Human rights abuses in Manipur

Human rights abuses in Manipur
Location of Manipur (highlighted in red)
Location	Manipur, India
Date	Ongoing
Target	Civilians and combatants
Perpetrators	Indian security forces Separatist insurgents
Motive	Military clampdown

Human rights abuses in Manipur, a state in northeastern India, have been an ongoing issue. As per the Manipur natives, the Indian security forces have committed several human rights violations in the state while suppressing a separatist insurgency in the region. The insurgent groups have been known to kidnap and recruit children to work as child soldiers against the Indian government.

Background

Despite many attempts by Indian government to facilitate the development in the state, the state had failed in gaining the advantages for many reasons. Behind the poor condition of the state has been the lack of big media attention, lack of public school infrastructure, lack of proper roads, lack of government participation etc. Sometimes there also have been attacks on engineers and government workers by separatist groups, contributing in lack of development. Though the violence is not as much as it was in 1970's. Another factor is the government lacking in many perspectives. One such example is near pangzawl village. . The school in pangzawl village was still in the process of building while the children were studying in it. When a class 9th manipuri girl finished class 9th , she founded that the class 10th rooms haven't even been built yet. Thus,hampering the speed of education and putting the family at uncertainty. Many of Manipur's youth want change, but mismanagement hampers any development.

Many of the youth had started moving to other cities for better infrastructure such as Delhi, Kolkata etc. Regarding the separatists. A separatist insurgency began in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur in 1964, although momentum to a more violent phase did not occur until 1978. The people here were now in the cross fire. Many civilians have lost their lives. In many areas there is a disdain of the armed forces.Particularly the Assam rifles, who have been involved in many pointless killings of people.There also have been rapes both documented and undocumented. The Separatists demand a sovereign state separate from the Union of India, conceding their grievances over lack of development, plundering of local resources and a general discontent in Manipur. Human Rights Watch, argues that human rights violations by Indian Security Forces have only fuelled the insurgency. It adds that the Indian Army have at times acted with impunity as anti-terrorism laws in the state make prosecution of human rights violators difficult.

There are currently 34 groups, including non-violent ones, that demand independence from India. In 1999, some of these groups coalesced into an alliance organization called the "Manipur People's Liberation Front." Of these, the three most prominent are the United National Liberation Front (UNLF), Peoples Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK), and PLA of Manipur. The UNLF is estimated to have 2500 active freedom fighting rebels, the PREPAK with 1500, and PLA with 3000.

Armed Forces Act, 1958

Main article: Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act

Due to overwhelming situation of violence by peoples of Manipur and insurgent groups, The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 was passed on 11 September 1958 by the Parliament of India. The legislation grants "special powers" to the Indian armed forces in regions which the act refers to as "disturbed areas".

The act has been in force in all seven northeastern states of India currently embroiled in a decades-old violent insurgency, including Manipur, for over fifty years. According to human rights organisation Redress, the Indian armed forces have abused power through privileges conferred in the act by using it as a manipulative tool to conduct "killings, torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and enforced disappearances." Yet there has been no strong proof of such actions by Armies, though the claims are still based on few number of incidents during the counter insurgency season of 1960's.

The act's continued application in Manipur have led to numerous local protests, with the most notable being that of Irom Chanu Sharmila, a Manipuri civil rights activist. Sharmila has been on a longstanding hunger strike since 2 November 2002 in which she has demanded the Indian government to repeal the act, which she blames for violence in Manipur and other parts of India's troubled northeast. Having refused food and water for more than 500 weeks, she has been called "the world's longest hunger striker". Her cause has gained international attention. The situation demands the strong presence of Armies as police forces aren't able to maintain law and order. Hence, the Indian parliament is still looking for a proper opportunity to lift the Act. Though there was another incident of a manipuri man who was shot by a soldier of assam rifles in 2021. It didn't received any national attention. But local media did covered it. The case was closed and assam rifles gave compensation to the family.

Child soldiers

There have been repeated reports of insurgent groups in Manipur kidnapping children to bolster their ranks with child soldiers. These children are then taken and recruited as . One recent report was on 18 April 2012, when three teenage boys were kidnapped as they watched a local football match.

The Manipur Alliance for Child Recruitment denounced the kidnappings, stating "International Human Rights Law prohibited the recruitment of children below 18 years as child soldiers".

See also

• Insurgency in Northeast India
• Indian general election, 2014 (Manipur)
• Human rights abuses in Assam
• Human rights abuses in Jammu and Kashmir