By Ms. Hoiboi Touthang
Both the Kuki and Tangkhul communities have armed groups, cross-border roots, and a history of migration. The Kuki community has armed groups like KNO, UPF, KNA-B, VVEZ, UKNA, etc., or what many call the Kuki Army. On the other side, the Tangkhul community also has armed groups like NSCN-IM, NSCN-EF, MNPF, Village Volunteers, etc. This is the reality on the ground. We gain nothing by pretending otherwise or by using it to delegitimize one another.
Both communities have foreign-based militants because the international border runs through all our lands — both Kuki and Tangkhul. Fighters from both sides cross it. This geography is not new. Our villages, kinship, and clan ties predate the lines drawn on colonial maps. If we use “foreign-based” as a slur against one community, we must be honest that it applies to both.
Tangkhul (Kacha-Naga), and Kuki have a history of migration. Even the Meitei have a history of migration. Migration is the story of the entire Northeast, and no community’s presence here began yesterday. Our ancestors moved through these hills and valleys for centuries, seeking land, safety, and livelihood. Pointing fingers at origins settles nothing on the ground today. It only poisons the well we all drink from.
KNO and UPF of the Kuki armed groups and the Government of India are signatories to the Suspension of Operations agreement. In the same way, NSCN-IM has a ceasefire agreement with the Government of India. Both communities have militant groups that signed agreements with the Government of India. Using these agreements to claim moral superiority or to brand the other side as “illegal” is dishonest. The State has engaged with both, and both have obligations to peace.
So where does that leave us? Kuki and Tangkhul (Kacha-Naga), both have migration histories and both have foreign-based militants. We are mirrors of each other in many ways. Yet we bleed each other as if only one side’s blood is indigenous and the other’s is alien. This thinking will destroy our future.
For coexistence and peace in the region, both communities must stop attacking one another. We must stop spreading fake news and propaganda that dehumanizes our neighbors. We must stop calling each other refugee and foreigner when our grandfathers are buried in the same soil. We must stop the hatred within Christian communities. Christ did not teach us to burn our brother’s village.
Respect every community, land, boundary, history, and identity. That is the only way forward. We can acknowledge our armed groups, our cross-border ties, and our migrations without using them as weapons. Peace will not come from Delhi or from the barrel of a gun. It will come when a Kuki mother and a Tangkhul mother decide their children deserve to grow up without fear of each other. I choose that path. I hope you will too.
