Muivah

New Delhi, June 24: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi had separate one-to-one meetings with Thuingaleng Muivah, leader of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah), urging him to be patient with the Naga peace talks.

They also impressed upon the general secretary of the NSCN (I-M) the determination of the government to solve the Naga issue in a peaceful manner and told him that nothing should be done in a manner that might lead to the creation of new problems in the Northeast.

Muivah has given a series of media interviews, claiming that the government does not seem prepared to settle the Naga issue. Although he has not said goodbye to the peace process, he is planning to leave for Amsterdam. This would leave no option but to hold talks for extending the ceasefire, which is coming to an end on July 31, outside India. His subsequent return to India hinges on how New Delhi moves on the proposals submitted by the NSCN (I-M).

It is in this context that the UPA leadership does not want the Nagas to walk away from the peace process irrevocably or have second thoughts about extending the ceasefire. Persuasion and dialogue with the neighbouring states of Nagaland ? where the NSCN (I-M) claims some of the traditional Naga homelands lie ? was the mantra repeated both by Singh and Sonia. “Don’t think that we do not take the Naga issue seriously. We must resolve the issue through peaceful means, and for that we must all have patience. The issue must be resolved through understanding with Nagaland’s neighbours,” Sonia is believed to have told Muivah.

Muivah’s meeting with her late in the evening followed a similar discussion with the Prime Minister a few hours earlier. After a short one-to-one meeting between Sonia and Muivah, the duo was joined by Oscar Fernandes, who is leading a team of three ministers in the dialogue with the NSCN (I-M).

The Prime Minister is believed to have told Muivah that he would not “waver” from the path of peace. “I am sincerely telling you that I am committed to finding a solution through peaceful means. I will not waver. I am serious and determined to solve the Naga issue.”

Singh appreciated the patience shown by the Nagas over the years and during the peace talks. However, he impressed upon Muivah the need to recognise that solving one issue (the Naga issue) must not lead to the creation of other problems (with the neighbouring states). Muivah apparently recounted the specificity of Naga history to the Prime Minister and listed the steps taken by the Nagas over time to come closer to India.

From talking of independence and separation, the NSCN (I-M) today is seeking to negotiate a new federal relationship with New Delhi that would bind the two sides inseparably. “We have appreciated the difficulties of the Indian government and addressed them as best as we could. Beyond this we can do little,” Muivah is believed to have told the Prime Minister.

Briefing his colleagues late at night, Muivah told them that he was convinced that the Prime Minister’s commitment to the Naga peace process was “very firm”.