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DIMAPUR — General Secretary of the NSCN/GPRN (NSCN-IM), Th. Muivah, on Wednesday questioned Prime Minister Modi's commitment to the 2015 Framework Agreement (FA).
While Modi had led the masses in applauding the highly publicised agreement, “ironically, the same prime minister has turned cool as the years keep going,” he noted.
“What makes him (Modi) go slow in implementing the FA, his own brainchild? Certainly, he is in default, playing with the protracted Naga issue,” Muivah said in his speech on the 78th anniversary of Naga Independence Day, read out by Deputy Ato Kilonser, VS Atem, at the Council Headquarters, Hebron on Wednesday. Stating that the Framework Agreement is a “matter of life and death” for the Naga people, Muivah said the world came to know better about the political rights of the Naga nation the day the Government of India and the NSCN signed the historic agreement.
“If we fail to grasp the political significance of the agreement by displaying total lack of political foresight, the world at large will laugh at us for being frivolous when given such opportunity to make the best use of it,” he maintained.
He cautioned that future generations of Nagas would hold the current generation accountable for their “misplaced approach” to the historic agreement that carried the sovereign identity of the Naga people as a nation.
It will be a “Himalayan blunder” if the Nagas place themselves on the wrong side of the Framework Agreement, he added.
“To put on record the recognition of the sovereign identity of the Naga nation, the Framework Agreement mentions ‘peaceful coexistence of the two entities’ which means India and Nagalim will have peaceful coexistence,” Muivah noted, adding that this may go on for 10 years or 50 years, depending on how the mutual understanding is interpreted in the right spirit.
However, “India shall be accused or held responsible for serious breach of agreement with respect to peaceful co-existence of the two entities as mentioned in the Framework Agreement,” if it should engage in “a departure from what is proper” and drag the vulnerable Nagas into a dangerous political brinkmanship, he said.
Further, stating that “Nagalim” has abundant natural resources, he asserted the Naga people’s sole right to their land and its wealth.
“It (resources) belongs to us and nobody can exploit at the cost of undermining the sovereign ownership. The right of ownership over our land resources is absolute, and no amount of casting covetous eyes will change the course,” he asserted.
Muivah reminded the audience of the sacrifices made by countless Nagas in their pursuit of freedom, saying: “We cannot have what is ours unless we pay the price... Unless we defend our freedom, we risk becoming a lost people.”
Acknowledging the contribution and forbearance of the Nagas during the course of the movement, he said, “Nagas have not faulted in any manner that contravenes international law”, in the pursuit of freedom.
GoI blocking Framework Agreement
Speaking to journalists after the event, VS Atem placed the blame for the stalled Framework Agreement squarely on the Indian government.
“The Framework Agreement has been signed, and the government of India is responsible for blocking the forward movement,” he said.
He also questioned the government’s logic, asking, “When they have recognised that Nagas have sovereign rights, why should they raise (the issue of) there being no flag or national constitution of the Nagas in the FA?”
Acknowledging the ongoing negotiations and differences between the two sides, he noted that the NSCN has “stood our ground,” just as the government of India is taking its stand.
He reiterated that the Framework Agreement, signed by both parties, recognised “the uniqueness of Naga history,” which inherently acknowledges the sovereign rights of the Naga people. The agreement, he maintained, established a foundation for a new relationship based on the “peaceful coexistence of the two entities,” and negotiations have proceeded accordingly.