DIMAPUR, JANUARY 24 (MExN): The Naga Students Federation (NSF), while taking forth its protest against the imposition of the Armed forces (Special powers) Act 1958, has directed Naga youth and the students’ community to refrain from taking part in the upcoming Indian Republic Day celebration on January 26.
A press release from the federation reiterated that the Naga people should disassociate themselves from such celebrations for as long as the Government of India continues with its policy of militarizing the Naga homeland.
”This is not in defiance of any forces on earth but the assertion that the voices of the Naga people cannot be muted despite the continued subjugation by forces reeking of colonial ideologies and practices,” the NSF stated.
It meanwhile reminded federating units and sub-ordinate bodies to comply with the earlier directive of the federation to restrict its members from “associating with the Indian Armed and Paramilitary forces and also accepting any form of humanitarian aid from them as such efforts cannot purchase the rights of the Naga people nor mitigate the effects of the evils perpetrated upon us by these forces.”
It meanwhile appealed to the Nagaland State Government to ensure that the SIT report pertaining to the Oting massacre is made public and that the culprits be awarded befitting punishments at the earliest.
The federation meanwhile said that its stands with the family members of the Oting massacre and all other victims of army excesses in the Naga homeland and would continue to strive with them until justice is delivered.
