Tribal people, most of them Christians, are up in arms against giving reservation status to prosperous Meitei community
People look for usable items as they walk next to the rubbles after the houses were set on fire and vandalized by mobs in Khumujamba village, on the outskirts of Churachandpur in the violence-hit northeastern Indian state of Manipur, on May 9. (Photo: AFP)
The Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) has appealed for peace in India’s northeastern state of Manipur, where sectarian riots have claimed at least 60 lives and rendered 35,000 people homeless.
"We appeal to everyone concerned to refrain from all acts of violence and hatred," the CBCI said in a joint statement with the Conference of Religious India and the Catholic Council of India which comprises the laity, clergy, and prelates in the country.
Since May 3, unprecedented violence has taken place in the hilly state of Manipur, bordering Myanmar, between the ethnic Kuki and Meitei communities over a court proposal to give special tribal status to Meitei people, under India’s affirmative “Scheduled Tribe” grouping.
Most Kuki people are Christians, while most Meiteis are Hindus, though a few of them are Christians too. The majority Meiteis make up 53 percent of Manipur’s 3.2 million people and control political power (40 of the 60 lawmakers in the state assembly are from the Meitei community), and economic resources.
Kuki people are up in arms against giving tribal status to Meitei people, giving them special benefits such as seats in government jobs and educational institutions.
Last week, authorities in the state issued “shoot-on-sight” orders to quell the violence that has claimed 60 lives, injured 231, and damaged 1,700 houses, including religious places.
“All citizens of India are pained, saddened, and most of all concerned at the situation that has unfolded. Precious lives have been lost, houses burned or destroyed, belongings vandalized and looted, places of worship desecrated and set ablaze,” the statement, signed by CBCI president Archbishop Andrews Thazhath of Trichur, said after a meeting in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru from May 10 to 12.
As a result of the violence, the government imposed a curfew in most of the 16 districts and suspended mobile and internet services for five days.
Thazhath urged the faithful to observe May 31 as a Day of Prayer and Fasting for peace as “Holy Father Pope Francis has declared the day as a Day of Marian Prayer for the Synod.”
The CBCI statement also thanked political and civil leaders for their prompt intervention and action and called for their continued vigilance to ensure that peace prevails at every level and at all times.
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