Hopes in Naga Peace Talks

Why in news?

The interlocutor for Naga peace talks recently held talks with all the stake holders, notably inside Nagaland for the first time.

What is the Nagaland issue?

• There is a sense among a few sections of the Naga people to form a separate new country, the Greater Nagalim.
• It incorporates the entire Nagaland along with Naga-inhabited parts of Manipur, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Myanmar.
• Peace talks with the then most lethal insurgent group Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah), NSCN(I-M) started in 1997 when their leaders agreed to a ceasefire.
• As a culmination of over 80 rounds of negotiations over the years, a Framework Agreement was signed in 2015.
• The agreement was signed by the Centre’s interlocutor for Naga peace talks, RN Ravi and leader of the NSCN (I-M).
• It aimed at facilitating stronger ties among Nagas across the region, without substantially changing the jurisdictional and administrative authority of neighbouring states.

What is the reason for the delay in resolution?

• The Naga people are a proud race and have held fast to their cultures, traditions and language.
• There are 16 major tribes, each with a sense of nationality of its own.
• And every tribe has its village republics which is a crucial part of their culture.
• These diversities lead to many divergent narratives  on the concept of ‘nationality’ and thus Naga nationalism is both a movement  and a sentiment.
• Besides, there is the issue of holding on to the Indian nation state.
• For the Nagas, the dilemma is thus between nostalgia for its unique history and the promise of a better future without disturbing this past.
• Given these, tribal loyalty often comes in the way of a collective discourse for the future of Nagaland.
• The problem now is with the use of words in agreements which lend themselves to several interpretations depending on who the stakeholders are.

What are the recent developments?

• The Centre’s Interlocutor for the Naga Peace talks is handling the issue with a more unconventional approach.
• No other interlocutor has interacted with and met so many Naga National Political Groups (NNPGs) and civil society groups.
• For the first time, the interlocutor was able to create that integral space where all voices are heard with equal respect.
• However, this is sometimes done at the risk of the NSCN (I-M) calling off the talks.
• As, NSCN (I-M) feel that being signatories to the Framework Agreement they alone have the right to make major decisions.

How does the future look?

• The ongoing peace talks may have been initiated by the NSCN (I-M) but it has now become more inclusive.
• This perceivable political consensus and faith in the process as far as the Framework Agreement is concerned offers hope.
• For the Naga people at this juncture, the most pragmatic step is to take a balanced view of the past.

Source: The Hindu