Aizawl: Over 3,000 people from Myanmar’s Chin state have fled to India and taken shelter in Mizoram’s Zokhawthar village in Champhai district following fierce clashes between two ethnic Chin armed groups over the past four days, since Thursday, an official said on Sunday.
The official said that the Myanmarese nationals, mainly from three border villages, Khawmawi, Rihkhawdar, and Lianhna, fled to Zokhawthar due to fierce gun battles between the Chin National Defence Force (CNDF) and the Chinland Defence Force (CDF) of the Hualngo area, two of the many anti-junta forces operating in the Chin hills.
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Mizoram has already hosted more than 32,000 refugees from Myanmar.
“The refugees started entering Mizoram on Thursday and came in large numbers following a heavy gunfight between the two armed groups on Saturday. The situation along the international border is now calm, as the firing stopped yesterday evening,” the official said.
He added that 300 more refugees entered Zokhawthar on Sunday.
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The Tiau River, which flows along the Indo-Myanmar border, separates Zokhawthar and Khawmawi in Myanmar.
The official said that the Assam Rifles, who guard the international border, have sealed the Indo-Myanmar border to prevent any untoward incidents.
However, the security forces are allowing refugees from the neighbouring country who intend to take shelter in Mizoram to enter, he said.
According to a local leader, the CNDF and CDF, both from the same Zo ethnic group, have reportedly been fighting to gain control over areas, particularly Khawmawi, one of the commercial hubs in Chin state and a key transit point between India and Myanmar.
The CDF-Hualngoram functions under the Chinland Council (CC), while the CNDF and its political wing, the Chin National Organisation (CNO), form part of the Chin Brotherhood (CB) alliance, and the Interim Chin National Consultative Council (ICNCC) politically guides them.
The local leader said CNDF members brought the body of one cadre who died in the armed conflict on Saturday to his relatives in Aizawl.
He also said that the clashes reportedly injured at least four cadres, who were then taken to Mizoram for treatment.
One refugee from Myanmar’s Tahan town, who had taken refuge in Zokhawthar and went to Khawmawi for daily labour on Saturday, drowned in the Tiau River while fleeing to Mizoram and has yet to be located, the local leader added.
Meanwhile, the central committee of the Young Mizo Association (CYMA), the largest civil society organisation in Mizoram, mediated between the Hualngoram People’s Organisation (HPO) and the CNO on Saturday evening to restore peace in the region, a leader said.
CYMA general secretary Malsawmliana said that the two organisations agreed to a ceasefire and to settle the dispute amicably.