Mizo Secessionist Movement
Mizo Hills was officially declared as a part of British-India in the year 1895, following which in 1898 the North and South Hills were combined together to form the Lushai Hills district. In the year preceding the impending independence of India, the first every political party emerged in the Mizo Hills called Mizo Common People’s Union; later renamed as Mizo Union. Mizo Union is important to note because it submitted a resolution to the Advisory Committee appointed by the Constituent Assembly to address the needs of the tribals and minorities of the North-East India demanding inclusion of all neighbouring areas inhabited by the Mizo people. As a result, the Lushai Hills was granted the status of an autonomous district …show more content…
During the famine period, in 1959 this society took the form of a non-political organization called Mizo National Famine Front and demanded relief from the state government. This helped them garner a lot of popularity and by 1961, it had transformed into a political organization by the name of Mizo National Front. (MNF) Majority of the party consisted of Mizo youth and they travelled to the interior villages transporting rice and helping out in whatever way possible. MNF became the voice of the people’s agitation with the state and the central government and a multitude of factors culminated in their demanding secession from the Indian …show more content…
This further infuriated the Mizo people. They felt that the Assam government did not respect ther culture, language or identity nor did they care to protect their distinctive character within the state. The Mizo people also felt that ever since independence, the Indian state was obsessed with homogenizing its people and equating the degree of ‘Aryanization’ with Indianization; majority of the Mizo populace was Christian in their beliefs. Basically, the Mizos never felt Indian to begin with and to top it off, they felt that in an attempt to turn itself into a nation, the Indian state did not respect the cultural, ethnic or religious identity of different groups. Consequently, it was the defending of their livelihoods from the commercialization of their resources and protecting their identity along with a shared sentiment of sub-nationalism against the Centre paved the way for secessionist
Mizo Hills was officially declared as a part of British-India in the year 1895, following which in 1898 the North and South Hills were combined together to form the Lushai Hills district. In the year preceding the impending independence of India, the first every political party emerged in the Mizo Hills called Mizo Common People’s Union; later renamed as Mizo Union. Mizo Union is important to note because it submitted a resolution to the Advisory Committee appointed by the Constituent Assembly to address the needs of the tribals and minorities of the North-East India demanding inclusion of all neighbouring areas inhabited by the Mizo people. As a result, the Lushai Hills was granted the status of an autonomous district …show more content…
During the famine period, in 1959 this society took the form of a non-political organization called Mizo National Famine Front and demanded relief from the state government. This helped them garner a lot of popularity and by 1961, it had transformed into a political organization by the name of Mizo National Front. (MNF) Majority of the party consisted of Mizo youth and they travelled to the interior villages transporting rice and helping out in whatever way possible. MNF became the voice of the people’s agitation with the state and the central government and a multitude of factors culminated in their demanding secession from the Indian …show more content…
This further infuriated the Mizo people. They felt that the Assam government did not respect ther culture, language or identity nor did they care to protect their distinctive character within the state. The Mizo people also felt that ever since independence, the Indian state was obsessed with homogenizing its people and equating the degree of ‘Aryanization’ with Indianization; majority of the Mizo populace was Christian in their beliefs. Basically, the Mizos never felt Indian to begin with and to top it off, they felt that in an attempt to turn itself into a nation, the Indian state did not respect the cultural, ethnic or religious identity of different groups. Consequently, it was the defending of their livelihoods from the commercialization of their resources and protecting their identity along with a shared sentiment of sub-nationalism against the Centre paved the way for secessionist