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Abstract

The Kuki–Naga ethnic conflict of the nineties marked a period of violence and displacement of large number of people. While the literature of this conflict expound the causes and spectacle nature of violence, the less visible impact, including the challenges of displacement and poverty induced by the separation from home, are always ignored. Through in-depth interviews among Kuki youth with childhood experiences of the violence and displacement, this article is an attempt to understand the harsh realities of displaced survivors of the violence and the everyday challenges as they began to rebuild their lives. Childhood memories of participants in the study reveal that stigmatisation of displaced persons imposed a strong degree of obstacle to their adjustment with the difficult transformation imposed by violence and displacement. Against this continuing threat to their daily experiences, this article argues that a strong sense of resilience can be adopted through inter-generational transmission of memories.

Keywords

Poverty ethnicity social exclusion discrimination political participation

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Negotiating Stigma: Narratives of Displaced Children of the Kuki–Naga Ethnic Conf lict

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