(OPINION) A thorough analysis of the autopsy reports for the 10 Kuki-Zo “village volunteers” killed in Manipur during an alleged gunbattle with the Central Reserve Police Force suggests that the young men were shot from behind or from multiple directions and at close range. Some of them also sustained injuries that cannot solely be attributed to gunfire.
Read MoreThe autopsy reports reveal that each of the deceased sustained multiple gunshot wounds from behind. This pattern of injury indicates that the young men were either fleeing or not directly engaging at the time they were fatally shot.
Read MoreManipur is burning yet again, marking its third major escalation since the violence began in May 2023. The initial outbreak and the three subsequent flare-ups have almost seemed predictable, each coinciding with challenges to the leadership of Chief Minister N. Biren Singh. Let’s start with the latest escalation, which is still ongoing.
Read More(ANALYSIS) If you tune into mainstream media, especially in India, you might find yourself asking, “What the heck is going on in Bangladesh?” With that same question in mind, we left Delhi for Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. However, our six-day journey through Dhaka and Dinajpur left us feeling more hopeful than fearful about Bangladesh’s future.
Read More(ANALYSIS) An “intelligence” report has emerged suggesting that over 900 “Kuki militants,” trained in advanced warfare techniques, have crossed from Myanmar into India and may target Meitei villages in Manipur as Christians in the region continue to be persecuted. It’s strange that this information was shared with the public, rather than communicated discretely to the Indian army.
Read MoreIn the violence-afflicted state of Manipur in India’s northeast, the Assam Rifles, a key central force, finds itself under intense scrutiny. It’s at the center of a campaign that accuses it of taking sides in the ethnic conflict between the majority Meitei community and the Kuki-Zo tribal groups. However, this claim might just be a smokescreen to divert attention from what could be the real issue.
Read More(ANALYSIS) After a decade in power, Modi and his party seemingly overlooked a fundamental question: If Modi is the face of the party as well as its election campaign, what does that face represent? Did they assume his image alone would signify a “guarantee” to the country’s people? If so, they should have highlighted the “guarantees” that were fulfilled and honored. However, they appeared to lack such examples.
Read More(VIDEO) Kuki-Zo leaders are demanding an investigation into their allegations that attacks on civilians and village volunteers — a term used for ordinary youth guarding their villages with guns against purported regular assaults by Meitei extremist groups — are being carried out by state forces in northeastern India.
Read More(VIDEO) A wave of violence started in Manipur state, situated in the northeastern part of India, on May 3, 2023, leading to the death of more than 140 people and the destruction of over 6,000 homes and 400 churches. The conflict has also resulted in a viral video of two women being stripped naked, paraded through a rural area and allegedly gang-raped.
Read MoreIn the unusual tradition of Ma’nene in South Sulawesi of Indonesia's Toraja region, families lovingly clean, dress up and even put cigarettes in the mouths of the exhumed bodies of their dead relatives. This photo essay and video offers ReligionUnplugged.com readers a glimpse of this unique religious and cultural ceremony.
Read MoreThree years after the lynching of 16-year-old Junaid Khan in India, “The Dinner Table” host Harshita Rathore meets his family for a heart-to-heart conversation over a meal. In the first episode of the docuseries produced by Newsreel, the Khans share what it’s like to experience grief and discrimination as Muslims in India, who have faced increasing incidents of violence and hate crimes by Hindu nationalists since 2014.
Read MoreThe Rohingya, an ethnic minority persecuted by some Buddhist groups in Myanmar, are facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises of this century. We spoke to Yangon-based activist Sam Naeem about the evolution of their struggle so far.
Read More“I had all the reasons and justifications to join a terrorist group because of what has happened to me,” said Raghu Balachandran, a Christian who witnessed the murder of his father and brother in Sri Lanka’s decades-long civil war between Tamil Hindus and Sinhalese Buddhists.
Read MoreIn the wake of the Easter terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka, we spoke to Nishan De Mel, the executive director of Verité Research in Colombo, for a deeper analysis of who’s behind the attacks, what they may want, what they were targeting, and what this all means for South Asia and Sri Lanka’s religious groups and stability.
Read MoreShould the head of a government live out his religious beliefs in office? The Tibetan President-in-Exile Lobsang Sangay argues that that does not necessarily violate the separation of Church and State or the freedom of religion or belief.
Read MoreIn western parts of Nepal, menstruating girls and women are sent to cow sheds or huts despite a law banning the practice. The Nepalis in Myanmar also treat the practice as an integral part of their culture. Nandar Gyawalli is calling for the abolition of this tradition which recently claimed the lives of a mother and two sons in Nepal.
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