Inside the local initiative to support indigenous victims of violence

On the afternoon of 17 August, Lenneipau Vaipse, a 70-year-old man, sat quietly in a chair at the office of the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF), an NGO funded by donations, in Churachandpur, located in India's Manipur state.

Restlessly shuffling papers in his hand, despite being illiterate, he appeared fatigued. His purpose was to file a formal complaint with the police, known locally as a First Information Report (FIR), and volunteers from ITLF's legal cell were assisting him in drafting it.

Vaipse, a member of the Kuki-Zo tribe, serves as the leader of Zerukanan village in Kangpokpi, located 105 km from the neighbouring district of Churachandpur. On 6 May, radical groups from the majority Meitei tribe in Manipur carried out destructive acts, setting fire to and damaging every house in Zerukanan. In response, Vaipse, along with more than 40 fellow Kuki-Zo tribe members from the village, sought refuge in Churachandpur, a region predominantly inhabited by the Kuki-Zo tribe.

Following the attack, all the villagers found shelter in various relief camps established by government authorities and social organisations. At that time, Vaipse was unaware that he should file a formal complaint with the police regarding the attackers.

In August, members of the legal cell of ITLF launched awareness campaigns about the significance of FIRs during a visit to Vaipse's relief camp. 

The unfolding of an ethnic clash

Since the outbreak of ethnic violence following the Tribal Solidarity March held on 3 May of this year, over 175 people have lost their lives. The march was organised by members of the Kuki Zo and Nagas tribes to protest the decision to grant tribal status to the majority Meitei community. This decision would enable Meiteis to purchase land in protected areas that were originally designated for minority tribes, including the Kuki-Zos.

Tribal status would also include a job and admission quota in government departments for the Meitei community.

As of Census 2011, the population of Manipur is 2,855,794. The Meitei community accounts for 53 per cent of the population and resides on 10 per cent of the land in Imphal Valley. On the other hand, Kuki-Zo and Nagas make up over 40 per cent of the population and occupy 90 pre cent of the land in 10 districts across the forested hills surrounding the valley.

After the march on 3 May, violence erupted as Meiteis initiated a brutal massacre against Kuki-Zo residents living in Meitei-majority regions, some of which were live-streamed to document the horrors committed. In retaliation, Kuki-Zos launched a similarly brutal rampage against Meiteis. As a result, areas dominated by Meiteis have become no-go zones for Kuki-Zos, and vice versa.

This violence has displaced over 60,000 people from both tribes. According to recent reports, more than 200 villages, including Lenneipau's Zerukanan, have been either torched or damaged. Tragically, the violence continues.

The historical animosity between the Kuki-Zos and Meiteis predates Manipur's inclusion in India in 1949. In Kuki-Zo communities, tribal chiefs traditionally owned the entire village land, leading to situations where landless tribal members would migrate to open areas and establish their own villages. This migration was often perceived as land encroachment, primarily by the Meiteis.

Furthermore, constitutional provisions, such as Section 158 of the MLR and LR Act of 1960, protect tribal land and prohibit Meiteis from purchasing land in tribal areas. Suspicion also surrounded the government's forest eviction efforts, as in India, forests are reserved and people cannot reside in these areas unless they belong to specific listed tribal communities. When people do settle in forests, government agencies regularly carry out evictions.

Meanwhile, Meiteis accuse Kuki-Zos of engaging in poppy cultivation and selling drugs to criminal organizations, although there is no substantial evidence to support these claims.

Providing crucial support

Lucy Lalsangpui, a volunteer lawyer at the legal cell of ITLF, told FairPlanet that "There are hundreds of relief camps in Churachandpur alone and thousands of victims of violence have been staying here since May."

She added, "During our visits to relief camps, we realised most of the poor tribal members were not even aware that they needed to lodge FIRs against the attackers. Then we started to conduct interactive sessions with people at relief camps asking them to seek justice by lodging FIRs."

The legal cell team from ITLF has noticed that individuals staying in the relief camps frequently venture outside in search of employment opportunities to earn a living. As a result, the team has had to make multiple visits to the camps to meet with the victims. It has become evident, Lalsangpui shared, that the victims of violence lack the necessary resources and knowledge to independently approach the police or draft a First Information Report (FIR).

The ITLF legal cell made the decision to assist the victims in filing Zero FIRs at the Churachandpur Police Station. A Zero FIR is a procedure that allows victims to file an FIR at any police station in India with the understanding that the FIR will be subsequently transferred to the appropriate police station having jurisdiction over the location where the crime occurred.

"We then made a form with a template where victims just need to fill in details like name, village name, what losses they suffer, and so on," Lalsangpui added. "We asked them to submit those forms to the police station at Churachandpur as they cannot go back to the police station in their villages." 

Tackling a lack of resources

The legal cell operates without access to laptops, relying on the personal devices of volunteers and lawyers. They also lack a backup power source in the event of electricity disruptions, and currently work out of a makeshift office located in a hall at Churachandpur Government College.

"We don’t have enough resources," George Munluo, the convenor of the legal cell, told FairPlanet. "We have 20 lawyers who volunteer for us without expecting any monetary returns. A couple of them are internally displaced due to this violence."

He added, "We have filed over 7,500 applications at the Churachandpur police station. However, a couple of applications were rejected. Overall we have lodged 4,500 FIRs till now."  ITLF legal cell volunteers will start litigating these cases once they get to court.  

One of the primary challenges faced by the ITLF legal cell is reaching the numerous relief camps to raise awareness and encourage victims to come forward and lodge FIRs. Illiteracy is prevalent among tribal populations, with only 59 per cent being literate as compared to the 73 per cent literacy rate of the general population, according to the 2011 Census.

Fortunately, in Churachandpur, which is predominantly inhabited by Kuki-Zos, there is no imminent threat from the Meiteis.

"Radical Meitei members in black T-shirts entered our village on 6 May and started torching houses and churches. They started attacking villagers," Vaipse recalled, the 70-year-old man, recalled. "We fled from the village and reached Churachandpur after two days. We got to know that all 12 houses in our village were torched. Hence, I am lodging 12 FIRs for each house."

Mary Vaipai (name changed for privacy and sensitivity) experienced a deeply traumatic event when her father was brutally killed by Meiteis rioters. However, the shock and grief had prevented her and her family from lodging an FIR for over two months. The ITLF Legal cell played a crucial role in supporting the family to come forward and formally lodge an FIR at the Lamka police station, she shared.

"My father was the sole breadwinner of the family of six," Vaipai told FairPlanet. "We all were scared and unhappy that none thought to go to the police. But ITLF’s legal cell helped us to draft a police complaint."

"We cannot travel to the High Court that is in Imphal, the capital city of Manipur, which is Meitei majority area and has become a no-go zone for us Kuki-Zos. Hence, we cannot fight cases against the attackers. That is heartbreaking," said Paul Zou, another lawyer from the legal cell. But the team, he said, remains hopeful  about the prospect of taking the cases of victims to court and seeking justice for them.

Picture by Leeder Bose