Naga
nationalism was not born in a day. It has to undergo various political and
historical experiences before it got the vision of a sovereign nation-state
through the gradual articulation of our peoplehood. Under the timely leadership
of NNC, human resources were mobilized to forge our unity, to protect our land,
our culture, our identity and also to defend our sovereignty. Our national
movement is not to be confused with secessionism or terrorism. We are not
violating any prior agreement; we have not surrendered our land and sovereignty
to anyone and fighting to reclaim them now. Rather, we are fighting to free
ourselves from the occupational forces in our land and for the recognition of
our sovereign right to self-determination. In standing up against modern
imperial forces for our rights and honor, even against all odds, we are only
doing the rightful thing.
After
decades of struggle for independence, tried and tested through the barrel of
the gun, the need to negotiate for a peaceful solution became increasingly
pronounced. This necessity gave birth to slogans like “satisfactory political
settlement” and “honorable and acceptable solution”. However, the original
slogan of the Nagas was simply “independence” or “sovereignty”. Nothing less
and nothing more! Sovereignty was understood in its absolute sense. It was
nonnegotiable. It was non-shareable. For this reason, 16 Point Agreement of
1960 and Shillong Accord of 1975 were never considered honorable and acceptable
solution.The unstated assumption then
was that any agreement short of sovereignty in its absolute sense was
dishonourable and unacceptable. These two agreements not only brought about
structural and ideological chaos and divisions but also much bloodshed amongst
our own people. They were found to be inconsistent with the spirit of our
national movement which were expressed in the following:
i.
The memorandum of Naga Club to the Simon Commission 1929
ii.
The Naga Plebiscite of 1951
However,
the course of negotiation has been set for good perhaps, leaving little
possibility of reverting to the former ways of violent conflict unless forced
to. And so it is all the more pertinent that we must understand what would make
the solution to the ongoing Indo-Naga conflict “honorable and acceptable”. I
take it to mean the following:
i.
The Naga struggle is a political one which needs to be addressed outside the
Indian Constitutional Framework.
a.
To negotiate for honorable and acceptable solution within the Indian
Constitutional Framework makes no sense. By default, every citizen of India and
every peoples’ group within India is equal before the law – no one is less or
more honorable.
ii.
The negotiation/agreement should be grounded in modern ethical framework. It
means that there will be no use of threat or force, there will be no
involvement of pretension or treachery and that there will be no hidden agenda
to manipulate or oppress one group for the advancement or interest of another
group. Forceful imposition of one’s will upon the other without any rational
basis is acceptable. Accordingly, it must be based on the principle of
equality, fairness and transparency.
iii.
The agreement expresses goodwill towards each other. This implies that the good
of both the parties will be the pursued in the long run. It should enable both
the parties to move on with honor and dignity and without regrets. In other
words, one party cannot walk away with all glory and benefits.
The
above considerations or interpretation ought to guide both the process and
outcome of the Indo-Naga conflict settlement. Such an agreement would enable
the Nagas to safeguard our culture and identity and also to self-determine our
future in the way we desire without external interference. It must be coherent
with the original spirit which brought the Naga groups together and has driven
our national movement till now.
There
is one more term which has gained currency in the present time in connection to
the negotiation – inclusivity.It is
almost needless to point out the diversity among the Naga groups. Given our
traditional past, it is next to miracle that we have developed this sense of
oneness. However, we are still in the process of articulating and building our
nationhood and peoplehood in the modern sense. Our unity is a divine gift which
cannot be sacrificed on alter of negotiation. A negotiated agreement cannot
exclude any Naga groups. The content of the agreement should be broad enough to
include all Naga groups across artificial borders.
Though there are inevitable
difficulties owing to political elements which are international in nature, the
solution should have desirable implications on every Naga group regardless of
our geo-political conditions. All Naga groups have suffered for our national
cause and so all the groups should have access to the fruits of the sacrifice
one way or the other.
In
the ultimate analysis, a negotiated political solution that does not affirm the
earlier commitments and honor the blood sacrifices of yesterday can never be
honorable and acceptable.The Naga
aspiration for self-determination cannot be compromised under the axe of
contemporary politics which is driven by sheer pragmatic or realistic
considerations. Our cry for sovereignty can only be prolonged but not be
obliterated by any force on earth. So God help us!
