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02/07/2009: "Rio urges people to work for settlement of Naga conflict Source: PTI Indopia"

Rio urges people to work for settlement of Naga conflict Source: PTI Indopia

Kohima , Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio today appealed to all peace loving people to work hand in hand and to assist both the government and the underground groups to find a permanent solution to the decades-old Naga conflict.
Rio, accompanied by his senior cabinet colleagues and officials, today undertook a goodwill visit to Yaongyimsem village in Mokokchung district, and reminded people unless we solve our present Naga political problems amicably, there is no future for the Naga youths, so therefore, everyone must make sincere effort towards resolving this protracted issue.
Stating that to build a nation, one should sacrifice one&aposs life and also be ready to face all odds and means, the chief minister called upon the villagers to preserve the regional identity of the Nagas and work tirelessly for the Naga society.
Why restore Nagaland for Christ crusade Morungexpress
As a Secretary and Convenor of the organizing committee of restore Nagaland for Christ crusade. We should like to share few words which will open the spiritual eyes of the people to get the blessings through this crusade.
We the Nagas are saying “Nagaland is for Christ”. That means the land and the people belong to Christ. Besides this claimed, the Naga people have made a covenant to send ten thousand missionaries for evangelizing the world in 1956. However, it is well known to every individual and people around us. But how the Naga people are doing currently after promising to fulfill the great commission that has been given by Jesus Christ. It’s now about a half century that the Nagas made a commitment to send ten thousand missionaries. As far as our knowledge is concerned it’s not enough to claim verbally “Nagaland as a Christian state”, and we ought not to be proud of our commitment to send out ten thousand missionaries, but, when are we going to fulfill this.
But it is the desire of God for the Nagas to act as His faithful children and demonstrate to the world that Nagaland is really a Christian state and burning for the lost souls of Christ. But when we see our people today it is contrary to our commitment. Most of the Nagas think that God is only in the church and not outside the church. We act one thing in the church and different in outside. This is not character of a born again Christian. God hates superficial Christians. We are holy, righteous, perfect on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday worship services and right after coming out of the church we act like devils. Does God please such worship? No, my comrades in Christ. God wants us to worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). Hence, the Lord warns to stop worshipping Him with a heart of Hypocrisy. God corrected Israel’s worship style through Amos the prophet, “Take away from me (God) the noise of your songs. For I will not bear the melody of your stringed instruments but let justice run down like water, and righteousness like a might stream” (Amos 5:23-24) Oh! The inhabitants of Naga inhabited areas let us allow God’s justice and righteousness to flow like rivers in our homes, villages, societies and churches. Only justice and righteousness of God can bring true liberty to our nation.
When we meditate deeply, we the Naga are like Israel. The people of Israel forgot God after experiencing signs and wonders in the wilderness, the promise land of Canaan and received bountiful blessings in their lives but they forgot their deliverer, savior, provider, mater, which was Almighty God. Therefore, the Lord spoke to Israel”---I have nourished and brought up children. And they have rebelled against me. The ox knows its owner and the donkey its master’s crib; but Israel does not know. My people don’t consider” (Isaiah 1:1-3). Likewise Jesus is telling us to know Him personally as your owner of your life, house and wealth. Besides, let’s consider to seek him first in our lives. Our loving God is calling you to come back, o backsliding Nagas; he wants to heal your spiritual sickness (Jeremiah 3:12-13). Christ is standing at your door to enter. O backsliding Nagas, allow Jesus to enter and dwell in your life and this will give you full satisfaction, joy and peace that you have never experienced before. This is the right time for us to experience the joy of salvation.
Dear Naga brothers and sisters, et us take counsel from God, make plans according to the leading of the Holy Spirit so that the vision of Nagas will come to pass. It is the time to stop to go down to Egypt (Isaiah 30:1-7). Egypt is symbolically speaking of sin, wickedness, unclean, worldliness, etc. As we came out from Egypt once we the Naga should never go back to Egypt, and move forward to the way of eternity where there is full of peace, joy and life.
The theme of our Crusade is to “Restore the first love that we lost in between God and us” (Rev2:4). This is a golden opportunity to every one of you because God’s anointing people are going to deliver the message of God with fire and their message will really transform your life. Let’s join our hands, our hearts together and pray fervently for great awakening to occur in our land as God sent great awakening in America during the time of John Wesley and Jonathan Edwards. As John Knox prayed God to safe his countrymen, otherwise to take away his life. His prayer goes like this “Give me Scotland or let me die”. Thus, God sent revival and saved the people of Scotland in a miraculous way, so also God has been telling Nagas to rise and shed tears for the lost brethren to come back to God. Dear fellow- Christians, let us awake, if we are sleeping; this is not the time to sleep and let us arise, if we are spiritually dead. Christ will give us light and to shine forth for the glory of God (Eph 5:14). If you lost the first love with Jesus. This crusade is for you to restore. So, don’t miss it, come and be healed through this crusade.

