DIMAPUR:
United Democratic Alliance (UDA) chairman TR Zeliang has said that the government of India and the Naga negotiators should not back out from what they have committed to each other so that a logical conclusion to the Naga issue could be reached at the earliest.
In a video message on June 6, Zeliang said that the UDA had conveyed to the central leaders that the government of India should not deviate from what had been committed to the Nagas. He said this sentiment of the Naga negotiating groups was conveyed through former interlocutor RN Ravi and incumbent representative of the Centre for Naga talks AK Mishra.
Zeliang also appealed to all “right-thinking” Naga leaders to refrain from making “loose remarks” on the Naga peace talks based on speculation and hearsay as it can cause misunderstanding and confusion among the Nagas.
“We understand that everyone, including lawmakers and public leaders, has the right to speak out for the common welfare of the Nagas. However, one must remember that unlike the 1960s when the overground groups were part of the (peace) negotiations, today it is the Naga nationalist groups that are part of the negotiations,” he said.
According to him, the armed conflict continued as the Naga National Council, the undivided armed group, was not consulted prior to the signing of the 16-Point Agreement in 1960 by the government of India and the Nagas.
“The UDA wants all Naga nationalist groups to be a part of the long-awaited peace accord in order to not repeat the mistake of the past,” Zeliang said.
He opined that any unwarranted statement made by Naga leaders, which is outside the parameters of ongoing negotiations between the Naga negotiating groups and the government of India, will mislead the Naga people before the draft agreement is formulated by the government of India and placed before the Naga leaders.
He appreciated the “genuine effort” of the negotiating parties in resolving the issue.
“We trust and believe that once the negotiating parties have arrived at a common ground, they will surely consult all apex tribal leaders and the state government before signing the accord,” Zeliang said.
He also added that one should not believe that the final agreement on this complex and sensitive Naga issue would be inked secretly and imposed on the Nagas.