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06/09/2008: "Office of the NAGA HOHO P R E S S S T A T E M E N T Kohima, June 9, 2008"

Office of the
NAGA HOHO

Ref. No…………… Date… ……………

P R E S S S T A T E M E N T
Kohima, June 9, 2008

We take this privilege to extend our heartfelt gratitude to President & colleagues of all Naga Tribe Hoho, Civil Society Leaders from length and breadth of Naga inhabited areas and every Naga Citizen for reposing faith on us once again to lead the Naga Hoho in this crucial period of time. We want to thank every Naga who stood with us over the course of our journey - through the good days and the hard times since the inception of Naga Hoho. At this defining moment for our nation, we should be proud that we have many talented, qualified field of individuals ever to run this platform and we have learned from them as friends, as public servants, and as patriots who love Nagaland and are willing to work tirelessly to make this nation better. In fact, the current incumbents of the Naga Hoho have been made consensus not because of our ability or efficiency but because of the moment- a moment that will define a generation.

We expressed our profound gratitude to the Hon’ble Chief Minister and his colleagues for participation in the Inaugural Session of the 9th Naga Hoho General Assembly on May 30, 2008 at Peren and delivered a poignant speech befitting to the present Naga context. Over and above, we cannot just begin to express what their financial contribution means to Naga Hoho and us. It will definitely be most helpful and will go to extremely good use, there is no doubt about that, but more than the monetary value, we greatly appreciate their thoughtfulness behind the gift. The 9th Naga Hoho Session was a great success because of their kind support and generosity.

The Naga Hoho immeasurably thank the Zeliangrong Baudi for hosting the 9th General Assembly in spite of many odds and most importantly, we adore the Guest Speaker Rev.Dr. Wati Aier and all other participants in the programme who have untiringly devoted their time and energy during the 9th Naga Hoho General Session from May 29-31, 2008 at Peren. All the partaker and the valued delegates have done an incredible job for the cause of the Naga people. and we are fully convinced that the entire delegates have realized that “our individual salvation and liberty depends on collective salvation”.

Today, the greatest challenge facing by the Naga people is the challenge of peace and confidence building among different sections of fellow Nagas based on understanding each other’s tribe and their capabilities. For too long, we have viewed the size of our population as a social and political liability for which enough blood have been shed and shattered our dream for a common future. No matter how strong or weak one may be, educated or uneducated, skilled or unskilled, the challenge before us is to ensure that each and every Naga citizen is an asset. Every individual’s life is so dear and precious to all rational and so also eliminating one person from the same family is irreparable. We cannot afford to keep doing what we have been doing. We owe our children a better future. We owe our nation a better future. And for all those who dream of that future today, we appeal -- let us begin the work together. Let us unite in common effort to chart a new course for Naga Hoho and our people. In our Naga country, we have found that all the groups/ individuals are labeled with certain stigma one way or the other, divisions and categories and petty bickering.

As the matter of fact, Naga people are decent, generous, hospitable, compassionate people, united by common challenges and common hopes. And every so often, there are moments, which call on that fundamental goodness to make this country great again. Leaders of Nagas, this is our moment - this is our time. Our time to turn the page on the policies of the past. Our time to bring new initiatives and ideas to the challenges we face. Our time to offer a new direction for the country we love.
No matter how long we may take or the journey may be difficult, the road may be long. Let us face this challenge with profound humility and remake this great nation so as to enable us to look back and tell our children that this was the moment we ended a conflict and restored our nation and image of the people before God Almighty and the outside world.

The Naga Hoho shall on no account ever give up hope to stop bloodshed among fellow citizens designed by occupational forces clubbing with vested interest and anti-naga people and therefore we fervently appeal once again to;

• Cease immediately all forms of killings amongst various groups of Naga National workers; besides targeting innocent public/ travelers through various forms of threat perception and intimidations;

• Come out openly as a true Naga whichever groups are involved in abduction and killings of innocent civilians, whose kids and kin are yet to be informed their whereabouts;

• Politicians/ political parties and their machineries to work cohesively based on the principle of good governance towards crafting a welfare state; and stop encouraging the unwanted elements in the state from creating unwarranted human sufferings;

• The mass based Civil Societies and Churches to perform their duties judiciously with the motto-“ united we stand divided we fall”

• The Leadership of every Naga National organizations/ Governments to retrospect every single killing because our Armed Naga boys are committed and they should not be used to commit sin against men and God in the pursuit of freedom.

(KEVILETUO KIEWHUO) (P.CHUBA OZUKUM)
President General Secretary