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05/22/2010: "Next round of Indo-Naga talks in Nagaland: Atem EMN Narain B Sag"

Next round of Indo-Naga talks in Nagaland: Atem EMN
Narain B Sagar |
KOHIMA, MAY 21: The next round of peace talks between the Government of India and the NSCN-IM is likely to be held in Nagaland amidst the ongoing stalemate over the proposed visit of NSCN-IM General Secretary Th. Muivah to his birthplace Somdal in Manipur.
Emissary to the Collective Leadership of NSCN-IM Lt Gen (retd) VS Atem, briefing media persons at Viswema village today, said the next round of talks may be held soon and that the NSCN-IM leadership has conveyed to the Centre that the next round should be held in Naga country and not elsewhere, be it Delhi or a third country. However, the exact venue and date are yet to be finalised, he said. He further informed that so far there has been no positive response from the Centre but said they are not adverse to the idea of holding peace parleys in Nagaland.
If this materialises, it will be the first of its kind in Nagaland during the 13 years of ceasefire as all official dialogue between the two sides have been held either in Delhi or abroad.
On the present imbroglio and the inter-state tension over the proposed visit of Muivah to his birthplace, the senior NSCN-IM official reiterated that the entire situation was a creation of the Manipur Government. Instead of talking to the Naga people, the Manipur Government used armed forces, killing two students and injuring several others and now they are projecting Nagas as Manipuri haters, he said, adding that ‘the Manipur Government displayed their bravery on innocent and unarmed womenfolk’.
He also reasserted that Nagas want to live as good neighbours with Manipur but never at the expense of the rights and land of the Nagas. “We have not grabbed an inch of Manipur land and we will not part with even an inch of our land.”
When asked whether there has been any other communication after the last interaction with the GoI representatives at Viswema, Atem said that there has been some communication and that the centre has asked the NSCN-IM to have patience. Nevertheless, he reiterated strongly that there is no question of going back to Hebron and ‘we are only looking forward for Muivah to go ahead with the proposed visit’.
It is up to the GoI to prevail upon the Manipuris, he stated while also disclosing that “we are telling Delhi to put off its hand and we will deal with Manipur in our own way”. GoI should deal with Manipur effectively and not in this manner, he felt.
Atem went on to state that Government of India has not been able to understand the Nagas though the Nagas have been waiting for more than 60 years for an honourable solution. GoI should be able to differentiate between friends and enemies as Nagas have been waiting for more then 13 years believing that an honourable solution will arrive through negotiation, he said, while pointing out that unlike Manipuris who have resorted to killing of Hindi speaking labourers and also banning Hindi movies in Manipur, till date Nagas have not harmed any Indian civilians.
Meanwhile, reacting to the recent statement of NSCN-K leader Kughalu Mulatonu declaring Muivah as terrorist and also warning the Naga civil societies, Atem said it has shocked Nagas and it is very unfortunate that such persons are found to be a member of an organisation which claims to be fighting for Nagas.
‘We want to go home’ EMN Our Correspondent
Displaced Mao-Nagas asks Mnp forces leave so that they can return home
| KOHIMA, Hundreds of displaced Mao-Nagas presently being sheltered at Naga Heritage village in Kisama today
staged a sit-in-protest demanding the removal of Manipur Commandos and IRB from the Naga areas so that they can return home and live in peace.
Sitting in protest at the Kisama grounds, the displaced Mao-Nagas, consisting mostly children below 10 years, high school students and womenfolk who had escaped into Nagaland after the May 6 incident fearing danger from the Manipur forces deployed at Mao Gate, held placards some of which read ‘We are Nagas and we want freedom’, ‘Don’t suppress our birthright’ and ‘Go back Manipur Commandos/IRB, we want to go home’.
Conveying the message ‘our land is ours’, they also questioned the Government of India on its sincerity in dealing with the Naga issue.
Speaking on behalf of the displaced persons, Kaihrü Pfuze, a BA student, said their only wish was to go back home and live in harmony. He said due to the present situation students were losing out on their education and farmers are worried since it is the time for seed sowing for several crops and also harvesting of some.
“We want to go home but we are afraid of the brute forces deployed in our area,” he stated, speaking on behalf of all the families.
Next round of peace talks in Nagaland: NSCN leader STAFF WRITER PTI
Kohima, May 21 (PTI) The next round of peace talks between the Centre and the NSCN-IM will be held in Nagaland amid the ongoing stalemate over Naga leader T Muivah's resolve to visit his birthplace in Manipur.

Senior NSCN-IM functionary V S Atem said the Centre agreed to its proposal to have the next round of parleys in Nagaland but the exact venue and date are yet to be finalised.

