IMPHAL, July 21: The Kuki Students Organisation-General Headquarters has expressed heartfelt condolences over the sudden demise of Raphael Thangmawia, president of ZORO on July 20 at Geneva.
A statement of the organisation said the Chin-Kuki-Mizo people are bereft of a great leader on his death, and it will be hard for the people to find a person who can fill the shoe of a leader of his stature.
The great leader is the epitome of Chin-Kuki-Mizo people re-unification and its movement for a place in the comity of nations, it said.
`His lifetime`™s work for the emancipation of the Chin-Kuki-Mizo ethnic group as a nation has inspired us, and instills the feeling of self-determination and freedom in our minds,` it said.
`His dedication and self-sacrifice in the service of his people remains etched in the mind of every person who has ever got the opportunity to know him.`
It further said that the Kuki Students Organisation expresses deep sympathy to the bereaved family, and prays they may find solace and consolation in the knowledge that their family has given us a great leader who will never be forgotten.
Our Correspondent adds from Lamka: The Zomi Re-Unification Organisation (ZRO) has issued a condolence message through its information director on the demise of R Thangmawia in Geneva on July 20.
It said `the ZRO is deeply saddened at the sudden demise of R Thangmoi in Geneva on July 20.`
R Thangmawia is the current president of the Zo Re-Unification organisation ZORO and currently based at Aizawl Mizoram, it said.
The statement also said he was known for his unstinted zeal for reuniting the Zomis and is therefore, no doubt, a household name for the entire Zomi community.
The ZoRO and Zomi`™s have lost a great and true leader, it said.
`The ZRO once again reiterated the entire zomi to follow in the foot-steps of R.Thangmawia and the ZRO pray that his departed soul may rest in peace.