Mutu Müniak, Secretary Satovi, Convener
UNC cautions against derailing peace process morungexpress
Dimapur, February 6 (MExN): Non-state actors like Manipur state should not be a hindrance to the Indo-Naga political peace process, the United Naga Council has advised Delhi. A copy of the UNC’s memorandum addressed to the Prime minister of India was received here today. In a veiled threat for reaction, the UNC “sought to defuse the confusion … to avoid any act of democratic agitation by the Naga people which will be unfortunate”. In the memorandum, the UNC advised against letting non-state actors, like Manipur and its opposition, cause to derail the Indo-Naga political process, rather sincerity and political maturity should be exercised by Delhi.
“The majority-dominance Government of Manipur’s letter to Union Home Ministry and unguarded utterance from the state chief minister, that there can not be ceasefire in Manipur with psychological manifestation of unfortunate June 18, 2001 violent vandalism, communalistic culture which they call it as ‘the great uprising’ amounts to direct challenge and brutalization of Naga peoples search for genuine peace and the campaigning of peace around the world” stated UNC. “Opposition from some non-actor states (majority-dominant Manipur government) on the Indo-Naga peace process should not be stumbling block for New Delhi to delay and derail the peace talk” the UNC advised.
The council said Manipur state’s attitude is “loud and clear” and it wants the Nagas to continue with their past painful history. The 250 thousands of innocent Naga civilian casualties, “rape of women, concentration camp, desecration of churches sanctity, re-grouping of villages, burning of houses, granaries and so on, is far short of any rational human being” it stated.
The UNC has expressed strong condemnation for the state’s “act of psychological and state-sponsored terrorism for apparent conflict of human casualty and blatant human rights violation”.
The council also said sincerity and political maturity of New Delhi in solving the long standing Indo-Naga political problem is the genuine desire of both the Naga and Indian peoples. “We believe peace can not be compartmentalized as much as ceasefire cannot be shelved in cold storage. We consider the fundamental rights and ownership of its people to which they belong is the basis for any solution” the UNC said. India will have to remedy the ‘past political myopia’ and ‘avoid treating the Naga people in condescending manner’ the GoI is told.
The UNC also took exception of Home Minister P Chidambaram’s reported statement that there is no ceasefire in Manipur. Terming it a statement uncalled for, the UNC said the Naga people “would like to expect from him a deeper understanding” of the situation of the northeastern region. ‘Because we would not like to leave behind this political problem unsolved and pass on this imminent woeful situation to younger generation to suffer’ it added.
Over the recent standoff between the security forces and NSCN (IM) cadres at Shirui village, Ukhrul, the UNC said it could have been “addressed through the existing cease-fire mechanism, rather than twisting into a major magnitude of impending dangers to the Indo-Naga political talk”.
The UNC requested the Prime Minister of India to ‘spell out and give clear cut stand on the realistic meaning of Indo-Naga political talk agreed upon at the highest level, unconditional and in third country as two entities’. The memorandum to the PM was appended by UNC president Samson Remei and general secretary A. Ashohrii.

Let us be radicals for right cause: Dr. Wati (NPN
DIMAPUR Rev. Dr. Wati Aier Principal, Oriental Theological Seminary, Dimapur, said “The work of restoration belongs to people who are restored” and “to restore the land for Christ, one must be born in the spirit of God”.
He was speaking at the third day ‘Restore Nagaland for Christ Crusade' program at Chumukedima Thursday. Speaking on restoring Nagaland for Christ, Rev. Dr. Wati Aier said that God was looking for the best and the brightest for restoring the land. The best and the brightest however, he said “comes from the courage to admit that one is a sinner before God.”
“Nagas must turn the world upside down”, “Let us be rebels with the right cause and let us be radicals for right cause”, Dr. Wati affirmed. Referring from Bible he said human beings were supposed to say no to what was wrong and that kind of attitude was the need of the hour. He went on to say that Nagaland could be restored if only people like the 12 disciples were totally committed for a cause.
Dr. Wati ended his sermon with a hopeful note saying, “restoring Nagaland means making Nagaland, and we are called to be workers to restore Nagaland for Christ.”
The fourth and the fifth day of the crusade would be held at Purana Bazar and city tower with deputy commissioner Dimapur Maongwati Aier and director NCRC mission centre Dimapur Reverend Vevozo Khamo as speakers respectively.
The Restore Nagaland for Christ crusade program is being organised byUnited Christian prayer ministries in collaboration with gospel ministries, Bible colleges and Churches in Dimapur for five days on the theme “…I (God) have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Rev 2:4”
The first day of the crusade was held at DC court junction with director, Sümi Baptist convention Reverend Dr. Hevukhu Achumi as the speaker. Reverend Achumi said that under the banner of ‘Nagaland for Christ’, killings, kidnapping, extortion etc had been taking place in recent times and before it was too late, Nagas needed to confess to their sins and restore relationship with Jesus and even among Nagas.
Principal Eastern Bible College Dimapur Reverend Dr. T.N Lotha on the second day of the crusade held at Signal Bosti deliberated on the commitment made by the Nagas to God by declaring the state as “Nagaland for Christ”. Talking about the first commitment made by the national workers and Nagas in 1950 to 1960 which brought peace, joy, love, and unity among the Nagas, he said that to restore the same revival spirit in the society today, ‘we should forgive and ask forgiveness from God.’ He stressed that restoring Nagaland for Christ was a responsibility and restoring relationships among Nagas was the only hope and solution to restore Nagaland.

NSF plea to govt (NPN):
Kohima, The Naga Students Federation has urged the Nagaland government to renew its efforts to check the increasing influx in Naga areas bordering Assam while also alleging that the CRPF entrusted with the task of manning the Assam-Nagaland border is biased towards Assam. NSF vice president Charles Lotha in a release said the mushrooming CRPF check gates in the border areas are collecting illegal toll from passenger and goods vehicles from Nagaland, thereby making some of their commanders rich at the expense of poor Naga villagers.
The release said Ralan area is one example of government’s apathy where it has failed to take any action. While appreciating the concerns of the state government and the NGOs concerned such as KLRSU towards Nagas living in the Assam-Nagaland border areas, the NSF alleged step motherly treatment to the border area people living in the stretch from Tizit to Peren district.
It said at a time when the Assam government is actively pursuing an aggressive border policy with states bordering Assam, inaction of the Nagaland government will lead to unrest in the border and for which it will be held solely responsible.

