Census for Chins in Mizoram to Take Place in May
17 May 2012: The Chin Society of Mizoram is to conduct a census of Chin people from Burma residing in Mizoram State of India this month.
A statement issued by Aizawl-based Chin Society of Mizoram said the census would start before the end of May and that the lists would be sent to the new government of Burma as well as the UN Office in New Delhi.
A leader of the Chin Society of Mizoram was quoted as saying that the census would play an important role for those who are willing to return to Burma in the future.
An estimated 70,000-100,000 Chins are living in Mizoram State after having fled persecution and human rights violations perpetrated by Burma’s successive military regimes. This figure represents more than 10 percent of the total population of Mizoram State, according to local sources.
Meanwhile, the new government of Burma has announced that it will conduct its first national census in 31 years in April 2014, with the help of the United Nations.
Salai Za Uk Ling, of the Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO), stressed his concern over the possibility of ‘distorting’ the census methodology used during the process, according to the IRIN news.
He said a significant number of Chins being unable to speak their own ethnic language any longer could be mistaken for or classified as Burman.
Currently home to an estimated population of 500,000 people, Chin State has long seen mass out-migration as a result of various forms of repressive measures, pushing thousands of people to neighbouring countries including India and even as far as Malaysia, which is estimated to host around 50,000 Chin refugees.
Reporting by Thawng Zel Thang
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