ZOLENGTHE: A Digital Home for the Zo People — An Analysis of Its Global Membership

 

As on 19 September 2026

ZOLENGTHE - Connecting the Zo people - presents an interesting example of how a community-based digital platform can transcend geographical boundaries and create a virtual space for a dispersed ethnic community. Founded on 1 January 2007, the Facebook group has grown into a network of 51,762 members across 94 countries and territories, according to the membership data provided as of 19 September 2026.

The figures tell a story that goes beyond numbers. They reveal the geographical spread of the Zo community, the continuing importance of the homeland, the emergence of diaspora networks, and the role of social media in connecting communities separated by mountains, national borders and oceans.

Bridging the Institutional Gap: Integrating VPRP with Village Authority–Led Participatory Development Planning and Public Financing in the Hill Areas of Manipur

-          T. Zamlunmang Zou

Preface

This research emerged from my professional engagement with participatory development planning under the Manipur State Rural Livelihoods Mission (MSRLM)[1]. As a Block Mission Manager, I initially undertook the mobilisation of Self-Help Group (SHG) members and non-SHG households to ensure their active participation in the preparation of the Village Prosperity Resilience Plan (VPRP)[2] in Imphal East, where the Panchayati Raj system provides an established institutional framework for local development planning.

The VPRP process encompasses five important components: Entitlement Plan; Social Inclusion and Social Development; Public Goods and Services; Resource Development; and Livelihoods. Through field-level experience, it became apparent that the first two components - entitlements, social inclusion and social development - could be pursued comparatively effectively through convergence and partnership with concerned line departments, government institutions and other service-delivery agencies. However, the remaining components, particularly public goods and services, resource development and livelihood promotion, require a more systematic institutional approach involving planning, prioritisation, resource allocation, technical support, implementation and monitoring by the government.

Beyond the Blame Game: Tracing the Roots of the Kuki–Naga Conflict in Manipur

Roots, competing narratives and timeline — 1917 to September 2026

Executive assessment

The present Kuki–Naga confrontation cannot be explained by a single incident or by saying that one community simply “started” the conflict.

The evidence points to five overlapping historical drivers:

1. Competing territorial claims — particularly in Senapati, Kangpokpi, Ukhrul, Tamenglong/Noney and Chandel.
2. Competing ethnic-nationalist projects — the Naga demand for integration of contiguous Naga-inhabited areas and the Kuki demand for a Kuki homeland/separate administration.
3. The unresolved legacy of the 1992–97 Naga–Kuki war, including killings, village destruction and mass displacement.
4. The proliferation of armed organisations and competing ceasefire arrangements, particularly NSCN-IM on the Naga side and Kuki armed organisations under the Suspension of Operations (SoO).
5. The collapse of inter-community trust after the 2023 Meitei–Kuki war, which altered the strategic balance in the hills and brought previously contained Naga–Kuki disputes back to the centre.