Medicine Hat, AB, resident Jeremy Williamson is attempting to bring his wife out of Churachandpur, Manipur, amid violence taking place in the area. .“I was on the phone with her when the gunfire started to be audible,” said Williamson in an interview. .The conflict in Manipur stems from ancient ethnic fault lines between the majority Meitei community — which is mostly Hindu and lives in the valley in Imphal — and the Christian tribes who are located in the surrounding hills. These tribes had provisions established where they could not have their land bought up by Indians in the rest of the country. .A Meitei governor was elected in Manipur in 2022. The governor applied for special tribal status for the Meitei because it had grown so large they were running out of space. .Since February, the Meitei have been bulldozing lands belonging to the smaller tribes and evicting them. They knocked down three churches to build housing. .This upset a number of people, and verbal altercations took place. There were 150,000 people who gathered in Churachandpur to protest land being taken away. .After the rally, an argument broke out between protestors and a group of Meitei. One person lobbed a grenade at another, which has led to warfare breaking out. .Williamson said his wife went to Churachandpur to pick up her mother and bring her to Canada. He added there had been peace in the area for more than one decade, so he did not suspect problems would happen. .When the fighting broke out, she was right in the area. He has been in touch with Global Affairs Canada to have her evacuated. .While Global Affairs Canada was polite, it did not know about the conflict, he said. It said it did not have pull in the area. .His communication with her has been limited because she has gone into hiding. .There has been heavy shooting between the Indian military and tribal militias. He said hearing the shooting has “made him concerned that I might not see her again.” .The resident went on to say he is shocked conflict has broken out. He has never seen violence this terrible break out in Manipur. .Whole villages have been burned down. While people are blaming each other, he said the two sides are engaging in disturbing behaviour. .Global Affairs suggested for her to head to an evacuation camp. However, the Indian military and Manipur government have not been taking care of people in the camps. .His wife’s cousin made it to one of the camps. There were more than 2,000 people waiting, and they have not been given food or water in two days. .His wife has been hiding out with her mother, sister, nieces, and nephew. She has been doing her best to remain strong and show leadership. .If he had a contact with the Indian military or knew an organization which could organize an evacuation helicopter, he would be reaching out. She cannot head to the airport because it is at the centre of the war zone. .Williamson concluded by saying she needs to be evacuated because “she might not survive this.” .“I don’t know whether she’s going to survive the night,” he said. .“The fighting is going right through the village she’s in.” .The Indian military had been deployed to Manipur on Friday with orders to shoot on sight and enforce a curfew as clashes between the groups continued. .This violence has forced about 9,000 people to flee their homes. The Manipur government has not given the number of deaths, but at least 20 people have been reported injured. .Mobs of people have burned cars and buildings, vandalized stores and hotels, and destroyed churches..Global Affairs could not be reached for comment in time for publication.
