Robert A. Silverstein
Albany, New York
To paraphrase Shakespeare's “Julius Caesar,” (at Act 3, Scene 2, line 75), “Friends, Nagas, and other Tribals, lend me your eyes; I come not to bury Sema, but to praise him.” This introductory sentence is necessary because Sema and I have already had a rather unpleasant exchange in The Morung Express (hereinafter, the Express). In an article I wrote dated May 10, 2016, I criticized Kaka Iralu's writings, and on May 11, 2016, Iralu and Sema replied separately to my article, both articles being negative and dismissive. On May 16, 2016 I responded to both of their articles, pointing out that neither of their articles addressed my points, but simply personally attacked me. Iralu, on May 18th, published another article inviting me to meet him when I was in Nagaland on my upcoming trip. In late June, Iralu and I had lunch at my hotel, a lunch which I found very informative and enjoyable. I never heard from Sema again,
Since that date, I've read many articles in a number of papers by both Iralu and Sema, and although I might not have agreed on everything they said, I found all their articles well-written and sincere. I felt compelled to express my views on the present article by Sema because he says much of what I've said recently in published articles, but draws different conclusions, conclusions that I find important. In an article in the Express on November 4, 2016, I stated, “Recently, in more than one article, I've alleged that the NSCN(IM) is corrupt and violent, and is in charge of all the other corrupt people and institutions within the Naga community.” In the same article I state, “After my recent comments about the NSCN(IM) in a number of articles, the NSCN(IM) has, significantly, not responded to me in any of the Nagaland papers. As a retired lawyer, familiar with evidentiary issues, I can only presume that the group has not responded because its members cannot respond; that my allegations are in fact true, and if they responded they would have to defend themselves, and that would open them up to scrutiny and to responses that they would prefer to avoid.”
I now want to relate what I said above about the NSCN(IM) and what Sema says in his article, “A Political Limbo.” He talks about all the Naga factions that “unsparingly exact their pound of flesh called 'tax' from everything that moves in the name of 'sovereignty' that they routinely spit upon by their despicable actions....NSCN(IM) can only sees [sic] Nagaland as a fertile soil for their ruthless taxation that is throttling the livelihood of every family and the enthusiasm of current generation of young entrepreneurs but at the same time consider the people they tax unworthy of real consultation....Fair minded Nagas do not recognise the so-called 'mandate' given the NSCN(IM) by our self-seeking elected representatives(MLAs) and the compromised NGOs like the Naga Haha. Conducting the present day series of 'yes men' consultation is unacceptable to a civilised society. In this time and age, NSCN(IM) ought to have understood by now that they cannot continue to arbitrarily dictate their ill conceived notions over the people just because they wield AK 47.”
All of the immediately above sounds very much like the allegations I've made against the NSCN(IM), that the organization is corrupt and violent. In fact, his allegations are even more specific and bitter. But then he states the following, which I disagree with, and which is the heart of my disagreement with Sema. He states, “Having said this, it is a momentous time for every Naga...to look beyond their petty tribalistic ego problems with true Christian humility and think as one people with a common goal.....
“The first primary obstacle that we need to cross is the 'ego bridge'. Forgive my candid expression and correct me if I am wrong [which is what I intend to do below!!] but it is more than apparent...that Mr. Th. Muivah stubbornly wants to go down in history as the father of whatever gets born through the negotiated relationship with the GoI and therefore does not want to dilute his present undisputed fatherhood status by agreeing to a common neutral platform with other fathers from other factions....
“When ground reality is analysed very carefully it simply boils down to the fate of an entire Nagas race hanging in the balance in the hands of one stubborn wilful human being calledMr. Th. Muivah, who is the sole undisputed dictator of the NSCN(IM) and also dictating the terms of the negotiating. THEREFORE, ALL IT WOULD TAKE IS FOR HIM TO AGREE ON A COMMON NEUTRAL PLATFORM WITH OTHER FACTION LEADERS ON BOARD AND TAKE THE NEGOTIATION FORWARD.” (My emphasis, in capital letters.)
So, according to Sema, the whole problem with the corruption and violence permeating Naga society, in Nagaland, Manipur, and elsewhere, with the “ruthless taxation” and the “AK 47[s],” is the stubborn ego of Muivah. All he has to do as “sole undisputed dictator of NSCN(IM).... [I]s for him to agree on a common neutral platform with other faction leaders on board and take the negotiation forward.”
I disagree completely with Sema's analysis of the basis of Naga corruption and violence. Muivah is an old man, and there are hundreds, indeed thousands, of Nagas who are getting benefits from the corruption and violence. There is a whole army at Camp Hebron, there are all the MLAs who are corrupt, and all those under them, the bureaucrats, contractors, and others. There is a whole system in place that is benefiting all these people.
In 1953, when Soviet leaders were waiting for Stalin to die, positioning themselves for filling the power vacuum that would exist upon his death, no one for a minute thought that the corrupt and violent system that controlled the USSR since the 1917 revolution would all of a sudden become a democratic political system.
Sema, in his article, calls himself a “politically inexperienced amateur,” and he most certainly is. He talks about Nagas in power who should “look beyond their petty tribalistic ego problems with Christian humility and think as one people with a common goal.” If this was not so tragic a situation, those words would be laughable.
Do you think the cabal sitting around Stalin's bed, during his long lingering period of dying, were thinking about their “petty tribalistic ego problems”? They were thinking about the oldest and most fundamental drive in humankind, POWER. They were not thinking about a “common goal,” or about “Christian humility.” Their only thought was power.
And the Nagas are no better than the rest of humanity. The people in the NSCN(IM), and all those who are benefitting because of their connections with the organization, are only thinking of what they will get out of the negotiations, who will have the power when Muivah dies or is pushed out of the way (or murdered), who will survive the power struggle and who will not. And there is not a faction any different than the NSCN(IM). Until good people like Sema stop talking naively and start recognizing that human beings have the capacity for great evil (as he recognizes in his article, when he says, “...every Faction, including the NSCN(IM), has blatantly committed multiple heinous omissions and commissions before God and man....”), he will not grasp what needs to be done to obtain what he wants. Sema needs to recognize that appeals to Christian humility are a pathetic joke when confronting those fighting to hold on to power. He, and his fellow Nagas, must demand that the army in Camp Hebron, and all its parts, be disbanded, that the “taxes” be lifted and all monies given to the NSCN(IM) to pay for their expenses for negotiating and other related activities be completely voluntary, and then the Nagas can find out how much the average Naga cares for the members of the NSCN(IM), or for that matter, how much the average Naga cares for any faction, all of which are founded on coercion, intimidation, and violence.
What the Nagas are dealing with is not something unique to the Naga people called a “petty tribalistic ego” problem. They are dealing with the most universal cause for struggle and slaughter on the planet and in all of history, the urge for power and all the benefits gained from having it.