The ensuing peace talks, likely to be held next week, will be the first of its kind in Nagaland during the discourse of 13 years of Naga peace process since all official dialogue between the two sides were held either in Delhi or abroad towards finding a honourable settlement to the protracted Naga political conflict.
Gov to grace intl day for biological diversity morungexpress
Kohima, (MExN): Governor Nikhil Kumar will grace the International Day for Biological Diversity 2010 under the theme “Biodiversity, Development and Poverty Alleviation” on May 22 at 9:00 AM at Sainik School, Punglwa. Minister for Forest, Environment, Ecology and Wildlife and Excise M.C. Konyak will be the guest of honour.
The function will be chaired by L. Kire, commissioner & secretary, forest & environment) Nagaland. T. Angami, Principal Secretary (Retd), chairman, State Biodiversity Board, Nagaland and H.K. Khulu, IAS agriculture production commissioner will also speak on the occasion. Vote of thanks will be proposed by Dr. C.L. Goel, IFS, Nagaland. The programme will be followed by tree plantation by participants.
In the meantime, NPF Youth Wing Nagaland will also observe the day at New High Court Complex, Merema, Kohima with Minister for Health & Family Welfare Kuzholuzo (Azo) Nienu as the chief guest.
Further, there will be mass tree plantation around the New High Courts Complex. All the NPF central office bearers, youth wing, women wing, Kohima division youth wing and women wing have been requested to attend the programme and bring along spade and shovel and reach the venue before 9:00 AM.

Borderline Case NSCN leader T. Muivah’s attempted ‘return’ after 40 years rocks ManipurDola Mitra Outlook India
The Angry Hills
• NSCN(I-M) chief T. Muivah, coming home after 40 years, is stopped from entering Manipur
• State government fears resurgence in the Greater Nagalim struggle
• Manipur under ‘economic blockade’, protests rip through state
• If stalemate continues, NSCN(I-M) threatens to “go underground” again

“It’s do-or-die for us. We will sacrifice our lives for our leader,” a young boy stoically told us before merging into the crowd of men, women and children gathered at Mao Gate at the Manipur-Nagaland border on a sunny morning earlier this month. It’s not clear if, moments later, as they charged in through the barricades, amidst the teargas shells, stone pelting and firing of gunshots, it was he who died along with another Naga student. But what is clear is that, in an inversion of the ancient tale of Helen of Troy, in which a city burnt because one woman would not go back home, two Indian states are on the verge of bursting into political fire because one man cannot.
Thuingaleng Muivah, the 74-year-old general secretary of the separatist National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah)—NSCN(I-M)—is no Helen of Troy. He is a man, a plain one at that, and the son of poor peasants. More importantly, he’s driven not by romantic love but by the fire of identity politics. In the last few days, he has certainly demonstrated that he still has the fire, generating mayhem while engaged in a quest that is both intensely personal and political—to find a way back to his ancestral village, Somdal, after a gap of nearly four decades.
Trouble started immediately after the NSCN leader announced his plan to visit Somdal, situated in the remote hills of Manipur, earlier this month. While the Centre, which has had an intermittent ceasefire deal happening with the NSCN since 1997, gave its nod, in Manipur, Muivah’s proposed visit to the Naga-dominated region immediately raised the spectre of Greater Nagalim (the NSCN’s desired Naga homeland, which includes large parts of present day Manipur). The Manipur government’s official spokesperson, N. Viren, baldly told Outlook earlier this week, “Muivah stands for the disintegration of Manipur and Manipuris do not want him here.”

“Muivah stands for the disintegration of Manipur and we don’t want him here,” says the govt spokesman.


So there was bloodshed as Muivah’s supporters clashed with the Manipur police at the border; then came a Naga-imposed ‘economic blockade’ on Manipur. Transport routes to the state pass through Nagaland, and even essential commodities weren’t going through. In between, the seven Naga legislators in the Manipur assembly resigned in protest against the ban on Muivah. “The situation is grave,” Viren told Outlook. “The prices of food and other essential goods have skyrocketed. Even life-saving drugs are not reaching hospitals.” With the crisis spiralling, the Centre initiated a series of moves to end the stalemate. The Nagaland and Manipur CMs were summoned by the PM, top central ministers visited the two states. But to little avail.
Meanwhile, the man over whom all this ruckus has erupted bides his time at the little hamlet of Viswema on the Nagaland-Manipur border, “until”, he tells Outlook with an air of quiet understatement, “things are a little calmer”. We meet in a house atop a hill, after climbing up a winding set of stone stairs guarded by Kalashnikov-bearing sentries. Muivah stands at the edge of the terrace, looking out into the horizon...a vista of blue mountains, covered in grey mist. He looks patient rather than perturbed, determined rather than dismayed.

