KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 30: In a historic development, Kohima village–the biggest village in Nagaland–and Tuensang village, the third biggest village in the state, have stepped in together to establish a bond of friendship and brotherhood ‘to foster love, respect, trust and better understanding among the tribes.’
It is said that a treaty of alliance between communities is not a recent practice but a tradition practiced by Naga forefathers when they had inter-village and inter-tribal wars.
During the early days, alliances between villages were made to ward off their enemies jointly.
The positive move between Kohima and Tuensang villages could not have come at a more appropriate time when today the Naga society is witnessing discord and disunity, and fragmented on the lines of tribe and parochial ambitions.
Marking the alliance between Kohima village and Tuensang village, a ‘friendship foundation day’ was celebrated today at Kohima Village Council.
Leaders of the two sides exchanged spears as a ritual: CT Imlong on behalf of Tuensang village and Sao Suokhrie on behalf of Kohima village. The ritual sealed the pronouncement of a pledge of friendship between the two communities.
Giving a brief account of ‘treaty’ between the two villages, the chairman of the Kohima Village Council, Medoselhou Keretsü, said that the movement toward the ‘alliance’ began about 6 months ago when leaders of Tuensang Village Citizens Union (TVCU) proposed it. The proposal was wholeheartedly accepted. ‘This is the will of God that we stand together as friends and bothers to act as role models in fostering unity among the Naga societies and tribes,’ Keretsü said. He expressed ‘extreme happiness’ that the leaders of Kohima village and Tuensang village had ‘come together’ to establish friendship ‘for better understanding, to foster love, respect and trust amongst their tribes.’
Keretsü also narrated how in the early days, their forefathers ‘knew how to live peacefully with each other and built friendship with other villages’ though illiterate. Both sides honestly stood by the terms of ‘friendship treaties,’ he explained.
While stating that ‘no one breaks or violates the friendship pledge pronounced by their leaders because it is ritually forbidden,’ Keretsü asserted that the two villages should be more committed to the Word of God and to the pledge– it is a moral duty as a Christian.
Gaon Bura of Tuensang village, N Yemjong said ‘treaty means a commitment made between two parties to rely on each other, both in times of good and bad.’ He expressed belied that the establishment of the friendship between the two villages would go a long way for the benefit of the younger generations and for the people to live together in mutual coexistence.’
Yemjong also expressed hope that the treaty would convey a strong message of brotherhood to the rest of the fellow Naga people.
Speaking on behalf of Kohima village, Pheluopfhelie Kesiezie said the event was not only a meeting of two villages ‘but a meeting of two tribes that is not touched by petty politics but out of heart and truth.’
Stating that Naga society today was in a very peculiar scenario ‘where everybody is after self, family, clan and khel,’ Kesiezie said the meeting was a step toward breaking that trend and to look forward to truth and compassion. The meeting between the two villages to exchange spears, by tradition is a symbolic expression of friendship. But more than that, he said, ‘We need to exchange our hearts.’
‘Naga society will change when we exchange our hearts with ultimate respect for one another with compassion and truth,’ he said. He stressed on the need to preserve and revive the ‘social capital’ of the Nagas and continue with their good traditions.
Also, terming the day ‘a day of great importance’ for generations to come, a community member, Thepfulhouvi Solo, said Kohima and Tuensang villages have entered into ‘a perpetual friendship of goodwill and mutual respect for each other.’ He said it was not a political treaty or an agreement but a tacit understanding of goodwill, friendship and honour between the two sides.
Starting this day, Solo said, the friendship of the two will mark for all generations of people of the two villages to come as kith and kin and to help each other in times of needs.
The president of the Tuensang Village Citizen’s Union, H Wongto Chang, expressed his belief that the friendship would turn out to be a ‘good bridge not only for the two villages, but between the two tribes of Angami and Chang.’
He expressed hope that the event would set an example for the other Naga communities to ‘do good things by holding each other’s hand.’
Making a commitment, Chang vowed that the people of the Chang community will stand by their treaty to ‘uphold unflinching relationship under every circumstances’ and to support each other as and when situation arises to ‘uphold respect and love between the two entities’.
Chairing the programme, Vipralhou Kesiezie maintained that this friendship foundation between the two villages is timely as the present Naga society has been unfortunately badly divided and slowly drifting away from one another. With the lack of common grounds to unite, he said that the Naga society had been divided severely by ‘the divisive forces of tribalism, groupism etc.,’ that are destroying the society today.
Therefore, he said, the biggest challenge for the Naga society is to rise against the divisive forces that have offered the biggest threat to the ‘unity’ and ‘survival’ of the Naga society.
The community leader expressed hope that the act of friendship between Kohima village and Tuensang village would work as a catalyst that would create understanding, tolerance and forgiveness.
The ‘friendship foundation day’ celebrations concluded with a feast.
