‘Living in the Present’

Rev Dr Wati Aier

I thank the Naga Scholars’ Association for giving me the honor to deliver the valedictory speech this evening. The theme of “Living in the Present” can be a daunting task to apply to our many contexts today: from identity to belonging, economics to geopolitics, and regionalism to—in our own situation—Nagas without borders. 

Clearly, before us there are two choices to consider urgently: one to go back and turn to the past—which will mean to remain as slaves to bygone times—or to proceed on the road to the future. To choose the past that is filled with suspicion, emotional outbursts, divisions, pessimism, and a distorted “warrior culture” that turns us against our more civil dispositions, will only continue to enslave us in the present. We Nagas will remain victims of our own doing.

Instead, we must choose a road that will inevitably present us a more difficult journey—but one that will also pay lasting dividends. This is the road to a future of non-violence, peace, and a qualitative transformation through education and common will. This is the road to a future that safeguards the basic human rights of all women, men, and children—and respects the dignity of all of God’s created humankind. This road leads to the hallmark of our faith, where class, castes, religious affiliation, ethnicity, and gender inequality are abolished. 

Squarely, today is a considerable moment in the Naga peoples’ history. There is no doubt that pockets of “collective consciousness” of shared ideas and futures—to borrow Emile Durkheim’s term—are gaining momentum. This is a healthy sign of a nation. The role of a scholarly and intellectual community remains paramount in this “collective consciousness.” Through this community, disparate and abstract ideas can find a common vehicle to securely proceed along the road towards transforming initiatives. 

This process cannot be side tracked, and today, what remains the gateway to the future of the Nagas is the resolution of the 70-plus years of perseverance for Naga political and historical rights. To be sure, the logic of which comes first, Naga political solution or transformation of Naga society, is a puzzle that needs to be urgently solved through our gifts for creative and imaginative thinking. 

The history of humankind is made up of small steps and large steps. As long as the world exists, Naga history, like other histories will survive, gather, restore, and transform. It is not the time to limit ourselves by becoming blind to our present at the expense of our future. Unlike the past, today Nagas are more resourceful, capable, and observant, but there is a percept assumption that the historical and political mode of the Nagas will remain stagnant. 

Side by side, the antiquated Naga political establishment has not demonstrated any new ways of thinking except to save the old under the cliché of “contemporary reality.” This presents us with an inaccurate and unusable roadmap at best. It is unimaginable that in our contemporary geopolitical age, the concerned agencies would still bank on cultic groups to transmit beams from the past that hardly shed any significant light on the abyss of our clandestine politics. Let us not try to jump start an antique to compete in a race with a sports car. 

It is defeating for all concerned, especially the “largest democracy in the world,” when we notice that some are ruining a noble agreement by interpreting the Naga political cause as a mere delusion on the part of the Nagas—or as a disease that can be controlled through sedatives that are powerful, yet fundamentally harmful. 

At this rate, a short period of sedation will only pave the way for deadlier and more contagious political effects. Let us not create a crisis where illness runs rampant and treatment is costly and only temporary, with no lasting cure in sight. I speak this without any malice towards any agency or individuals. How much do I wish for the good of all!

At this crucial moment, our spirituality calls for us to honestly examine ourselves and to reach out to others. An inward spirituality of self-righteousness without the outer commitment to extend ourselves to the “other” is narcissistic and self-defeating. Our leaders must not allow self-preservation and its symptoms of hatred and suspicion to decide our political destiny. 

In our context, the powerlessness of power reveals itself in behaviors that rationalize harmful behavior, and in attitudes of self-justification that take the guise of “purity of history.” This approach has always backfired. Justifying false innocence and attempting to maintain dignity that is already fractured will never be able to escape daylight. As stealthy as self-deception is, a simple tenet always prevails: what goes around comes around. 

Amid our hurdles and difficulties, we must make a choice. Nagas, our neighbors, and the world know that now is a major moment in history for the Naga people. Up to this point, Naga politics has been constituted of identity politics based on group boundaries and out of that, others are tagged along. Naga political identity must become a synthesis of identities. Our greatest weakness is our unwillingness to accept our differences. The politics of bombastic narratives—that is, the politics of rejoinders—has never worked, and will not work in the future.

History is filled with anecdotes of human failure to capture the power of context. Nagas have only one political history, with one nation. We have our differences—and indeed, we have found ourselves in opposition to each at many points. But, these differences should not equate to enmity. Our disagreements should not be written in stone. If Nagas want to move ahead, we must let go of damaging thinking errors that only project a false and broken view of our world.

Individuals and “leaders” seem to know a lot about the Framework Agreement and the Agreed Positions and are going around dictating their subjective interpretations instead of listening and grasping. Let us reset ourselves with meekness and critical solidarity. Let us move from personal and group perceptions towards a convergence upon common ground. We must exorcise the myth of me-ism and put ourselves last, which is the model of true leadership. 

In the Naga belonging, citizens expect leaders to make sacrifices that will yield dividends to deliver us in this exceptional moment in our history. Many are asking: are you, are we, up to the task?

I have advocated for the two Naga Political Groups in talks with the Government of India to come together for a simple and unassuming meeting. If Naga Political Groups can meet with the Government of India on countless tables and share meals, why can they not meet at least once, not for a meal, but to say: “Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love…We shall always be fellow Nagas.” Who is holding you back? 

The rationale behind this call must be made clear: Firstly, we must define our identity that cuts across constructed, superficial identities. Secondly, we must redefine the superfluous understanding of unity and reconciliation in our immediate context. Under the rubric of unity, another form of acrimony is assumed. 

It is high time for the Naga scholarly community to urgently advocate a common ground for the Naga political groups, despite all the differences, no matter how extreme they are. Our idea of unity has to be contextually imagined by accepting the reality of Naga political group differences. 

By the grace of God, we will find ways to live with our differences and build cooperation, without weakening the historical and political rights of the Nagas. One group alone can no more save the Nagas than other groups. Let us not delay!

Our imagination must become reality. The Naga dream is an assurance of peace and freedom, of hope and love for all Nagas of the South, North, East, and West. It is the promise of the land of the Nagas that has never been, yet will be!

Kuknalim

NB: This speech is personal and does not represent any organization

Valedictory Speech at the Naga Scholars’ Association International Webinar “Living in the Present: Nagas in the 21st Century” held from November 26-28, 2020