compromise traditional land ownership is not entirely born out of reason and has been used by tribal leaders to whip up hysteric anti-valley sentiments. 
• The conflagration was also the consequence of brewing discontent against what tribal groups perceived as the State government’s biased actions.
• Evictions ostensibly done for forest protection and in the name of removing “outsiders” tend to cause passions to rile up among people dependent upon the hills for a livelihood; doing so without recourse to resettlement and compensation only heightens a sense of injustice among those affected.

unity in diversity

• The concept of “unity in diversity” is not an abstract one rather a required as in a multi-ethnic national or provincial setting, the accommodation of differences in a way that bestows socio-cultural recognition of identities while striving for constitutional unity and equality through governance is a must for progress. 
• The conditions for a conflict arise when identities tighten up and become exclusivist, leading to grievances over perceived neglect of one group. 
• But good governance that focuses on accommodation and dialogue helps stem the possibilities of a deterioration of such conditions into violence.