Wisdom to build the future

A few weeks back tributes had poured in for our departed leader Scato Swu, a former President of the Federal Government of Nagaland (FGN) and later a Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament from Nagaland. One of the tributes that really stood out was the one given by General Thinoselie M Keyho, a former comrade-in-arms of Late Scato. While acknowledging the contribution and sacrifice of those who led the Naga National Movement, the tribute has also provided an insight into what needs to be done to keep alive the historical and political rights as also the unity of the Nagas. We need to encourage one another with wisdom, whether it comes from the word of God or our own human experiences. If we can learn to apply such wisdom/s while dealing with our state of affairs, the outcome would be much better than the predicament we are faced with at present, whether in our social or political life.  

This column would like to recap what General Thinoselie shared in his glowing tribute to Scato Swu: “At a time like this when we take stock of ourselves and our history Nagas must ask ourselves what is required from each one of us if the right we have claimed and sacrificed for will not perish because of our failure to be a responsible people”. General Thinoselie has also touched upon a sensitive, difficult yet important issue that talk of past hurts and the need to reconcile. It’s never too late to seek or ask for forgiveness in order that true reconciliation takes place. It takes courage to say sorry and to condemn what is wrong, irrespective of which side you are on. We should welcome the courage and humility of those who are willing to truly repent and say ‘I am sorry…please forgive me for the wrong or hurt I have done…’ When we do this, it will “help restore what might have gone wrong”, as Thinoselie said in his tribute to Scato Swu.

Coming to some of the other points laid out in his tribute, Gen Thinoselie shares about what could possibly be, according to this column, a framework or a kind of road map towards peace and reconciliation in the present Naga context. Not everyone may agree with his assessment of the Shillong Accord but the point really is that the Naga struggle must be restored and united under ‘one government, one tax’. Further division and growing factionalism will never solve the problem or even restore the rights of the Naga people.

Gen Thinoselie has also shared with us about what he described as ‘Tenimyie wisdom’ inherited from our past, which says that “the future that is yet to come is more important than the past that has gone.” In other words, “the lessons from the past are important for us to learn to use to build the future”. As rightly mentioned by him, all of us need to give proper attention to this wisdom.

We can start by doing the simple yet profound things in life such as to let go of our pride and to embrace humility, learning to forgive as we seek the same from others and to have a willing spirit to change for a better future. The time is not far when the Naga national movement could well lose all credibility and even become irrelevant in a fast changing world. It does not require rocket science to decipher the writing on the wall. The masses are getting disillusioned and losing patience. It is time to move on even if it is little by little, step by step. We can do so by becoming wise and to dedicate our political mission to God.