Staff REPORTER
ITANAGAR, Oct 3: Manipur social activist Bemlei Maibam has appealed to Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu and civil society organisations in the state to intervene in the ongoing crisis in Manipur and support efforts to restore peace and normalcy.
Maibam, who has been undertaking an outreach tour across the Northeastern states since September 16, made the appeal while addressing reporters at the Arunachal Press Club here on Saturday.
Highlighting the prolonged ethnic violence in Manipur and its impact on women and children, she urged the neighbouring states to extend support to people affected by the conflict.
Maibam claimed that around 60,000 people from the Meitei community were currently staying in relief camps and facing hardships, including health and sanitation-related problems. She further claimed that at least 48 people from the community remained missing, saying fear had made it difficult for relatives to search for them.
“Without the intervention of neighbouring Northeastern states, the people of Manipur would not be able to survive,” she said, calling for collective efforts to restore peaceful coexistence in the state.
Maibam said the ethnic violence that began on May 3, 2023, had severely disrupted Manipur’s social fabric and turned several areas into what she described as “a battleground.”
She also appealed to civil society organisations in Arunachal Pradesh to support humanitarian efforts for those affected by the conflict.