FLAWED SOO TRUCE THREATENING PEACE AND STABILITY IN MANIPUR: FNCC
Foothills Naga Coordination Committee (FNCC) said the “flawed” SoO (suspension of operation) truce with the Kuki militants is threatening peace and stability in Manipur as it joined the campaign demanding abrogation of the controversial tripartite ceasefire truce.
The FNCC, an apex body of various tribes within Naga-fold residing in the foothill regions of the state, raised the demand for abrogation of the SoO truce with Kuki militants in a memorandum submitted to the Prime Minister of India through Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Balla in Imphal on Monday.
“The SoO regime has devolved into a sanctuary for armed criminals; a cover for illegal taxation and extortion, and a threat to India’s internal security and inter-community equilibrium,” the apex body alleged in the memorandum while categorically highlighting details of criminal activities involving cadres of the militants groups under SoO.
The FNCC raised strong objections to the continued presence and proposed relocation of Suspension of Operations (SoO) camps belonging to Kuki militant groups in and around Naga ancestral territories.
The committee expressed deep concern that the existence of these camps, as well as the SoO agreement itself, posed a serious threat to communal harmony, constitutional order, and national security in the state.
The FNCC maintained that no SoO camps, whether existing or proposed, should not be allowed within Naga-inhabited areas without the knowledge and informed consent of the Naga people.
They specifically mentioned the regions of Kharam Vaiphei and Kotlen as part of historically and culturally significant Naga territories.
The committee warned that any attempt to establish camps in these areas would be seen as an act of provocation and aggression, likely to incite communal unrest with consequences that could exceed the violence of May 3, 2023.
Tracing the origins of the SoO agreement, the FNCC noted that it began as a bilateral arrangement on August 1, 2005, and was later formalized into a tripartite agreement in 2008 between the Government of India, the Manipur government, and Kuki militant groups, including the Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and the United People’s Front (UPF).
The agreement utterly failed in delivering on its intended objectives. Rather than fostering peace, the SoO has emboldened armed criminality, the FNCC alleged in the memorandum.
“The Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and United People’s Front (UPF); primary signatories have consistently and brazenly violated the terms of agreement. Violence, extortion, land encroachment, and terrorizing of civilians have become rampant and institutionalized. SoO camps are no longer “suspended’ but have become operational bases for Kuki militant expansion, extortion and community intimidation,” the memorandum read.
The FNCC alleged that despite repeated and well-documented violations, the agreements were renewed annually without accountability or oversight, raising grave questions about the intent and integrity of the process.
It laid down some of the many verifiable violations committed by Kuki militant under SoO umbrella and asserted that the SoO regime has devolved into a sanctuary for armed criminals, a cover for illegal taxation and extortion apart from threatening the country’s internal security and inter-community equilibrium.
The apex body further claimed that the SoO camps have evolved into operational hubs for militant expansion, intimidation, and illegal activities such as poppy cultivation, especially in Naga areas like Makhan and Leikhampokpi.
The FNCC, in the memorandum, reiterated its demands like immediate dismantling of all SoO camps in or near Naga territories, total abrogation and permanent non-renewal of the SoO agreements with Kuki militant groups.
It also demanded immediate halt to the construction of roads such as the “German” and “Tiger” roads, which allegedly violate Naga territorial rights.
All the violations committed under the SoO framework should be investigated by a high-level inquiry commission.
Reaffirming their commitment to peace and justice, the FNCC concluded that while the Naga people have consistently upheld the values of coexistence, they will not allow their land, dignity, and security to be compromised.
The memorandum was described as a call for justice, for the restoration of constitutional order, and for the protection of a people who have endured far too long in silence.
Notably, various CSOs based in the valley of Manipur including Coordination Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) have been pressing the Central government to abrogate the tripartite SoO truce among Kuki militants groups, government of India and Manipur government.
While raising the demand, the CSOs alleged the militant groups of violating the ground rules of the truce and directly involving in the ongoing more than two years old violent conflict between the Meitei and the Kuki.