Manipur Christians: ‘The Violence Has Shattered Us’
News & ReportingJul 20, 2023
A video has emerged showing two women being forced to walk naked through a crowd of fully clothed men in India's northeastern state of Manipur. According to the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum, the incident occurred on May 4.
The Forum said the victims shown in the video, one of whom said they were "forced" to "remove our clothes" and were threatened with death if they didn't "do as told," are from the Kuki-Zo community. Both victims are now reportedly safe in a refugee camp.
This conflict is years in the making, but it's certainly not been made better by the ruling Hindu nationalist BJP party. Though Manipur is roughly equally divided between Kuki Christians and Meitei Hindus, the Hindu population has become brazen in their attacks against both Christian people and churches, targeting husbands, wives, and children. While the situation worsens, official security forces aren't even trying to help but rather have allegedly taken part in the attacks against Kukis.
It's odd that Prime Minister Modi is receiving flack for this incident, as he hasn't encouraged nor condoned any violence against Christian Kukis or any other minority. Rather, the Prime Minister has expressed sorrow in the wake of this video and promised to get justice for the victims no matter where the crime was committed or who committed it.