Rising Tensions: Candlelight Vigil in Mizoram for Hmar-Mizo Victims

In Mizoram's Aizawl, hundreds attended a candlelight vigil organized by the Mizo Defence League to mourn and protest the deaths of 11 Hmar-Mizo community members in Manipur. The protesters condemned the government's failure to manage ethnic violence and demanded the return of victims' bodies for funeral rites.

In a poignant display of unity and grief, hundreds of people gathered in Mizoram's Aizawl on Friday evening. They held a candlelight vigil to mourn the tragic loss of 11 members of the Hmar-Mizo community in Manipur's Jiribam district.

This solemn event, organized by the Mizo Defence League, took place in front of Vanapa Hall as participants openly expressed outrage and condemnation. Protesters were particularly vocal about the murder of a Hmar tribal woman, mother of three, in Zairawn village on November 7.

The demonstrators not only mourned her loss but also the brutal killings of ten other Hmar-Mizo community members by security forces in Jakuradhor on November 11. Criticism was leveled at both the Manipur and Central governments for their inability to control the escalating ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities. There were calls for the immediate release of the victims' bodies currently held at Silchar Medical College and Hospital for rightful funerals.

(With inputs from agencies.)