Naga protestors block NH-39, Manipur’s lifeline
He changes from casual clothes into a formal suit for the interview and photo-session, explaining that he wants to look neat. Statesmanlike, perhaps, is what he means. “I’m human too,” he says, when we ask him why he wants to go home. “When my parents died, I could not be with them. I want to visit their graves.” In conversation, he refers frequently to his mother, whom he calls “Mummy”, and says he “misses” her terribly. In a more political vein, he adds: “She instilled in me the value of an identity.”
The Meitei-Naga conflict is at the heart of the current stand-off and, not surprisingly, if Muivah is to be drawn out, it is on this subject. The Hindu Meitei community, which politically dominates Manipur, treated the Christian Nagas as “untouchables”, Muivah remarks. He says he has to this day not forgotten the sting of a Meitei insult. “I was in Class 3 at the time. My parents had taken me to work in the city on a road-construction project. My employer refused to shake my hand. He said for a Naga, it was audacious of me. I felt humiliated.”
Muivah uses incidents like this to explain, and justify, the quest for a separate Naga identity. It’s difficult to imagine that the friendly, gentle man sitting across the coffee table was, less than two decades ago, on the Indian government’s list of “most wanted” terrorists. That this man has spent a large chunk of his life out in the wild jungles stretching from India to China through Burma and other parts of Southeast Asia, leading a guerrilla army once referred to as the “most dreaded insurgent outfit” India had ever confronted. That there was once a price of Rs 1,00,000 on his head—an official notice that, incidentally, is yet to be formally revoked. That he has travelled the world on fake passports until he was caught one time by immigration officials at a Thailand airport (he made an unsuccessful attempt to escape from the country by jumping bail). For his fervour, he’s suffered a host of physical injuries too, even had teeth knocked out in a brush with the Indian army. He has also, “as per the compulsions of guerrilla warfare”, ambushed, yes, shot dead “the enemy”, but never, he insists, “innocent civilians”.
So has the man mellowed with age? Is his visit really as apolitical as he and his followers say it is? Or is there a “more dubious design”, as Manipuris firmly believe. “If this is only a personal visit,” Viren asks Outlook, “why did he have meetings planned in various venues across Manipur?” We ask Muivah, why now after nearly 40 years? “I think there is a season for everything,” he says. “I’m old. I couldn’t come home all these years because we were underground.”
It’s not clear, at this point, how the current stalemate will be resolved. But one thing is for sure: the stand-off has only added to Muivah’s stature among his own people, even though he is a remote, somewhat inaccessible figure for most of them. Outside Muivah’s house, an NSCN leader tells us, “The ceasefire can go to hell. We are ready to go underground over this issue.” Hopefully, it will not come to that again.
A commentary to Khekai Poumai’s “Ten contradictions of Bankimchandra Chingangbam’s” Bankimchandra Chingangbam

