Dimapur, Sep. 4 (EMN): Establishing honourable peace to secure basic human rights and civil liberties of the Naga people and appointment of a new interlocutor to re-establish the trust of the negotiating parties were two resolutions adopted during a day-long conference of the Naga People’s Movement for Human Rights (NPMHR) held on September 4 in New Delhi on the theme “Save the peace.”
The programme was organised to deliberate on the Indo-Naga peace process from its current impasse, wherein delegates from various parts of the country including Nagas from all Naga inhabited areas, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh attended the programme.
An update from NPMHR stated that fraternal messages in support of the peace process were delivered by parliamentarians, social activists, intellectuals and concerned individuals.
Vaiko, Rajya MP from Tamil Nadu, in his solidarity message, appealed to revive the peace process between the government of India and the representatives of the people of Nagaland. He has credited Narendra Modi for the signing of the historic Framework Agreement on August 3, 2015. He, however, lamented that the highly acclaimed Framework Agreement has been put in cold storage.
He also accused the Interlocutor, Ravi, of crossing his limits in playing the divisive game among the Naga political groups thereby shaking the very foundation of the Framework Agreement.
“All this is causing a huge trust deficit on the Government of India, which, I am constrained to add, is not good for the Nation at large,” he said.
Dhuruvan Selvamani, youth wing secretary of NTK, read the solidarity statement of its chief coordinator Seeman.
Seeman suggested frequent result-oriented dialogues and to propagate the present status of Indo–Naga peace process for an amicable solution to avoid the human rights crisis similarly placed in Sri Lanka against Eezham Tamils.
He urged the Prime Minister of the Indian union to come forward to follow the clauses and conditions as per the framework agreement between the entities.
Thiyagu, general secretary of Tamil National Liberation Organisation (TNLO), expressed support for both points of the resolution of the meeting being held in Delhi. He stated that the Framework Agreement that was supported by successive Prime Ministers of India hailing from different political parties was based on the principle of shared sovereignty.
He also accused RN Ravi of playing the politics of ‘Divide and Rule.’
“Naga people should not be treated as gullible as this would not be in the interest of either the Nagas or for the rest of India. If the peace process fails, the onus rests with the government of India,” he added.
Another speaker and general secretary of Tamil National Movement (TNM), K Venkatraman, stated that “Whether or not the peace process is successful depends entirely on the actions of the government of India.” He has accused RN Ravi guilty of misinterpreting its provisions. He added that the demand to remove Ravi and appointment of a new interlocutor was genuine.
Sandeep Pandey, social activist and vice president of Socialist Party from UP, in his speech expressed solidarity with the Naga people and reminded that the founding members of the Socialist Party such as Lohia and JP had a history of intimate relations with the Naga movement.
He pointed out that the framework agreement based on the principle of shared sovereignty was an expression of the right to self- determination. Pandey regretted to note the government of going back on its commitment expressed in the framework Agreement.
Jagmohan Singh, editor of World Sikh News, in his speech through ZOOM, stated that the Nagas have repeatedly engaged the government of India in negotiations to resolve their political demands. He stated that Nagas not diluting their core demands spoke volumes of not only the wisdom of the collective leadership of NSCN (IM) but also demonstrated the abiding commitment of the Naga people for the collective leadership of NSCN (IM).
He has wholeheartedly endorsed the desire of the Nagas for honourable peace.
He further appealed to all Naga political organisations to sink their differences and support the NSCN (IM) to achieve durable and honourable peace.
Paramjeet Singh, editor of Sikh Siyasat, expressed his support for the desire of the Naga people for honourable peace. Stating that Sikhs are bounden by the teachings of the Gurus to support any oppressed people, he extended support to the Naga people.
Nilesh Ukey, lawyer from Mumbai, stressed that there is an urgent need to create widespread awareness about the peace process and that all members of legislative assembly of Nagaland should write to the President of India every month and request for the resumption of the peace talks.
Tapan Bose, writer and founding member of SAFHR, in his concluding remarks, stated that the levels of state brutality against the Naga people was a cause of great concern.
“Indo- Naga peace process is an expression of the will of the Naga people since the NSCN (IM) at the very early stages of the peace process involved the concerns of the Naga people in the peace process through the strategy of detailed public discussions. It is regrettable that more than two and a half decades long peace process has reached a dead end,” Bose added.
The meeting concluded with a vote of thanks delivered by NPMHR executive member Dr. N Venuh.