Lamka: In one of the strongest denunciations yet following the deadly Kangpokpi ambush, the Kuki-Zo Christian Forum (KZCF) described the cold-blooded killing of Rev. V. Sitlhou and two fellow pastors as a barbaric strike against peace, faith and the fragile architecture of reconciliation in strife-torn Manipur.
The Forum said the Kuki-Zo community was “deeply shocked, anguished and outraged” by the heinous ambush allegedly carried out by armed militants around 10:25 AM between Kotzim and Kotlen while the church leaders were returning from Churachandpur after attending the United Baptist Convention gathering.
Calling Rev. V. Sitlhou not merely a church leader but a towering spiritual statesman, bridge-builder and tireless architect of peace, KZCF underscored that his assassination was not just the murder of an individual, but a calculated blow to the very idea of communal harmony. Rev. Sitlhou, who served as Chairman of the recently constituted Kuki-Zo Christian Forum, had been spearheading sensitive peace initiatives between Kuki and Tangkhul communities through Christian brotherhood, dialogue and reconciliation.
The Forum also highlighted his landmark peace engagements, including a historic joint meeting in Kohima with the Nagaland Joint Christian Forum and Tangkhul pastors, followed by crucial reconciliation outreach in strife-torn Litan area involving Kuki civil society and traditional Inpi leaders — efforts widely seen as rare moral interventions in a deeply fractured region.
“That such a peace emissary — a man who carried no weapon but only the message of Christ, peace and unity — should be ambushed and slaughtered in so barbaric a manner is not merely an attack on individuals, but a direct assault on the hopes of peace itself,” the statement asserted, warning that silence and impunity would only embolden further violence and sabotage every sincere peace-building effort.
Describing the slain pastors as martyrs whose sacrifice will remain etched in collective memory, KZCF said the killings represent a monumental loss not only to the Church but to society as a whole. It demanded unequivocal condemnation, justice without delay, and accountability from all concerned agencies, stressing that the blood of innocent peace-makers “must never be allowed to be shed in vain.”
As grief and outrage intensify across Kuki-Zo areas, the Forum urged the community to uphold the slain leaders’ vision of peace, unity and reconciliation, declaring that while violence may silence voices, it must not extinguish the mission they died defending.
