In testing times such as our present predicament, Nagas as a people are confronted with the daunting question: Is peace possible? The response is: Do we have a choice? Invariably, if Nagas are to ensure their continued survival as a people, the only option is to ensure that peace is possible. Peace is not just the absence of war and violence; it needs to be constructed as a conceptual and existential reality in which people live with equality and dignity. The responsibilities of the present generation towards future generations are profoundly challenged by what kind of future are we building?
For too long Peace has been construed as a desire and War as a factual human condition. And history has never quite paid any adequate regard to human aspirations and ideals; it has only demonstrated that the processes of war and peace get complicated when we look at it in details. It is quite essential therefore to have an accurate and pragmatic approach that addresses the vital issues of a dignified shared humanity if we are to make any progress towards peace. A decisive commitment to the praxis of justice and the transformation of structures is necessary for true peace to be made possible.
True peace remains the greatest challenge of all times. Yet, peace is possible because the human conscience would not allow otherwise. Therefore Nagas are demanded by the future to allow the ideals of a justpeace to be born and imaginatively nurtured in our hearts and minds, so that real transformation may begin to take place within communities. The churning of the human spirit to constructively engage all forms of injustice and violence is the seed of peace and must lead to the transformation of all unjust systems to ensure that the cycle of injustice and violence is broken.
Nagas need a new paradigm in which our response to issues of peace compels us to find creative, imaginative and responsive ways to engage with injustices. Such a paradigm must find ways to end the structures of violence and its consequences. Nagas must explore new ways to address conflicting interests in more ingenious and peaceful ways through consensus in which the use of force and domination has no role. This new paradigm should constitute processes that will empower and guide the Nagas to exercise and implement the idea of a dignified shared existence.
Situated in a climate of distrust and discord, Nagas need to construct valued-based approaches that are aimed at bridging polarized opinions of the same reality. Short-cut solutions will only further intensify polarized positions and therefore, an open process that is committed to addressing the roots of the issues must be initiated. Recognizing that Nagas are divided over a contentious and hurtful past; yet united and bounded together by common aspirations, the need to reason together and evolve a minimum consensus on the future, is the need of the hour.
At this time of immense challenges and opportunities a holistic initiative is required to engage in a consensus building process. This process will focus on building a consensus around how Nagas envision a common and shared future. The derived consensus representing the aspirations and interests of the people provides an agreed basis to take both the reconciliation and resolution process forward. This further implies an agreed understanding on how to constructively address the burdens of our history, so that through the healing of our spirits, a future of dignity is made possible. When Peace like War is waged, Peace is possible…
