‘Necessity to find common political ground is inevitable’
Dimapur, January 20 (MExN): The Forum for Naga Reconciliation today said the recent events of violence and hostilities between the Naga political groups have brought the faith of the people into grave disrepute and have created great public disillusionment. The forum issued a statement today reminding that violence committed by any group is detrimental to the reconciliation process.
“The recent events, like past divisions and lethal hostilities between erstwhile comrades in arms, have brought the Naga cause and the faith of the people into grave disrepute and have created great public disillusionment, as well as fear. Violence committed by any group is detrimental to the reconciliation process. It raises questions around Naga solidarity, nationhood and the Naga commitment to Christian values,” the forum said in its statement.
The forum hopes that “those involved in this most recent spate of violence” would reflect on the situation and view their actions and its consequences within the broader Naga worldview; that they would come to reflect on how the violence and hostilities have affected the faith of the people and their desire for reconciliation, unity and peace.
The Forum for Naga Reconciliation urges those involved in the recent confrontation to address the pressing issues and circumstances that have precipitated the violence and then the underlying factors that led to this state of affairs. The forum also calls upon all the signatories of the “Covenant of Reconciliation” to take immediate steps that befit their positions to address the present situation and set the Naga reconciliation process back on track as a truly inclusive process among all national workers.
“The Naga people seek your political wisdom and acumen to rise above narrow politics and to embrace a statesmanlike approach for the common good of all Nagas,” the forum said.
The voice of the Naga people has been unmistakable, the forum said. This ‘voice’ is a clear desire and resolute support for reconciliation among the Naga political groups. “The Forum for Naga Reconciliation recognizes it is to this expressed yearning that the Naga political groups responded, with due consideration, to the call for ‘Naga Reconciliation: A Journey of Common Hope.’ Consequently deliberate and conscious progress was made. There had been a great diminution in violence over the past three years and significant steps have been taken towards the realization of Naga Reconciliation.”
However, the forum said the recent fatalities, the perilous situation, the armed confrontations, the war of words and the “unfolding fragile context” on which the Naga reconciliation process now stands, must make every Naga concerned about its implication.
According to the Forum for Naga Reconciliation the past several years of the Naga reconciliation process had “clearly indicated that Naga political groups have the ability and the resolve to address outstanding issues through dialogue and non-violence.” So, the forum said, there is no reason to turn to violence as a means of resolving differences. “Violence will only prove counter-productive. Not only will it widen the gulf between the Naga political groups, but the factional infighting will alienate the common Naga man and woman ever further from the Naga cause,” the forum said.
“At a time such as this, when Nagas are faced with modern challenges covering social, economic, cultural, gender, ecological and political aspects of human life, Naga society cannot afford to allow itself to be further weakened by internal political strife. The necessity to find common political ground is inevitable and absolute for the future of the Naga people.”
Further, the organization appeals to all Nagas to be vigilant against “internal and external forces that seek to weaken and destroy the Naga Reconciliation process.” “Finally, we implore upon the Naga Political Groups to honestly uphold and wholeheartedly pursue the commitments made during the ‘Naga Reconciliation: A Journey of Common Hope’ and to fulfill the aspirations of the people which was pledged before God and the Naga people,” the statement added.
