68th Republic Day Speech held on 22.03.2023 by Gen (Rtd) Thinoselie M Keyho, President, Naga National Council (NNC), HQ Kohima Nagaland
Without Freedom, Life Has No Meaning
Nagas are one, with one goal, one passion, one Flag, one Constitution, one people and one Nation. Together, definitely we can overcome the occupational illegal forces of nefarious oppression. We are a free people, and we shall never surrender our freedom to any nation at the cost of blood money or puppet positions of a foreign state. Nagas are not Indians, they shall never be Indians and the Nagas have nothing to do with the new Independent India. The Nagas are highly despised and discriminated by the Hindus because of our beef and likewise we are despised by the Muslims because of our pork as was truthfully stated in the Naga Club Memorandum of 1929. We are frowned upon and despised as some lower caste of Indian societies that we were never a part of and never wish to be. We have never asked to be a part of the Indian Union to be ruled and governed by the Constitution of India, nor intend to partake in any pagan philosophy of India neither by consent nor by coercion, nor be a part of an oppressive ideology of India that treats its own citizens with a discriminatory and derogatory caste system of human classification and oppression.
The expression of our political freedom had started much before the 16th century, whereby we collected huge yearly tributes from the neighboring kingdoms as a sign of our sovereignty and supremacy over them, and in the failure of timely payment of tributes as per our terms and conditions, the Nagas took punitive measures against those nationalities by plundering their communities resulting in heavy loss of lives and property of many of their people. Alexander Mackenzie in his book ‘History of the Relations of the Government with the Hill Tribes of the North-East Frontier of Bengal’ writes, “In 1851, no fewer than 22 Naga raids were reported, in which 35 persons were killed, 10 wounded and 113 taken captives. From 1854-1865 there had been 19 Angami raids in which 232 British subjects had been killed, wounded and carried off and these losses have occurred when a chain of outposts was in existence from Barapathar to Assalo.” On 10th Jan, 1929, the Naga Club on behalf of the Nagas declared and put on record, “Leave us alone to determine for ourselves for sovereignty as in ancient times”. Subsequently, the British Parliament under a Govt. of British India Empire Notification declared the Naga inhabited areas as NAGA EXCLUDED AREA in 1935 outside of the British India Empire.
The first and the second Indian General Elections were rejected by the Nagas in toto. However, the betrayal by the so-called 16 Point Agreement took place deceitfully, committed by a section of the avaricious Naga people and the analogous infamous surrendering Shillong Accord was signed by the Representatives of Underground Organizations (RUO) accepting the Indian Constitution albeit under duress. These are acts of treason against the Naga nation, deviating from the 1951 Plebiscite, and should never be repeated. The Nagas shall unwaveringly stand forever on the Plebiscite of 1951 whereby 99.9% of the Naga people voted in favor of Naga sovereignty and the Naga National Council (NNC), The Naga Political Movement cannot be categorised as a secessionist movement because of its unchallengeable political history.
God has blessed us with the Naga Nation and we are the custodians to defend its existence and upkeep to glorify God just as the Israelites do to defend their God given Promised Land, the nation
of Israel. To have a vital written public document before the ‘International community’, we had put on record our existence as a free and sovereign people through the Simon Comission of 1929, and also later on formally declared our Naga Independence on 14th Aug, 1947, a full day before the new independent India. Our unwillingness to be under the rule of any other country is again demonstrated by the Naga plebiscite of 1951. We stand by the 1951 Plebiscite and we all remain united under the Plebiscite. Nagaland is an undisputed land of our Naga Nation, and the birth right of our freedom is not for sale. Our oppressors have tortured, maimed, killed us, violated our women and children by the most depraved and perverted inhuman Indian army, desecrated our land and our churches, amongst many other crimes against humanity. They may kill and take our lives, but they can never kill the idea and the spirit of our Naga Nation.
We must be cautious not to blindly follow the purchased marionette leaders who are misleading the people to surrender into an Indian bandwagon, which is an act of treason and a heinous crime against the Naga soul. Some have been going to Delhi with charter of demands on the pretext of a Naga political solution while keeping the public in the dark of the talks. We cannot remain in bondage of India’s carrot and stick politics. Let us be citizens worthy of the Naga Nation. Loyalty to ones country is an act of patriotism that gives purpose to one’s life towards one’s country. Only when we are a patriotic citizen then can we look with promise towards a future with honor, pride, dignity and hope of a bright future without regrets. We are wonderfully created in the image and likeness of God. Therefore, to live with dignity and integrity in the image of God and to live by the sweat of our own brow is the true meaning of life. As honorable and patriotic Naga citizens, we cannot behave like leeches sucking the money of the Hindus and Muslims of India, more so through corrupt means that would incur the wrath and the curse of our Almighty God. If we envision a dream of a Naga Nation with positivity, it must begin with love for our own country and people and be willing to pay the price of patriotism at all costs. Let us strive to lead a life of independence in the same footsteps of our legendary erudite forefathers. We must be strong and courageous for our God will not forsake us and we shall be successful and prosperous in all our endeavors.
We must stop waiting for things to happen, but rather unite to make things happen. Let nobody divide the Nagas further. The solution to the Naga Political struggle shall neither come from our military might nor shall it depend on the size of our population or the size of our land. But the solution will come from the facts of our unquestionable and unchallengeable legitimate rights and it is this truth that will set us free under the watchful guidance of our Almighty God. We love freedom, democracy, non-violence and liberty. We are not asking for Independence from India. We only ask the unsolicited Indian occupationary forces to leave our land so that we may be free from oppression and that freedom reigns and enable us to exist as friendly nations as each others neighbour in a civilised world.
KUKNALIM
