Northeastern View | Subtle but uncertain shifts emerge in Mizoram’s delicate refugee policy
Aizawl should ensure that the biometric data of refugees remains securely confined to a local database and not used to deport refugees back to war-torn Myanmar.
On July 6, Mizoram chief minister, Lalduhoma, told Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a meeting in New Delhi that his government won’t be pushing back or deporting Zo refugees from Bangladesh who have taken shelter in the state’s southern districts.
Just weeks earlier, a home department official from the Mizoram government had told the media that the state government is “waiting for instructions” from New Delhi to start biometric enrolment of Chin refugees from Myanmar who have taken shelter in the Northeastern border state following the coup next door in 2021.
The two developments show the fine balancing act of the new Mizoram government on the refugee issue, which has complicated the state-centre relationship between Aizawl and New Delhi in more ways than one.
Political support for refugees
The military coup in Myanmar in February 2021 and the ensuing civil war pushed thousands of people from western Myanmar’s Chin State and Sagaing region into Northeast India. The bulk fled to Mizoram, and a smaller number took refuge in neighbouring Manipur.
A senior state government official told the media in May that “at least” 34,350 Myanmar nationals were taking refuge in Mizoram. An additional 1,167 refugees from Bangladesh’s Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), mostly belonging to the Bawm sub-tribe, have taken shelter in the state following counterinsurgency operations by Dhaka against the Kuki Chin National Front (KCNF). Unofficial estimates put the total numbers at more than 45,000.
In April 2023, the Union home ministry asked both Mizoram and Manipur to collect the biometric data of the refugees. In September 2023, days before the deadline set by the centre and despite making administrative preparations, the then Mizoram government led by Chief Minister Zoramthanga of the Mizo National Front (MNF) announced that it would not be conducting the biometric drive.
His successor, Lalduhoma, who took over in December, told the media that there would be no change in the refugee policy one day before he was sworn in. Two months later, he informed the state assembly that his government wouldn’t collect the biometrics of the refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh because the exercise was meant to deport the “illegal immigrants”.
Indeed, there are concerns among local activists and community organisations that New Delhi could use the biometric data of the refugees to prepare a deportation list in collusion with the Myanmar junta. If this goes ahead, it could directly threaten the lives of many of the displaced who stand to be prosecuted on flimsy charges, if not worse, once they return home.
Change of heart?
The persistent refusal of both Zoramthanga and Lalduhoma to undertake biometric mapping of the displaced population has much to do with a bipartisan recognition of the fraternal Mizo-Chin relationship, which forms the foundational basis of the humanitarian ecosystem in Mizoram. Standing with the displaced Chin helped both leaders bolster their Mizo nationalist platform and placate influential stakeholders, such as local volunteer organisations and churches.
However, the Lalduhoma government’s latest decision to go along with the centre’s biometric mapping directive indicates a likely shift in its position on the biometric issue. The change is critical because, by his own admission earlier, the biometric exercise is meant to facilitate deportation. It is possible that his government has agreed to reverse its earlier stance as a trade-off to preserve other parts of the refugee policy.
This essentially means that New Delhi will continue to look away (and likely even provide limited financial assistance) as Mizoram welcomes refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh as long as Aizawl keeps a tab on them through biometric mapping. This is especially so in light of fresh arrivals from Bangladesh’s CHT in June and early July, some of whom were reportedly roughed up and pushed back from southern Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district by Border Security Force (BSF) personnel.
According to one popular Mizoram-based social media account, Lalduhoma was criticised for not protecting these new refugees from Bangladesh. His recent affirmation before the PM of giving them shelter, therefore, should be seen as an attempt to put such claims to rest and preserve his own credentials among various civil society organisations in Mizoram who are helping the refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh.
Leadership shift
Notably, Lalduhoma was once a member of the Indian Police Service (IPS) and even served as the security in-charge for former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It is possible, therefore, that his approach to the refugee issue is partly coloured by security concerns. Maintaining a tab on the displaced population through biometric mapping is a key element of a securitised response to any cross-border refugee crisis.
Beyond that, the refugee influx has generated some friction between the host and displaced communities in Mizoram over perceptions of rising economic competition, drug smuggling and stray incidents of violence. By undertaking biometric data collection, Lalduhoma might be signalling to his Mizo constituencies that he is cognisant of their concerns.
However, it is still possible that the Lalduhoma government will delay the process if local Mizo organisations oppose it. Alternatively, it might do the mapping but not share the biometric data with the centre. In any case, Aizawl needs to ensure that the data, if collected, remains securely confined to a local database and not used to deport refugees back to war-torn Myanmar.
Angshuman Choudhury is a New Delhi-based researcher and writer, formerly an Associate Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research and focuses on Northeast India and Myanmar. The views expressed are personal.
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