Dimapur, February 17 (MExN): The Working Committee (WC) of the Naga National Political Groups (NNPGs), led by its Convenor N. Kitovi Zhimomi, has issued a strong rebuttal to the NSCN (IM)’s recent statement comparing the Agreed Position and the Framework Agreement. The WC NNPGs accused the NSCN (IM) of misleading the Naga people and distorting historical facts while defending the legitimacy of the Agreed Position.
In a press release, the Kitovi-led WC NNPGs stated that the Framework Agreement, signed on August 3, 2015, begins with the assertion that “the Indo-Naga political conflict is about six decades old.”
According to the WC NNPGs, this was a “total betrayal to the thousands of Nagas who have laid down their lives before 1955.” The committee further criticized the NSCN (IM) for having “very casually forgotten the ‘Plebiscite’ that was signed in 1951,” which by 2015 was already 64 years old.
The WC NNPGs also pointed out that the Framework Agreement failed to acknowledge that the Nagas had declared independence on August 14, 1947, making it “67 years away from 3rd August 2015.” Additionally, they noted that the Framework Agreement ignored the submission of a memorandum by the Nagas before the Simon Commission in 1929, which was “86 years ago from 2015,” calling it “a total betrayal.”
Criticizing the NSCN (IM) for its acceptance of Indian political structures, the Kitovi-led WC NNPGs highlighted that the Framework Agreement states that the NSCN (IM) had “understood and appreciated the intricacies of the Indian System,” suggesting that the group’s earlier demands had become unfeasible. “But now, they are deliberately quoting all these events mindlessly which have not featured in the Framework Agreement,” the press release stated.
The WC NNPGs further accused the NSCN (IM) of omitting key political demands in their agreement with India. “Just like they had conveniently forgotten to mention Flag, Constitution, Integration and instead talked about ‘Shared Sovereignty’ and ‘Contemporary reality,’” the statement read. The WC NNPGs questioned the meaning and legitimacy of “Shared Sovereignty” in the political dialogue, arguing that the NSCN (IM) had “simply hurried forward to ‘greatly satisfy themselves’ to ‘successfully’ conclude the dialogue with India,” which they claimed amounted to “totally surrendering all political rights and values of the Nagas.”
The press release dismissed any notion of comparison between the two documents, asserting that the Agreed Position, in contrast to the Framework Agreement, is “clear and without any ambiguity or misleading statements.” According to the WC NNPGs, the Agreed Position recognizes the “Historical and Political rights of the Nagas to self-determine their future in consonance with their distinct Identity” and seeks to resolve the Indo-Naga political issues by considering the “Contemporary Political realities.”
The Kitovi-led WC NNPGs also questioned the historical understanding of NSCN (IM) leaders, particularly those from Manipur, arguing that they were “not aware of the tremendous trials and tribulation that has been going on in the other parts of the Naga Hills, presently Nagaland state.” The press release alleged that the NSCN (IM) had “conveniently forgotten the vital facts of the history of the Naga Political Movement” and pointed out that the 1951 Plebiscite was “not participated by any of the Naga tribes of Manipur.”
The WC NNPGs further stated that Nagas across Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, and Nagaland are under “one union” and suggested that “Nagas of Nagaland would suggest our Naga brothers and sisters of the neighboring states to leave the issues of Nagaland to the Nagas of Nagaland alone.”
The group accused the Framework Agreement of having “buried” key issues such as “Freedom, Independent Sovereignty and integration of Naga inhabited areas.” They asserted that it was now “too late to talk about the same issues” and urged for a more practical approach, where “our people can determine their own future without any outsider’s intervention in their respective states.”
Calling for clarity among the Naga people, the WC NNPGs encouraged “all the peace-loving Nagas to take time and effort to go through and compare the Agreed Position and Framework Agreement for a clear and distinct understanding.”
