Sangai Festival: Security forces clash with COCOMI protesters

IMPHAL — A sit-in protest by the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), a joint body of Manipur's civil society organisations, against the Sangai Festival turned violent as security forces tried to stop protesters from storming the festival venue in Imphal.

Tear gas was used to disperse the crowd. The protesters demand that authorities resolve the state's ethnic conflict and resettle those displaced since May 2023 before hosting any tourism event.

The situation remains tense, with growing calls for a boycott and protests expected to continue. The security forces have been deployed to maintain law and order, and the situation is being closely monitored.

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Convenor Kh Athouba of COCOMI said that the priority is not the Sangai festival but to ensure and restore the fundamental rights.

He said the priority is to make IDPs (internally displaced persons) return to their homes safely adding, "Our priority is to open the highways where people move freely."

The 10-day biggest annual event popularly known as Manipur Sangai Festival organised by the state government to promote tourism, which had been suspended for two years because of the unrest, is scheduled to be held from November 21 to the 30th.

Earlier, the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at relief camps in Manipur's valley districts held a sit-in protest against the upcoming Sangai Festival, scheduled to begin on November 21.

They were joined by women vendors from Nupi Keithel, the largest women-run market in the region. The protesters, holding placards that read "No Resettlement, No Festival" and "Free Movement First, Next Sangai Festival", demanded that the government prioritize peace and resettlement over the festival.

Leishangthem Brojen, an IDP representative, questioned the government's move to hold the festival without a clear roadmap for resettlement, saying they should bring peace first and then hold the festival.

Stating that the festival is untimely, Kh Nabachandra, an internally displaced person from Kalapahar area who is presently taking shelter at Lamboikhongnangkhong relief camp, said that the authorities should give priority to the humans first as. “We’ll support the festival once our resettlement is done,” he said.

“So we’re requesting the general public who have been continuously supporting us, to support IDPs by abstaining from this festival,” Moirangthem Asharani, an IDP from Moreh town added.

Another internally displaced woman from Churachandpur Khuga Tampak, M Nganthoibi (27) also shared a similar sentiment.

The state government has appealed for cooperation to ensure the Sangai Festival's success. Chief Secretary Dr. Puneet Kumar Goel acknowledged the hardships faced by citizens, especially IDPs, but emphasised that economic revival, tourism promotion, youth empowerment, and community harmony are crucial for Manipur's growth.