UN urged to ‘direct’ India to settle Naga political issue

UN urged to ‘direct’ India to settle Naga political issue
Dimapur, March 18 (MExN): The Naga Hoho today addressed a letter to the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki Moon, seeking recognition of the rights of the Naga indigenous people under the UN’s Declaration of Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Moon is urged to ‘direct’ the Union Government of India to “settle the long-drawn Indo-Naga political issue without further delay…”
A copy of the letter received here was appended by Naga Hoho President Keviletuo Kiewhuo and General Secretary P. Chuba Ozukum. It is not known whether or not the UN chief has actually received the letter. Elaborating the Nagas’ political histories, the Naga Hoho appealed to the UN Secretary General “to allow the Naga peoples to enjoy the rights of the indigenous peoples as per UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights.”
The hoho then sought a “special commission” to ascertain the extent of Human Rights violations in Indian and Myanmar-occupied Naga homeland. “We earnestly appeal the UN authority to direct the Government of India to settle the long-drawn Indo-Naga political issue without further delay taking into consideration the uniqueness of Naga history and situation to promote peace and progress in Nagaland in particular and the world in general,” the letter stated.
“Nagas are peace and freedom loving people who contributed their best to the world peace during the first and second world wars and they want to maintain and safeguard those values against all odds even now and in the days to come,” the Naga Hoho stated. The British not only invaded the Naga country in 1832 but also divided it into “many parts placing them in different artificial international boundary,” the hoho explained. The Naga Hoho elaborated the history of the Nagas right from the Assam province’s administration era in 1866 and the division of provinces, to the political aggression of the Indian government that followed against the Nagas for decades.
The hoho stated: “The Nagas are being placed in the above stated worst political situation, the existence of the Nagas in their own homeland is not only threatened but also their land and its resources are exposed to the danger of being lost to the aggressor forever. The Naga people are made to suffer, isolate, misplace and marginalize. They are exploited politically and economically by India and Myanmar to the extent that there is no room for our future survival.”
“Burning houses including churches, destroying farms and crops, forests apart from mass torture, mass rape, massacre and mass detention in concentration camps were common occurrences during the heat of the confrontation.”
Referring to the desire for Naga integration, the Naga Hoho said it is not a choice “since the desire of the Nagas for living together as one people in their own homeland under one political roof is a natural longing. It is a movement for self-determination.” The hoho explained that ‘Naga integration’ means integration of contiguous Naga areas under one political identity and to safeguard their socio-political rights against ‘interference’ from others. “It explicitly addresses the removal of all the artificial and imaginary boundaries arbitrarily demarcated against the wishes and aspirations of the Naga people by the Government of British-India, India and Myanmar,” the Naga apex stated.
The Government of India has recognized the ‘uniqueness’ of Naga history and situation on July 11, 2002 in Amsterdam, the hoho said. However, the Indian Armed Forces Special Power Act of 1958 is still in force in all Naga areas, the hoho stated. “The representatives of the Nagas and India have had political talks for more than 70 rounds beginning from 1 August, 1997 but GOI is simply playing delaying tactics and take it as counter insurgency strategy. GOI is playing political games by offering piecemeal package under its appeasement policy every now and then.”
The Naga Hoho also mentioned Nagaland State Legislative Assembly’s resolve for Naga integration, four times i.e., on December 12, 1964, August 28, 1970, September 16, 1994 and December 18, 2003 ‘during different governments, reiterating the unification of contiguous Naga areas.’
Listing out the various accords and agreements made between the government of India and the Nagas in the past six decades, the Hoho said “In spite of all these agreements, our struggle for freedom continues because Indian leaders are not sincere in dealing with the issue and they have no deep political commitment to solve the problem.”