Naga Accord

 
The word “Naga” denotes a conglomeration of ethnic tribes living on the Himalayan range in North-East India. It is the British who brought the several tribes on these hills under the umbrella of “Naga” probably on the basis of ethnicity founded on their dissimilarity with people in the region.
The Naga Movement gained momentum with the coming of Phizo in the late 1940s. Phizo along with some other prominent leaders fought on the side of the Indian National Army (of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose) against the Allied Force with the hope of attaining freedom. The Naga Club later became the Naga National Council (NNC) in 1946, the precursor of the NSCN to voice for Naga freedom. Disappointed by the policy frameworks of the Indian National Congress, they went underground and started engaging in guerrilla warfare against the Indian security forces. On 14 august 1947, Phizo had declared independence of Nagaland but in 1948, he was arrested by the Indian Government on charges of rebellion. In 1952 dialogues between Phizo and Nehru had started to plan a way out for the Naga conundrum. But, the meeting was unsuccessful with both the parties remaining steadfast in their viewpoints and demands. The Indian Army then marched in to suppress the rebellion and track down Phizo. Phizo escaped to London and stayed in exile there till his death in 1990 . In 1975 – Shillong Accord had taken place between NNC and GOI. A discontented fraction of NNC formed NSCN – “the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland “and started an underground Naga Federal Government having both civil and military wings. It again split into two factions in the late 1980s: the NSCN-IM and the NSCN-Khaplang.

NSCN-R – Split in NSCN-K and formation of NSCN –R (Reformation).This fraction want continuation of cease fire and they believe that “violence has never served a good purpose and the Naga political problem can only be resolved through peace and negotiations”. The primary agenda of the new NSCN-R was to “develop a sense of brotherhood among the Naga family and to rebuild the trust and faith among the Naga society.”
NSCN-IM -- Over the years, the NSCN-IM has tried to develop extensive linkages both within and outside India. It is alleged that Pakistan and China are providing finance as well as arms and ammunition to the NSCN in their fight for independence against the Indian Government. the NSCN patronised smaller extremist outfits in the North-East of India by giving warfare and intelligence trainings and providing logistics for waging war against India.
China too is instrumental in providing training and arms and in return NSCN is supposed to collect and gather intelligence on Indian troop deployments in the North-Eastern States of India. The NSCN is the major faction that helps many other minor militant outfits in the North-East and is widely accepted as the main reason of continued insurgency in the North-Eastern States of the Indian Republic.

OBJECTIVES OF NSCN-IM - The objective of the NSCN was to establish a Sovereign State by unifying all the Naga-inhabited areas in the North-East of India and Northern Burma which the organisation and the people of the area proposed as Nagalim. Its manifesto is based on the principle of Socialism for economic development and a Baptist Christian religious outlook.
Area of Influence - The State of Nagaland, the hill districts of Manipur, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Northern Myanmar. On the political front, the NSCN-IM has divided its area of influence into 11 regions based on sub-tribe considerations and administrative convenience. In many areas, it runs a parallel government. There are four major ‘Ministries’—Defence, Home, Finance and Foreign Affairs. Moreover, there are five other Ministries including Education, Information and Publicity, Forests and Minerals, Law and Justice and Religious Affairs.

NAGA Accord on August 3, 2015
With the aim of ending insurgency in Nagaland, the government signed an accord with the key outfit, NSCN-IM, at New Delhi. The signing of the pact is the culmination of over 80 rounds of negotiations that spanned 16 years with the first breakthrough in 1997 when a ceasefire agreement was sealed. This accord shows the flexibility and realism of the NSCN-IM in terms of the willingness to alter the goals, from complete sovereignty and Greater Nagalim to acceptance of the constitutional framework albeit with a provision for the grant of greater autonomy to the Naga inhabited areas outside of Nagaland through the establishment of autonomous district councils. This involved the grant of greater autonomy for the Naga areas without a territorial division of the other states involved.

CHALLENGES
The Accord has brought in sharp criticism from the state governments as Accord was signed, without taking the chief ministers of the states into confidence, despite the prime minister's emphasis on “cooperative federalism”.
Other Naga factions have responded variously to the ongoing peace negotiations between the GOI and NSCN-IM. The National Socialist Council of Nagaland Khaplang (NSCN-K) has rejected any form of engagement with the GoI and is continuing with its acts of violence. The NSCN (Khaplang) called off the ceasefire, ostensibly protesting his group's exclusion from the talks. Khaplang has expanded his network and has given shelter to other rebel groups from the North East in Sagaing, Myanmar, where he is based. The Khaplang group is part of nine insurgent groups, which includes the Paresh Barua faction of the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) and the Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO). Together they formed an umbrella organistation, the United Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (ULFWSEA). However, there are reports that Khaplang called off the ceasefire after coming under the influence of Paresh Baruah who is suspected to be in China.
The two emerging groups, NSCN(K) and the Manipur Naga Peoples Front (MNPF) will figuratively fill the space vacated by the decommissioning of the NSCN(IM)'s Naga Army.
The National Socialist Council of Nagaland Khitovi-Neokpao (NSCN-KN) views the ongoing process as an arrangement for the Nagas of Manipur only, and not for the Nagas of Nagaland. The National Socialist Council of Nagaland Reformation (NSCN-R), which had earlier supported the Framework Agreement, is now complaining of delays and emergent complications in the process. Finally, factions of the Naga National Council (NNC), the Manipur-based Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) and the Manipur Naga Peoples’ Front (MNPF) have all expressed their disagreements with the current format of negotiations.
There exist several unresolved issues, which could obstruct the ongoing peace process. These include: the issue of integration of contiguous Naga inhabited areas of Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh; the demand for a separate Frontier State by the tribes of Eastern Nagaland; addressing the aspirations of the people of South Arunachal Pradesh ; rising differences amongst the ‘Naga political groups’ whose support is essential for any accord to succeed; and visible cracks in Naga society over the non-inclusion of all stakeholders in the pursuit of an acceptable and comprehensive political solution.
The agreement has ruled out the redrawing of boundaries of the present states in North East, which is a major assurance to other stakeholders. The NSCN (IM) has given up their demand of unifying all the Naga areas under a single state to create a greater Nagalim – a demand opposed tooth and nail by Indian states of Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh that have a significant Naga population.

WAY AHEAD :
For greater peace of the region, Khaplang must be taken on board And Presidents of Naga Hoho, which is considered as an apex body of Naga tribes, should ask to persuade Khaplang to re-impose ceasefire for greater peace.
Another challenge is the rehabilitation of the NSCN (IM) cadre. A package could entail incorporating some of them into the security apparatus of the state to even include central police organisations such as the BSF and the CRPF or Assam Rifle. One of the proposals was to convert the armed cadre into NSCN-IM battalions which will be placed under the control of the state government while the Centre could fund and train them.
Facilitating intermediation between the various stakeholders involved in the diverse conflict constellations in the region, be it the public, civil society activists, state representatives, journalists, academicians and researchers; and contributing to the promotion of integration and socialisation into a democratic political culture through dialogue and civic education.
The Naga rebel chieftain clarified that the NSCN had never given up on Naga sovereignty. But he clarified that the Indo-Naga final settlement will be based on the concept of “shared sovereignty” because if India recognises the “unique history of the Nagas”, the Nagas should recognise India’s problems and limitations. That spirit of give-and-take is most welcome but should not be misconstrued as a compulsion instead of a choice.

By: Vinay Joshi