An honorable mass burial ceremony will be held for deceased Kuki-Zo people in Kangpokpi district on Friday under the theme, “You Sacrifice Your Today For Our Tomorrow” at Martyr’s Cemetery at Phaijang village in Kangpokpi District.
There will be a 12-hour total shutdown from 5 am to 5 pm in the entire district of Kangpokpi as instructed by the Committee on Tribal Unity, Sadar Hills while it [CoTU] also instructed all the Kuki-Zo people across Kangpokpi to hoist up a black flag in every household to mark as a mourning day.
The mass burial ceremony will begin at 11 am.
Nineteen Kuki-Zo dead bodies were flown home on Thursday morning in an IAF Chopper from Imphal almost eight months after the eruption of the wide-scale violence in the state on May 3.
Altogether, 23 Kuki-Zo dead bodies, including the 19 dead bodies flown home on Thursday, and another four untraceable dead bodies will be given a decent and honorable burial as per the Kuki-Zo custom and tradition.
Condolence with a Gun Salute will be performed by Kuki-Zo volunteers during the burial ceremony.
Speaking on the sideline of the preparation work for the mass burial at the Martyr’s Cemetery, CoTU Information and Publicity Secretary Thangtinlen Haokip said that the much-awaited homecoming of the fallen brothers and sisters after a long months of despair, heartbreak and hopelessness have eventually reached their resting place here in our homeland.
He continued that we will honor our fallen Kuki-Zo brethren with the highest burial rites tomorrow at Martyr Cemetery at Phaijang on December 15.
“The Committee on Tribal Unity appreciated the Supreme Court for having to intervene and understand the sentiments of the Kuki-Zo communities”, he added.
While announcing the 12-hour total shutdown in connection with the burial ceremony, Thangtinlen Haokip appealed to the general public to cooperate.
Emergency services and funeral parties are exempted from the purview.
The Kuki-Zo people across the district will be mourning this whole night at the Martyr Cemetery where the dead bodies are laid.
