With her four children in tow, Chingnu fled from her village of Khamenlong early June 13 morning. She decided to run with her five-month-old baby Carolin slung onto her back, and three other children aged four, seven and nine, when houses in the neighbouring villages were set on fire by some gangs. Chingnu, a Kuki woman, fled without a plan or an idea over where they would land up. “My husband had to stay back as he had to be a volunteer to protect the village. I ran with my children, and a few from the village. After some time we got scattered. Only my kids and I were left. We took some paths through the woods,” Chingnu recalled.
Trekking through woods and mud roads, she walked around 30 kilometers from Khamenlong to Dongsum with her children. They chose to stay off the main roads, as they would have to pass through Meitei villages. “We walked all day, took frequent rest breaks as the children were not able to walk. Sometimes I walked carrying two kids. On the way, there were a few people fleeing from villages. Some helped me take care of the children. The youngest one was breastfeeding, my three other children starved all day,” she recounted.
With her children crying for water and food, Chingnu said, “I never thought such a day would come in my life. Sometimes I thought I should stop. But thinking about my kids, I kept moving,” she said. It was dawn when she and the children finally reached Dongsum. They were then taken in a vehicle to a relief camp in Saikul. “There I could feed the children. They took us to this camp,” she said.
It’s been over two months since Chingnu fled from her village. She now worries about the fate of her husband. “He is there, I am not sure whether we will see him again. He told me over the phone that everything was burnt down. There is nothing left there. What are we going to do with these kids?” she said.
Manipur Dispatches: Our reporters Prajwal Bhat, Haritha John and Bhuvan Malik are in Manipur to provide you with exclusive, in-depth ground reports that delve into the heart of the matter. If you believe that human rights violations in a distant land should be a topic of conversation in this part of India, support our intrepid truth-seeking mission. Contribute here.
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