Push on to unite the Zo tribes on Myanmar-India border

By BNI
06 February 2016
Push on to unite the Zo tribes on Myanmar-India border
Zo tribes. Photo: Zogam.org

Mizoram State’s Information & Public Relations Minister Lal Thanzara told the 124th anniversary Chin-Lushai Conference held in Mizoram, India that borders cannot separate the Zo (also known as Zofate) tribes, reports Burma News International on February 8.
The Minister made the remarks during the Chin-Lushai Conference and ZoRO Convention, held by the Zo Reunification Organization (ZoRO) at Vanapa Hall in Mizoram State’s capital Aizawl on 28 January, according to the BNI report, citing Khonumthung.
“No matter where we have been born or brought up, we will not lose our common identity of being Zo descendants. Interstate borders or international borders cannot separate our brotherhood,” he said.
At the close of the meeting ZoRO made a declaration urging the governments of the countries where the Zo live to accept the 2007 UN Declaration on the Rights of the Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and to help the ethnic tribes to use the declaration for their benefit.
ZorO is based in Aizawal, Mizoram State, India and it has been trying to unite the Zo tribes that live in India, Burma and Bangladesh under a single administration.