India scraps Free Movement Regime with Myanmar

India scraps Free Movement Regime with Myanmar

India has decided to revoke the Free Movement Regime (FMR) that was in place with neighboring country Myanmar. The FMR, established in 2018 as part of the Indian government’s Act East policy initiative, enabled residents within 16 km of the India-Myanmar border to travel into each other’s territory without requiring travel documents like visas. The FMR facilitated legitimate movement for communities whose ancestral ties transcend the boundary the British demarcated in 1826 without considering the hill tribes inhabiting the region. A key motivation for implementing the FMR aimed to nurture continued cooperation and exchange between border communities the arbitrarily set boundary line divided.

However, review has now rescinded the regime over mounting concerns regarding breaches of India’s national security and demographic structure. The Ministry of Home Affairs communicated that scrapping the FMR became imperative to contain unlawful infiltration, unregulated migration patterns, and potential entropy of the region’s demographic configuration. Specific data from 2022 reveals that authorities detained over 5,500 undocumented immigrants around the Moreh border, while 2023 saw alarming reports of over 700 new illegal crossings from Myanmar. Hence, upholding territorial integrity by curtailing ingress of unauthorized entrants has emerged as the principal factor behind discontinuing the FMR facility.

What are the Reasons for scrapping the Free Movement Regime?

Safeguarding national security by containing unlawful immigration and preventing adverse changes to the region’s demographic composition are the prime factors behind abolishing the FMR. Reports indicate that following the 2021 coup in Myanmar, targeted violence against ethnic Kuki-Chin tribals fueled migration into Indian border states, especially Manipur and Mizoram. Manipur’s government divulged that recent months saw detection of over 2,187 illegal entrants from Myanmar, with officials apprehending and deporting thousands more. As the state administration saw, the unchecked influx enabled undocumented immigrants to unlawfully create settlements within Manipur’s protected forest areas.

Furthermore, intelligence inputs identify the porous, mostly unfenced Indo-Myanmar border as a conduit for cross-border trafficking of illicit arms, narcotics and stimulants. 2022 witnessed seizures of contraband worth over INR 1227 crore in Manipur itself, encompassing drugs like heroin and methamphetamine. Hence, the FMR’s suspension aims to control unauthorized entry that could compromise national security, as well as crack down on smuggling syndicates that allegedly misused the regime’s lax oversight.

What are the Implications of scrapping the FMR?

Rescinding the Free Movement Regime risks impeding legitimate cross-border commerce and exchange relied upon by border communities. As the FMR enabled visa-free access up to 16 km across the border, its revocation may disrupt the historical patterns of trade and business critical for the area’s low-income hill economies. Additionally, indigenous communities with close cultural and familial ties bisected by the arbitrarily set border stand to lose conduits for interaction and kinship. Experts caution that completely blocking movement risks severing connections between ethnic groups like the Mizos, Kukis and Zomis.

The FMR’s cancellation also poses difficulties for access to healthcare and education services, as border villages depending on cross-border facilities now confront enlarged barriers to such access. As analysts argue, entirely halting border crossing mobility or totally fencing the boundary could disproportionately impact local welfare. They advocate for systems to enable continued cooperation between border populations, stressing that the regime requires improvements in regulation rather than outright termination. Potential alternatives could involve technological oversight methods leveraging surveillance systems, alongside community and military patrols subject to procedural accountability.

India-Myanmar border

The current India-Myanmar border follows the demarcation British colonial authorities arbitrarily made in 1826 without consulting the ethnic hill tribes inhabiting the region. The delineation divided ancestral lands of communities like the Mizos, Zomis and Kukis, disrupting traditional networks of ethnic, cultural and economic exchange in the process. Ongoing tensions surround accusations of illegal hill settlements by immigrants from Myanmar, allegedly causing deforestation while exacerbating conflict along ethnic lines in Manipur.

Manipur data reveals extensive cross-border trafficking of illicit arms and narcotic contraband worth over INR 1227 crore, encompassing drugs like heroin and methamphetamine in 2022 alone. Clandestine smuggling leverages the porous border terrain with barely 6 km of fenced barriers across Manipur, underlining grave monitoring challenges.

Why did India decide to scrap the FMR with Myanmar?

India scrapped the FMR over rising concerns about breaches of security from illegal immigration enabled by the porous border and allegations of increased cross-border drug trafficking.

How will cancelling the FMR impact border communities?

Revoking the FMR risks severing connections and disrupting historical trade and healthcare access for ethnic groups with cultural ties across the border.

What challenges exist in monitoring the India-Myanmar border?

Monitoring the border is difficult given its terrain across Manipur is barely 6km fenced, enabling trafficking of arms and drugs worth over INR 1227 crore in 2022.

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UCN Team
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