I visited Imphal last week with some of my like-minded seniors and friends on a humanitarian mission with a message of solidarity and support for peace and reconciliation among the communities. This was my first visit to Manipur after violence broke out in May 2023. I met Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla and Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh, and conveyed my best wishes to them in their difficult task of restoring peace and normalcy in the state. Both of them appreciated our initiative.
Unfortunately, my visit led to some misgivings in certain quarters relating to its purpose and objective, which is perfectly understandable given the prevailing atmosphere of a trust deficit among the stakeholders.
As a fellow citizen of Assam, a neighbouring state in the region, and particularly as someone who has lived in a conflict zone since childhood, I was closely following the developments but could not do anything concrete to douse the fire other than writing a couple of columns in newspapers, which went unnoticed as expected. After I became a Member of Parliament in April this year, my conscience constantly pricked me and compelled me to figure out what I could do to build peace and communal harmony in this troubled neighbourhood.
Tezpur declaration – A citizen’s initiative
In the first week of October, coinciding with the birth anniversary of MK Gandhi, an epitome of empathy and love, we organised a two-day North East Peace Dialogue in collaboration with the North East Peace Foundation for Sustainable Futures and Tezpur University. The dialogue, attended by public representatives, retired public servants, security experts, academicians, religious leaders, and representatives of civil society organisations/NGOs, deliberated on many issues such as understanding conflict and the changing peace landscape in the region; experiences, challenges and lessons from communities; the role of government agencies and civil society in reconciliation and peacebuilding; the imperatives of sustainable peace, from conflict resolution to reconciliation; inclusive governance and development; and a shared vision for peace and a peace-building framework for the North East.
A joint statement titled “Tezpur Declaration” was issued on 3 October, which emphasised the need for confidence-building measures to restore public trust in government agencies, institutional capacity-building to handle conflict situations, the development of a comprehensive peace plan, and peace education/training in educational institutions to propagate the spirit of peace and create generations of peace volunteers, etc. The dialogue appealed to the communities in the region to maintain peace and communal harmony, keeping in mind the region’s rich traditional values and its spirit of co-existence, cooperation and collaboration, while aspiring to promote and protect their respective social systems and cultures.
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Bodoland Happiness Mission – A social movement
Although the discussions focussed on the North-East as a whole, Manipur occupied the centre stage in view of the ongoing humanitarian crisis. Participants from all three major communities in the state stressed the need for sustained citizen-led efforts, in partnership with civil society organisations. In this context, my personal experience in peace-building in the five districts of Bodo-inhabited areas in Assam was discussed in detail.
More than 26 communities in these areas are now living peacefully, after more than four decades of inter-community conflicts, having buried their past of violence and hatred. This was made possible through sustained efforts to rebuild relationships, strengthen institutions and encourage social transformation. The experience of Bodoland was shared during the dialogue as one example of how sustained community engagement can contribute to rebuilding relationships after prolonged conflict. It was also recognised that every conflict has its own history, complexities and local dynamics. Any initiative in Manipur would therefore need to emerge from the aspirations and priorities of its own communities, drawing upon their experiences, institutions and existing peacebuilding efforts. I believe Bodoland Happiness Mission may not work in Manipur, but Manipur Happiness Mission will definitely transform the state.
Manipur conflict – A human tragedy
Beyond its immediate political and security dimensions, the crisis in Manipur needs urgent intervention to strengthen inter-community trust and confidence, promote social harmony, protect human dignity, restore everyday human relationships, and prepare future generations to coexist peacefully. Peace-building in Manipur, therefore, must extend beyond security and political interventions and arrangements and encompass a host of initiatives, including inter-community dialogue, creating awareness through education, psychosocial healing, etc. The central proposition is that sustainable peace cannot be imposed exclusively from above; it must be cultivated within institutions, communities and everyday human relationships. Manipur’s recovery must become not only a regional responsibility but also an opportunity to demonstrate humanity and the capacity to transform suffering into solidarity.
There are moments in history when the suffering of one region/a group of people challenges the conscience of the entire nation and humanity. Manipur represents such a moment. The violence that erupted in May 2023 transformed the lives of countless families, disrupted community relationships and exposed the fragility of trust between people.
