NSCN current position – Will ULFA take same road through China and Myanmar

: Kohima, March 24, 2011

Addressing the 32nd Republic Day celebration at Council Headquarters of the NSCN in Hebron, the General Secretary of NSCN, T Muivah stated that there has been significant change in the approach of the Government of India to the Naga political issue and expressed confidence that an honorable solution can be soon expected. He also stated that the Government of India, including all the three Prime Ministers of the country with whom they have held talks so far, has given recognition to the unique political identity of the Nagas. However he maintained that no solution to the Nagas can be complete without integration of the different Naga dominant areas and also without reconciliation of the different Naga rebel groups.

On the other hand, NSCN chairman Isak Chishi Swu, who has come for the proposed reconciliation summit in Nagaland, declared that their outfit is committed for reconciliation based on the historical and political rights of the Nagas. He appealed to all Nagas to reconcile and unite to stand by their rights and determine their own destiny.

The NSCN General Secretary claiming about a change in the attitude of Indian Government can be looked upon as a hope for the state of Assam as well, where the ULFA, NDFB and several outfits have initiated lateral talks with the Government. Especially with the ULFA leaders already having met the Prime Minister and the home minister to initiate a process of dialogue to bring a honorable solution for Assam’s long demands, the development of the Naga peace process is critical for its closest neighbors in Assam. NSCN, who started off their armed struggle with help of China and has long maintained training bases in Myanmar, has come a lot closer to India over the last thirteen years,- so much so that NSCN leadership now openly declares that they are Not against the constitution of India, when they had started their struggle against this very constitution once. In case of ULFA, the Paresh Baruah fraction still enjoys support and shelter of China and Myanmar and there seems to be no chance as of now if this fraction would come for negotiations.

Looking back to the history of the Naga struggle, when the Naga National Council had signed the Shillong accord, the first peace treaty between the Nagas and Indian Government way back in 11 November, 1975, only three Naga leaders had opposed it. They were Th Muivah, Isak Chishi Swu and SS Khaplang, whom the Indian Government did not consider as important at that point of time. But what followed is only a bloodier history, with these three leaders making the birth of a new outfit, the NSCN (which later divided into two fractions), which became the most powerful armed outfit of the region and forced the same Indian Government to have a long process of Lateral dialogue to solve the Naga issues. On today’s date, the same seems to be happening with Assam. The ULFA pro-talk fraction seems determined for a solution where as Paresh Baruah threatens to re-group the outfit with China’s help and continue to fight. With a history set to repeat, the Indian Government can at least try to put diplomacy as a mean to stop China and Myanmar from helping Paresh Baruah fraction to re-group. But this looks like a really difficult task, with no improvement taking place in Indo-China relationship of late.