New Delhi: It’s more than 27-years and 600 rounds of political negotiations that took place between the Central government and top leadership of the Naga rebel group, National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-Isak Muivah) for an everlasting peace in the Northeast. However, signing of a peace accord seems to be a distant dream.
The NSCN-IM, last week reiterated that the Framework Agreement signed in 2015 between the outfit and central government would be the basis of signing any final agreement.
“The Framework Agreement recognizes the unique history of Naga independence; it recognizes the sovereignty of the Nagas and it also stated the coexistence of the two entities (Indian and the Nagas) sharing sovereign power (shared sovereignty). It was also agreed that Nagas are the owners of their land, anything on the surface and beneath it,” a statement issued by the outfit in possession of ETV Bharat said.
Framework Agreement
The Centre and NSCN-IM leaders (Thuianglang Muivah) had signed the Framework Agreement in New Delhi on August 3, 2015 in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A final agreement was to be signed based on the Framework Agreement.
Although the central government has not yet made the contents of the agreement public, the NSCN-IM claimed that signing of the peace accord should be based on Framework Agreement.
According to the outfit, the agreement that was signed in 2015, highlighted a separate flag and a constitution for the Nagas.
The Centre rejected the offer but agreed to allow the Naga groups to use their flag during cultural events only.
“Government of India will never accept a separate flag and a separate constitution in the country. If, government accepts their demand, then other organsations from different States may also raise the same demand,” said senior expert on India’s internal security and former director general of Assam police Prakash Singh to ETV Bharat.
He said that India’s principle is one nation, one flag and one constitution. “How can we accept the demand for a separate flag and constitution,” said Singh.
Talking to this correspondent, a senior bureaucrat who was well aware of the Indo-Naga political talk said that both the sides are rigid to their stand over the issue.
“There is no possibility of inking a peace accord with the Naga rebel outfit (NSCN-IM) in the near future following the fact that the central government will neither accept the demand for a separate flag and a separate constitution nor the rebel groups will leave their demand,” the bureaucrat who was a former home secretary said.
Government Of India’s View
The incumbent government at the Centre led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been trying to ink a peace agreement with the oldest rebel outfit of the northeast.
Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai has recently informed that a Framework Agreement (FA) signed between the Government of India and NSCN (IM) in 2015 as an achievement of the Narendra Modi government’s last 10-years.
Rai, however did not mention the government's stand over the NSCN-IM demand for a separate flag and a separate constitution. But, the home ministry on several platforms stated that a separate flag and a separate constitution is not acceptable.
Viewpoint of NSCN-IM
According to the NSCN-IM, political negotiation is a means and not an end. The earnest negotiations between the Government of India and National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) has led to the signing of Framework Agreement (FA) on August 3, 2015 whereby the government of India has duly recognized the unique history and sovereignty of Nagalim.
“Accordingly, Naga national flag and constitution, being constituents’ part of sovereignty, are duly recognized in the letter and spirit of FA. The political statesmanship of late Chairman Isak ChishiSwu and General Secretary Th Muivah are highly praised. The ongoing Indo-Naga political talk can be concluded but only through respecting and honoring the letter and spirit of FA that has been duly recognized and acknowledged Nagalim national flag and constitution,” the NSCN-IM said. It said that the process of delaying the conclusion of the Indo-Naga political talk may do more harm than good to both the negotiating parties.
Parallel Talks
Two years after the signing of the Framework Agreement, the central government initiated a parallel dialogue with the Naga National Political Group (NNPG), a conglomeration of seven other Naga rebel groups, after the two sides signed an “Agreed Position” in 2017. According to the Working Committee of the NNPG, the political dialogue concluded on October 21, 2019, and only the final accord remained to be signed.
Third Party Involvement
The Naga rebel group has sought a “third party intervention” to end the stalemate over the Framework Agreement it had signed with the Government of India in 2015.
“The GoI had deliberately betrayed the letter and spirit of the Framework Agreement by refusing to recognise and acknowledge the Nagalim sovereign national flag and Nagalim sovereign national constitution,” said Thuingaleng Muivah, the Chief Political Negotiator and NSCN(I-M) general secretary.
Muivah is also the Ato Kilonser (Prime Minister) of the self-styled Government of the People’s Republic of Nagalim, the parallel government run by the rebel group.
Formation Of NSCN
The National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) was formed in January 1980. The founders, Isak Chisi Swu, Thuingaleng Muivah and SS Khaplang had created the group to oppose the Naga National Council’s decision to accept the Indian Constitution. They were against the Shillong Accord of November 1975 which was signed by Angami Zapu Phizo's Naga National Council.
The objective of the group was to create a sovereign nation ‘Naglim’ which would have all regions in the Northeast and Myanmar that are inhabited by the Naga tribes.
The faction NSCN-IM, came to be known as the ‘mother of all insurgencies’ following a split between two clans in the group. In April 1988, Khaplang leading the Konvaks clan announced the formation of NSCN-K.
The NSCN-IM was created by the Tangkhul clan under its leaders Isak and Muivah. After years of secessionist movement, the NSCN-IM agreed to a ceasefire in 1997 which led to the beginning of the peace process with the Indian government.
AK Mishra Leading The Present Talk Process
Former special director of intelligence bureau I(IB) AK Mishra is presently negotiating with the Naga rebel outfit. The talks between the Government of India and NSCN-IM began in July, 1997 and since then more than 600 rounds of political negotiations have taken place between both the sides.
“We have stressed in the meeting with AK Mishra that the Indo-Naga talk has dragged on for too long and the people are getting restless. So, we need to find a solution at the earliest but based on framework agreement,” said R John, secretary in the Ministry of Information & Publicity (MIP) of NSCN-IM.
The Way Forward
Experts believe that the Indo-Naga political talk will continue for the time being.
“The formal talks between the Govt of India and the NSCN (IM) were started on 25th July 1997 after the signing of the cease-fire agreement. After 28 years of peace talks, there is no option but to end the talks with a peace agreement. Three decades is a long time, the world has changed so much, and the romance with insurgency has almost ended. The possibility of returning to insurgency is almost zero. The only issue is what is mutually respectful,” said Suhas Chakma, geo-political expert and director of the Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG)- a think tank working on issues related to Northeast and indigenous communities.
Chakma said that the decades-long talk varies from person to person and leaders to leaders.
“The Government of India appears to have taken note of the same and therefore, the talks have been continuing for the last 28 years,” said Chakma.