Spell out stand on peace process, UNC tells PM (EMN):
DIMAPUR, FEB 6 Spell out the realistic meaning of Indo-Naga political talk agreed upon at the highest level, the United Naga Council (UNC) of Manipur has asked of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.
In a memorandum to the PM, the Council reminded of the commitment made by successive Prime Ministers of India to solve the long standing Indo-Naga political problem through negotiated settlement and said that ‘the signing of ceasefire between GoI and NSCN for political dialogue in the highest level was a great relief for both Indian and Naga People from the state of massive human casualty, lost of properties in the more than half a century bloody Indo-Naga political conflict’.
Maintaining that the hard won peace was welcomed by all peace loving Naga people and all community around the world, the UNC told the PM that ‘opposition from some non-actor states (majority-dominant Manipur Government) on the Indo-Naga peace process should not be stumbling block for New Delhi to delay and derail the peace talk’.
With regard to the recent siege of Shirui village in Ukhrul on the question of CF coverage and designated camp interpretation, the Council felt that it could have been addressed through the existing cease-fire mechanism, ‘rather than twisting into a major magnitude of impending dangers to the Indo-Naga Political talk’.
Referring to Union Home Minister P Chidambaram’s reported statement that there is no ceasefire in the present state of Manipur, the UNC termed it ‘unfortunate that a personality of his calibre and knowledge should be so blunt to this delicate Indo-Naga political imbroglio that has involved so much socio-economic and socio-cultural turmoil and human lives’ while adding that ‘the Naga people would like to expect from him a deeper understanding of the situation of the North Eastern Region’.
Stating that sincerity and political maturity through holistic approach of New Delhi towards solving this long standing political problem is the genuine desire of both Naga and Indian People, it apprised of its belief that ‘peace cannot be compartmentalised as much as ceasefire cannot be shelved in cold storage’.
The UNC, therefore, appealed to the Prime Minister ‘to spell out and give clear-cut stand on the realistic meaning of Indo-Naga political talk agreed upon at the highest level, unconditional and in third country as two entities’.
This is to defuse the confusion being created in the minds of the people ‘to avoid any act of democratic agitation by the Naga people which will be unfortunate’, the memorandum said.

Manipur to raise more IRBs OUR CORRESPONDENT The Telegraph


The mangled remains of a bus blown up by militants in Imphal East
Imphal, Feb. 6: The Manipur government has proposed to raise 16 more India Reserve Battalions (IRB) for the state as part of its comprehensive plan to bring militancy under control.
Chief minister Ibobi Singh submitted this proposal along with the plan to Union home minister P. Chidambaram during his visit to the city on February 3.
“We proposed 10 India Reserve Battalions for protection of the national highways, including the Imphal-Dimapur and Imphal-Jiribam highways, four battalions for guarding the Tipaimukh multipurpose project and two for the Loktak downstream electric project,” an official source said.
The demand for 16 IRB battalions is in addition to the existing eight battalions.
The existing IRB battalions are engaged in guarding the city and vital installations, escorting VIPs and frisking and patrolling. They are also assisting the police commandos in counter-insurgency operations.
At present, the Assam Rifles and CRPF are guarding the national highways. However, owing to paucity of forces, such protection is proving inadequate at times.
“Militant groups continue to extort money from commercial vehicles plying along the highways. In addition to this, frequent bandhs and blockades often disrupt supply of essential items. With the deployment of 10 battalions of the IRB, we hope to do away with the highway problem for good,” the source said.
The Northeast Electric Power Corporation could not take up the Rs 5,855.5-crore power project following threats from militants.
In April last year, militants destroyed equipment forcing engineers and workers to flee the project site. However, work started after troops were deployed at the project site.
The power corporation has been demanding regular security guards for the 150MW project.
Another Rs 677-crore project with an installed capacity of 90MW — Loktak downstream project — at Thangal village of Senapati district is also facing the problem of inadequate security guards.
With the additional IRB forces and help from the Assam Rifles and the army, the Ibobi Singh government “hopes” militancy could be brought under a “manageable level”.
“The home minister promised to consider the proposal after Lok Sabha elections. He promised all help from the Centre in tackling militancy,” the source said.
Politicians keeping ULFA issue alive Spl Correspondent Assam Tribune
NEW DELHI, Feb 6 – Confirming what has been widely suspected, pro-talk group of ULFA said the banned outfit has played an active role in every election in the State since 1992. The breakaway faction charged the political parties with keeping the ULFA problem alive to serve their own interest.

The open assertion by the pro-talk group ahead of the Parliament election is likely to trigger a heated debate on links between the political parties and ULFA. The banned outfit has had a hand in formation of every government since 1991, asserted Mrinal Hazarika replying to questions during an interaction with students studying in Delhi.

Without getting into details, Hazarika, who was accompanied by Prabal Neog, said that ULFA had links with one party or the other at some point of time. “We cannot deny involvement of any political party or minister with ULFA”, he said.

Hazarika, however, declined to single out anyone by name, asserting that no politician in the State can manage polls without help from ULFA.

Prafulla Kumar Mahanta-led AGP Government was dismissed in 1990 by Central Government for its alleged links with ULFA. Tarun Gogoi Government has also faced allegations from time to time about involvement of some of its ministers with ULFA, though he has consistently denied it.

Significantly enough, these former ULFA men hold the political parties responsible for the delay in resolution of the vexed militancy problem. The State’s political parties are keen on keeping the ULFA problem alive. They do not want this problem to be solved, asserted Hazarika last evening, interacting with a group of journalists.

The Government of Assam has also not shown interest to solve the problem, he added.

When asked whether they planned to play in a role in the ensuing elections, Hazarika said they have started interacting with few leaders and are pressing them to highlight the issues they have been raising. “We also propose to appeal to them to unite all the ethnic tribal groups of the State”, he said.

The three-member delegation of former ULFA men including Jiten Dutta has been touring the capital to drum up support for their cause. The leaders said they want to evolve a consensus on the burning problems of the State and build up a movement to establish that ULFA has become extraneous and the demand for sovereignty has become irrelevant.

“Unfortunately, ULFA has for the past 29 years of struggle, shoddily deviated from its ideological goals. So, we have decided to put a momentary break on our armed struggle and to pave out a way through democratic struggle for the protection of our existence”, the leaders said.

The group has worked out a 12-point charter of demands, which would be formally submitted on February 20 to the Prime Minister through the office of the Chief Minister.

