Displaying items by tag: Manipur

British Asian Christians are issuing an urgent call for peace in Manipur as the area grapples with escalating violence and persecution. They are calling on people to join a peaceful protest in London next week. They said, ‘This unified effort, driven by the desire for justice and equality, seeks to shed light on the discrimination faced by Christians in the region.’ They are calling for ‘people of faith or no faith, who have good conscience and are moved by the recent attacks to come together and call for change.’ The violent persecution of Christians, which began four months ago over land rights and jobs, has been brought to the attention of British MPs, and a meeting in Parliament to discuss the situation is scheduled for later this month. Prime minister Modi is accused of ignoring the situation and not doing enough to quell the violence, earning him a vote of no confidence.

On 3 May deadly riots broke out  between the Muslim Meitei tribe and the Christian Kuki-Zo tribes in Manipur. Since then over 130 Kuki-Zo have been killed and over 50,000 displaced. Now that the internet ban has been lifted, a 26-second video has emerged after two months showing dozens of men parading and assaulting two naked Christian women. Elsewhere, a Christian woman’s husband was killed by a mob who then surrounded and sexually assaulted her daughter. Her son was killed trying to stop them. ‘How can the police say they aren’t aware of what happened when they were present while we were assaulted? The bodies of my husband and son were taken by them to the government morgue in Imphal’, she told Al-Jazeera. These are just two of the ongoing violent attacks on Christian women and brutal killings of Christian families, with homes being burned down and communities being terrorised.

The ongoing attacks on Manipur’s Christians are labelled 'religious cleansing'. Over 317 churches, 70 church schools, 6,137 Christian homes and Christian administrative buildings had been destroyed by 3 May, according to an assessment by the Federation of Indian American Christian Organisations (FIACONA). Other groups estimated 45,000 people have been displaced in what FIACONA is calling ‘the worst anti-Christian violence India has ever seen’. The BJP government used a decades-old underlying ethnic tension between two ethnic groups to create the deadliest violence against Christians, instigated by Hindutva nationalists. It is ‘target killings by government forces’. Events in Manipur follow worsening conditions for Christians across India. Kerala’s Catholic bishops’ council conducted prayers and a candle-lit procession on 6 June, demanding peace should be established in Manipur immediately. Bishops, priests, and laity participated in the meeting and procession.

Christian and other minority faith group persecution in Manipur worsens. By 26th May 70+ Christians were killed, 10,000 forced from homes, 300+ churches burned or demolished, and 1,000 Christian homes destroyed as Hindus sought Christians to kill or convert to Hinduism. The Supreme Court ordered the military to maintain peace in the region, but the Hindu nationalist government has done nothing to stop the violence. Open Doors said, ‘If the situation continues civil war is inevitable, with more lives lost, properties destroyed and further open persecution of religious minorities.’ Those who have fled don't have food or shelter and face threats of physical violence. Justin Welby is distressed to hear about these attacks on indigenous tribal Christians, saying, ‘Kailean Khongsai is training for Church ordination and is from Manipur. I join him in praying that regional authorities would protect all minority groups, including Christians and their places of worship, and that justice and peace would prevail.’ See

Over a hundred churches have been burned down in Manipur. The number of dead and injured is difficult to verify. The BBC reported 60 dead, 200 injured, and tens of thousands displaced. 53% of Manipur’s population are Meitei (Hindus with some Christians). Two tribal groups are Naga and Kuki - Christians with ‘scheduled tribe’ status, which grants access to forests, government jobs, and education. Last week the Meitei demanded access to the status. Violence broke out between Kuki and Meitei. Thousands of troops have been deployed, and thousands moved to safety. The Riverside Christian Mission sent the following request: ‘Riverside has partnered with various ministries in Manipur for many peaceful years. Suddenly, terrible violence erupted between Meitei and Christian hill people. 80% of the people who have been killed are Christians. Everything which had a Christian identity or Christian mark was attacked by the majority community in Manipur. Many have fled. Please pray for God’s protection over these dear people, and that the soldiers stop the violence.’