1. It is a good thing that Mr. Khekai took the pain of relieving all the hatred he has been carrying all these years. Now that the load is off his chest, it is time to get down to the nitty-gritty of the content of his response. His perception of the whole thing is, at best, off tangent by a long way and lop sided.
2. t is pure conjecture and narrow mindedness on his part to project my offer of condolences for those two innocent souls appear spurious. He really needs to re-examine his ability to read somebody’s well meant feelings. It is a malicious attempt, no doubt, and will remain as one. Dear Mr. Khekai, I am a human being, first and foremost, and whatever comes latter, are just suffixes. I sincerely, hope you can fathom that.
3. “The two Naga brothers and all protesters knew that the price they had to pay for our ‘united dream’ to be achieved”. Dear Mr. Khokai, it is better not to fool others with this type of rhetoric. DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES, and, pray tell me how many of those protesters knew about this ‘united dream’ you are referring to. Most of them were innocent and unaware villagers instigated and coerced into taking part and they were the sacrificial lambs, not even for a moment realizing for what and where they were being led into. It is pure and simple exploitation. No video footage or photos of the Mao rally showed the presence of leaders of worthwhile standing, at the front. This answers quite a lot and no explanations are necessary. Are the supposed leaders staying at the back pushing the cavalry forward? Leaders must lead from the front and not issue orders or comments from behind. Please tell what can be made of such leaders.
4.ADC elections are not meant to suppress Naga aspirations, as many others are taking active part, in spite of all the blockades and intimidations. The response would have been overwhelming and somewhere somebody does not want that to happen. So, the ploy is not really hard to read. Let the people decide. NSCN(IM) has been using terror and intimidation with impunity and many have been liquidated because they did not heed to their diktats. How much of intimidation and killings are yet to be enacted, furthermore, for these perpetrators to realize that ultimately, it is all of us that face extinction together. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Amen.
5. “Non-violence and non-existence”. Let the one who has not sinned, cast the first stone. And please tell me what type of non-violence are you preaching? You cannot practice non-violence with a gun and/or dagger behind your back. In Hindi, there is an apt saying- Bagal mein chhuri mooh mein Ram Ram. It literally means mouthing God’s name with a dagger hidden behind. Only the courageous and the pure can practice non-violence. Jesus did.
6. “Nagas chose the peaceful method as enshrined in the Constitution of India”. How convenient of you to start believing and following the Indian Constitution. This is really becoming a comic situation and a farce, at best. Can you swear by it without any reservations ? Will be too much of an expectation for you to understand that the Indian Constitution cannot be adopted in parts or in a piecemeal format.
7. “Peace and the power of guns”. Who is the one that is contradicting, Mr. Khekai ?
8. Th. Muivah is a criminal in the eyes of the law, without an inkling of doubt, for the genocide he has committed against the Kukis and the Zeliangrong people, not to mention the Marings and the Koms; the list is endless. How can it be condoned and forgotten that even sleeping children were not spared? Nobody is about to get swayed by the attempt of roping in all Nagas in his nefarious deeds, not even in Ukhrul district. Nice try, Mr. Khekai. It is your prerogative to side with him and his unpardonable acts, but God’s sake do not try to pull in other unaware and unwilling people into the vortex of your misdeeds.
9. It will be an eye opener for you to analyze the facts and understand Manipur’s political map, as it stands today. What the Nagalim proponents are trying to do is to redraw the map which is yet to take place, nor is it likely to be in the future, without a consensual agreement of all concerned parties. So, there is no question of being “provocatively ambiguous” to state the obvious. The concept of consensual agreement may be lost on many but, for Mr. Khekai’s information, this is also “enshrined” in the Indian Constitution.
10. “Right to subjugate the Nagas” and “Naga enslavement “. In what age is Mr. Khekai living in? All these terms should be relegated to history, besides not only being undemocratic, it is downright barbaric. Grow out of it. We are in an age of infinite possibilities, and it is high time to raise the standard and quality of life of all the people, through a mutual and concerted effort. Living in the comfort of an urban life and mouthing diplomatic or inflammatory verbal assaults is a retrograde step. Let all the Manipuri Naga representatives grow out of being pawns of the NSCN (IM) and go to where they are needed the most. And create the necessary infrastructure for all round development. If there is no such farsighted vision and commitment, no amount of redrawing of imaginary boundaries, will be of any help. Let the push for development come from the Nagas themselves by selecting and electing those that will perform and deliver.
11. It is true to quite an extent that trying to “benefit without accountability” is a general malaise, more so in a number of communities in Manipur. Human greed is the root cause and it will be a fallacy to give it a communal tint. Muivah has been no exception, by using the ‘Nagaland for Christ” theme in the effort to rope in Christian followers in other countries to extract resources and support. How can the imagined Nagalim be possible with extortion and highway robbery?
12. Now that you are speaking of freedom and equality, only when Muivah has been checkmated.. To which audience are you directing this false propaganda of “Meitei domination”. Yes, it is definitely true that a lot of ground has to be covered by the Nagas to level out, but that is also true for the Meiteis, as well. Please refrain from using such provocative statements, as it only reveals your deep seated insecurity and uncertainty in this dog eat dog world. The valley communities are in their own fight and battle for survival and it will be a foolish notion to perceive that we are trying to dominate anyone. Nobody has the time nor the resources to embark on such foolhardy misadventures. It is all in your mind. Try to relieve yourself of it, because your retrograde mentality affects all of us.
13. Mr. Khekai also takes the cake of even contorting the meaning of “resilience” in context. Yes, a million times yes; Manipuris are a resilient lot to be so patient and withstand the frequent highway blockades that take place even at the drop of a hat, or somebody has a sneeze or an itch. The Manipuris have been taking and withstanding all the brunt of the extortion and daylight robbery on the national highways. Please do not take us to be ones that can be pushed around all the time, and do not let the sleeping ferocious nature of the Meiteis come to the fore. We can understand the sort of apocalypse that might erupt and so we raise our resilience to such an extent, so that no innocent will be made the victim, very unlike the NSCN(IM). It is such a barbaric and primitive form of action and claiming it to be a democratic form of protest, deserves nothing but condemnation of the highest order. Now please elaborate whose toes are we stepping on, when our lifelines are being strangulated by the so called social Naga organizations.
14. What did you expect, Mr. Khekai ? That the UCM and AMUCO will come running, when you offer them talks in a non-conducive and non-congenial state of affairs, that too in an open letter in the papers. Who are you trying to deceive and fool, sir ? The talks offer materialized only when counter blockades started to effect in Tamenglong and Chandel, and the threat of another counter blockade from the Assam side looming overhead. Nobody in Manipur are opposing talks but the atmosphere for such talks should be made in a suitable atmosphere, and the ball is in your court. Many people in the Manipur valley are opposed to counter blockades, as we realize that only the poor gets affected but, on the other hand, this seems to be the only language the so called Naga NGOs understand. Only a pinch can make them understand that, whatever blockade they enforce is a double edged sword.
15. The Supreme Court of India has declared the highway blockades a criminal offense. What does Mr. Khekai say to that, after his belated allegiance to the Indian Constitution ? But contrary to the outcome many people like yourself, who must have envisaged an outburst of violence from the valley communities; nothing like that happened in spite of all your efforts of feeding false propaganda in the media. Mr. Khekai, you are in for a surprise. Even after this prolonged highway strangulation, fresh vegetables and eatables are available all round the clock in the valley markets. There is a bubbling talk in many circles that maybe the the life sucking blockades is a blessing in disguise. Local agri-farming and horticulture is getting a tremendous boost and the reality of agriculture being a viable economically empowering venture is becoming truer day by day.
16. Mr. Khekai must realize that, in a democracy, differences and infighting do crop up amongst the politicians just to gain brownie points over each other, but thats the little price we have to pay, after all they do annihilate each other, nor do they liquidate whole villages.
17. Yes, the hills people, inclusive of the Tangkhuls, Maos, Marams, Kabuis, Poumais, Marings, Koms, etc., etc., and lest we forget, the Kukis are all victims of NSCN(IM) and are opening their eyes that the dream of South Nagalim is not going to take them anywhere. And for your kind information, We, Meiteis, do not drink blood as many headhunters do. Even if it is a metaphorical expression, it is all in bad taste. The way cadres of NSCN(IM) smashed the heads of the Late Shri Thingnam Kishan SDO, Kasom Khullen and two other co-workers, just because he opposed the misuse of NREGS funds meant for the villagers, is still fresh in our minds. Did you nauseate or feel faint after hearing such horrible and horrendous acts, that was a carried out by people of your ilk, in the most hideous and barbaric way? If you did, it shows that, at least, you have evolved into a civilized state of mind; or jumped with glee, in that case , no amount of confession or praying can save your soul.
18. We do believe in a mature and civilized way of working things out and not resorting to extortion, ransoms, intimidations, highway robberies and blockades which the NSCN(IM) does with impunity. The amount of money collected runs into hundreds of crores, but they fund only Muivah’s foreign hopping jaunts and weapons to kill and maim. What have the NSCN(IM) done for the poor people living in the interiors except selling a dream to them, which they do not care about, because it does not relieve the pangs of hunger and the want of health care. You cannot expect somebody to solve your problems if you do not make them known. So, Mr. Khekai Poumai, go to the village you belong to and try to solve their problems; the effort will worth your while. You seem educated enough to know that, I presume. If you do not, then who will. The effort you put in trying to redraw imaginary geographical lines or boundaries(sic) is a waste of time. Please try to use that force elsewhere more productive. It is just a open and heartfelt suggestion, please do not take otherwise, and make it look spurious.
19. Mr. Khekai, will it not be a better act to exchange the guns, explosives, grenade launchers, etc. for kubotas, fertilizers, seeds for farming and empower the villagers of the Naga community, the community you swear by. Those who live by the gun perishes by it, as did the supposedly NSCN(IM) cadre who tried to blow up a bridge near Kangpokpi yesterday. As a human being, my condolences do go out for him and his family. He was a sacrificial lamb, too. What a waste. A life is too precious, Mr. Khekai, and please do not make a martyr out of him.
20. There are two ways of enjoying a mango, a delectable and heavenly fruit. You, either climb up the fruit bearing tree and pluck them and eat to your heart’s content and let others enjoy them too, for many years, or you cut the tree down. In the latter case, you still can enjoy the mangoes for a few days and those remaining putrefies. And the tree dies. What do you prefer, Mr. Khekai Poumai ?.
Yours truly,
Bankimchandra Chingangbam
Imphal West, Manipur.