The demands include total autonomy, as against sovereignty, creation of upper House of the Assembly, the issue of illegal migrants, flood and erosion problem, construction of the Stilwell Road, halt to construction of mega dams in upper reaches of Brahmaputra river mainly in Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan, besides total control over the State’s resources.

Clarifying their demand for total autonomy, Hazarika said they advocate a federal structure, where Centre would hold on to only four responsibilities including defence, currency, external affairs and commerce.

Interestingly enough, the pro-talk group does not see much hope of massive crackdown on ULFA and other militant outfits based in Bangladesh after Awami League came to power. In Bangladesh, the Army and the DGFI are all-powerful and the State cannot do much without their consent.

There may be some minor actions but those will be more of an eyewash, they opined.

The leaders, however, refused to accept Government of India’s contention that over 97 ULFA camps existed in Bangladesh. It is not possible to have such a large number of camps, though there are few camps and shelters in urban areas, Hazarika said.

Confirming ULFA’s relationship with ISI and DGFI, the leaders said commander-in-chief Paresh Barua has not visited the State since 1992, though chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa was in Assam for a long time after that.

Myanmar assures India on NE militants Assam Tribune
NAY PYI TAW (MYANMAR), Feb 6 – As North-Eastern Indian insurgents shift their base from Bangladesh facing the heat of the Sheikh Hasina Government there, the head of Myanmar’s military junta today assured India that it would not allow its territory to be used by the ultras to target India, reports PTI. The assurance came from Gen Than Shwe, Chairman of State Peace and Development Council, at an unusually long meeting here with visiting Vice President Hamid Ansari when India flagged its security interest in clear terms to promote economic cooperation with Myanmar, sources said.

At the meeting, which lasted for more than an hour as against the scheduled 30 minutes, Gen Shwe conveyed to Ansari that peace at Myanmar’s 1,445km border with India was key to greater economic cooperation between the two countries and there was no question of giving a free run for the insurgents to carry out anti-India activities.

Ansari, who is on the second day of his four-day official visit to Myanmar, received a similar assurance from the junta’s number two leader Gen Maung Aye during their meeting here yesterday.

The two countries agreed that their border needed to be kept free from insurgent activities for a more meaningful economic cooperation.

Myanmar, which has been reeling under sanctions by the US and West European countries, sought India’s support in international fora and asked New Delhi not to come under international pressure on the democracy issue in this country, sources said. India, for its part, told the Myanmarese leadership that there was no question of succumbing to any pressure from any quarter on the subject.

India, which has been nudged by international community to reverse its low-key response to Myanmar junta’s handling of pro-democracy movement, feels punitive measures against Myanmar would be counter productive.

Bedrock of Naga Society Published by the Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee(I) State exists not only for mere life but also for the sake of good life. - Aristotle

The 16-Point Agreement of 1960 came about when the Nagas were going through the worst of times. But it was also one of the best things to have happened to the Naga people because it led to the birth of Statehood - on whose firm foundation our society is built. In a larger form of things, due to the Agreement, for the first time, the world recognised the territory of the Nagas as Nagaland.
But of late, there has been an increasing tendency to criticise the 16-point Agreement signed between the Naga People's Convention (NPC) and the Government of India that led to the creation of Nagaland State on December 1st 1963. The criticism implies that the 16-point agreement was a mistake, as the demand of the people was for complete independence from India. When carefully analysed, much of this criticism is bereft of historical facts and emanates from a section of frustrated politicians solely for the sake of narrow political and personal gains. Such groundless criticism can be safely ignored. However, what is of greater concern is that similar comments are also being made by impartial persons who have no political axe to grind and who genuinely have the interests of Nagas at heart. They too seem to believe that the 16-point agreement compromised the demand for a sovereign Naga nation. The voice of such persons deserves attention. It is, therefore, necessary that the truth should be stated and the record set straight. Let us talk on facts, not emotions. Emotions have a way of hiding the truth.

Sovereignty : Myth and reality
The fundamental assumption underlying the notion that Statehood compromised the sovereignty of Nagas, is that the Nagas were a separate independent entity from time immemorial till the British rulers conquered them. Therefore, when the British left India in 1947, the Nagas should have reverted to their independent status. Prima facie, this sounds an attractive proposition, but is it really true? Let us not be misled by words like 'time immemorial'. Did we have an independent political existence at all immediately before the British rule or even during the British days? Were we really an independent nation? A political entity or a nation has to be based on historical facts. It presupposes the existence of a definite political structure that governs a clearly demarcated area of land which is inhabited by a people who accept this arrangement and have close contacts with each other. It also demands that the political structure would be either a monarchy, a democracy, an autocracy, an oligarchy, a dictatorship or any other structure that is universally accepted by political scientists as an 'independent, self-governing and well defined political entity' or a 'nation'. Other areas in the North-East like Assam, Manipur, Tripura and the Kacharis had their territories and their kingdoms. Did we? The stark and inescapable truth is that neither did we have a definite and unified political structure and nor did we exist as a nation. We were actually a group of heterogeneous, primitive and diverse tribes living in far-flung villages that had very little in common and negligible contact with each other. Education did not exist and awareness about the world outside was totally absent. Each village was practically an entity in itself. A village does not make a nation. The main 'contact' between villages was through the savage practice of headhunting. Mutual suspicion and distrust was rife. People led an insular and isolated life. Interecine warfare was the order of the day. There was no trust or interaction between different tribes. In these circumstances, the question of a unified 'Naga nation' did not arise. No one can dispute these historical truths. There is enough documentation recorded by the British administrators, some as late as the end of the 19th century, which gives the correct picture as it existed. We cannot ignore such historical evidence and rely on emotional outbursts alone.

