A Naga rebel’s home-coming, 50 years on

A COLLECTIVE cheer rose from the massed throng as the small white and orange government-owned Pawan Hans helicopter appeared in the skies and gently hovered in the air before landing, sending up clouds of dust at the sports stadium in the small town of Ukhrul in Manipur. Smiling and teary-eyed men and women — young and old — wearing colourful shawls, traditional headgear, scarves, jackets, skirts and kilts, packed the ground, waving sky-blue Naga flags.

The exile had landed — ending over 50 years of self-imposed distancing from his home district. The return of Thuingaleng Muivah, the undisputed head of the Naga political movement, sent a wave of emotions convulsing not just across his Tangkhul tribe but across Manipur, cutting across communities and divisions in this small but complex state. Ukhrul was a stop en route to his home village, Somdal, which is still difficult to reach on the lonely and battered road that is the sole connection to other parts of the state and is often severely damaged during the rains. Muivah went there, too, by helicopter. Waiting for him there was his younger brother Asui, also an octogenarian.

At 91, the legendary Naga is frail and had to be assisted out of the helicopter and held by aides as he received a headgear, shawl and words of respectful welcome. Known to the Tangkhuls as Avakharar, or Eldest Father, he walked briefly before moving to a wheelchair. He also has a formal title — Ato Kilonser or the Prime Minister of his Naga government. His speech was read out for him by the Deputy Ato Kilonser, VM Atem, a former chief of the Naga army and believed to be among the key figures waiting in the wings of the organisation's leadership. A children's choir sang to him, accompanied by the strumming of guitars, while heavily armed Naga soldiers in uniform, with bulletproof vests and sunglasses, moved around. Even members of the Muslim community in Manipur waved the blue Naga flag, which has a glowing rainbow at its centre topped by a large Star of Bethlehem.

The visit was not without other drama: The Zeliangrong tribal group which denounced Muivah as returning "empty-handed" to his homeland changed its tune when he praised one of its prominent figures as the originator of the Naga pro-freedom movement "followed by AZ Phizo and other Naga patriots." How this plays out in the sensitive political history of the Nagas where many regard Phizo as the trailblazing independence leader, has to be seen.

Nearly 60 years ago, Muivah, then secretary of the only Naga political organisation seeking independence at the time, the Naga National Conference (NNC), leaped to fame and the records of the Government of India, by leading more than 100 Nagas on a gruelling 1,000-km trek across Myanmar's hills and forests to China's Yunnan province. He and another Naga army leader, Gen Thinoselie, contacted the Chinese leadership to seek support for an armed and political insurgency. With that move, the legend of Muivah was established.

However, the Naga theatre of conflict and other rebellions which pinned down large numbers of Indian security forces personnel, also became a part of the Great Game played by China and Pakistan (which also supported the Naga and then the Mizo rebellions). While Muivah rose to join the pantheon of celebrated rebel leaders of the North-east and Asia — his group trained rebel groups from Assam and elsewhere — he and his movement were also buffeted by external pressures and internal dissensions.

It suffered a blow when the Chinese support ended in 1976 when India and China exchanged ambassadors after a 14-year gap following the 1962 border war; Pakistan's role drastically reduced after it lost its eastern wing, where rebels had bases.

This drove the rebels, commonly referred to as the Naga 'underground' and its 'government' to develop and hone a well-oiled network of local extraction from its own citizens as well as private businesses, officials, transporters and government projects.

They spanned Nagaland and Manipur's Naga-dominated districts of Ukhrul and Senapati, where his writ and that of his local commanders ran. The taxing of the Nagas over the decades has led to strong public protests; those opposing the usurious demands said that with increasing dissension among the Naga ranks — at last count, there were 27 groups from the single entity of the 1960s and 1970s, with Muivah's National Socialist Council of Nagalim (I-M) leading the pack — they could not afford to pay each and every group that came seeking funds.

The divisions among the Nagas are long and bitter, going back to the 1980s when first Muivah and Issak Chisi Swu (the I of the I-M) broke with the hoary NNC followed by a sharp falling-out between the Muivah and Swu and the Myanmar wings of the organisation.

The divisions also revolve around different tribes as well as ideological approaches and jousting for political and military power. Both sides have hurled accusations of killings and counter-killings at each other and old differences still remain. After the NSCN and New Delhi signed a formal ceasefire, Muivah lived for many years in the NSCN (I-M) camp near Dimapur, Nagaland's commercial hub. He now is said to have his own home in that city and occasionally travels to New Delhi for official discussions.

As he returned to his village, much of this was forgotten in the euphoria of homecoming. "This is a personal visit which is caught up in emotionalism and reverence," said Pradip Phanjoubam, editor of the Imphal Free Press Review.

Not only was it Muivah's first visit to Ukhrul and Somdal, but it was also his first visit to Manipur in all these decades. A plan to return to Somdal about 15 years ago, facilitated by the Ministry of Home Affairs, was aborted after the then Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh of the Congress scuttled the idea. Singh was concerned about the adverse impact it would have on the majority Meitei community and on an upcoming state legislature election. Ultimately, the Congress won that election.

A former official at the Ministry of Home Affairs, who handled the issue directly at the time, described Muivah as being extremely upset then, but that "he understood the pressures on the government."

That is the other aspect of Muivah. Those who have dealt directly with him over the years have described him as a shrewd and tough negotiator. After nearly 18 years of negotiations, which began in 1997 and spanned several governments, Muivah signed the Framework Agreement with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015.

However, this remains inconclusive because Muivah insists that that there cannot be a final agreement without the inclusion of a Naga flag and constitution. He is aware of the fate of an earlier accord, the Shillong Accord, signed 50 years ago between the Central government and Naga leaders. Muivah had denounced the accord as a sell-out and campaigned against it relentlessly.

Sanjoy Hazarika is an independent columnist.