Koireng-led UNLF shares thoughts-I

IMPHAL, Nov 23
The Central Committee of the Koireng-led United National Liberation Front (UNLF) has shared its thoughts and perspective on several issues on the outfit’s 60th raising day (November 24).
Extending best wishes to all sections of people, the outfit also conveyed solidarity to the people who have been displaced due to the relentless aggression of immigrant mercenary Kukis against the indigenous people of Manipur, particularly Meiteis.
A statement issued by the outfit’s Central Committee asserted that people are aware of how India forcibly annexed Manipur in 1949.
Since then, all the policies and activities of India are directed at suppressing Manipur and her indigenous people, the Central Committee alleged.
To suppress the indigenous people of Manipur, innumerable number of Indian armed forces were sent to Manipur along with the imposition of AFSPA 1958 and many other draconian laws.
Apart from using military force to suppress the people’s liberation movement, the Government of India has been following several policies to make Manipur permanently dependent on India economically.
After destroying all the economic foundations of Manipur, the Government of India has been keeping  Manipur as a captive market, the outfit alleged.
At the same time, the Government of India has been working to extract and exploit the natural resources of Manipur like uranium, oil, chromite, precious stones, bauxite etc, it said.
Manipur’s liberation struggle against India has completed 60 years and the liberation movement has witnessed many ups and downs.
Many people would have been thinking the revolutionary movement instead of progressing has been regressing. People would also like to ask whether the revolutionary movement can ever come back to its right course and march ahead.
“This is a pertinent question but what is even more pertinent is the question why we should nurture the spirit of freedom as human beings”, the Central Committee said.
It then questioned, “How far are our people prepared to fight for a life of dignity and freedom?”
A large number of week and small countries, after overcoming all the ups and downs in the course of their freedom struggles and sacrificing innumerable lives, have achieved independence.
“Our freedom struggle too has been facing the same unavoidable challenges. The success of our liberation movement needs three things viz; unity of revolutionary organisations, unity among indigenous communities and unity among the people; sharpening of the contradictions within India like Dravidian South-Aryan North divide, contradiction between Indian Constitution’s centralization and regional aspirations such as Bengali nationalism, Hindu-Muslim conflict and class struggle between working class and elites, and the beginning of the collapse of India from within; and isolation of India at the international level and recognition of our freedom struggle as legitimate by the international community”, the Central Committee elucidated.
In spite of being a powerful country and even though it has been making all efforts to suppress the liberation movement, India has achieved very little or no success in this regard, it claimed.
It is essential for the present generation to study why India, the fourth biggest military power in the world is unable to suppress the liberation of tiny Manipur, and understand the legitimacy of the armed liberation movement, it said.       
India is unable to suppress the liberation movement of Manipur although Manipur is a small State in terms of territorial size as well as population because the liberation movement has a strong foundation (inner strength) while India despite being the fourth largest military power is plagued with internal weakness, it alleged.
The inner strength of the liberation movement stems from the fact that Manipur was created by the blood and sweat of its people, it was not carved out from any other country nor was it created by merging two/three States, Manipur was never made a part of British-India but was forcibly annexed by India.
The Government of India Act 1935 created the Empire of India and it made Manipur a part of the empire. But the British Government issued an order called ‘Manipur (Exclusion) Order’ on December 26, 1946 whereby Manipur was excluded from the Empire of India and subsequently Manipur was granted independence on  August 14, 1947.
After king Bodh Chandra promulgated the Manipur State Constitution Act on July 27, 1947, the first election was held in Manipur in June-July 1948 and Manipur became a pioneer of constitutional democracy in South East Asia and South Asia, it asserted.
The forced annexation of independent Manipur and alleged colonisation of the independent country is the most fundamental factor for the liberation movement of Manipur.
Moreover, Manipur is still an independent country constitutionally because the Manipur State Constitution which was adopted in 1947 is still alive, the Central Committee claimed.
It said that Manipur must fight a legal and constitutional battle with India on this matter.     
The principal strategy followed by India with respect to Manipur during the last 70 years is suppression of Manipur politically, militarily and economic impoverishment.
In addition, the Government of India has been scheming to obliterate the culture, tradition and identity of Manipur and assimilate them with India completely, it alleged.
Together with the people’s movement from time to time, the revolutionary movement has been fighting all these policies, it said     
The most dangerous strategy of India unfolded on May 3, 2023 when India allegedly waged a proxy war using armed Kuki mercenaries against Meiteis to fragment Manipur into multiple pieces, the Central Committee said.
One undeniable proof of the proxy war is declaration of buffer/red zones in the adjoining areas of the valley and the hills, deployment of countless number of Indian armed forces who are only happy to carry out search operations in the valley while remaining mute spectators to relentless attacks launched by armed Kukis from the hills toward the valley, it said.
How India sees Meiteis is clearly evident in the recent reimposition of AFSPA in the jurisdictions of six police stations including Jiri which are being attacked repeatedly by armed Kukis, it said.