We continue to claim we were an independent nation till the British conquered us. Did we have a boundary for our nation? As late as the 1940's, when British rule was almost over, large parts of today's Nagaland did not even exist on their maps. Instead of showing villages the maps showed large blank white spaces with the words "Unadministered and Unsurveyed". Did we have a ruler or a Government? The writ of a village chief did not ex- tend beyond his village. Did we have a capital city where the Government sat? The British Deputy Commissioner sat in Kohima out of convenience. Was this the capital of the independent Naga nation that we claim existed before the British? Did we have a currency or a coinage like other kingdoms or nations? We lived on barter till the British introduced the rupee. Did we have armed forces to defend our nation? Did we have common laws, rules and regulations for our nation as a whole? Did we have an administrative apparatus to look after the welfare of the people? Did we have roads that linked the nation? The answer to all these are obviously in the negative. These questions cannot be ignored, especially by those who are educated and claim to be the intelligentsia of our society. Let us face the reality that existed. Let us not distort history and let us not fool ourselves any more. The plain fact is that we never existed as an independent, unified nation at any time in our history. Yes, each village existed Independently, but is that the equivalent of a Naga Nation? Even the names Naga or Angami or Ao or Sema or Chang were unknown to us. We called people of different tribes by other names. We led a primitive and brutish life in our villages, uncivilized and unlettered. The word of Christ was unknown and unheard of. Life beyond the village boundaries was unknown. Justice was rough and summary. Diseases went unchecked. Slavery was common. People lived and died without ever leaving their villages. We had no idea of the concept of a nation or independence or nationhood. Is it right to make these tall claims that we were an independent nation before the British conquered us? At least, let us be honest about our ancestry and our history. We Nagas always prefer honesty to falsehood, however painful the truth may be.
The then Naga way of life is best summed up by RB McCabe who, writing about the Nagas in the 19th century, says "Grouped in small communities of from 100 to 3,000 persons, the Nagas have remained isolated on their hill tops, only deigning to visit their immediate neighbours when a longing for the possession of their heads become too strong to be resisted".
Origin of Naga nationalism
Beginning from the early 1950s, the Naga "nationalism" gained momentum and was accelerated with the election of A.Z. Phizo as president of the NNC on Dec 11, 1950. Under Phizo's leadership, the Nagas conducted the Plebiscite of May 16, 1951 in which it is claimed 99.9% of the Nagas voted for independence. This Plebiscite emotionally integrated the various Naga tribes, and boosted the morale of the movement.
Most scholars agree that the whole Naga problem was ineptly handled by the then police and administration. The banning of the NNC in 1952 was a blunder which compelled the leaders to turn underground once and for all. The movement was given its first martyr when an officer of the Assam Police shot dead Zasibito Angami of Jotsoma village on October 18, 1952 during a public demonstration. The ban was a blunder because Delhi did not realise the popular support the NNC had at that point of time.
An opportunity to settle the problem once and for all came when the prime ministers of India and Burma visited Kohima on March 30, 1953. But the then deputy commissioner of Kohima, for reasons best known to him, did not allow the Nagas to submit a memorandum to the visiting prime ministers. The several thousand Nagas gathered at the venue to receive the VIPs turned and left the ground enmasse when they learned they were not to make themselves heard before the prime ministers. This was, indeed, a turning point in the history of the Nagas.
It is agreed that political will was lacking somewhere down the line. But more important, awareness of each other's way of life and reasoning was deplorably inadequate and thus, the impasse.
Division of the movement
The abduction, torture and killing of T Sakhrie by his own people saw the splitting of the movement into two with the majority of the Nagas finding themselves literally between the devil and the deep blue sea - on the one hand, the Indian troops harassed, tortured, raped and herded villagers into concentration camps and burned their granaries, and on the other hand, for the first and severest time in the history of Naga movement for self determination, Nagas began to hunt, torture and kill fellow Nagas which, understandably, divided the sympathy of the Naga people. The movement too, was divided and it fell into disarray. Several thousands of Nagas were killed; thousands more were tortured in the most inhuman manner; and the rest - the innocent public - suffered in the agony of having their loved ones killed and tortured - theirs was but to live in perpetual fear. They feared the Indian army, and they also feared their own people in the jungles.They neither liked the hammer nor the anvil.
And the sorry part of the whole saga of suffering was that there was nothing the world could do. Human rights awareness in these parts of the world in 1950s was almost absent and the innocents cried in silence and shed unseen tears.
The insensibility of the whole thing became simply mindboggling - but a clear conclusion dawned on the people: If the insanity was allowed to continue any longer, the very survival of the Nagas as a people would be put on the very brink of annihilation.
The people could not work their fields. They could not live their normal lives. And since agriculture was, as is, the mainstay of the Nagas, the spectre of a widespread famine loomed large on the horizons.
Hell on earth
It became obvious that we had over-estimated our strength and that the Government of India under-estimated our capabilities to fight a long-drawn out battle. At the same time, it also became painfully obvious that the public have suffered enough-too much blood had been shed and too many precious lives have been lost. Wives became widows and children became orphans; there was not a single family in all the Naga villages which had not lost a near and dear one to the atrocities of either Indian Army or the Naga undergrounds. The movement had become a nightmare for the Nagas.
The then prevailing situation in these hills was worse than the Hobbesian State of Nature where the worst in man was let loose upon their fellow beings. It was worse because fear, hatred and worst of all, suspicion was sown in the minds of the villagers for the first time. Villagers became suspicious of each other as a new group of people popularly known as intiligin (people who were under .he employ of the Military Intelligence) were recruited to spy and report on the activities of the underground as well as the villagers.
The Government of India was clear that sovereignty was not possible under any circumstances. And also sensing the mood of despondency among the people, it made clear that status quo should continue and the Naga Hi1Is would remain as a district of Assam. It seemed as if the Naga people had no future. It seemed as if the Nagas were destined to be lost in the multitude of people with alien culture, different thinking and aspirations.
Necessity of the times
It also appeared that the Naga movement initiated by Phizo had reached a dead end. And it was at this time that a few educated and patriotic persons who felt that the Naga people took stock of the then prevailing situation, and resolved that even if Independence was no possible, the land, identity and individuality of the Naga people should never be compromised with by remaining as a district of Assam.The choice was between survival and annihilation - the choice was between being submerged forever in Assam, or being recognised as a distinct entity having the freedom to exercise our traditional rights and respected as a people, or being trampled under the weight of dictatorship.
People's conventions
The generations of today cannot imagine the distress that the leaders of those days went through to take these choices. Many of these leaders were killed just because they voiced their feelings and convictions. But it is to their eternal credit that they did not take any decisions hastily or without consultations. They were, true to the spirit of the Naga ancestors, genuine democrats. They consulted and discussed all these issues in minute details with all the different tribes and even with those living outside Nagaland. Their sole intention was to ameliorate and alleviate the sufferings of the people and their efforts would be better appreciated when considered alongwith the fact that transport and communication as well as security in those days was nothing to write home about. However, the conviction that each and every group of Nagas should be thoroughly consulted before taking such a momentous decision as drawing up any agreement with the Government of India, overcome all hesitations and difficulties. Moreover, the leaders of that period took utmost care to ensure the voice and opinions of the villagers were heard, and a consensus was reached. After due deliberations, and ensuring that all the different tribes made their feelings known, the Naga People's Convention was formed and a series of meetings were held at Kohima in 1957, at Ungmna in 1958 and at Mokokchung in 1959 to seek the opinion of the people before responding to the invitation of the Government of India. It was understood from the very beginning that decisions would only be taken with the approval of the majority, and though not easy by any means to bring about a consensus opinion among the various, hitherto not too familiar tribes, a unanimous decision was worked out at long last. And after protracted negotiations with the Government of India, the 16-Point Agreement was signed in 1960 and the State of Nagaland born in 1963.
Covenant to end a war
