New Delhi: While India may be on course to throw out Rohingya, the persecuted Muslim minority from Myanmar, it seems not all refugees are unwelcome in the country, and that a refugee's ethnicity, religion, and language, apparently, decide whether he or she can be allowed to stay back in India. A clear example of it is the Mizoram Government's latest move to issue Temporary Identification Cards to Myanmar refugees (not Rohingya) who have entered the northeastern state, ever since the coup happened on February 1, 2021.
While there was a lot of clamour over whether these refugees would be allowed to enter the North-Eastern states to escape the wrath of the Military Junta, this development is a clear indication of the ground reality on the status of these refugees. "There are around 30,000-40,000 refugees who've entered Mizoram ever since the coup happened there. We are issuing certificates of identity to these refugees," an official source told ETV Bharat over the phone from Mizoram. The cards, the source said, are temporary IDs that say that the bearer is a Myanmar national residing in Mizoram and the purpose of the certificate is for identification only.
Asked if the ID would only be valid in Mizoram only or in other parts of the North-East as well, the source said: "It (the ID cards) is given by the Mizoram Government. It is up to the other states if they identify (them). They can accept or even reject the validity (of the cards) in their states." Last year, the Centre had instructed the state government of Mizoram not to accommodate the influx of refugees from Myanmar. But in response, CM Zoramthanga has said that these refugees shared the same ethnicity and language and hence they cannot close the doors for these people.
Replying to a question about the Centre's instruction not to accommodate the refugees, the source said: "Last year we received a letter from the Centre issued by the Home Secretary. But after receiving that our Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs personally met the Home Secretary, Home Minister and the Foreign Ministry. We told them that these refugees are our brothers as we share the same ethnicity and language. They are not the other people."
As Burma (Myanmar) came into its existence, the borders divided not just the land but the people as well. The majority in Mizoram and many people in Manipur belong to the Kuki-Mizo ethnic group which shares common ethnic, linguistic, cultural and kinship ties with the Chin people inhabiting the Sagaing state in western Myanmar.
The source also clarified that after the meeting with the Centre last year, the Centre "did understand our genuine concern that these refugees are our blood brothers and they (Centre) verbally said that they will not send these refugees back". Asked if the Centre contacted the state government or expressed its displeasure over the recent development of issuing temporary identification cards, the official source responded: "No, not at all! Since that last meeting, we haven't discussed this matter with the Centre nor do we feel that we should discuss this anymore."
About providing food and shelter to these refugees, the source said that the state government and the NGOs "here are doing their best". "If the violence in Myanmar continues, more refugees will come here for their safety and if the violence stops, these refugees will leave Mizoram and will go back to their homes. It all depends on the situation there," the source added.
Also read: Fear to freedom in 30 km: From Myanmar to Mizoram
