Govt, NSCN-IM sincere in resolving Naga issue: Muivah

Muivah, who arrived at Dimapur to hold consultations with various Naga groups, said "Time and again we have clarified our position based on historical rights of the Nagas to the government of India and from our side no stone will be left unturned to find an honourable settlement to the decades-old Naga political conflict."

Muivah arrived in New Delhi on February 27 from Amsterdam and held a series of parleys with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and Centre's new interlocutor R S Pandey during the past fortnight.

He said both Singh and Chidambaram were found to be sincere and interested to resolve the Naga problem.Muivah would consult with Naga civil society groups, tribal councils, NGOs, church leaders during his stay at Camp Hebron, the NSCN-IM headquarters about 35 km south of this financial capital of Nagaland.

During his meeting with the central representatives he was also accompanied by senior members of the group, which signed a ceasefire with the Centre in 1997.

The Centre had already rejected NSCN-IM's demand of sovereignty and integration of all Naga-inhabited areas of the region to a single administrative set up, but said it was ready to offer the maximum possible autonomy to the Nagas even by amending the constitution, if required, to find a permanent solution to the vexed problem.

In Nagaland, state government, political parties, civil society groups, tribal councils have pitched for inclusion of all Naga underground groups in the peace process explaining no single group has the mandate of the Naga people.

The Centre had already rejected NSCN(I-M)'s demand of "sovereignty" and integration of all Naga-inhabited areas of the region to a single administrative set up, but said it was ready to offer maximum possible autonomy to the Nagas even by amending the constitution, if required, to find a permanent solution to the vexed problem.
In Nagaland, state government, political parties, Naga civil society groups, tribal councils have pitched for inclusion of all Naga underground groups in the peace process explaining no single group has the mandate of the entire Naga people.