UKHRUL: The Naga National Council/Federal Government of Nagaland (NNC/FGN) under Zhopra Vero has stated that any solution to the unresolved Naga political issue must not compromise the truth.
The statement, issued today, comes in the wake of a recent rally by a group of Naga youths under the banner “Fed-up Nagas”. In its press communiqué, the NNC/FGN acknowledged that Nagas have grown increasingly impatient with the unresolved Naga political issue and described the rally as a manifestation of accumulated frustration and a collective reminder that patience is not inexhaustible.
“After decades of conflict and uncertainty, it is only natural to desire a political settlement. Every bygone generation has hoped to see this become a reality,” it stated.
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While describing the rally as more than just a protest, the NNC/FGN said it was a call for an early political settlement that deserves serious consideration. However, it cautioned against the temptation to accept any settlement merely because it promises an immediate outcome.
“A hurried solution devoid of historical rights and political vision is no solution at all. The question before us is this: How do we find a solution that is immediate, pragmatic, honourable and acceptable?” it asked.
The group further stated that the Naga people’s movement, beginning with the formation of the Naga National Council, is a political struggle founded on the inherent sovereign rights of the Naga nation and the inalienable right of its people to determine their own destiny.
“This is the unquestionable and inalienable truth that lies at the heart of our movement. This is not mere wishful thinking in the minds of the Naga people but a commitment and oath that have driven and shaped our modern history up until now. Our collective historical decisions and actions, like the 14th August Independence Declaration of 1947, the Plebiscite of 1951, the Naga boycott of the 1952 Indian General Election, etc., make sense only in relation to this truth. As such, any deviation from it, as part of the solution, amounts to compromising this truth. All Indo-Naga agreements such as the Shillong Accord, Framework Agreement, Agreed Position, 16-Point Agreement, etc., including ceasefires, presuppose this truth,” it asserted.
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The NNC/FGN added that the success or failure of any of these agreements will be interpreted and measured against this principle, and noted that many Indian leaders and Prime Ministers, beginning with Mahatma Gandhi, recognized and respected this hard truth, although for various reasons no decisive political action was taken to match it and bring about a final solution.
“Our Naga national pioneers rejected positions, privileges, and political compromise because they believed that the future of the Naga nation was more valuable than temporary personal gain. Their sacrifices and uncompromising stand remain the moral compass of the Naga political movement. We owe it to them and to generations yet unborn to preserve that legacy with integrity.
“Therefore, the present generation bears a solemn responsibility. It will be a tragic betrayal if we use our freedom of thought and expression to dilute, reinterpret, or barter away the political inheritance entrusted to us by those who sacrificed comfort, privilege, and even life itself for the cause of Naga sovereignty,” the group further stated.
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It added that their struggle was never for temporary political arrangements but for recognition of the Naga nation as they understood it, proclaimed it, and fought for it.
“To depart from that course in pursuit of expedient compromises would not merely alter our political direction; it would diminish the legacy of our pioneers and the sacrifices they willingly made,” it cautioned, asserting that their historical rights and the truth of their history are not inconveniences to be negotiated away but the very foundation of their national existence.