Naga Hoho meets Kitovi, Khole morungexpress
Dimapur, May 21 (MExN): A Naga Hoho delegation led by its President Mr. Keviletuo Kiewhuo met Ato Kilonser Mr.N. Kitovi Zhimomi, Chief of the Army Gen. Kholie and Kilonsers from GPRN/NSCN on May 20, 2010 at Kehoi designated camp, informed a press note from the Naga Hoho. The meeting was arranged on the request made by the Naga Hoho, the press note informed pointing out that this was owing to various factors necessitating an urgent meeting for sharing mutual trust and concern. “During the deliberation, members from both the parties have clarified their political position and unanimously agreed to meet from time to time in near future in the interest of Nagas as a whole”, the Naga Hoho press note informed.

NSCN (I-M) slams Mulatonu (NPN):
DIMAPUR Hitting back at Kughalu Mulatonu of the GPRN/NSCN, the NSCN/GPRN today said when Nagas across the world burned with emotional awakening against Manipur’s use of “inhuman weapons of terrorism” to suppress rights of Nagas by refusing to allow Th. Muivah to visit his native village, Somdal, “a boy of yesterday with dubious character (Kughalu Mulatonou) again raised his ugly head for the molestor of Naga historical and political rights and not to speak of human rights” governed under international law.
The MIP of the NSCN/GPRN also accused Mulatonu of being on a mission to run down the rights of Nagas as voiced by the NSCN/GPRN under the collective leadership of its chairman Isak Chishi Swu and general secretary Th. Muivah.
The MIP said when Naga political groups decided to respond to the desire of the Nagas as initiated by the FNR at the crucial period of the peace process, by standing together and learning to show a spirit of reconciliation and unity and forgiving each other so as to work together as national workers with a common objective, Mulatonu again identified himself “ as a notorious blacksheep of Naga family.”
The MIP accused Mulatonu of being at variance with the Naga spirit by venomous attacks against Naga family and wondered why was he “so desperate to kill the Naga issue” which he claimed to have adopted as his mission?
The MIP said it was on record, that whenver Nagas were in conflict with Kukis he chose to side with the latter and even in the present situation, when Nagas are forced to settle their account with Meiteis, in Manipur, Mulatonu chose to “advocate the Meiteis”. Further, it asked how much was Mulatonu paid by the Meteis or intelligence agencies “at the behest of Manipur government and chauvinist Meiteis?”
The MIP said Mulatonu “has yet to learn many things” though he chooses to be “trained and paid” by Indian intelligence agencies to whom he remained faithful, though Nagas view him with disdain.
Mulatonu, in his statement that appeared on the May 20 issue of the local dailies, had warned Naga NGOs against holding Manipur to “ransom” through road blockades.

