The final bell tolls for Isak Chishi Swu precisely at 12 hours 11minutes 28 seconds after midday declaring his last triumphant moment on earth. He had come into this world empty handed and departed empty handed like every other great mortals before him, leaving behind a broken-hearted family as it always does... and in the process another memorable chapter of a volatile unsettled Naga History gently closed on 28th June 2016 with him. Ino Isak Chishi Swu, arguably a legendary colossal Naga icon journeyed on to his afterlife as predestined by the Almighty God on whom he so unwaveringly anchored his faith throughout his humble life. Granted, no force on earth can stem the inevitable tide of change...nevertheless an overwhelming atmosphere of uncertainty now envelops every anxious mind in the absence of a delicate tribal balance that squarely rested on his aging shoulders within his organization and beyond. The worrisome fact that his is a fast fading committed generation being replaced by an indifferent one that looks at all the sacrifices made by Naga fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters from every tribe during the inhuman mid nineteen-fifties and sixties like it was just another fairy tale... is a serious cause for concern.
Nevertheless let us remind ourselves once more and never forget that Naga history was written with sacrifices such as these: In 1968, Ino Isak Chishi Swu was assigned a mission to China as a Special Envoy to plead for the Naga cause. Imagine, prayerfully placing his fate solely in the able hand of God to guide him through the labyrinth of impenetrable, inhospitable, unchartered jungles without a compass, took some faith of a very special kind which, to mere mortals, would have been written off as an absolutely foolhardy escapade bordering on stupidity. Both Ino Isak and Ino Th. Muivah separately traversed the entire Naga and Myanmar territories spending unimaginable months of gruelling trekking. They battled against nature and enemies every step of the way before finally reaching their destination 'China' in 1968. At a nascent struggling stage of the Naga political movement, drawing China's favourable disposition towards the Nagas was a monumental achievement by any stretch of imagination. But to salvage this, they went through indescribable ordeals of being ambushed and shot at, at regular intervals both by the Indian and the Myanmar Armies. Both of them, along with their committed band of brothers and sisters in-arms braved dangers of all description losing more than 80% of their comrades, who started out together and perished in the hands of the enemies and nature along the long torturous way. Heartrending stories abound... of patriotism and camaraderie faced by each of them along the testing road, experiencing astounding miracles of God all throughout their journey, be it at the time of coming face to face with the enemies in mortal combat or facing weeks of starvation hopelessly lost in a nowhere jungles, all for a cause they firmly believed in..."Freedom for the Nagas". Those were the early years of innocence when "Nagaland for Christ" did mean something real.
Even nature acknowledged the passing of a great soul the same day with a rainbow over Chishilimi sky... his native birthplace... and continued the amazing phenomena of a rainbow encircling the sun in the subsequent couple of days before his mortal remains was interred. The Nagas of all shapes and sizes, young and old representing all Naga Tribes from all Naga inhabited areas, diligently converged at Agri Expo, Dimapur, on 30th June 2016 creating a kaleidoscopic hue of ethnic colour... silently filling the solemn arena in their thousands that pictured a Naga rainbow of unity. Even if for a transient moment the factions... NSCN (U); NSCN (R); NNC... buried their differences and paid glowing tributes to a departed leader that they each had respected in their own intimate way. A raw uncontaminated sentiment was expressed when Ino Muivah stood beside his friend's coffin and brokenheartedly said that brother Isak was his soul mate these past fifty years+ wading through thick and thin, making every critical decision together without betraying the trust of each other. The Nagas bid a genuinely heartfelt farewell to Isak Chishi Swu for the very last time with calm dignity and honour.
At Chishilimi too, nature shared its grief with thousands of mourners with a bright pleasant day throughout the formal function followed by a short burst of shower immediately after the burial formality was completed on the evening of 2nd July 2016. God manifested with blatant clarity through nature that even as mortals mourned Isak Chishi Swu's departure...Heavens rejoiced.
History will remember him kindly as he leaves behind an honourable legacy of peace towards all and malice towards none for the emulation of the present generation and the ones to come, worthy of praise and respect. Now that you are upstairs ...entreat with your God to let your brothers -in -arms left behind learn that egoistic self-perpetuation is a futile exercise and that each of them will depart planet earth in their own unknown time empty handed as they came...as you did. This is an opportune time to work as equals and leave behind a lasting peace as a final gift to the people that they profess to serve. Farewell dear Elder Brother...you truly were a colossal Naga icon.
Khekiye K. Sema IAS (Rtd), Kohima