This Agreement is a remarkable document and it was the first of its kind signed by the Government of India with any section of its people. Nagaland is the only State born out of an agreement. This is indeed remarkable in the days when Delhi followed an iron-hand policy as far as integration of the country was concerned. Statehood of Nagaland was the amalgamation of the aspirations of the people especially their aspirations to live in peace, normalcy and prosperity. It was a covenant without a battle to end a senseless war, and credit must go to the Naga leaders who had the rational desire and human instinct to escape from the senseless conditions of war that prevailed at that point of time. And it gave the Nagas worth and significance in the eyes of the world.
Statehood-bedrock of Naga society
Statehood also gave the Nagas a sense of unity, identity and political entity for the very first time. Tuensang and Mon areas were merged with the new State and the representatives of these areas were represented for the first time in policy-making for the development of the people. It established parliamentary democracy in our society and ensured that the destiny of the Nagas would be decided and charted by the Nagas themselves and not by someone alien to their ways of life. At the same time, recognising the need to preserve our culture, traditions and customary laws, a special provision was added to the Constitution of India. Article 371 A of the Constitution gaurantees that, unless the Legislative Assembly of Nagaland so decides, no Act of the Indian Parliament would apply to the State of Nagaland in respect of
i) religious and social Practices of the Nagas
ii) Naga customary laws and procedures
iii) administration of civil and criminal justice involving decisions according to Naga customary laws and
iv) ownership and transfer of land and its resources.
In all respects, this is no mean achievement. But it is easy to belittle these achievements today and cast unwanted and unfair aspersions on the leaders who made it possible. It is also easy to sit in the comforts of one's home, enjoy the fruits of Statehood and make unfair comments, forgetting all the trials and tribulations that went into giving the Nagas an honourable place in the Indian Union.
37 years of Statehood
It has indeed, been a long and winding road for the Nagas in the last 37 years od Statehood. But nevertheless, we have come far and we have reasons to boast of our achievements.
In 1963, the population of the State stood at 3.69 lakh out of whom barely 18% or sixty-six thousand people were literate. There was not a single college in the whole State and there were only two Government High Schools, 11 middle schools and 180 primary schools.There were only two civil hospitals and a handful of smaller hospitals and dispensaries in some few places.Basic amenities such as water and electric supply were non-existent. Black-topped roads stretched for hardly 168 kilometres and the remaining roads barely reached a few administrative headquarters. The total fund allocation for the entire Naga Hills Tuensang Area in 1963 amounted to a paltry Rs 3.88 crore with a few hundred Government servants running the affairs of the State Government.
The State Legislative Assembly has voted a budget of Rs 1,725 crore for the year 2000-2001. And this directly reflects on the amount of investment and the degree of development the people of Nagaland has made in the last three-plus decades. Houses even in the remotest areas have CGI roofings with roads leading to them. Schools, play grounds, electricity and health care facilities have been provided to one and all. Our literacy rate stands at 83% ranking among the highest in the whole country. Above all, we have our own elected legislators and about a lakh of government servants to run the government thereby enabling us to determine our own destiny.
Criminalisation of the Cause
What has happened to the movement for independence is clearly visible today. All idealism seems to have been lost and the goals for which thousands suffered and sacrificed their lives appear to have been completely forgotten. The movement has now degenerated into sheer terrorism with killing of innocents, extortion, looting, intimidation and threats becoming the order of the day. Gun culture is all pervading and the price for dissent is death. People are afraid to express their opinions, and the straight-forwardness that characterised Naga society appears to have vanished. Leaders who head the movement now do not seem to have the vision, the wisdom, the democratic credentials and the compassion that are required to lead a people and run a nation. They impose their decisions through threat. They do not command respect - they demand it from the people at gun point.
What was once a movement of the people by the people for the people, is now reduced to meaningless terrorism with the so-called national workers embarking on a spree of extortion and self-agrandisement. A movement which once had volunteers sacrificing their everything is now reduced to goondaism. This is amply shown by the fact that cadres of the different factions of the underground go around villages demanding that they should be fed and supplied with rations and money, as if the villagers owe them.
In other words, the movement initiated and nurtured by the people has gone against the same people, and those criminalising the once noble movement force themselves to believe, or suffer from delusions, that they have the sympathy of the public.The recent resolution of the village representatives from the 1068 villages at the VDB Conference speaks volumes about the attitude of the people towards violence.
Modern concept of Sovereignty
Apart from this, we also must be practical enough to realise that independence is not some magic wand that would solve all our problems at one stroke. The world has changed, and national boundaries and territorial sovereignty have little meaning today. Small, under developed and economically poor nations have no future in a world that is increasingly driven by market economy. Inter-dependence has replaced independence as the means to prosperity and economics is the real politics of today. The modern concept of sovereignty is based on economic sovereignty, and not political sovereignty as in the past. The European Union is a prime example. A number of countries have formed the Union to have a common currency and maximise their economic interests. They have abolished all trade, citizenship and commercial barriers among their respective nations. The main reason why nations should merge is that people want prosperity, a better life and rapid economic progress. They do not want to isolate themselves, nor do they want to strive in vain or live in poverty.
Naga Independence A Hypothesis
These are the trends that are dominating the global scenario today and it would be naïve and self-defeating to ignore these developments sweeping across nations the world over.
In this background, let us seriously introspect on whether Nagaland can survive as an independent nation. There are people who argue that even without a historical legacy, the Nagas must struggle for independence. Under the label of 'scholars' and 'thinkers' there are some busy-bodies who strongly advocate that Nagas are not Indians and that Nagaland is not a part of India. For the sake of academic discussion, let us for a moment agree that Nagas must struggle for sovereignty or independence. Now the question arises- how do we establish an independent Nagaland and run this nation? First and foremost, as an independent country we should be able to stand on our own legs. Are we in a position to do so? Where do we find the resources to manage the manifold and complex activities that are essential for even the smallest nation? Let us take just a few examples of what an independent, country requires:
* Resources to run the Government, General Administration, Judiciary, Police, Civic Services etc.
* Establishing and finding resources for a standing Army, Air Force and other Defence related expenditure.
* Providing education, health care, power, water supply and numerous other developmental activities for the people. (Despite being a small State we have over 60 Departments presently and would need many more as an independent nation.)
* Establishing diplomatic missions, at least with major countries, and expenditure on UNO member-ship etc.
* Finding avenues for employment for our educated youth within the nation, since many avenues that exist at present would not be available.
* Establishing our own Air and Rail services, Postal, Telegraph and Telephone services, Customs and Excise machinery, Banking services, Currency and Coinage, Industries etc.
The list is endless and could go on and on, but the general picture is obvious. Do we have the resources, the expertise, the professional and technical competence and the machinery to do all this? It is easy to be idealistic and be swayed by wild promises; it is difficult to face hard facts. For instance, in 1999-2000, the budget of Nagaland State was about Rs.1256 crore. Out of this, as much as Rs.1078 crore (86%) came as grants or loans from the Central Government and financial institutions and about Rs. 92 crore from GPF subscriptions of Government employees and recovery of loans. What was our own contribution? The internal revenue generated by the State was as little as Rs. 86 crore (6.8%). Again, much of this accrued as taxes from traders belonging to other parts of the country, which would not be available after independence. Obviously, all grants and loans from India would automatically cease if we became independent. What sort of an economy would we have to sustain a nation? Surely it cannot be an economy built out of extortion. If taxes are to be levied, where is the income for this?
It is clear that ours would be a bankrupt and insolvent country and the people would not be able to survive. The plain truth is that without economic strength, no nation can survive as an independent entity.
Nagas can do without that bloody sovereignty if it means pulling the society back by hundreds, if not thousands of years in terms of social evolution. Let us not march backwards but forward alongwith the rest of the world.

