Two pro-democracy rebel groups from conflict-hit Myanmar have signed a merger pact in Mizoram’s capital, Aizawl, in the presence of Chief Minister Lalduhoma and other local leaders, according to reports. The Chinland Council and the Interim Chin National Consultative Council (ICNCC) signed the agreement on February 27 to form a unified Chin National Council aimed at strengthening their fight against Myanmar’s military junta. Representatives from the Chinland Council’s armed wing, the Chin National Army, and the ICNCC’s armed wing, the Chin Brotherhood, were also present.
When asked why he attended the meeting, Lalduhoma told Deccan Herald, “It is my mission.” Tensions between the two groups had persisted for years, and the merger was reportedly facilitated through negotiations led by the Mizoram Chief Minister, according to Myanmar Now. Rajya Sabha MP from Mizoram, K Vanlalvena, had also recently visited rebel camps in Myanmar’s Chin State.
Myanmar’s pro-democracy groups have been engaged in fierce conflict with the military junta since it ousted the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021. Fighting has been particularly intense in Chin State, which shares close cultural and ethnic ties with Mizoram and a 500-kilometre-long border with India. Stability in Chin State is considered crucial for India.
Mizoram MLA and political adviser to the CM, Lalmuanpuia Punte, told Hindustan Times that Lalduhoma’s role in uniting the Chin groups was done with the Ministry of External Affairs’ knowledge. “Security threat on the Indian side of Mizoram looms if the political situation in Chin state is unstable. Uniting factions of the Chin armed forces has been for long on our radar. Unified, I believe the Chin resistance will reach new heights in deposing the military rule,” Punte said.
According to The Hindu, Vanlalvena visited Chinland Council camps last week and invited the rebel leaders to consider joining the Indian Union, citing shared tribal bonds and the absence of a stable government in Myanmar. He told The Hindu, “It is important that we have good relations with them as they are administering areas along the Mizoram-Myanmar border and they also belong to the same Mizo family.”
The MP informed Mizoram Governor V.K. Singh and the Assam Rifles about his private visit. Speaking from Aizawl, he added, “Being brothers, I want to know if they have problems which we can solve, according to the willingness of the Indian government… I asked them to join India. The Myanmar government is almost gone, that’s why all the Myanmar army have withdrawn.”
(With inputs from multiple agencies)