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Earlier in November, the Indian embassy in Naypyidaw, Myanmar, received an SOS call from the Myanmarese junta. India answered the call as New Delhi authorised a rescue mission, perhaps a first of its kind, to allow the entry of 46 junta soldiers into the northeastern state of Mizoram.
Two weeks later, hundreds of militants from the United National Liberation Front (Pambei), the oldest armed separatist group in another northeastern state, Manipur, laid down their arms following a peace agreement with the Indian government.
The Myanmar junta is defending a tenuous foothold over the country as it loses significant ground to the ‘pro-democracy’ militias representing various ethnic groups in Myanmar. The stranded soldiers of the junta were cornered by People’s Defence Forces (PDF) in the Chin state bordering India, and needed an escape route to survive when the junta called for India’s help.
The PDF backs the National Unity Government, dislodged by the military junta in a coup in 2021. Among them is the Kuki National Organisation (KNO), which is actively involved in the fighting. On the other side, the military junta is being supported by Manipur’s seven valley-based separatist groups or VBIGs which maintain camps in Myanmar.
In order to hold their positions in Myanmar, an intelligence official told News18, “The VBIGs have to pay up with copious amounts of cash and in recent years— with conscripts— to fight against the PDF.”
Reports suggest a high number of casualties among VBIGs amid the junta’s war on the resistance. The circumstances have not only the made them a direct party in the junta’s conflict but have also spilled over into India where government pressure on the VBIGs, already on the back foot, is forcing them to come to the table and enter talks with New Delhi
“As of date, groups related to the UNLF are at the receiving end across the border in Myanmar, at the hands of the PDF,” L Nishikanta Singh, a retired Lieutenant General of the Indian Army, who hails from Manipur, told News18.
“This peace talk could be an incentive for them to come forward and it will be good for the state,” he added.
The latest breakthrough comes from the UNLF’s Pambei faction led by Khungdongbam Pambei, who commands a prominent chunk of the group’s overall strength. Its rival faction led by RK Achou Singh alias Koireng remains vehemently opposed to talks with India while maintaining its cadres across the border in Myanmar.
Manipur’s independence-seeking VBIGs are predominantly Meitei groups, which are known for their hardline stance against peace talks. In recent years, however, the Amit Shah-led Union home ministry has made considerable headway in whittling down this resistance.
Having been a banned group so far, explicitly under the scanner of security agencies, the predominantly Meitei UNLF’s role in the months-long civil strife between Meitei and Kuki-Zomi tribes is reportedly close to negligible. However, the agreement with the Indian government sends out a timely message about Centre’s efforts to establish enduring peace.
More such agreements are purportedly in the pipeline with more VBIGs, while the government hopes that the agreement with UNLF would encourage others to negotiate a solution.
In fact, a ceremonial celebration of the agreement was recently held at the grounds of the Kangla Palace in the presence of Manipur’s Chief Minister N Biren Singh. Around 550 armed militants of the UNLF among a total of 750 to 800 members were present at the grand ceremony.
“We are looking forward to other valley-based groups to join the peace process so that a solution towards peace can be brought to Manipur. The UNLF is a 60 years old organisation that never agreed to talk, but this time they have reposed faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, so it’s a major achievement,” CM Biren Singh said at the event.
The Indian government has been relentlessly pursuing a peaceful solution for the plethora of armed groups in the northeast of India.
Amid calls for a “separate administration” by Kuki groups in the ethnic strife-torn state of Manipur, peace talks between Naga insurgent group National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah) or NSCN-IM and the Centre have also seen progress, according to officials in the know who spoke to News18 on condition of anonymity.
Peace talks with the pro-talks faction of ULFA (United Liberation Front of Asom) are also making headway and could be finalised in the near future in what would prove to be a major triumph for PM Modi and Amit Shah. Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Centre has reportedly placed utmost priority on converting years of efforts into concrete results when it comes to cementing peace in the Northeast.
