Thomas
NNC Member
The present Naga octogenarians, men and women, have a fresh memory about the brutality and barbarous acts of the Indian Army against the Naga civilians in 1975 when the Government of India (GoI) had taken a repressive measure to compel the Nagas to surrender by accepting the Indian Constitution at gunpoint. In those days, torture. Killings, molesting, and raping women and girls by the Indian Army became a daily phenomenon. The Nagas thus suffered beyond human endurance in the hands of the Indian Army, which can never be forgotten by the Naga people for generations to come.
Therefore, the Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC) leaders worked with its entity NPC (Nagaland Peace Council) to restore peace in Nagaland. They were contacting and requesting the Indian leaders and the leaders of the Federal Government of Nagaland (FGN) to solve the problem through peaceful means. As a result of the tireless work of the NPC, peace was restored once again in Nagaland with the signing of the Shillong Accord on November 11, 1975, in the capacity of the Underground Organizations. Thought it was signed, the FGN and GoI did not ratify it, the reasons best known to them alone, and hence the two Governments never attempted to solve the Indo-Naga conflict based on the Accord so far.
Peace was restored without political commitment to accept the Indian Constitution with the help of Almighty God, and following the restoration of Peace, nine Peace Camps were set up in the so-called Nagaland and Manipur States as well. According to the supplementary agreement, No. 2, the maintenance of the Peace Camp was provided by the NPC, especially to the Kohima Transit Peace Camp. However, false propagandas and rumors mounted against the Peace Campers, blaming that the Kohima Transit Peace was receiving a huge sum of rupees from the GoI. The Campers hence rejected the receiving fund from the NPC in May 1993, which was around Rs. 2,400 for light fees and water monthly.
As the NNC/FGN has no political commitment to accept the Indian Constitution, the NNC/FGN has been formally celebrating the Nagaland Independence Day and Plebiscite Day every year without any hindrance. Also now, all the Naga people are preparing to celebrate the 79th Naga Independence Day on 14th August 2025. Even the NSCN-IM, who falsely portrayed the Accord as a capitulation and surrender, is now preparing to celebrate the 79th Nagaland Independence Day on 14th August at Phungyar Village in Tangkhul Region. But it is a hijacking of history because the NSCN leaders deviated from the Naga national stand, rejected the NNC/FGN, and formed a parallel organization (NSCN) in 1980 only. Thus, the 14th August, 1947 is not their historic day. Therefore, our people including Tangkhul brothers and sisters must be just and wise.
It is noteworthy that the sole impact of the Accord was that, with the help of our Lord, the FGN leaders diverted the Indo-Naga conflict from the battlefield to political warfare. The Naga yo
The NSCN, however, as soon as its formation, rejected a peaceful solution and proudly declared, saying, “We rule out the illusion of saving Nagaland through peaceful means. It is Arms and arms again that will save our nation and ensure freedom to the people”.
But now, the NSCN-IM leaders are saying again that arms solution is no solution, it must be a political solution through peaceful means. Hence, they arrived at peace with the GoI in August 997 without any peace initiator nor mediator but a tacit understanding with the Indian leaders. Their top leaders were also provided with the topmost security of India, known as “Z+Foolproof Security” and allowed them to have their Headquarters in New Delhi. And again, signed a Framework Agreement (FA) on 3rd August 2015 in New Delhi to implement their 31-Point Competencies proposal submitted to the GoI in 2001. Thus, they declared no more about the contents of FA but only disclosed to the public for demanding shared sovereignty with the Flag and Constitution from India.
Even though they rejected observing Naga National Days, saying they are gone with the infamous Accord of 1975, but are observing them again, the Naga Independence Day since 1997, and Plebiscite Day from 2000 respectively every year, but on the other hand, they are steadfastly upholding FA to demand a political solution from India. That is the true illusion of solving the Indo-Naga problem through peaceful means. Because the observing of the Nagaland Independence Day means we have nothing to demand from India, as we are a nation before India became an independent nation. Nagaland has never been part and parcel of India by conquest or consent in history.
But the problem had arisen between the two nations because the GoI sent its armed Forces to Nagaland in 1955 in attempt to invade Nagaland. But the resilient Nagas resisted the attempt and thwarted the invasion. Yet the problem is yet to solve dragging on a long time because India has playing dilly-dallying tactic to solve the conflict. We, however, believe that there is no human problem on earth that cannot be solved through peaceful means.
The Nagas are therefore maintaining peace in the interest of a peaceful solution to the Indo-Naga conflict, amicably based on history. The history of Nagaland is the record of the NNC and is written on the platform of NNC. Those who moved away from the NNC and formed a new organization has no history. Therefore, the NSCN has no right to claim the history even though they are celebrating the Independence Day and Plebiscite Day. It will be only a political illusion and deceiving the Naga people.
If they truly want to solve the Indo-Naga conflict through peaceful means based on history, then they have to reverse their present stand for FA, accept the Naga traditional democracy, and relinquish the NSCN set-up and join the NNC again in the interest of peaceful solution and the Naga national unity.
