Phokhungri Area Public Organisation (PAPO) has strongly opposed the move of the Government of India to scrap the Free Movement Regime (FMR) and erect fence Indo -Myanmar Border.
In a press statement, PAPO president, P.Paratsü and general secretary, Sihalu said government should be aware that on both sides of the “artificial” border, people of the same culture and tradition, having families and relatives across the border, maintaining constant touch by visiting each other freely since time immemorial.
PAPO said both the villagers living in India and Myanmar have their own traditional boundaries and likewise have their ancestral lands and fields across the borders.
Therefore, PAPO said that peaceful co-existence should not be jeopardised by the restriction of free movement and border fencing. The organisation pointed out that there was no threat of the country’s internal security and said border fencing was “too ambitious and not pragmatic”.
PAPO wondered that if the government wants to develop political, economic and security cooperation with Southeast Asia countries then how can fencing the border will help that objective.
In this regard, PAPO appealed to the central government to re-consider the decision and “let the people in the borders live in peaceful coexistence as before”.