Mizoram firm on opposing Centre’s plan to fence Myanmar border: Home Minister

Aizawl, Aug 28 (PTI) Mizoram Home Minister K Sapdanga on Thursday said that the state government is firm in opposing the Centre's plan to fence the state’s portion of the India-Myanmar border.

He, however, said that fencing the international border is the prerogative of the central government, and it is assessing the matter in coordination with the border guarding force (Assam Rifles).

The Centre in February last year decided to scrap the India-Myanmar Free Movement Regime (FMR) to ensure the country’s internal security and maintain the demographic structure of the Northeastern states. The FMR allows people residing close to the India-Myanmar border to venture 16 km into each other’s territory without any documents.

The announcement came two days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the government has decided to fence the entire 1,643-km-long India-Myanmar border. Of this, Mizoram shares a 510-km-long boundary with the Chin state of the neighbouring country, and the Chin community people there share ethnic ties with the Mizo people.

The state cabinet had also last year objected to the Centre's plan to erect fencing along the Indo-Myanmar border.

"As regards the Indo-Myanmar border fencing, the Mizoram government is still firm on the resolution adopted by the assembly and the decision taken at the meeting of council of ministers, both on February 28, 2024," Sapdanga informed the assembly in a written reply on Thursday.

The resolution opposed fencing the Indo-Myanmar border and scrapping the FMR with Myanmar.

It had also passed a resolution urging the Modi government to take steps to ensure the Zo ethnic people, who have been scattered in different countries due to the divide and rule policy of the British, are unified under one administrative unit.

The state cabinet had also last year objected to the Centre's plan to erect fencing along the Indo-Myanmar border.

Sapdanga said on Thursday that the state government sent letters to the Lok Sabha secretary general and to the Home Ministry deputy secretary last year informing them about the assembly resolution and the Cabinet decision.

More than 29,000 refugees from Chin state, who were displaced by conflict following a military coup in the neighbouring country in February 2021, have taken refuge in Mizoram.

The Mizoram government is currently undertaking biometric enrollment for the Myanmar nationals, along with asylum seekers from Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT).

Mizoram civil society organisations and student groups also opposed the Centre's decision to fence the Indo-Myanmar border and lift the FMR, asserting that it would affect ethnic ties. PTI COR NN