The United Naga Council (UNC) and Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) have come to a mutual agreement with regard to the uproar of the Naga community in Manipur over the killing of M Lucy Maring on July 15 in Imphal East.
Both parties reached the agreement after 31 members of both bodies held a long in-depth deliberation regarding the issue on Tuesday in Imphal.
Speaking to the media at Manipur Press Club, Majorkhul, UNC president Ng Lorho highlighted that both bodies brought out several issues with regard to the heinous crime and reached a concrete conclusion.
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“During the discussion we derived several conclusions which included meting befitting legal punishments to the culprits involved in the killing, monitoring proper dispensation of rituals according to customary laws, and extending financial assistance in the education of the deceased's daughter among others,” he said.
He pointed out that the unwarranted killing of M Lucy Maring had the potential to create unnecessary communal tension between the Nagas and Meiteis in Manipur.
He further mentioned that the state government had brought out a slew of assurances and that the UNC had signed an agreement over the said assurances.
‘Regarding the issue, UNC proposed to announce the future course of actions of the Naga community within 48 hours but we have dissolved the announcement after deliberation with COCOMI,” he said.
He stated that the UNC strongly condemned any form of unjustified violence and maintained that COCOMI’s initiative had ushered in reconciliation regarding the matter.
He urged all people of the Naga and Meitei communities to strive collectively in strengthening mutual understanding between the two communities.
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“COCOMI has also assured to stop unnecessary disturbances of commuters and put an end to such incidents in the future,” he said.
He further appealed to the people of the state to let peace prevail and maintained that peaceful dialogue between any communities would be impossible without the restoration of normalcy and peace first.
As such he called upon all the people to take the incident as a turning point and move forward with a renewed outlook.
Meanwhile, COCOMI convenor Jeetendra Ningomba stated that the unwarranted act on July 15 which created an air of tension between the Meitei and Naga had the potential to take the ongoing conflict in a totally different direction.
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“It is time for people of Manipur to reflect on the future course of actions and deliberate meticulously on what should and should not be done,” he said.
He further stressed on the need for people to strictly abide by the international rules of engagement during a confrontation.
“The cordial ties which bind the Meiteis and Nagas will remain strong and the discussion with the UNC members has renewed the communal bond,” he added.
