The Separation Plans and the Eerie Silence of the Nagas!

Britain divided us geographically like they did to nations and many other indigenous peoples’ around the world. Free India followed suit and kept us politically separate. Armed Naga groups then ideologically differed from each other and in the process emotionally distanced our tribes from one another. We the general ‘Naga public’ added to it by segregating ourselves socially and now ‘New India’ wants to keep us apart physically for reasons that might be administratively and strategically necessitated for the country but the move to unilaterally abrogate the ‘Free Movement Regime’ along the Indo/Burma border by the GoI is humanly unjustifiable and culturally unacceptable to the Nagas either side of the proposed razor blade barbed wire fencing.

What is much more alarming than the development itself is the outrageously lethargic and lack of prompt response by various civil society organisations across the states and borders, the tribes living within the 16km belt, the sinister tacit silence of naga politicians from Arunachal, Manipur and Nagaland and the whereabouts of the dozen plus Naga national political groups.

Peter Rutsa

P’Khel Kohima village