The NSCN (IM) on Tuesday said any agreement that betrays the principle of the unique history of the Nagas is no solution to the Indo-Naga political problem.
It said the Naga people are for principle based solution.
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The outfit in a statement said the politics of the Nagas is founded on the rock of their unique history.
It added that recognition of this unique history of the Nagas by the Centre is a bold and historic step.
The outfit claimed that according to the framework agreement signed between the Centre and the NSCN in 2015, the unique history of the Nagas is that they have been a free and sovereign people from time immemorial and they have never been a part of the Union of India or that of Burma or any power.
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The NSCN (IM) said, “…the agreement is based on the recognised unique history and sovereignty of the Nagas and co-existence of the two entities of being sovereign.”
By co-existence, it explained, the Nagas and the Indians will coexist as two entities or the Nagas will coexist with Union of India.
The outfit said the framework agreement is the meeting point of the two peoples on the one hand and the uniting point for all the Nagas on the other.
“This agreement will be the beginning of a new relationship between the two peoples,” it said.
The agreement was made taking the security of India and the sovereign right of the Nagas into consideration, added the Naga rebels.
Quoting the agreement, the NSCN (IM) said, “Both sides have understood each other’s respective positions and are cognizant of the universal principle that in a democracy sovereignty lies with the people. The sovereignty of the Nagas lies with the Naga people and the sovereignty of India lies with the Indian people. The Framework Agreement is principle based.”
The NSCN leadership assured the Indian representative that since the two entities are bound together by the doctrine of this agreement, it will uphold it at all costs at all time.
The Centre’s representative for Naga talks and present Nagaland governor R.N. Ravi also assured the Nagas leaders that the government of India also will abide by the framework agreement, it said.
“Whoever opposes the Framework Agreement opposes the government of India,” the outfit said.
It said any agreement that betrays sovereign right of the Nagas is no solution and added that “the allegation of dropping the issue of sovereignty is the language of false teachers”.
The outfit reminded Ravi, who represents the Centre in the formal talks, that he is the coauthor of the framework agreement and that the Centre will abide by the agreement.
In the competencies, the NSCN (IM) claimed, the agreement says that “integration is the legitimate right of the Nagas” and a roadmap has been set for materializing it through a political process.
“NSCN is for all the Nagas wherever they are and their territories. NSCN is neither for a part of the Naga people nor for a part of their territories. It has never given up the issue of integration as alleged by some critics. Let us beware of those false preachers,” said the outfit.
On the PAN Naga Hoho, the NSCN (IM) said it is a statutory cultural body, which embraces all Nagas wherever they are and deals with their affairs of culture, social, customary, language, dialect, integrity .
The PAN Naga Hoho was proposed by the Centre and mutually agreed upon, it said.