The Network of Women in Media, India (NWMI) expresses its deep distress at reports of the renewed flare-up of violence in Manipur’s war-torn hill and valley areas since the night of 7 November 2024, as well as the dearth of professional, independent media on the ground to provide fair and accurate reportage of the conflict.
The reports, most of which emanate from videos, photos and citizen reports shared on social media platforms, indicate a new turn in the ongoing conflict, with women from both sides becoming targets of armed groups.
The heinous burning alive of a 31-year-old mother of three, Zosangkim Hmar (from the Kuki Zo tribal group), in Zairawn village, Jiribam district of Manipur, on 7 November, allegedly by Meitei armed groups, was followed within 24 hours by the shooting of a Meitei woman, Ongbi Sofia Devi, who was harvesting paddy in Saiton, Bishnupur district, allegedly by Kuki armed groups.
These incidents have seen Manipur descend into unprecedented brutality, with news of more killings streaming in. On 11 November, ten individuals from the Hmar community (part of the Kuki-Zo tribal group) were shot dead by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), reportedly in “retaliatory fire” in Jiribam district, according to official sources. While the mainstream media has termed the dead as heavily armed “insurgents” or “militants” killed in an encounter, a press release by the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) says the “village volunteers” who were patrolling the villages were “ambushed” by the CRPF.
While this incident made it to the front page of national newspapers on 12 November, the build-up of warning signals leading to this unprecedented explosion have not been reported. Conflicting accounts of events on the ground only exaggerate this void.
The FIR lodged by the husband of Zosangkim Hmar alleges that she was raped and set on fire by members of Meitei armed groups.
Meanwhile, according to Kuki leaders, the death of the Meitei woman occurred when she was caught in the crossfire between Kuki and Meitei armed groups from a nearby hill. A source in the Indian security forces reported to a media person that this could be ‘revenge killing’.
The near impossibility of verifying claims and counter claims is exacerbated by the media in Manipur being polarised on ethnic lines and suffering a crisis of credibility. Concurrently, the Indian mainstream media has failed to keep pace with consistent and accurate reporting about the brutal implosion taking place in Manipur, leaving the void to be filled by disinformation and unverified social media forwards.
Media under fire
Local journalists in Manipur, including members of the NWMI, speak of the lack of space given to in-depth and consistent coverage on Manipur in the national media, except for calamitous events like the rape and parading of Kuki women in May 2023. From then on, local journalists have been selectively denied access to either hill or valley areas, harassed and even assaulted.
On 21 May 2023, three journalists, Soram Inaoba and Johnson of Mami TV, as well as ANI video-journalist B Dayananda, received lathi blows, reportedly at the hands of the security forces, despite wearing Press jackets and showing their Press ID cards.
The access, safety and security of journalists from outside the state who venture into Manipur to cover the conflict is also in jeopardy. In July 2024, the All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union, the Editors Guild Manipur and the Manipur Hill Journalists’ Union (MJHU) said in a memorandum to the security adviser to the Manipur government that the increasing threats to and violence perpetrated on media professionals “pose a significant threat to press freedom and democratic fabric of society.”
Independent fact-finding groups – such as the women’s fact-finding committee in July 2023 and the Editors Guild of India team in September 2023 – have also faced criminal charges for releasing reports on Manipur deemed unfavourable to the government. Independent journalist Makepeace Sitlhou was slapped with an FIR for her social media posts on the Manipur violence, and was protected from arrest only after intervention by the Supreme Court of India in December 2023.
In very few instances have the authorities been held accountable – as in the instance of a journalist being assaulted while covering clashes at a relief camp in Imphal on 1 August 2024, with the policeman responsible being suspended.
In a deeply ethnically polarised populace, suspicion is the default setting, making it difficult to report in a fair and accurate manner without threat to life. Today, there is heavy reliance on unverified, partisan, even doctored information circulating on social media platforms even as the professional media relinquishes its responsibility to inform the public.
The NWMI urges national and regional media houses to fulfil their commitment to fair, non-partisan and responsible coverage of the conflict, and to hold government authorities – both in the state and at the centre – accountable for the restoration of law and order. The news media must also provide a much-needed platform for the voices of peace and reason to be heard.
The Network of Women in Media, India
12 November 2024
