Manipur disrobing case: North East gender activists seek action, not politicisation

Gender activists from across the North East, including Manipur, have called for action against the perpetrators of sexual assault and parading of two women naked as seen in a video, but said parties should not politicise the issue.

The incident that came to light via the viral video is ''shocking, unfortunate and a gross violation of human rights'', Manipur gender activist and secretary of Women Action for Development (WAD) Sobita Mangsatabam told PTI.

The video, shot in Kangpokpit district in ethnic strife affected Manipur on May 4 but surfaced on July 19, attracted condemnation across the country.

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''In a conflict situation, it is the women and children who are used as weapons and the same is happening in Manipur. The state has a long history of violence against women and children. It is a sad state of affairs that they suffer but receive no justice,” Mangsatabam said.

The state is suffering from a crisis for nearly three months but it took a ''shocking viral video violating the human rights of women for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to speak. Besides this incident, he did not say a word about the sufferings of the people in the state who have lost their families, and homes and are living in distress in relief camps since the violence broke out'', she said.

Action must be taken against perpetrators of crimes against women but it should also be ensured that those women whose human rights have been violated are not again subjected to humiliation with such videos being widely circulated, she said.

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Mangsatabam also appealed to the authorities not to politicise the incident and divert from the core issues that need to be addressed to bring peace to the northeastern state.

The Mizoram State Commission for Women (MSCW), the Arunachal Pradesh Women's Welfare Society (APWWS) and Naga Mother's Association (NMA) have also written to the National Commission of Women (NCW) and the Manipur government demanding justice for the victims and a safe environment for all women and vulnerable communities.

MSCW Chairperson Lallawmchhungi also appealed to the authorities to stop sexual offence as well as any other violence against women and requested “all males in the NE states and India as a whole not to use muscle power against women in different forms of violence by taking advantage of such crises situations''.

APWWS President Kani Nada Maling told PTI that the authorities must ensure justice swiftly so that such acts are not repeated.

She said this particular incident would not have occurred had the central government taken action on time as ''unrest in the state has been ongoing and the people of Manipur have been left crying since the first week of May''.

''This incident, however, should not be used as a tool by any political party to gain sympathy. It is a human rights issue and a failure of the present government to provide safety to women. We cannot sit as mute spectators when our sisters are raped but dealing with such sensitive cases, we must ensure peace and tranquillity in the society'', Maling said.

The Naga Mothers Association, in their letter to the NCW Chairperson, called for her immediate intervention into the violent crimes against women in the ongoing Manipur violence.

''It is a matter of shame that in the prevailing conflict in Manipur, women and young girls have been made the target and are subjected to merciless violence, including rape and killings'', the letter stated.

The North East Network (Assam, Meghalaya and Nagaland chapters) said that the government institutions mandated to provide safety to women remained mute spectators despite complaints and statements by the women and affected communities.

It is one state which is witnessing such violent crimes today but similar crimes against women continue unabated in every community, in homes, workplaces and public spaces across the country, NEN spokesperson Anurita Pathak Hazarika told PTI.

''As the conflict rages, women continue to bear the brunt, sandwiched between state and non-state actors. The targeted gendered attack on the two women and more such sexual crimes reveal a picture of failed governance and lack of a political public consciousness to treat its women as equal rights holders, and not just as victims'', she added.

More than 160 people have lost their lives, and several have been injured since ethnic violence broke out in the state on May 3, when a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.