The Union Home Ministry has recommended suspending the India-Myanmar Free Movement Regime, citing “internal security” reasons. This regime allowed citizens from both nations to cross the border without passports or visas, traveling up to 16 kilometers into each other’s territories.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, emphasizing border security, has decided to scrap the Free Movement Regime to ensure the country’s internal security and maintain the demographic structure of northeastern states, according to Home Minister Amit Shah.
In line with this decision, Bharat plans to fence the entire 1,643-kilometer-long Myanmar border to fortify its boundaries. Home Minister Shah announced that a 10-kilometer stretch in Manipur’s Moreh has already been fenced, with additional projects underway.
The move to suspend the Free Movement Regime comes after ethnic violence erupted in Manipur last year between the Kuki-Zo and Meitei tribes, resulting in casualties and displacement. The Meiteis attribute the violence partly to the unchecked entry of illegal immigrants from Myanmar facilitated by the Free Movement Regime.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, along with his administration, supports the scrapping of the regime and the border fencing, alleging misuse by insurgents, illegal immigrants, and drug traffickers.
Government sources revealed that nearly 600 Myanmar Army soldiers have crossed into India in recent months, seeking refuge in Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district after conflicts with Arakan Army militants in western Myanmar.
However, Mizoram has opposed the suspension of the Free Movement Regime and border fencing, with Chief Minister Lalduhoma arguing against separating people of the same ethnic group living on both sides of the border.
The Free Movement Regime, initiated in 1970, aimed to facilitate visits between tribes sharing kinship, social, and ethnic ties across the India-Myanmar border. It was revived by the Modi government in 2016 as part of its ‘Act East’ policy to enhance regional connectivity and cooperation.
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