|
By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Oct 19: Strongly condemning the killings of three civilians by suspected Kuki militants at Nongshum-Khongbal Tangkhul area this morning, the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has held the Government responsible and accused it of giving a false sense of security to the people and depriving them of their right to self defence.
While the Government had recovered arms meant for self-defense from the people assuring that it will ensure their security and protection, it has utterly failed to defend and protect them from the onslaught of the militants who continue to attack and kill civilians, said COCOMI convenor YK Dhiren.
Speaking to reporters at the Lamphelpat office of the committee, Dhiren asserted that continuous failure to protect civilians against "Kuki narco-terrorist attacks" has eroded public faith in the Government.
"If the Government is unable to protect the people and their properties, it should surrender," Dhiren said, apparently urging the State leadership in the Government to step down.
Dhiren further asserted that the Government has failed to rein in armed militants even after more than 3 years of the conflict.
"While the hands of the people have been bound, the Government has continued to give a free hand to armed militants," Dhiren said, referring to the recovery of arms meant for self-defense from members of the public.
Notably, months into the conflict which erupted on May 3, 2023, the Government had urged communities to surrender weapons with them. The call received overwhelming response, and hundreds of weapons with valley communities and village volunteers were surrendered en masse.
Dhiren further reiterated that killings that took place this morning are a result of the Government giving false sense of security to the people.
The present Government and its leadership have repeatedly claimed that peace has returned to the State and boasted of ensuring free movement, giving a false sense of security to the people.
Believing the Government's "propaganda" to be true, the people had gone to the hills to collect firewood and earn their living when they were attacked by militants," Dhiren said.
Three civilians were killed and four were injured in the attack this morning suspectedly carried out by SoO cadre, Dhiren said, asserting that the Government should be held responsible for the deaths and injuries.
The Suspension of Operations (SoO), Dhiren said, has been used as a license to kill innocent civilians while the Government has tacitly failed to rein in the militants or abrogate the agreement.
The Government shouldn't only condemn the killings, it should crackdown on militants responsible for the attack. The perpetrators of the killings must be pursued and punished, he said.
Dhiren also denounced Central security forces for their lapses, stating that the place where the attack took place has personnel deployed there.
Dhiren said that the Central security forces had allegedly assured the civilians' safety before they went to collect firewood.
Asking the Central Government to stop its "proxy war", Dhiren further urged the State Government to immediately secure all vulnerable villages by deploying adequate security forces.
If necessary, security details being provided to Ministers and MLAs may be reduced for deployment in vulnerable villages, he added.