Manipur refugees taking shelter in Mizoram share their tales of pain and horror

Manipur is no longer a safe place to live, it has turned into a war zone now, so “Although it is very painful to leave our homes where we were born and raised and have so many memories, we do not want to go back there, said people of Manipur taking shelter in Mizoram owing to the ethnic clash in the state for over a month now.

“We came to Mizoram from Manipur’s Sugnu to take shelter here as the state is burning. Our houses have been burnt down and we somehow managed to escape from there and come to Mizoram. We do not think we will ever want to go back there. Manipur is no longer safe for us. We will now stay in Mizoram as we feel safe and secure here,” told Internally Displaced students of Manipur to Northeast Live.

“I passed Higher secondary this year and had not even applied for admission for any Undergraduate course. Before I could apply in any college, a violent clash broke out in the state on May 3, and since then the state is on the boil and there seems no end to the violence in the state,” said a student from Sugnu.

“I have a family, I need to look after them. Since the state is seeing violence for over a month now, there is no place left for us to work to serve daily bread on our plate, so we moved to Mizoam with the help of one of my brother in Churachandpur,” a daily wage worker who is now sheltering in YMA relief camp Aizawl told Northeast Live.

“Everything was burning in front of my eyes. even my family was attacked, so for the sake of the safety of my family I had to feel Mizoram with them,” said another person.

Manipur has been on the boil for over a month now since violence broke out in the state on May 3.

Many lives have been lost, hundreds injured, thousands have been displaced, a huge trust deficit between communities have cropped up, and people are fleeing from their homes in their own state.

Despite the fact that there are at least 40,000 security forces deployed in the state, Manipur continues to report incidents of violence.

Residences of as many as 8 ministers in the state have been burnt down by miscreants till today.

Yesterday, the residence of Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Education RK Ranjan Singh in Kongba-Uchekon area in Imphal East was burnt down.

The Centre has set up a 51-member Peace Committee to review the present situation and suggest ways to bring back peace and normalcy in Manipur.

Yesterday, Chief Minister N. Biren Singh has stated that illegal infiltrators are responsible for the ongoing unrest in Manipur and reiterated that the ongoing violence is not a fight between two communities.

The Manipur CM said that all the MLAs and Ministers are in constant touch with the masses to bring peace and that the Peace Committee under the Governor will begin its work soon.

Also Read: Manipur unrest: Union Minister RK Ranjan Singh’s house set on fire