How hatemongers used fake news and rumours to unleash violence in Manipur

News Network
July 23, 2023

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Imphal, July 23: The ethnic violence in Manipur that erupted on May 3 and has left over 160 dead has been largely fuelled by rumours and fake news, according to officials from various security agencies who have been monitoring the situation in the restive northeastern state.

The despicable May 4 incident in Kangpokpi district, where two women were paraded naked and assaulted by several people, was among the spate of sexual attacks that occurred after a picture of a body wrapped in polythene was circulated in the Imphal valley with a false claim that the victim had been murdered by tribals in Churachandpur.

The picture was later found to be that of a woman murdered in the national capital but the fire had engulfed the valley by that time, and what was witnessed the next day put humanity to shame, says an official while referring to the video of the Kangpokpi incident that appeared on social media last week and has sparked massive outrage in the country.

On the same day, barely 30 km away, two more women in their 20s were brutally raped and murdered.

The lawlessness because of the fake picture spread like jungle fire and was one of the reasons for the state government to shut down the Internet on May 3, the officials said.

A section of parties and activists have opposed the suspension of the Internet. Refusing to interfere, the Supreme Court on July 17 asked the Manipur government to raise its grievance before the high court against the HC's earlier order on a limited restoration of the Internet in the state.

Analysis by various security agencies engaged in dousing the fire in Manipur, which has been on the boil since May 3, has led to the conclusion that there is "no control on fake or one-sided news being circulated even by local newspapers".

Citing a recent example, they said one of the prominent dailies had claimed that tribal men, armed with weapons, had planned to attack the members of the majority community at Kwatha village of Chandel district.

Alarmed by the news report, Manipur police swung into action, only to find that the news report was false.

The police issued a statement saying that there was no attempt to burn any village as reported in some local dailies and again appealed that only verified information in sensitive cases should be published.

Police have dedicated 'Rumour Free Number' 9233522822 for verifying any information emerging either through social media or word of mouth and checking the spread of disinformation.

Another video showing tribal youths marching in Churachandpur a few days back was circulated in the valley with subtitles claiming that the tribals will snatch women and children from the majority community.

However, since the video was in Mizo language, which is the most widely spoken of the Kuki-Chin areas, some anti-social elements took advantage and put subtitles to raise tempers in the Imphal valley, where Manipuri Meiteilon is generally spoken.

What was actually spoken in the video was a demand for a separate administration which ended with a tribal hymn, the officials said.

Another fake news being peddled and circulated in the Imphal valley was that some tribals had torched a religious place - Kongba Maru Laiphamlen.

Security agencies took some of the members of the majority community and showed them that no damage had been done to the religious place. However, armed clashes were reported between the ethnic groups in which two tribals were injured. Things subsided after the news was denied.

Another video was circulated which showed some dead people lying on the ground and termed as members of the majority community mowed down by the tribals. This video was also circulated after the shocking 26-second clip of the assault on two tribal women appeared on social media.

The fact, officials said, was that the dead were members of the majority community who had attempted to burn a tribal village in the hills and were killed in retaliatory action.

In the early phase of violence, a video showing a young woman being brutally assaulted and finally shot to death was circulated with a claim that she was a tribal woman who was tortured by the majority community.

It was immediately clarified that the video was that of a woman killed in Tamu town of Myanmar last year and had no links with the ethnic clashes in Manipur.

Earlier this month, a vehicle, which was a part of Manipur Police's Inspector General (CID), was set afire after a fake rumour that some tribals were being escorted out of the Imphal valley. However, police took strong action and arrested people in this connection,

The majority community held a protest in the national capital where they had shown a woman from their community being targeted by the tribals. However, the picture was that of an Arunachal Pradesh woman who had been abused domestically, the officials said.

Officials feel that with the rumour mills working overtime, it will take a long time before the Internet could be fully restored in the state.

"The semblance of sanity has to arrive first. As of now, we are very far from that," a senior official said. 

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News Network
October 28,2024

Fines of up to 300,000 Saudi riyals (approximately Rs 68 lakh) or imprisonment for up to five years will be imposed on anyone found guilty of abusive behaviour in workplaces, schools, or places of worship, the Saudi Public Prosecution announced in a statement on its official account on X (formerly Twitter).

The Public Prosecution emphasised that any harmful actions in these environments constitute a criminal offence, reiterating the importance of enforcing the Protection from Abuse Law.

The statement underlined the nation's commitment to ensuring a safe and secure environment for all, as part of broader efforts to protect individuals from violence and abuse.

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News Network
October 26,2024

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Udupi, Oct 26: In a heartbreaking incident in Beejadi village near Kundapur in Udupi district, two young men were swept away by a powerful wave while swimming in the sea on Saturday morning. 

Santosh, 21, was pulled from the water by local fishermen and residents, but tragically, he succumbed to his injuries on the way to the hospital. Ajay, who was also caught in the wave, remains missing, according to Kundapur police.

The duo, along with friends Shreyas and Mokshith, had been staying at the Sahana Sun Caste Resort to attend a wedding. Ignoring warnings from locals about the dangers of entering the sea, the group ventured into the water. Around 9:30 a.m., a large wave suddenly engulfed them, sweeping Ajay and Santosh into deeper waters.

Police reported that Ajay hailed from Hangalli village near Kundapur, while Santosh was from Dasarahalli near Bengaluru. Expert divers have been dispatched to the scene in hopes of locating Ajay’s body.

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News Network
October 21,2024

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The UN’s special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories has described Israel’s ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip as “the collective shame of the century” amid the failure of the international community to protect Palestinians’ rights.

Francesca Albanese made the remarks in an X post on Sunday, as more than a year of the Israeli onslaught has flattened Gaza, killed tens of thousands of innocent people, and displaced almost the entire population in the besieged territory, often multiple times.

“In Gaza, the collective shame of the century continues unabated and unstopped, in defiance of every norm of international law and morale,” she said.

“The Palestinians, exhausted by relentless attacks on their bodies and souls are abandoned to their tormentors.”

Albanese also noted that “summary executions, mass forced displacements, and other egregious abuses” that are being perpetrated by the occupation forces against Palestinians in Gaza are all “a disgraceful testament to our global failure to protect basic human rights.”

“The United Nations, once a believed beacon of hope and a force for peace, are crumbling under the weight of this shame - and the pressure of the inaction or complicity of its most powerful member states,” she emphasized.

Israel unleashed its brutal Gaza offensive on October 7, 2023, after the Hamas resistance group carried out its historic operation against the usurping entity in retaliation for the regime’s intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.

The Tel Aviv regime has so far killed at least 42,603 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 99,795 others, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

In a violation of international law, Israel has issued mass evacuation orders in Gaza and deliberately targeted schools and hospitals, used as shelters by displaced Palestinians.

The US and its allies, which have been supporting Israel, have prevented the UN from putting an end to the brutal aggression against the Gaza Strip despite an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe there.

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