H Lolly Bashu
Ignorance is bliss. A person who does not know anything has nothing to worry; and a person without an aim is sure to hit the target. Ignorance may be a blessing in the divine natural setting of things, but it is a virtual crime in the world of politics. Indian Reserve Battalion is under the dictate of the Government of India (GoI), Ministry of Home Affairs even as the Indian state of Nagaland is under the direct control of the Central Government of India. Nagaland state and its government cannot say no to any directive issued by the Indian Central Government, according to the constitutional provisions of the Indian Union. If any state government in India dares, it can, by giving-up power first to disobey the directive. It’s sad that the state of Nagaland which we pride in is actually a disgrace to the spirit of Naga as it accepts the lordship of India, to be under their rule.
India thinks the rights of the people of Nagas as law and order problem or as a developmental issue for which the Indian armies are entrusted as the best deliverer. Thus frequent recruitment rally for is conducted for employment opportunity and as the solution for maintenance of law and order and thereby to develop the poor innocent Naga parents with the meager salary that their son gets at the risk of life in the army. Then our boys are trained to defend to fulfill another country’s partition policy over the Nagas. As a matter of fact, in India, army as a profession is the least preferred job among most of the job-seekers. On the contrary, in Nagaland, campaigning and advertisement is an everyday headline in the media, portraying the Indian armies as one of the most sought after and respectable jobs.
Perhaps, with huge deployment of soldiers; cease-fire in place with the NSCNs and protests over repealing of AFPSA voiced from all corners, their purpose is found wanting, thereby as a face saving mission developmental appeasement policy is practiced by the India army. Yet it’s negligible as elected state government is there to take care of that obligation. Few years back, passengers were cruelly checked all along the highways after ordering innocent bus passengers to stand in queue. Decades back, its history. Today, traffic along the highways with army vehicle will suffice to prove how much the Indian arn1ies care for our lives and how much we envy them.
Nagas are looked down upon by the Indian civil society as race of people under their rule. And whether we like it or not, for that fact, we can never be a dignified human until such time of self-rule. A large country as India is, she has her own pressing needs to address and what can we expect India to develop the Nagas when her civil society take advantage in ruling our people and our land resources. After all, democratic India will act rationally according to mindset of her civil society. Even in the bureaucratic ranks and files of the Indian administration, Nagas or for that matter North-easterners are ill respected as inferiors!
Indian civil societies are what the GOI think Nagas are. The only positive gesture the GoI has shown in the spirit of Nagas is the recognition of our unique history by then P.M of India, Mr. Vajpayee. In right earnest response, history of the Nagas is officially integrated in the school text book by Nagaland Board of School Education by Neiphiu Rio government. Of course on that basis of positive gesture, peace talks have been prolonged. The outcome is yet to be seen.
However indications are that, the GOI is changing its stand towards peace and development and maintenance of law and order as the end because it serves their partition policy to divide and rule the Nagas rather than keeping up her commitment to find a political solution.
Padmanabhaiah, when asked about the progress of Naga-Indo peace talk was quitc complacent as a negotiator. According to him with the onset of cease-fire, peace ushered in and development is taking place in Nagaland. He has nothing to worry because he is ignorant of the rights and history of the Nagas. Yet, he retorted not to be argumentative when asked about the peace and development of Nagas living outside Nagaland state over the span of eight and half years of cease-fire with the NSCN. This clearly points to the change of direction as to where the peace talk is heading. ‘A person without an aim is sure to hit the target’. To perpetuate their ruling on our divided land and people and thereby to weaken our national spirit is the accepted policy of the GoI. That’s the sure target to hit for a man like him who pretends ignorant of our rights.
The partition of the Nagas is the result of our ignorance and weakness. Our ignorance and weaknesses are effectively monitored by the agents of GoI to handicap our National Movement. Infightings among our Naga brethren is chiefly due to the partition of Nagas into different states under the rule of Indian constitution. And that’s what I call ignorance as a virtual crime in the world of politics in the Naga context. Though we fought as headhunters in the past, the root cause of our present situation is due to the interference and imposition of the Indian minds on our people.
For Nagas, we cannot rejoice when dead body arrives from Chhattisgarh. We cannot rejoice when recruitment rally into Indian army is conducted almost every month to serve a foreign land by our boys. We cannot when our simplicity is maneuvered to serve the enemies faithfully out of our ignorance. We cannot rejoice when our young talents are accredited to another nation. We cannot rejoice when some of our Naga brethren are neglected and marginalized to suffer due to the division of our land by a greater force- the India army. We cannot rejoice until we come to realize that we have our own Naga Nation to defend.
Each of us has to be a Naga army not necessarily by joining the NNC or the NSCNs but be a Patriot and a Nationalist at heart. A Patriot will not compromise on his/her right to be free from foreign yoke. A Nationalist can never bear to see deaths of his/her countrymen due to ignorance.
The penalty of ignorance- we had been paying it with precious lives for too long. Let us be aware of GoI policies and game plan being implemented to divide the Naga family forever. Because eight and half years cannot still convince the GoI that Nagas have the right to live together and determine our own future. Nagas wish to live together, to restore normalcy and peace politically is not a violation of their constitution, after all. I wonder and question the sincerity of the GoI at the call of various groups to give up arms and come to the negotiating table when Nagas and GoI have been negotiating for that long and still solution far from reach.
Though the out come of talk is not certain, let us be certain that we will never compromise on our rights to be free. Let us never tolerate deaths caused out of our own ignorance, due to the pre-paid plan of the enemy in order to defeat the spirit of Naga Nationalism.
