Borders do more than keep people out; they define the line, but the Nagas continue to stand as ‘One People, One Nation’

A border, at its most basic, is a line that separates us from them; it can be natural, real, or artificial. In other words, borders are political boundaries. Take a look at the Naga people’s situation. Prior to British colonization, the Nagas were a free people with permanent village states. Today’s borders in the Naga homeland are colonial leftovers and following the British withdrawal from the Naga homeland in 1953, Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru of India and U Nu of Myanmar (formerly Burma) met in Kohima to draw formal borders between India and Burma by dividing the Naga homeland into countries.

The Naga people are now divided into India and Myanmar as a result of borders that were drawn without regard for the people whose lives they now define. Modern borders are now policed with the same disregard. To some extent, the notion that border controls, visa regimes, and migration can significantly impede movement among Nagas in the Naga homeland is correct, but their effectiveness is limited, and they cannot prevent Nagas from forgetting each other if we have seen how Nagas have helped each other in various situations and in various forms despite all the borders imposed on them.

International and national borders are invariably difficult to change in modern times unless a significant and dramatic event occurs. Because of the imposed borders in the Naga homeland, Nagas are unable to live in a single administrative political unit, but this does not prevent Nagas from assisting or standing with one another in various situations/events. For example, despite the political boundary,

1. Since 1947, Nagas on both sides of the border, as well as Nagas all over the world, have been commemorating the August 14 declaration of Naga independence from the colonial British empire.

2. The Global Naga Forum (GNF) and the Naga Mothers Association (NMA) jointly carried out a “Peace and Relief Mission” on April 18, 2021, to assist the affected families and victims of a massive fire at a Naga village – Longliang village in Tirap district, Arunachal Pradesh.

3. The Global Naga Forum (GNF) initiated and carried out a “Shilloi Relief & Peace Mission” for Nagas in Myanmar in 2021, from November 6 – 8, as many lack proper housing and necessities. The Nagas are constantly under threat from security forces occupying the Naga homeland, as villages are attacked on suspicion of anti-government activity, some are forced to work by government agents, and forced lockdowns due to the COVID pandemic have made life more difficult. Given these circumstances, GNF members from both sides of the border conducted a relief mission to provide necessities/goods to those in need.

4. From July 28-29, 2022, the Naga solidarity walk for the right to live together as ONE was organized by the GNF under the theme “One people, one destiny”. Various Naga organizations from both sides of the border participated in and supported the event.

5. When Indian Special Forces carried out the Oting Massacre in Oting, Nagaland on December 4/5, 2022, Nagas from other regions had not forgotten what had happened to their kinship in Nagaland. In addition to the protest/rally in Nagaland, a candlelight vigil was held across the Naga region of Manipur to protest and mourn the loss of 14 innocent civilian lives in firing by Indian Special Forces.

6. The recent peaceful demonstrations held by Nagas/Naga students in Dimapur on February 24, 2023, in Delhi on March 2, 2023, and in Kohima on March 7, 2023, clearly demonstrated that the Nagas are still fighting together as “One People, One Nation” when they called for international intervention in the conflict between India, Myanmar, and the Naga people.

7. On March 7, 2023, the Ministry of Information and Publicity (MIP), National Socialist Council of Nagalim / Government of the People’s Republic of Nagalim (NSCN/GRPN) issued a press statement emphasizing that the Nagas are “One People, One Nation,” and the conflict is a pure case “invasion and illegal occupation”. It calls on the international community to put pressure on India and Myanmar to release all Naga political prisoners of war (NNPOWs).

8. On March 12, 2023, GNF carried out a “Relief Mission” to assist the fire-ravaged Naga village of Solo/Chiu village, Myanmar, which was supported/donated by various Naga organizations and institutions from across the Naga homeland.

Clearly, the form and function of territorial borders were largely determined by the governments of India and Myanmar, with both having military or law-enforcement presence along the imposed borders in the Naga homeland, creating many issues and difficulties for movement among the Naga people. The imposed political boundary completely ignored the socio-political entities that existed prior to the British colonization of the Naga homeland, imposing new borders and dividing the Naga people along lines that often made sense only to the colonial British empire and modern-day India and Myanmar. Nonetheless, despite numerous tactics and pressures on the Naga people based on the imposed political boundary in the Naga homeland, the Nagas have not failed to assist and work together on various situations/events and have consistently called for international intervention to remove all imposed borders in the Naga homeland.