Behind every statistic, there is a human life. Behind every death, there is a family whose world has been permanently shattered. Behind every displaced person, there is a home filled with memories, relationships and a sense of belonging. Behind every child exposed to violence, there is a future that deserves something better than inherited fear.
When a mother loses her child, the language of the community cannot measure her grief. When a family is forced to abandon its home, no political explanation can justify the loss of security, dignity and belonging. When children grow up believing that their neighbours are enemies, the damage extends beyond one generation. When the actions of an individual are attributed to an entire community, the foundation of inter-community trust collapses. When we see an individual through the prism of identity, we begin to surrender our humanity.
The answer cannot be found in security measures alone. It requires us to examine how societies construct identity, transmit grievances, educate children, exercise political power and respond to the suffering of others. We do not claim to have answers to the complex problems confronting Manipur. Nor do we presume that experiences from elsewhere can be replicated here.
But we believe that the suffering of the people, the prolonged separation of communities and the erosion of trust cannot be matters of indifference to concerned citizens of the region. We would like to contribute, in whatever modest way we can, to efforts that the people of Manipur themselves consider useful.
Also read: New Delhi prefers to look at Manipur as a horizontal problem, not vertical
Our heritage – A foundation for renewed social trust
North East India offers a powerful cultural context for understanding how communities can sustain relationships across generations. Its extraordinary diversity is expressed through different histories, languages, customs, traditions, festivals, and arts and crafts, etc. However, historically, there is a common thread running through the age-old systems of inter-community support, solidarity and dependence. Barter and reciprocal exchange connected people through shared economic needs. Agricultural practices reflected accumulated knowledge of local soils, seasons, forests and water. Traditional food cultures developed from close relationships with the natural environment. Community members cooperated in agricultural work, irrigation maintenance and other activities necessary for collective well-being. Marriage ceremonies, funerals, festivals and customary rituals have also served, in many communities, as occasions for collective participation, hospitality and mutual support. Communities could share labour during times of hardship and gather to celebrate moments of happiness.
These traditions should not be romanticised as evidence that all historical relationships were free from conflict. Rather, they offer valuable examples of social practices through which trust, reciprocity and interdependence have been cultivated. Their contemporary relevance is considerable. At a time when social fragmentation and environmental pressures challenge communities around the world, indigenous knowledge can contribute to sustainable livelihoods, ecological responsibility and community-based development.
The diversity of North East India resembles a living garden more than an artificially arranged collection of flowers. Every community has developed its own character, language, cultural expression and historical experience. The beauty of the whole is not in uniformity, but in the ability of distinct identities to flourish together. The task before us is to restore the social conditions in which diversity becomes a source of shared strength and helps develop a resilient society and a sustainable future, rather than a justification for exclusion and mutual destruction.
Our mission – A shared responsibility for peace
It is with this mission that we came to Manipur last week. We are a team of concerned citizens, working as part of a voluntary non-government initiative. We empathise with the people of Manipur and feel that it is our moral responsibility to work towards peace in the state with the help of civil society organisations representing the various communities. Our broad purpose was to promote inter-community dialogue by providing a credible platform on which communities can acknowledge suffering, clarify grievances, resist misinformation, and develop practical forms of cooperation. We will also help develop trust among communities through inter-community social, cultural, sports, education, and youth/student exchange programmes/and camps, etc., to foster social harmony and build sustainable peace.
Manipur must not become a permanent symbol of humanity’s failure. Let Manipur become a testament to humanity’s capacity to heal by acknowledging suffering and choosing a future beyond inherited hostility. Manipur’s future must not be confined to the memories of violence. It must also be shaped by the courage of survivors, the wisdom of communities, the integrity of institutions and the determination of future generations to build a different society. The road to reconciliation will not be simple. Grief cannot be hurried, trust cannot be commanded and justice cannot be replaced by declarations of goodwill. But the difficulty of peace is not a reason to abandon it. It is a reason to approach it with greater seriousness, patience and moral courage.
Pramod Boro is a Rajya Sabha MP from Assam and the president of United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL), Bodoland Territorial Region, Assam. He tweets @PramodBoroBTR. Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant Dixit)