NSCN (IM) reiterates stand on integration of all Naga areas Nagaland Page

If we can fight with GoI for more than 60 years who is Ibobi?
Dimapur, May 21: The NSCN (IM) Friday reiterated its stand on integration of all Naga areas saying unification of all Naga areas has been one of the main demands in its more than 60 years of conflict with India.
The NSCN (IM) was responding to the repeated assertion by Manipur that if NSNC leader Th. Muivah is allowed to come to Manipur than he should abandon his stand on Naga integration.
"One must know that Nagas have been fighting for more than 60 years and that the unification of all Naga areas has been one of the main demand because these arbitrary division of Naga territory is against the rights of the Naga family. So there is no question of considering anything about their statement or demand of Ibobi Govt. This must be clear to Naga people as well as GoI including Manipur Govt.," said VS Atem, emissary to the collective leadership of NSCN/GPRN Friday evening while addressing a press conference at Viswema village, some 20 km from Kohima.
The NSCN (IM) also made it clear that Nagas want to live peacefully as neighbours but not at the cost of its land. "We don't want an inch of their land nor we will give an inch of our land. We have been fighting with Indian govt. for more than 60 years for our land and rights."
Atem also maintained that the current economic blockade imposed on Manipur by Naga organizations is not a creation of the Nagas but of the Manipur Government.
"Instead of trying to talk to the Naga people, they started using IRB and commandoes on innocent unarmed people. Even using of rubber bullet it has its norms," he insisted.
"When Indians under Mahatma Gandhi fought for Independence, we supported him but now GoI is not supporting us, why? If we can fight with GoI for more than 60 years who is Ibobi?" he asked.
On the use of 'All Manipur' by Manipur political parties and social organization in the current situation to buttress Manipur's stand, the NSCN (IM) claimed that there is not a single tribal unit in that 'All Manipur' be it All Manipuri Students Union or UCM or AMUCO.
"There is not even an individual from the Hill," Atem said.
The NSCN (IM) also regretted that the Government of India has so far failed to identify who can be their fiend and who can be their enemy. Indian leaders are confused lot, Atem said.
"Even on this kind of small issue, Delhi has not been sincere. It has not been able to deal with Manipur. That's why we were saying if Delhi considers Manipur as part of India, they should deal with Manipur but not in this manner," he added. (Page News Service)


Nagaland Congress delegation to meet Manipur CM today Nagaland Page
Dimapur, May 21: The Nagaland Congress is sending a delegation led by NPCC President, I Imkong to Manipur to meet the Manipur Chief Minister Ibobi Singh in an effort to break the current impasse.
Talking to Nagaland Page, I Imkong said that a 6-member team of the Nagaland Congress is going to Imphal Saturday to meeting Manipur Chief Minister in regards to the ongoing crisis affecting both the states. He, however, did not elaborate what would be the nature of talks he would hold with the Manipur Chief Minister.
CLP leader, Tokheho Yepthomi said that the state Congress held a meeting today and decided to send some Legislators to Imphal led by NPCC President, I Imkong.
Yepthomi said that Nagaland Congress wants to meet the Manipur Government to break the impasse as people in the border areas are suffering.
The Congress leaders would try to persuade Ibobi Singh to change his stand to bring normalcy in the border areas and the Naga hill districts.
The Congress delegation would be leaving for Imphal by Chopper Saturday morning and would be back the same day. (Page News Service)

Mulatonu's comment an insult to Naga people: Atem Nagaland page

Dimapur, May 21: Expressing shock over the comment made by GPRN/NSCN leader Mulatonu that Nagas should have peace with Manipur, the NSCN (IM) has questioned the rival leader why he is supporting them (Manipur) if he is fighting for the cause of the Nagas.
"Or is he at the behest of the Indian Intelligence agencies? Just that they have received few pieces of weapons from Manipur groups, they should not take the Naga people for granted. But if a person is out of his mind than what can one say, no amount is reasoning can let sense prevail," shot back NSCN (IM) leader VS Atem while commenting on Mulatonu's reported statement at a press conference today.
"What he is commenting to Nagas to have peace with Manipur is an insult to the people, to the Naga people in Manipur," he said adding, "These baseless utterance and decision is not acceptable."
On the reconciliation process, Atem reminded that on June 26, 2008 in Chingmai Naga civil societies in presence of British Quakers had urged all the National political groups to disassociate from non-Naga armed groups.
"They urged us not to provide any more shelter to any non-Naga groups and we agreed to that, a joint statement thereafter was issued. Now it is almost two years yet Mr. Khaplang lives in east surrounded by Manipur armed groups. Even this Khehoi campers as well as other regional tribal groups under NSCN-K they have been obtaining weapons from Manipuris, yes of course some for payment, some as token of support from Manipuri's. Manipuris want Nagas to kill among themselves and that's why they don't count the loss of supplying weapons free of cost. At this rate, it is better to consult Dr. Wati," he added.
(Page News Service)

TAC closes Govt offices in Ukhrul Addie Chiphang Sangai Express
Ukhrul, May 21 : In protest against the decision of the State Government to ban the entry of Th Muivah to his birth place at Somdal, Ukhrul district, the Tang-khul Action Committee has directed all Government establishment/ offices to close down from today.
In a statement issued to the media today, the TAC has urged both public as well as authority concerned to strictly comply with their directives from May 21 and added that the proclamation will cover all Govt offices falling within the jurisdiction of Ukhrul district.
Confirming that the scheduled visit of GK Pillai to Shirui village in commemoration of its golden jubilee on May 21, TAC said it has been done by the authority concerned, in con- sonance with the stand of TAC along with the wishes of the Tangkhul community due to the present situation.
However, the statement added that the directive to close down all Government establishment will be exempted with respect to Medical Dept, PHED, Power, Media, Schools, and Colleges.
Maintaining further that the proclamation which came into effect from today and it will be effective till Th Muivah is allowed to visit his birthplace, TAC decreed that during this period, while the proclamation is in effect, no program to welcome any VVIP or VIP from anywhere shall be allowed in Southern Nagalim.
The proclamation will be in force till Muivah is allowed to visit his birth place.
Further drawing the attention of the authority concerned TAC said that the proclamation should be strictly adhered to and any untoward incident or eventualities arising due to non-compliance would be the sole responsibility of the authority concerned or the individual, it warned.

