Mizoram MP K. Vanlalvena visited the camp and offices of the Chinland Council, a rebel outfit controlling parts of north-west Myanmar in areas bordering India, last week. He said that he had invited them to join the Union of India, given that there is no official government in Myanmar, and that there is a shared tribal bond on both sides of the border.
Mr. Vanlalvena, a Rajya Sabha MP from the Mizo National Front (MNF), told The Hindu that he had informed Mizoram Governor V.K. Singh and the Assam Rifles before crossing over to Myanmar on foot from Mizoram over the past week. He said that he met the council members to “forge friendship and brotherhood”, as the outfit has controlled and administered areas bordering Mizoram for the past six months, and as there is no government in Myanmar.
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After the February 2021 coup in Myanmar, several ethnic armed insurgent groups took over from the control of several regions in Myanmar from the previous ruling junta. Following the coup, over 40,000 refugees from Myanmar with Chin-Kuki-Zo ethnicity took shelter in Mizoram, and were provided aid by the then-MNF government.
‘Same Mizo family’
“I visited the headquarters of the Chinland Council and Camp Victoria of the Chin National Front Army in Myanmar from February 27. It is important that we have good relations with them as they are administering areas along the Mizoram-Myanmar border and they also belong to the same Mizo family,” Mr. Vanlalvena said.
When asked if he sought permission from the government, the MP said, “It was a private programme. Two weeks ago, I informed the Governor and the Assam Rifles. When I come to Delhi, I will try to meet the Home Minister and External Affairs Minister and brief them about the meeting,” the MP said, speaking via telephone from Aizawl.
‘Join India’
India and Myanmar share a 1,643 km border which passes along the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, and Mizoram. The border is unfenced and the countries share a Free Movement Regime (FMR). In December, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) brought in measures to regulate the FMR, allowing movement of people within 10 km of the international border, reducing it from earlier limit of 16 km, through designated entry points and border passes.
“Those people living on the Myanmar side belong to the Mizo tribe. We are all the same tribes, sometimes they need us and sometimes we also need them. Being brothers, I want to know if they have problems which we can solve, according to the willingness of the Indian government… I asked them to join India. The Myanmar government is almost gone, that’s why all the Myanmar army have withdrawn. They could join the Indian Union if they want,” the MP added.
