Dimapur, June 1 (MExN): Following its general council session held in Kohima on May 31, the Nagaland Tribes Council has asserted that the efforts of negotiators or facilitators in the Naga peace talks “must be focussed on solution alone and not otherwise.”
In a statement received here on Wednesday, the NTC Media Cell stated that it held ‘in depth deliberation on the current political dialogue between the Government of India (GoI) and the Naga Negotiators’ during the General Session.
“The political negotiation between the GoI and the Naga Negotiators has reached its silver jubilee and the people cannot wait any longer,” it said, while stating its observation that the GoI “is absolutely clear on its parameters of negotiations with the understanding that has reached on October 31, 2019.” As such, it viewed that it is incumbent on the NSCN (IM) to take a call without wasting more time. It also called upon the NSCN (IM) to be transparent and bring out its competencies to the public domain.
On the performance of the Core Committee on Naga Political Issue (CCoNPI) formed under the UDA Government of Nagaland, the NTC alleged that the CCoNPI “tends to misuse its role while projecting itself to be the indispensable broker between the GoI and the Naga negotiators.” According to the NTC, the CCoNPI is at best a facilitator and, “its members giving statements on any agenda of any of the negotiators is uncalled for.”
“This is not the season for any facilitator including CCoNPI to assert so as to claim political mileage on the prevailing situation by misguiding the gullible public and such ambition has to be restrained,” it emphasised, adding that “everyone’s effort, be it the negotiator or the facilitator, must be focussed on solution alone.”
According to the NTC, the recent news reports that the CCoNPI is likely to apprise Assam Chief Minister and NEDA convenor HB Sarma on the outcome of its May 28 meeting with the NSCN (IM), implies that the outcome of the meeting is to be submitted to the Assam CM who then will convey it to the GoI. “We have the official Naga negotiators, namely, NSCN (IM) and WC, 7 NNPGs and we too have a legitimate State Government having equal status as Assam has,” it said, adding that it “rejects the modus operandi of the CCoNPI as though the Naga negotiators do not have access to GoI through the official emissary and as though the State of Nagaland is secondary to any other State.” It also cautioned the CCoNPI “not to over indulge or to expose the competencies on the negotiating table sacred to the Nagas.”
Meanwhile, the NTC also criticised the Manipur-based United Naga Council, particularly on one of the resolutions reportedly adopted by the UNC’s Presidential Council on May 27. The UNC had allegedly stated that “The Nagas must take our own time,” and not hurry to accept nearly everything that the GoI offered.
The NTC questioned the logic behind the resolution and “whether we are in hurry to have political solution even after 25 years of political negotiation.” It went on to claim that the “resolution exposes the ground realities that the loss and the suffering of the Nagas of Nagaland is the gain and enjoyment of the Nagas in Manipur.”
Stating that the people of Nagaland are tired of multiple taxations, the NTC further stated that anyone—facilitators or negotiators— using delaying tactics to thwart the political solution are exploiters of the citizens of Nagaland.
Under the realm of Naga democracy, “dissent is the quintessence of democracy and that remains the inalienable part of the culture and tradition of the bona fide Nagas wherever they are to be transparent and exert its true feeling for the wellbeing of the Nagas,” it said, adding that the NTC “detest the attempt of political group to curtail or intimidate the stakeholders from expressing its opinion or observation. Such attempts are alien to our culture.”