CM had agreed to Muivah visit earlier: BJP spokesman The Imphal Free Press

IMPHAL, May 21: The BJP Manipur Pradesh has alleged that chief minister O. Ibobi Singh had earlier granted permission to the general secretary of NSCN(IM) Th. Muivah for visiting Manipur during a special meeting with Union home minister P. Chidambaram held on April 28 in New Delhi.

Addressing a press conference this afternoon at the office of BJP Manipur Pradesh, member of BJP National Executive Council, Meinam Bhorot stated that the Cabinet decision taken by the SPF government to oppose Muivah’s visit is ridiculous as the purpose of their Cabinet decision is simply to cover up the mistakes of chief minister Ibobi, who had permitted Muivah’s visit earlier during a meeting held on April 28. Neither the Union government nor the state government could take a firm stance on Muivah’s proposed visit to Manipur, he noted.

Bhorot recalled the former chief minister of Manipur, W. Nipamacha as an able chief minister who could take a firm stand on the issue of the state’s territorial integrity even by challenging the Centre. He decried the present chief minister as inefficient and acting only according to the instructions of the Centre.

The present crisis has to be resolved by convening an emergency session of the legislative assembly, he demanded.

The President of BJP Manipur Pradesh, Sh. Shantikumar stated that Union home minister Chidambaram is unfit to be a national leader as he is unable to give a clear cut statement on Muivah’s Manipur visit. Chidambaram acts like a child who babbles something and then says something else again, he added.

Shantikumar also appealed to the people of Manipur to stand unitedly and urged both the parties to end the blockade and counter-blockade as early as possible.

Ukl public sleepless over Muivah visit The Imphal Free Press
From John k Kaping

UKHRUL, May 21: No matter how long it will take and no matter how the situation may turn, the people of Ukhrul are ready for NSCN(IM) leader Th. Muivah. Hectic preparations to roll out a “red carpet” for the Naga patriotic leader within the Ukhrul main town and all the link villages have been done well and completed for the occasion.

The news about Th Muivah’s visit is a hot topic and many farmers and local people while coming back from their work are discussing the matter very anxiously.

Ukhrul streets are full of bill-boards and posters of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and Th. Muivah proclaiming the people’s love for the leader. Slogans like “We welcome Avakharar” have filled the streets, walls and cabins of the Ukhrul hotels, motels and inns. The welcome gates are built at every Ukhrul locality, the main reception hall traditionally constructed by all the villagers and respective localities in the district stand beautiful and ready for the reception everybody is eagerly longing for.

Tight civil security arrangement has also been made and localities are strictly ‘keeping an eye” for intruders defying the “historic occasion”. Social and civil organization volunteers in the district are on an alert keeping vigil all round the clock in and around the village borders, and the heart of Ukhrul town and fool proof security arrangement is specially made at the main reception hall constructed at Ukhrul Tangkhul Naga Long ground (TNL).

Manipur and Naga Politics; Dangers of sectarian ethno-nationalist politics By: A. Bimol Akoijam Kangla
“What next in Meitei Naga relationship?” posed a passionate and well-known Naga nationalist in a newspaper published in Nagaland in the aftermath of the unsavory Mao incident of 6 May 2010. It is difficult to recollect an occasion wherein the Naga nationalists have ever asked such a question in the course of their decades old struggle against the Indian State. But that a Naga nationalist has come to ask such a question is significant; for it points to the changing, if not changed, nature of the concern of the Naga nationalists.

Intriguing Transformation: From Indo-Naga to Manipuri-Naga Conflict.

It seems fairly obvious that the concern amongst the Naga nationalists today is noticeably and overwhelmingly that of “Naga integration” rather than “sovereignty” that had primarily driven their movement of epic proportion for decades. Indeed, Sanjoy Hazarika has noted rather candidly, “it doesn’t matter now that he (Mr. Muivah) still talks of sovereignty — everyone knows that (it) is not on the Indian Government’s agenda and the Naga peace talks are no longer a bilateral issue but an internal problem of India” (Imphal Free Press, dated 9/5/2010).

Mr. Hazarika may not be far from the truth; after all, from terming the 16 Point Agreement of 1960 that paved the way for the creation of Nagaland as a state of the Indian Union in 1963 as a “great betrayal” to the nationalist cause and calling the Government of that Indian state as a “puppet” regime, happy image of camaraderie between the Naga nationalist leaders and the incumbent Chief Minister of Nagaland flashes in media across Nagaland today; In fact, Mr. Muivah, a leader of a Naga nationalist organization could today appreciate a former Chief Minister of Nagaland, Late Mr. Vizol, as a “popular Chief Minister” (Nagaland Post, dated 16/5/2010)! This might be good news for the Indian authorities who, as Mr. Hazarika points out, treat the Naga issue as “an internal problem of India”.

This change in the concern of the Naga nationalists and the seeming success of the authorities of the Indian State could have been taken as a promise of an end to the conflict in this part of the world. But unfortunately this new situation has also broaden the sphere of conflict in the region by transforming the “Indo-Naga” conflict into other (potential) conflicts, particularly a real “Manipuri-Naga” conflict.

