Abraham Lotha
The assembly of about 50,000 people at the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) Meeting on Feb. 29 at the Agri Expo Centre, Dimapur, is perhaps the largest gathering in Naga political history so far. The dust has settled, the chairs have been folded up, the stage dismantled, and light showers have come and washed away the footprints of the gathering. The Morung Express was very optimistic when it claimed that “the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle are falling into place and we are almost there.”
Commentators such as Thepfulhouvi Solo described the gathering as “dark clouds and thunderstorms but little rain.” Other words of appreciation have been said and done. Now is the time for reflection and analysis.
So, did the 50,000 people who attended the FNR meeting come to pray or to be preyed upon?
I was keen to attend the FNR Meeting partly because of the urgency of the moment, but more importantly, to learn what the FNR intended to do there. The purpose of the meeting, from the FNR emails and press releases, was twofold: one, “to report to the Naga people the status of Naga Reconciliation,” and two, an invitation to the Underground leaders “to stand before the Naga people and share their views on Reconciliation and their vision on a shared Naga future.”
I sensed an air of hope and optimism as I sat and waited for the meeting to begin. It seemed like the Oriental Theological Seminary choir was the harbinger of these sentiments, with their rendition of ‘Healing of our Spirit,” and “Long, long night is over, Freedom shall be coming, Praise and sing to the Lord.” Because of the optimistic atmosphere, people did not mind the delay in starting the meeting.
Dr. Anjo’s scripture reading and sermon, Evali Swu’s special song about “God you are in control of everything, We surrender, Lord you reign,” Isak Swu’s “Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,” Muivah’s “Until we do God’s wish, we cannot do anything,” and the hymn Bring Them In led by the OTS choir inviting those who’ve gone astray to harken to the Shepherd’s voice, made one feel like we were at a religious revival meeting.
For the most part, the meeting was quite focused. Messages from the civil society such as Naga Hoho, United Naga Council, Dimapur Naga Council, Naga Mothers Association, and from Naga elders such as Niketu Iralu, Hokishe Yepthomi were all in unison for reconciliation as a forward and upward way.
True to form the FNR Meeting on Feb 29th was a report card. The FNR deserves a distinction when one judges it for its relentless effort and commitment to reconciliation. According to the FNR report, from March 2008 to February 2012, the Forum did the following meetings and events: six important Naga gatherings with a maximum attendance of 49 Naga organizations, 82 meetings with combined Naga political groups, 12 meetings with the Joint Working Groups outside the country, 12 highest level meetings with Naga political leaders, 11 combined tours to different parts of the Naga areas, 11 other special programs and events, 278 meetings with individual Naga political groups, and 5 meetings with Khaplang. Nagas should be grateful to the FNR for such dedication and commitment to the cause of reconciliation. It only proves that Nagas have the will and commitment to pursue unity.
Secondly, even as recently as in 2008 and 2009, underground members were dying like the Dimapur flies, but the activities of the FNR resulted in a decrease in factional killings. We have to be thankful to the FNR for saving the lives of many Nagas youth, underground and overground.
Thirdly, the fact that at least the leaders of three factions shared a stage without fighting is noteworthy. It was encouraging to see the faction leaders praying together. This is a big step in the right direction from Isak’s and Muivah’s earlier stance: “Reconciliation in Christ is possible but politically, [it is] not possible. How can we stoop down so low?”
Fourthly, an attendance of 50,000 strong was a thumping response by the Naga public in support for FNR. For the most part, the Naga public has been appreciative of the FNR’s initiatives and the FNR did right by being accountable to the Naga people. That is the right spirit.
A word of caution for the FNR. It is confusing the people with too many slogans - “Covenant of Reconciliation,” the “Naga Concordant,” the “Journey of Common Hope,”- which are beginning to sound like the names of the trivial factions. Actual reconciliation is more important than slogans. As Mr. Niketu Iralu said, “There is no room for righteousness.” It is only when “our leaders sit down together and discuss the precise terms and conditions to negotiate with the GoI for settlement,” that the Nagas will really unite.
The huge gathering on Feb 29th was also an expression of people’s yearnings and hopes. One cannot afford to miss the heartbeat of such hunger and expectations. The Morung Express believes that for the Naga people, “the coming together of the different Naga political groups in a common platform and sharing their thoughts on the issues of common concern, …has clarified a lot of doubts on the present status of the Indo-Naga peace process and also the stand of the different group on Naga reconciliation.” Many undergrounds believe that a parallel government will be in effect from 2012 and are already talking about sitting on the right and sitting on the left of the powers-that-be. In contrast, the 50,000 people in the meeting came not just to witness the underground leaders on one stage; they, came with expectations for post reconciliation negotiations with the Government of India. In effect, the people were a step ahead of the factions and the FNR. In spite of the monumental efforts by the FNR, the factions splintered during the past two years. The plain truth is that Naga people are unsure of what sort of negotiations are taking place.
In terms of content, Isak Swu’s statement regarding negotiations and settlement “outside the box by walking [an] extra mile” did not go beyond religious platitudes. So also was Singnya’s plea for “Mon milaikina koribi.” Vero was at least humble enough to ask for forgiveness from the people and promised cooperation with the Naga concordant for the formation of one government.
