Manipur: a Genocide?

Abstract The aim of this article is straightforward: to analyse if the events that started in the second trimester of 2023 in Manipur (Northeast India) satisfy the legal requirements to constitute a crime of genocide. To achieve this goal, it evaluates the available evidence, including primary and secondary sources, which provides enough information despite the circumstances. The article aims to elucidate the possible criminal liability of identified or unidentified individuals. The guiding norm is the Genocide Convention, which India signed and ratified, along with the principles, jurisprudence, and theory interpreting the treaty. This article contends that, prima facie , the elements of the crime of genocide are present in Manipur, including killings, infliction of bodily or mental harm, and the deliberate destruction of the Kuki/Kuki-Zo tribe’s conditions of life. Furthermore, this article contends that India breached its international obligations. In asserting this, it goes further than organisations such as Genocide Watch, which warned about the imminent occurrence of genocide in Manipur.