Kuki–Naga conflict in Manipur

[1][2][3] The first settler in India according to John F. Hurst (1891–123) are the Abors, Akhas, Cachares, Cossya, Garos, Duflas, Khamtis, Kukies, Mikirs, Mishmis, Miris,Nagas and Singphos.

There were many instances where the Nagas invited the Kukis to settle next to them for their own protection and for mediating disputes between their own kindred tribes and settlements.

[7] In 1948, the Naga leader Athikho Daiho submitted a memorandum to the Union home minister Vallabhbhai Patel laying out the demand for such integration.

[15] Those that went to Kabaw Valley were again driven back to Manipur by General Ne Win's military regime around 1967.

The Naga insurgents consider the continued residence of Kukis in these areas as the prime obstacle to realizing their concept of Nagalim.

The Nagas also alleged the following: On the other hand, the Kukis claim that the areas in which they are residing are their ancestral land, and they had opened it for Zeliangrong Nagas to settle in return for taxes and tributes after they were driven out by the Sukte Poi and Lusei people of Chin Hills and present-day Mizoram.

[18] The Kukis further alleged that the atrocities from the NSCN led movement such as the imposition of taxes, forced eviction from their villages, and the inability of the State Government to protect them are the main causes of the conflict.

The Kuki-Naga conflict has witnessed several instances of violence, including armed clashes, attacks on villages, kidnapping, and targeted killings.

It started in June 1992, when a Kuki youth was kidnapped at Moreh Bazar by suspected Naga extremists and was later found dead in a nearby Jungle.

[20] On 13 September 1993, Naga militants allegedly belonging to the NSCN-IM massacred around 115 Kuki civilians in the hills of Manipur.

The Kukis refer to the killings as the Joupi massacre named after the village which saw the highest number of casualties.

[19] Over the years, several attempts have been made by the government and civil society organizations to address the conflict and reconcile the Kuki and Naga communities.