David Lowang
President, WNSU Nocte Tribe, Arunachal Pradesh
For centuries, the Naga people have stood as a testament to resilience—weathering colonialism, internal divisions, and decades of armed struggle for self-determination. In the craggy hills of India’s Northeast and parts of Myanmar, the Naga identity has survived against all odds, deeply embedded in its shared history, culture, and sense of belonging. Today, this identity is under attack—not from an invading army but through political maneuvering and cynical betrayals from within. Recent moves by the Government of India to declassify the Nocte, Wancho, Tangsa, and Tutsa tribes of Arunachal Pradesh as "non-Naga" is more than a matter of classification; it is a deliberate attempt to dismantle Naga unity and sovereignty.
I myself, am an Arunachali Naga- from the Nocte Tribe, and the President of the Wesean Naga Students Union. However, today I want to write this article in a personal capacity to highlight the uncertain future that us Arunachali Nagas face, with the ongoing Naga peace talks. In the context of India’s long-standing peace talks with the Nagas, this declassification is a betrayal of the very idea of reconciliation. It reeks of a broader strategy to divide and dominate Nagas in their own homeland, undermining the very unity that has been at the heart of the Naga cause for decades. What makes us even more sad is that our own Naga brothers in the state of Nagaland are refusing to speak on our behalf.
For decades, the Indian government has been engaged in talks with Naga political and insurgent groups, most notably the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN), with the stated goal of finding a lasting peace. These negotiations have been long and complicated, stretching back to the 1947 Naga struggle for independence, and more formally, since the 1997 ceasefire between the NSCN-IM and the Indian state. These talks have carried the hopes of many—offering a fragile promise that peace might finally be achieved through dialogue rather than bloodshed.
However, beneath the surface, what it appears to be is that the Indian government’s engagement with the Naga cause has often been marked by duplicity. One of the clearest examples of this was the formation of the state of Nagaland in 1963. Though heralded as a step toward resolving the Naga issue, the creation of Nagaland was, in reality, an effort to divide the Nagas internally. By limiting the Naga homeland to the borders of the newly formed state, India fragmented the Naga identity. It left out large Naga populations in Manipur, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Myanmar, isolating them from their cultural and political kin. This honestly has worked, because many times going to Nagaland, I have witnessed the disdain other Nagas have for us- for some we are simply just not true “Nagas”.
The statehood of Nagaland, while offering certain concessions, was never the comprehensive solution that the Naga people sought. Instead, it became a tool for the government to undermine the broader Naga identity, creating artificial boundaries within the Naga homeland that have persisted ever since. The peace talks that followed have continued this trend of managing the Naga question without addressing the core issues of self-determination and cultural unity.
Among those who have paid the highest price for this political sleight of hand are the Nagas of Arunachal Pradesh—the Nocte, Wancho, Tangsa, Ole and Tutsa. These tribes, who share a deep cultural and historical affinity with their Naga brothers in Nagaland and beyond, have long been at the forefront of the Naga struggle. From the early days of the Naga National Council (NNC) to Phizo’s visit to our Nocte Village, Arunachali Nagas have sacrificed their lives and livelihoods for the larger Naga cause.
It is a cruel irony, then, that today the descendants of those who fought and died for the Naga cause are being told they are not Naga. The recent push by the Indian government to declassify Arunachal’s Nagas as “non-Naga” is a blatant disregard for the sacrifices made by these tribes. It is an attempt to isolate them from their Naga identity, to sever the ties that have connected them to the broader Naga family for generations.
Names like Wangto Lowang, who fought alongside other Naga leaders for the cause, should not be forgotten- but sadly have. These individuals believed in the unity of the Naga people, a unity that transcended state and national boundaries. The attempt to strip the Nocte, Wancho, Tangsa, and Tutsa of their Naga identity is not just an administrative decision; it is an assault on the memory of those who gave their lives for the Naga dream.
At the heart of this declassification issue lies the greed of certain politicians who have turned their backs on the Naga people in pursuit of quick cash and political favors. These politicians, many of whom have risen to power in Arunachal Pradesh, have abandoned the principles that once united them with the Naga cause. For them, the declassification of the Arunachali Nagas is not a matter of concern; it is an opportunity to curry favor with the Indian state, to secure lucrative contracts, and to solidify their political positions.
These same politicians have distanced themselves from the Naga cause, playing into the hands of the central government by accepting the narrative that Arunachal’s Nagas are somehow different from the rest. In doing so, they are complicit in the erasure of our identity. They have sold out their people for short-term gains, and in the process, they have jeopardized the future of the Naga struggle for unity and self-determination.
The greed of these politicians is not only a betrayal of the Naga people; it is a betrayal of their own heritage. By aligning themselves with forces that seek to divide the Nagas, they are actively working to weaken the Naga cause and undermine the sacrifices made by generations of Naga warriors. Their actions are a stark reminder that the greatest threats to our identity do not always come from outside forces but often from within our own ranks. Arunachali Nagas, now in 2024 are so disunited- that now other groups are taking advantage of this, to slowly settle Tibetan refugees in Naga Homeland, making us a minority in our own lands. The declassification of Arunachal’s Nagas as “non-Naga” is thus part of a broader strategy by the Indian government to divide and dominate the Naga people. It is a continuation of the divide-and-rule tactics that have been used against the Nagas for decades. By fragmenting the Naga population, the government seeks to dilute Naga unity, making it easier to control and manipulate the different tribes.
This tactic is not new. It was first employed with the creation of Nagaland as a state, and it has been used repeatedly to undermine Naga sovereignty. Today, the declassification of Arunachal’s Nagas represents the latest effort to weaken Naga unity by sowing division within our ranks. It is a calculated move, designed to make the Naga people minorities in their own homeland.
The Indian government’s peace talks with the Nagas, while offering the promise of reconciliation, have often been undermined by such political games. The peace process, far from being a genuine effort to resolve the Naga issue, has been used as a tool to manage the Naga population, to co-opt certain factions, and to maintain control over the resource-rich lands of the Naga homeland. This is why, us Nagas in Arunachal, have also lost complete faith in these fringe insurgent groups that claim to defend the Naga identity- but in truth are mere “Tax collectors and Extortion agents”.
In these critical times, the Naga people must stand united against these attempts to divide us.
It's not for expired fringe elements to unite us- they have long failed us. Peace is achieved with a pen, not with a gun. The Nocte, Wancho, Tangsa, and Tutsa are as much a part of the Naga family as any other tribe, and their identity is not something that can be stripped away by government decrees. It is up to us—the Naga people—to define who we are. If we do not defend each other- who will? Our identity is not for sale, and it is not up for negotiation.
The declassification of Arunachal’s Nagas is a direct threat to the unity of the Naga people.
When will we realize that it is an attempt to weaken our sovereignty, to undermine our shared struggle for self-determination, and to divide us in our own homeland. But we cannot allow this to happen. The sacrifices of those who came before us demand that we resist this injustice, that we reclaim our identity, and that we stand together in defense of our future.
Let this be a call to all Naga tribes—those in Nagaland, Manipur, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and beyond. Our identity is not something that can be given or taken away by external forces. If other Nagas do not come in support of us Arunachali Nagas, soon the government of India will declassify the Nagas of Assam and Manipur too as Non Nagas. We cannot let this happen. It is something we have fought for, bled for, and died for. And it is something we must protect, now more than ever.
(Writing in personal capacity of the author)
