Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio (DIPR Photo)
Says women need hand-holding in electoral politics
Morung Express News
Dimapur | March 9
“Two and a half decades is definitely more than enough time for two sides to understand and appreciate each other in order to reach an amicable solution that is applicable to both sides and also to the people,” Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio said on Wednesday referring to the Naga peace process.
Addressing the consultative meeting on the Naga political issue and Urban Local Bodies (ULB) elections, the Chief Minister said that the Naga political issue continues to be at the core of Naga society which has undergone political turmoil, violence, social instability, and developmental challenges for more than nine decades due to the unresolved issue.
The meeting was held at the State Banquet hall in Kohima.
However, he also noted that significant achievements—signing of the ceasefire in 1997, the Government of India’s (GoI) acceptance of Naga issue as ‘political,’ the recognition the ‘unique history and culture of the Naga people,’ and the signing of the Framework Agreement, 2015 and Agreed Position, 2017— have been made in the past 25 years, for which the negotiating parties and the leaders should be acknowledged.
Looking at these milestones, Rio said that it is now of paramount importance for the Naga people to move forward towards realisation of a solution as early as possible because generations of Nagas have lost opportunities to be at par with their counterparts in the rest of the country and the world due to the political conflict.
“This is the right time for giving the finishing touches to the Naga issue,” Rio said, asserting that the Union Government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi is “willing and ready to go the extra mile” to resolve the Naga issue in an honourable manner.
Along with this, he said that the opposition-less government is making all out efforts to facilitate a resolution while all the major Naga Political Groups (NPGs) are also engaged in dialogue with the Government of India. “The civil societies and the entire Naga public are also mentally ready to accept and welcome any reasonable and honourable solution,” he added.
In this context, the Chief Minister called upon the House to rise up to the occasion and raise its collective voice to urge for a final solution at the earliest, adding: “Such a combination of favourable circumstances for Naga solution has not been seen in the past. It may not be seen again in the future.”
Rio emphasised that appeals should be made for the negotiating parties to “listen to the cry of the people and rise above all else in the greater interest of the people, and to make renewed efforts towards inking a solution that is honourable, acceptable and one that upholds the democratic rights of the Nagas.”
On the part of the mass-based civil society groups and the Nagas as a whole, Rio said the call for peace and solution must be reflected through loud actions and democratic expressions.
Stating that his government would support any move aimed at achieving lasting peace and political settlement, Rio made an appeal to the Government of India to appreciate the sacrifices made by the Naga Political Groups who have taken significant steps in trust and confidence building, and are “willing to have a meaningful relationship with the rest of the country in a manner that is of mutual benefit to all sides.”
The Nagas want to make greater contributions towards the nation building process and emerge as a people that strengthen Indian democracy and this aspiration can be achieved through ‘realisation of genuine peace, which can only come through an honourable political solution,’ he added.
Women reservation a progressive step
On the issue of ULB elections, the Chief Minister “put the facts in the right context,” and explained that the 73rd Amendment of the Constitution recognised the provisions of Article 371 (A) and as such, the village administration or village councils and other such traditional practices related to the Naga village set-ups were exempted from the Panchayat Raj institutions.
However, in terms of townships and town administration which, unlike the traditional villages, are not part of Naga customary practices, Nagaland is not exempted from the 74th Amendment of the Constitution for setting up modern municipalities.
“33% women reservation in municipalities is part and parcel of the 74th Amendment. We are not exempted from it, and, there is nothing we can do about it,” Rio maintained.
Rio said that women reservation for municipal elections was a progressive step. “Even though women are treated as equal in our society, they need some hand-holding in areas like electoral politics where they have not ventured in the past,” he said.
Rio also addressed the issue of property tax and pointed out that the concept of taxation was not alien to the Naga culture and traditions. To support his argument, Rio underscored that even in the traditional Naga village administration; village authorities would seek contributions, in the form of labour or materials, from every household for constructions of village roads, fountains or halls and other utilities.
When an elected Municipal Council decides to collect contributions from the citizens of the town, based on their own capabilities, to undertake improvement of certain facilities, what’s the issue? Rio implied.
“This tax... will be decided by, used by, the Municipal Council only for making their town a better place to live. The people of the town will have full say in how to use the money collected,” he asserted.
He further stated that imposition of property tax is an essential requirement in order to receive further grants from the Fifteenth Finance Commission which will be used to improve the infrastructure and public service delivery facilities in the respective towns. “We should not deprive our municipalities of this opportunity,” he added.
