DIMAPUR: The All Naga Students Association, Manipur (ANSAM) has urged the government of India to treat the Naga peace process seriously and urged the latter authority to release jailed NSCN-IM leader Anthony Ningkhan Shimray and all the ‘political prisoners’ further delay.
The Naga student body asserted, “The peace process must be upheld and respected.”
According to the Naga student body, ANSAM along with other social organizations has been supporting peace and peace efforts in the region as we have seen the impact of war and conflict severely impacting and impinging our society.
“Generation after generation children, youth and students are being sapped of their potentials and creativity and made to suffer economic, social and political instability,” it added.
As much as we support peace ANSAM is also cautious about how peace is used to protract conflict and destabilize movements and we are all aware of how the government of India engage in peace and peace talks, ANSAM said.
It then observed that the last few years have seen spate of peace negotiations, ceasefires and suspension of operations with many insurgent groups in the region.
“We have stated earlier too that the Government of India has initiated such processes with as many as 31 groups in the region but we are concerned as Governement of India is not at all interested to resolve the issue of political unrest with the groups they are engaged with as demonstrated by the Indo-Naga peace process,” ANSAM further said.
Citing the turn of event ANSAM said on September 27, 2010, Anthony Ningkhan Shimray, Head of Foreign Affairs, National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) while he on his way for peace talk disappeared after he landed at Kathmandu. Five days later India admitted to arresting him. Subsequently, he has been languishing in Tihar Central Jail, New Delhi, on charges of procuring arms and waging war against the State (India).
ANSAM also said it has been impressing upon the government of India that the peace process must be upheld and respected and his arrest and continued detention as one of the prominent leaders in the peace talk is a dishonour to the peace process. (NNN)
