DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 2 (MExN): The Inner Line Regulation Commission (ILRC) of the Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) has taken exception to a statement issued by the Rising People’s Party (RPP) that appeared in the local dailies on October 1 under the headline “RPP dismayed at the omission of non-Naga indigenous tribes.”
In a press statement issued on October 1, the NSF said it was “flabbergasted” by the RPP’s remarks and questioned the party: “Who are the ‘non-Naga indigenous tribes’ in Nagaland?”
It asserted that, as far as the NSF is concerned, Nagas are the only indigenous people of Nagaland and other Naga-inhabited areas. It acknowledged that other tribes and communities have also settled in various Naga areas, but maintained that calling migrants indigenous undermines the sanctity of peoples who have lived in those lands since time immemorial.
“The RPP must understand that the United Nations, as the world’s apex organisation, has distinctively defined the term ‘indigenous’ to preserve the distinct status of peoples who are indigenous to the lands they inhabit. Therefore, the NSF’s position is clear: the indigeneity of the Nagas to their land cannot be eroded by any factor whatsoever. Indigeneity to land inhabited by the Nagas is intrinsic to the Nagas and no one else,” the NSF stated.
The Commission said that in this regard, the Nagaland Government’s decision was appropriate, countering the RPP’s characterization that it “reflected poorly on the policy makers of the state.” The NSF termed the RPP’s remark “devoid of logic” and said it “only reflects the utter ignorance of the RPP and amounts to an attempt to diminish the uniqueness of the Nagas in their ancestral homeland.”
At the same time, the NSF acknowledged the existence of non-Nagas who came to Nagaland before December 1, 1963. It urged the Government to grant them a suitable status so that their presence is legally and officially recognised.
The Federation further appealed to individuals, tribes, or communities who arrived before December 1, 1963 not to be swayed by “unfounded apprehensions” but to register their claims “so that their original status is not diluted by newcomers or self-interested individuals.”
