PM Modi should solve Naga issue before showcasing Hornbill Festival at G20, says The Naga Rising

Dimapur, Nov. 23 (EMN): The Naga Rising (TNR) said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi “must demonstrate courage and clarify the ambiguity surrounding the stand of Delhi on the Naga issue as this will help pave the way for the long-awaited solution”.

On India’s plan to showcase Nagaland’s famous Hornbill Festival on a global scale “through the lens of G20”, for which G20 Chief Coordinator Harsh Vardhan Shringla had met with Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, it said the Centre must ask whether resolving the Naga political issue before the festival or after reflect India’s image at the global stage better.

“The Government of India (GoI) can resolve the Naga issue if it accepts the simple truth that the Naga issue is political in nature- not cultural or law and order. The wide spectrum of political support towards the Naga peace process through successive Indian prime ministers should neither be undermined at this stage,” read the press release from TNR.

It said the Naga political groups (NPGs) had gone out of their way to understand the difficulties of the GoI and only flag and constitution issues are unresolved.

“The Naga flag and constitution is neither a threat nor diminish India’s standing as an emerging global power. These symbols are embedded in the unique history and situation of the Nagas, as rightly acknowledged and recognised by the GoI,” it said.

“Recognising the Naga flag should be a way of honouring Naga integration, which Naga negotiators have agreed to pursue later. It will also realise the ‘special arrangement’ for the Nagas that has been promised at the highest level of the GoI,” it added.

TNR said the disagreement over separate Naga flag and constitution should be solved without further delay.

“The Naga people have put their trust on the negotiators and the peace process with high hope of a new era ushering in that is defined by peaceful co-existence. Unfortunately, uncertainty continues to loom large over the Naga issue and it is the responsibility of the negotiators to ensure that hope does not turn into despair,” it stated.

Citing Modi’s message at international forum that ‘the present era is not the time for war’, it said the PM should, in the same breath, “realise that this is not the era of divide and rule but of peace and resolution”.