As for Muivah, he made his position on reconciliation pretty clear, when he said, “How could you ask me to reconcile after killing? He [other factions] wants to teach me about reconciliation but he does not want to teach himself.” The only way out for the Nagas, according to Muivah, is to do what God desires; true reconciliation will only be possible if it is done in the name of Christ and not in the name of some human persons or factions. The basic problem with Muivah’s concept of reconciliation is that he sees the IM leadership as the ‘forgiver’ and not ‘one-to-be forgiven.’ This comes across very clear when he makes such statements as “Even God came down to reconcile with sinners on earth sacrificing his only begotten son. If God can do that, we can also do the same.” Muivah’s believes that the solution to the Naga conflict must be unique “based on uniqueness of Naga history.” But in the context of the present impasse in the negotiations considering India’s problem, the option for the Nagas, according to Muivah, is to “Confess our sins to God, then God will open the way.” What Nagas must do, then, is to take a “decision to do what God wants.” The circularity of this reasoning allows no exit from the present impasse.
Khole and Kitovi, on the other hand, called for a rational, realistic and practical approach to the Naga problem. For Khole, “As the Alternative Political Arrangement being the ultimate desire of the Nagas living in the present state of Manipur, there is no reason why the Nagas living in present state of Nagaland, Assam or Arunachal Pradesh should oppose such a concept.” It is not surprising, then, that the ENPO President, Pongom Khiamniungan, sought support for their demand for a separate state of Frontier Nagaland in contradiction to the reconciliatory mood of the day. Khole also reinforced Muivah’s statement that in the present international context, integration of Naga inhabited areas in India and Myanmar or independence of Nagas is not possible. Khole opines that in rethinking strategies based on a rational, practical and realistic approach for future political arrangement, “the greatest asset that we can pass on to future Naga generations cohabiting with neighboring nations and peoples is the emotional, social and cultural integration and inter-dependence among the Nagas.” Accordingly, Khole makes an earnest appeal to the Naga organizations: “We can choose to remain pan-Naga emotionally, culturally, socially and spiritually in our future endeavours.” In effect, it sounds like Khole and Kitovi have totally surrendered to the Indian position. What is the use of continuing the struggle then?
If what people said and did on that day are any indication of the undergrounds’ disposition, there is a lot left to be desired. The demand for reduction of tax by the Naga Hoho and Dimapur Naga Council’s plea for ‘One people, one government, one tax’ went unanswered. Secondly, seemingly minor issues in such a gathering can point to something more serious. Inspite of a repeated request by the MC to limit the speeches to 3 minutes and 7 minutes by the NGOs and underground representatives respectively, Muivah took twice the time allotted and even got up to speak for a second time. I heard a man in front of me comment, “Itu manu ke aru time natibi.” Khitovi also not only went beyond the time limit; he even requested that the time allotted to Khole (who couldn’t speak due to sore throat) be given to him: “Our chairman did not speak so give me his time too.” Such behaviour could indicate that the undergrounds don’t listen to the voice of the people.
There was also a certain sense of self-deception in the many articulations of “sovereignty lies with the people,” as seen, for example, in Wati Aier’s position that “With the recognition of our uniqueness (by India), our sovereignty is recognized.” Incidentally, Isak’s speech about the need for reconciliation and the sovereign will of the people was drowned out by the noise of the helicopter (unconfirmed sources said it was an Indian Army helicopter from Ranga Pahar) that hovered over the gathering twice during Isak’s speech, illustrating a classic case of insensitivity and arrogance and the might of the state. Ideally yes, popular sovereignty should by definition lie with the people, but if that were true in the Nagas’ case, then why are we having reconciliation meetings and still engaged in political negotiations with India?
In spite of The Morung Express editorial’s hope that the FNR Feb 29 meeting was “a vital exercise that will add to the vision and clarity on how the Naga political issue needs to be addressed from hereon,” Naga people are still without a clear vision for the future.
In the final analysis, everyone is focusing on the Meeting’s Resolution but not the Recommendation, which is more important because we are dealing with strategies for the future. The recommendation by the FNR for the formation of an “expert group to consult, provide and ensure all intellectual, spiritual, logistic and technical expertise,” though directed to the next step of the Covenant of Common Hope, needs serious thinking. It is here that the FNR falls short because it is stuck with the idea of the Covenant of Common Journey confined to the undergrounds alone. It is short-sighted because the ‘common’ journey is not only for the underground factions. It is for every Naga. The opinion of many Naga people now is that the task of negotiating with India should also be handled by an Expert Group inclusive of the undergrounds, civil society, Nagaland government, and intellectuals. The undergrounds alone cannot do it. It cannot arrogate to itself the will and vision of the Naga people.
The Morung Express editorial suggested that it is “extremely important for the FNR to remain in control of the process until such a time when it is absolutely sure that Naga reconciliation can move to the next stage of a truly inclusive and common platform of our national groups.” Incidentally, in 2009, a suggestion by the Naga people for the formation of a Common Platform inclusive of the undergrounds, civil society, politicians and intellectuals was rejected by the FNR as well as undergrounds. Perhaps the need of the hour at that time was reconciliation and, may be, the time for a Common Platform was not ripe then. But now that we have reached this stage, it is time to move on and listen to the collective wisdom of the people. The struggle for the Naga nation is about creating a better future for the Nagas whether within or outside the Indian state.
Similar to what is happening in some of the Middle Eastern countries, there is an air of impatience and lots of bent-up feelings especially among the young, educated, and intelligent Nagas who feel that too much talent and opportunities are being wasted. They are worried about their future and the future of the Naga people. Those who are in touch with the Naga social network sites and online forums, can already sense the rumblings in the offing. More and more Nagas, young and old, are beginning to speak up without fear. The undergrounds need to pay heed to the signs of the times. The fact is most Nagas feel strongly that it is past time for the underground factions to reconcile. The people have waited and waited for their leadership and have been given bloodshed, forced taxation, and impasse for too long. It is time for the voice of democracy to reign in the Naga society. It is time for true sovereignty, the will of the people, to prevail.
