Kohima, June 15: The Amsterdam-based Naga International Support Centre has urged the Centre to expedite the current peace talks with the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (I-M), led by Isak Chishi Swu and Thiungaleng Muivah.

In a statement, the support centre urged Delhi to show that India was not just an emerging economic powerhouse, but also a nation where human rights were honoured.

“Talk peace so that the peace talks can come to a mutually agreeable solution. The world is watching how India behaves towards its neighbours and the oppressed nations,” the statement said.

The centre said the government knew well that the Nagas wanted to govern themselves on the basis of their right to self-determination. They had been firm on this right since India “decisively incorporated” and then separated them by agreeing to an international border with Myanmar.

It said peace talks, since 1997, led India to recognise the uniqueness of the Nagas, which meant they recognised that the Nagas historically had no connection with India but that they were both ruled by the same coloniser — Britain.

“The Naga situation, recognised as unique, implies a beginning in thinking. When both nations respect each other’s sovereignty, a cordial relationship can be developed. However, important snags, like the successful divide-and-rule efforts (the NSCN-K faction) are continuously cropping up during the peace talks. These snags are obstructions as they lead to distrust based on insincerity,” the statement said.

It said from the point of view of the international community, the right to self-determination belongs to all people. Since India signed the Covenant of the United Nations, one would think that the peace talks would lead to a mutually respectful solution to the long and bloody conflict between the “overwhelmingly large and brutal Indian armed forces” and the “relatively small but effective guerrilla army of the Naga people of Nagalim”.

The centre said negotiating peace with a knife on the table puts the opponent in a submissive position.

“To substantiate the pledge of expediting peace talks for an early solution, remove the knife so that both parties can speak frankly and release all prisoners, including Anthony Shimray of the foreign command, still languishing in jail,” the statement said.

Shimray, head of foreign affairs of the NSCN (I-M), was arrested last year from the Kathmandu international airport by the Indian intelligence agency.

“Would it not be wise for India to understand that one-sided ceasefire and negotiation at gunpoint have never solved any issue? It is rather this type of behaviour that lands the country in trouble with other people too. After all, who can live in peace at gunpoint?” the statement asked.