“It is an extremely callousness display of prejudice and the ZORO is deeply disappointed over the communal indiscretion of the UNC, especially as a neighbour of the Zo people-Kuki, Chin, Mizo and more importantly, as a Christian community”.
TFM Representative, Kangpokpi
Zo-Reunification Organization (ZORO), General Headquarters, Aizawl, Mizoram slammed the United Naga Council (UNC) over its statement on the burial of Prof Nehginpao Kipgen at Leikot village in Kangpokpi District on May 5 after he succumbed to the dreaded COVID-19 second wave at New Delhi recently.
ZORO GHQs general secretary Lalruatliana Fanai, said that the UNC’s statement is a bizarre scene of “shake hands with the right hand and stab with the left” as it expressed condolence over the untimely demise of Prof Nehginpao Kipgen and at the same breath raised objection to his burial at Leikot village in Kangpokpi District, Manipur.
It is an extremely callousness display of prejudice and the ZORO is deeply disappointed over the communal indiscretion of the UNC, especially as a neighbour of the Zo people-Kuki, Chin, Mizo and more importantly, as a Christian community, he said and added that compassion and hate mixed at the expense of a fellow Christian brother’s death, to say the least, is most distasteful.
Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani was born in Rangoon, Myanmar just as Prof Nehginpao Kipgen was. Is the UNC driven by hatred of our people that it failed to see reason and should not UNC take caution to think and look before it leaps, asked Fanai.
He also said that for the benefit of the UNC, ZORO would like to take the opportunity to shed light on the resolution adopted by the General Assembly (107 Plenary meeting, 13 September 2007), 6/295 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Article 36 which stated that indigenous peoples, in particular those divided by international borders, have the right to maintain and develop contacts, relations and cooperation, including activities for spiritual, cultural, political, economic and social purposes, with their own members as well as other peoples across borders.
He continued that both the Naga peoples and Zo, who exist in present-day India and Myanmar people are victims of colonialists’ divide. They both have expressed desire for cultural unification or political unification of their respective people.
On UNC’s objection to Prof Kipgen’s burial in India and the question of whether he had acquired Indian citizenship or not, Fanai asked the UNC, should his citizenship be an issue and added would the Ministry of Home Affairs, Delhi not have taken it up while he was alive?
Fanai also wondered is the UNC, who works in tandem with group/groups, who are most vocal about the rights of the Indigenous people at the United Nations unaware of the UN Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Article 36.
The Zo-Reunification Organization, GHQs urged the United Naga Council to exercise proper discretion in future and show Christian charity over the death not only of the Kukis, but also any member of the human race.
While mourning and conveying its condolence and sadness over the untimely demise of Prof Nehginpao Kipgen, who headed the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies at OP Jindal Global University, Haryana, Fanai stated that the void left by him will be hard to fill.