Significantly, the change in the concerns of the Naga nationalists has also simultaneously brought about a corresponding transformation: from being a party to a hitherto existing (Indo-Naga) conflict, the Indian State has emerged as an arbitrator of a (Manipuri-Naga) conflict! That the Union Home Secretary travels to Manipur and Nagaland to mediate and resolve the ongoing impasse arising out of Mr. Muivah’s attempt to enter Manipur with his entourage is a clear proof of the changed reality.

It is these shifts that have implicated Manipur as the “other” (which has hitherto been the Indian State) against whom the Nagas today seem to primarily articulate and consolidate its “nationhood”. Therefore, far from Manipur poking its nose into the Naga affairs, it is this Naga politics that has dragged Manipur as a “bargaining item” into the murky waters of the secretive dealings between the “two entities”, the Government of India and the Nagas represented by the NSCN (I-M).
And “what next in Meitei Naga relationship” is a poser that indicates the tone and tenor of this new dynamics of Naga politics.

Ethnicized Manipur: A fish on the fishmonger’s slab?
Incidentally, the poser (“what next in Meitei Naga relationship”) reveals an effort to make Manipur into a “bargain-able” item by seeking to enthnicize and fragment the state. Thus, an incident involving the agencies and citizens of a state has been rendered in terms of “Meitei-Naga relationship”! This rendering not only denies the incident as something that involved a state and its citizens but also avoid framing the issue, if at all it had to be so, in terms of “Manipuris and Nagas” or “Nagaland and Manipur”. This is a deliberate attempt to reduce Manipur into an “ethnic” category; for, invoking
“Meitei” while talking about Manipur suppresses the fact that the expressions “Manipur” and “Manipuris” encompass other communities who inhabit the state as its natives and constitute the Manipuri identity (e.g., the Manipuri Muslims).

Revealingly, this attempt to discursively produce an ethnicized identity for Manipur is also visible when various Naga groups talk of the people in the North East as “the Assamese, the Arunachalis, the Meities, the Nagas, and the Kukis etc”. While choosing the ethnicized expression for Manipur (the Meiteis), it retains the non-ethnicized expression for Assam and Arunachal (the Assamese, the Arunachalis).

Simultaneously, it also clubs a category representing a linguistically or otherwise homogeneous community like the Meiteis with those categories representing conglomerations of multi-lingual and heterogeneous communities like “the Nagas” and “the Kukis”.

If “Manipuri” is a contested category, “Assamese” and “Nagas” too are contested categories. For instance, there are enough anthropological and political debates as to which “tribe” is or is not a “Naga tribe” in Manipur. Incidentally, the gentleman who poses the question on “Meitei Naga relation” wrote a book called “Nagaland and India: The Bloods and the Tears” and in its first edition included “Meitei Nagas” as one of the “Naga tribes” in the Indo-Burma region! (Interestingly, in its subsequent editions of the same book published after the 2001 “cease-fire” incident, that category has been dropped from the list of the “Naga tribes”!).

Modern (nationalist) identities are, as historians tell us, products of historically contingent (political) mobilizations. Similarly, the “desire to be together” is also a product of similar mobilizations; there is nothing naturally “given” about these modern identities and desires. Over the last two decades, identities have been mobilized in Manipur through systematic enthnicization and fragmentation of the state. The infamous “Kuki-Naga” clashes in the hills of Manipur, which had led to the loss of innocent lives had also produced shifting allegiances amongst communities and sharpening of the “Naga” and the “Kuki” identities.

Regrettably, with such an attempt at ethnicizing Manipur, most Naga nationalists seem to look at Manipur today as a fish on the fishmonger’s (read, the Indian State) slab, something that they can bargain with the authorities of the Indian State and take a piece of it! Asking “mighty India” to use its power (and invoke Article 3) to cut down Manipur into pieces and part a piece of the same to make up the aspired “Nagalim” speaks of such an outlook.

Ironically, the agenda to tear apart Manipur has also been pursued by invoking the Naga nationalist history as a rationale with a revealing contradiction. The people in the hills of Manipur took part in the Parliamentary Elections held in 1952 and 1957 and had elected Mr. Rishang Keishing (1952) and Mr. R. Suisa (1957) as MPs from Manipur.

That both the claims — that the Nagas had totally boycotted the “Indian” Parliamentary Elections in 1952/1957 and the people who took part in the same elections are also Nagas — cannot be simultaneously true. And yet, certain communities in the hills of Manipur invoke the historical fact of the Nagas (that they had boycotted those elections following their convictions that they were/are not Indians,) as their own truth to justify their demand for integration with Nagaland!

Incidentally, the involvement of the people in the hills of Manipur in those elections is one amongst many indicators that point to the history and experiences that they shared with their brethren in the valley. The efforts to ethnicize Manipur and interpolate different trajectories of “histories” are being carried out today to rupture the shared spaces and experiences. Partition of South Asia in 1947 had already shown the tragic consequences of a politics that had destroyed the shared spaces of people’s lived world.

Hence, the attempt to repeat a partition as a means to deal with the demands of a similar politics in the region would be suicidal for all, not only in Manipur but also the North East. The sooner we realize this, the better it will be for all whose lives have been implicated by the sectarian politics of ethno-nationalism.