UNITED NATIONS, Sep 05 (APP):UN human rights experts have expressed alarm over “reports and images depicting gender-based violence, serious rights violations and abuses” in the Indian state of Manipur, where deadly ethnic clashes since May are causing a “grave humanitarian crisis.”
The experts include Reem Alsalem, the special rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences; Michael Fakhri, the special rapporteur on the right to food; and Paula Gaviria Betancur, the special rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons.
In a joint statement issued in Geneva on Monday, the experts pointed to an “inadequate humanitarian response” in the wake of the grave humanitarian situation in Manipur following the latest round of community conflict between the predominantly Hindu Meitei and the predominantly Christian Kuki ethnic communities that erupted in May 2023.
By mid-August 2023, an estimated 160 persons had reportedly been killed, mostly from the Kuki ethnic community, and over 300 injured. The conflict also reportedly resulted in tens of thousands of people from the communities being displaced, thousands of homes and hundreds of churches being burnt down, as well as the destruction of farmland, loss of crops and loss of livelihood.
“We are appalled by the reports and images of gender-based violence targeting hundreds of women and girls of all ages, and predominantly of the Kuki ethnic minority. The alleged violence includes gang rape, parading women naked in the street, severe beatings causing death, and burning them alive or dead,” the experts said.
“It is particularly concerning that the violence seems to have been preceded and incited by hateful and inflammatory speech that spread online and offline to justify the atrocities committed against the Kuki ethnic minority, particularly women, on account of their ethnicity and religious belief,” they said.
“We are further alarmed by the reported misuse of counter-terrorism measures to legitimize acts of violence and repression against ethnic and religious minorities.”
The experts said recent events in Manipur were another tragic milestone in the steadily deteriorating situation for religious and ethnic minorities in India.
“We have serious concerns about the apparent slow and inadequate response by the Government of India, including law enforcement, to stem physical and sexual violence and hate speech in Manipur,” the experts said.
The experts welcomed the fact-finding mission conducted by lawyers and human rights defenders in Manipur and the follow-up by the Supreme Court of India on the situation in Manipur, though the response could have come in a timelier manner.
They urged the Supreme Court to continue monitoring the response of the Indian Government and other actors, with a focus on justice, accountability, and reparations. “We are also concerned about reported criminalization and harassment of human rights defenders documenting the cases,” they said.
The experts urged the Government to step up relief efforts for those affected and to take robust and timely action to investigate acts of violence and hold perpetrators to account, including public officials who may have aided and abetted the incitement of racial and religious hatred and violence.
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