Video from Philippines peddled as Kuki tribals looting shops owned by Meiteis in Manipur

By: Rajini KG
May 9 2023

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Context

Against the backdrop of ongoing violence in Manipur, many old videos and images are circulating on social media claiming to show visuals of the violence. Sharing one such video, a Twitter user wrote, "A CCTV footage of a shop owned by meitei in #Churachandpur looted by #Kuki. How uncivilized they are. #savemeitei #savemanipurfrom_illegal_immigrants_kuki #manipurisburning #ManipurViolence (sic)." The video shows the crowd forcibly opening the door of a store, climbing on the shelves, and grabbing the clothes.

However, the claim is false. The viral video is from the Philippines and not from India.

Violence broke out in Churachandpur, Manipur on May 3, 2023 after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ organized by the All Tribal Student Union Manipur (ATSUM) against the demand for inclusion of Manipur’s Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category following a Manipur High Court directive on April 19, 2023. According to news agency PTI, at least 60 people have been killed in the state. The Indian Army has been deployed to control the situation.

In Fact

Through a reverse image search, we found that the video dates back to February 2023. VICE News YouTube channel posted the same video on March 3, 2023, with the title: "Watch Chaotic Scenes Unfold as a Clothes Store Opens in the Philippines."

The description reads that the video was recorded on February 24, 2023, at "ukay-ukay" thrift store in Lucena City, Philippines. ‘Ukay-Ukay’ is a store that offers discounted, used or second-hand items like clothing, purses, shoes, and other accessories.

DZRH News Television, a Philippine television news channel, published the same video on March 3 with a title in Filipino: "Customers, panicked, rioted at the opening of an ukay-ukay store in Lucena." On February 28, 2023, Philstar News YouTube channel posted the same video, and the description reads in Filipino, that it was a CCTV footage that showed customers hurrying to buy clothes from the Ukay-ukay store in Lucena. Therefore it confirms the video is from the Philippines, not from India. 

Logically has also debunked another unrelated video that was said to be from the recent Manipur violence. Read our fact check here. 

The Verdict

A three-month-old video from the Philippines was misrepresented as Kuki Tribals attacking a shop owned by Meiteis in Manipur. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.