The conflict in Manipur

Female security personnel in connection with the protests on Friday. Altaf Qadri / AP  

The conflict in Manipur 

Våldsvåg has forced 40,000 to flee their homes  

Protests were held on Friday for the second day in a row outside India's parliament, writes Reuters. The demonstrations concern the country's inability to deal with internal strife that has been going on between several ethnic groups. 

According to Reuters, 125 people have died and 40,000 have been driven from their homes in the state of Manipur since the beginning of May alone. The wave of violence affects three indigenous groups and a group of refugees from Myanmar who all want the same benefits. The constellations partly have different religious views and positions in society.  

According to Reuters, the dominated group, the Meitei people, is demanding that it be given the rights that the Kuki and Naga tribes have enjoyed for generations, which include the right to public jobs and education. 

 

A woman protests against the authorities in Manipur. Altaf Qadri / AP  

The violence escalates – large protests in eastern India  

The protests are growing in northeastern India after crimes degrading women were discovered, writes AFP. Demonstrators demand the resignation of politicians, that the authorities act and that the violence ceases. 

In recent months, violence has escalated significantly in the state of Manipur. In the background lies a struggle for the right to land and work. The spark that prompted the new protests was the spread of a video of two naked women who were forced to walk through a community in degraded forms, whereupon they were – according to the police's suspicions – raped. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken out about the incident, saying it is a "shame" for the country.  

Four men have been arrested, but a group of women did not want to wait for the trial and already set fire to two of their homes on Friday. 

A woman protests against the authorities in Manipur. Altaf Qadri / AP  

Four arrested after sexual assault in India  

Four people have been arrested after exposing two women to serious sexual abuse in the state of Manipur in India, writes AFP. They are suspected of having participated in a mob that mocked and sexually harassed two women. The incident was filmed and has caused great anger in the country.  

In the video, the two naked women are seen surrounded by several young men who touch the women's genitals and drag the women to a field. Those arrested must have been identified through the film.  

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday called the incident "shameful for any nation".