The Last Word
Statehood fulfilled the aspirations of the Nagas to a large extent: The identity of the Nagas had been preserved as desired by Naga leaders ever since the feeling of Naga-oneness began. A special provision in the Constitution of India guarantees the protection of the religion, culture and traditions of the Nagas as well as their land and its resources. The 16-Point Agreement was not drafted by blind persons and signed blindly. Every clause was carefully considered and finalised after extensive consultations and with the interests of the Nagas in mind. The leaders of the Naga People's Convention were genuine patriots who fervently desired a bright future for the people. They were practical and realistic and knew that dreams alone cannot provide bread and butter to the people. They were also true democrats. They did not believe in violence, killings and coercion as the means to settle problems. It would be extremely uncharitable and petty to denigrate them and what they did for the Nagas. 'They need our whole hearted gratitude. All of us need to seriously consider these issues before jumping to hasty and wrong conclusions.
We have a new millennium ahead of us. We have no choice but to look forward, evolving new ideas on how to survive and exist as a people in the next millenium. The Future is the theme, not the past. We cannot now afford to live in the myths of the past. Are we going to prepare to face the challenges of the future in order to survive, or will we live only in the dreams of the past by which we will surely perish. We also have to be in consonance with the historical processes that are emerging and are likely to govern the world society.
News Analysis Ground realities in Nagaland

