On Liangmai ancestral land UNC strongly rejects claims of COTU

Imphal: While reacting strongly to the statement of the Kangpokpi based Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU), the United Naga Council (UNC) said today that it “will not tolerate any move to annihilate the Naga brethren from their age old ancestral homeland and advised all concerned that it is best for all communities to mutually respect each other’s history and position and continue to co-exist peacefully” .

Whilst extending its greetings and wishes of peace and prosperity to the Liangmai Naga community during the celebration of Chaga-Ngee Festival, 2024, which marks a post harvest festival that holds close to their heart, which is traditionally intertwined with their land, culture, stories and livelihood of the people since time immemorial, the UNC, in a statement issued to Newmai News Network tonight, said that it was shocked to learn the “misleading statement made by the so called Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), disrespecting the sentiments of the Liangmai people and disrupting the solemnity of its festivity on October 30, 2024” .

The Naga body said such an “outrageous statement amounts to disturbing the essence of the festivity of one community and aggressive claims as ‘Kuki areas’ over the Liangmai Naga ancestral land by the COTU is absurd” .

As a matter of fact, Manipur is home to different communities with different set of cultures and rich festivals of the various communities occasioning across the length and breadth of the State that has been mutually respected for ages and which also ushers in social harmony and peaceful co-existence of the different communities living in the State.

“Essentiality of maintaining the same needs to be realized by all concerned as usual, despite all differences and circumstances we are in, to ensure peace and cordiality amongst the communities,” the UNC added.