Imphal: Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi has urged his people to fend of external vested interests that want to divide the northeastern Indian state on communal lines.
“We should not forget that people of different communities have been living together harmoniously since time immemorial in Manipur,” the chief minister said at a function on June 14 to award the state’s Tribal Peace and Harmony Award for 2014-2015.
A Christian leader was among two people who received the award at the function held at Tribal Research Institute (TRI) auditorium in the state capital of Imphal. The award, comprising 50,000 rupees and a citation, is given annual for those working for peace and harmony in the state.
The chief minister said the bond of unity Manipur has experienced for time immemorial will withstand any amount of instigation from outside forces to spew venom on different communities. “Unity is our strength,” he asserted.
The need of the hours is to live in harmony and work for development for the sake of future generation, the chief minister said. However, development is not possible without peace. “Only talk can’t bring peace. There is a need to translate the inner feeling of harmonious living together into action,” he said.
For this one should leave selfishness and work together with the belief that the land is for all and it belongs to the Almighty.
State Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam who presided the award ceremony, expressed concern over the increasing trend of selfishness among various communities. “This trend has been giving a sharp impact to the unity among the people of the state,” Nagaland Post reported.
The deputy chief minister asserted that standoff and untoward incidents that had occurred in the past were due to misunderstandings, and that such incidents had only hindered the pace of development.
Asserting that “To err is human,” Gaikhangam said one must have the courage to forgive other’s mistakes. He regretted that the new generation does not value the virtue of forgiveness, which subsequently causes communal tension in the state.
“Manipur does not belong to a particular community. The state is the motherland of Meitei, Naga, Kuki, Meitei Pangal and other communities. People must forget the sense of community differences,” he added.
The award winners were Rev S Prim Vaiphei and Pantibonliu Gonmei
The Imphal-based TRI and the state department of tribal affairs and hills set up the award to encourage people to become messenger of peace in a state riled with ethnic strife and secessionism.
Pantibonliu Gonmei hails from Khoupum Valley of Tamenglong district while Rev Vaiphei is the president of the All Manipur Christian Organisation and a member of the Committee for Restoration of Normalcy and United Peace Committee Manipur.