Although both the Naga underground factions have entered into ceasefire agreement with the Centre, the ground situation in Nagaland is far from encouraging. Reports of fratricidal killings, factional clashes, kidnappings and extortions are pouring in every day from almost all the parts of the State.
Fed up with such a rise in factional feuds by exploiting the ceasefire agreement, various Naga organisations have asked both the groups to stop killing each other and unify to find an amicable solution to the vexed Naga problem through negotiations with the Government of India.
The worst affected places due to the ongoing factional feuds in Nagaland are Tuensang and Mon. Armed cadres of both the NSCN (IM) and NSCN (K) are camping in these two places to eliminate each other. Regular exchanges of fire between the two groups have made the life of the common people miserable. Moreover, the so-called 'freedom fighters' do not waste any opportunity to harass the people and the Government officials. The sense of insecurity prevailing in those areas provoked the leaders of Chanh, Yimchunger, Sangtam, Khiammiungan and Phom tribes to take a tough stand against the insurgents. These tribes have threatened non-cooperation if the ultras do not pay any heed to their sincere appeal. The Konyak Union of Nagaland has also condemned the fighting among various underground groups.The union has appealed to all the groups to shun violence.
In such a situation, the NSCN (IM) recently held the Centre responsible for tardy progress in the ongoing political negotiations between the sides. The underground outfit accused the Centre of being insincere towards solving the Naga problem. On the other hand, the NSCN (K) claimed that a meaningful dialogue to solve the Naga problem would take place only after the withdrawal of ban on the outfit and abrogation of all draconian laws such as Armed Forces Special Power Act.
There is nothing new in the allegation made by the NSCN (IM) against the Centre. Since long, this insurgent outfit is maintaining that solution to the Naga problem remained elusive because of lack of sincerity on the part of the Indian Government. But, quite interestingly, the outfit never bothered to amend its acts. Since the beginning of ceasefire between the IM group and the Centre, it has indulged in large-scale killing of felow Nagas, who did not adhere to their diktats. The NSCN (IM) went into killing spree in such a fashion that it seemed that ceasefire had given it the licence to kill.
Reeling under the fratricidal killings, the Naga society then appealed to both the factions to stop violence. Various Naga NGOs met the top leadership of both the factions with this appeal. But NSCN (IM) leaders Isac Swu and T. Muivah were unrelented. They categorically stated that the NSCN (IM) was the sole representative of the Nagas and any one who dare not to accept the fact would have to face the consequences. But the common Nagas, all along advocated that a meaningful solution to the problem could be achieved only after the unification of various Naga underground groups.
The events following the declaration of ceasefire between the NSCN (IM) and the Centre clearly proved that it was the underground outfit, which was not sincere. If it was sincere enough, it should have shown respect to the wishes of the Naga people. Instead, it went on to establish their supremacy over the Naga people through the strength of guns.
On the other hand, the NSCN (K) too had acted against the wishes of the Naga people. After entering into the ceasefire agreement with NSCN (IM), the security forces declared unilateral ceasefire to all the Naga underground factions. The NSCN (K) reciprocated the unilateral declaration of ceasefire by the couple of Armymen. Until they suffered heavy loss at the hands of the Myanmar Army, the Khaplang group of the NSCN never showed any intetions for a negotiated settlement of the Naga problem.
There is no harm in talking to both the groups of the NSCN separately to find an amicable solution of the Naga problem. But the underground organisations should be asked categorically to stop factional feuds and killings. As the popular support is with the Centre, it should not allow any factions to make a mockery of the ceasefire agreement. The ground rules of the ceasefire agreement must be adheared to strictly and any violations of the ground rules would invite action. Otherwise, the derailment of the ongoing peace process in Nagaland is inevitable.
Withering away of ULFA
Political movements, which do not have strong ideological base, have a limited life span. These movements in the nascent stage make strong inroads in the psyche of the populance by appealing to their sentiments. However, in the absence of any strong ideology, the support base of these organisations withers away, as the true and hollow nature of these organisations becomes clear with the passage of time. This happened in Tamilnadu in the late sixties, Punjab in eighties and started happening in Assam in late nineties.
Today, ULFA is facing resistance from inside the organisation as well as from outside and it may not take too long for it to completely break down. In the second week of February 2000, some of the cadres holding vital posts deserted the organisation. The reason behind these desertions is said to be the frustration of the cadres with the way of functioning of the organisation. At present, no activity is going on except extortion in the name of the organisation. Extortions have been going on from poor village cultivators and general public. The cadres who had joined ULFA in the hope of serving the people are finding themselves engaged in looting, extortions and kidnapping their own people. The cadres are mentally upset and are increasingly getting addicted to liquor. The people, who used to support them and give them shelter, have backed out. They are no longer willing to be a party to the violent acts of ULFA terrorism.
The last part of 1999 saw a revolutionary change in the attitude of people of Assam towards ULFA. With the arrest of four ISI agents working for ULFA, the ULFA-ISI nexus was confirmed, which triggered the process of ULFA losing mass support. Before this revelation, the sympathisers of ULFA were not aware that in the guise of a social reformist organisation, the group had established contacts with the Pakistani intelligence agency. ISI, in fact, has been supporting majority of the militant organisations in the North-Eastern region including the dreaded NSCN-IM. After its failure in Kargil; ISI has plans of cutting the entire north-east from the rest of the country. It has intensified its operations in the narrow sector between Srirampur in Assam and New Jalpaiguri in West Bengal, which is also called 'chicken's neck' and is the only road link between entire north-eastern region and the rest of India. ISI has been extending training to ULFA cadres apart from helping them in procuring arms from Bangladesh.
Another factor, which counts in the eroding base of ULFA, is the discovery of mass graves at Ghogabeel, in November 1999. The reaction of the people was intense. The people of Kalitapukhri, Goghabeel have long been suspecting something foul going on at the deserted area, from where, they have been recovering unclaimed human objects and hearing human screams. The operation of uncovering of mass graves, which was joined by thousand residents of Bistupur, Dihjani, Barghopa, Sagakuchi and Katakuchi brought forth the inhuman and barbaric tendencies of ULFA and shattered the myth of ULFA as an organisation working for the people. The process has been continuos.
The murders of Sanjoy Ghosh and Ratneswar Sharma , noted scholar, expose the ideologies of ULFA, which is interested in killing people, who are opposed to its ideas. The insurgent outfit even killed its own cadres, who questioned its proximity to ISI. In January 2000,134 ULFA and BLT militants surrendered before the common people in Assam. There was nothing official about it. Neither was there any Central dignitary present nor the Governor, Chief Minister or somebody from Army top brass. The surrendered cadres said that they had realised that their path was wrong. Binoy Rava, Commander of ULFA's Western command, who was among them, admitted that he had been awarded death penalty by the ULFA because of his opposition to some of their activities. The feelings of these cadres reflect the change in attitude of these boys towards the organisation and may result in more surrenders in near future.