Dr. Vikuosa Nienu (USA)
“Spears Cry Out”appeared in the local dailies, viz. Morung Express and Nagaland Post, on Feb. 20th and 23rd 2007, respectively, expressing my views on the condition of Nagaland as I perceived it then.
This is a follow-up of what I consider Nagaland is facing today.
Nagaland is on the brink of socio-economic, political, and cultural disaster, if indeed it has not gone beyond that tipping point.The Naga society, younger generations in particular, are demanding their God-given basic rights of freedom, and of personal and economic dignity.The benefits of urbanization and industrialization in Nagaland, if any, have barely touched the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum.No poll figure is needed to convince you that the great majority of the Nagas believe that we are on the wrong track. Whether you like it or not, the facts reveals for themselves.Pick up any local newspaper of your choice—the headlinesreport crimes of all kinds, rampant corruption, leadersmisleading the public,a lack of economic opportunities,a lack of private enterprises (the government being the only source of employment), a seemingly endless list of terrorist acts by the various faction groups, the rising cost of living,the lack of development, thelack of law and order, and many other issues. All these point to a nation headed in the wrong direction.Words that are either taboo or non-existent in Naga culture have attained common usage, like rape, murder, fraud, and prostitute. Naga consciousness is now dominated by a sense of insecurity, instability, fear, hopelessness, anger, and desperation.
Nagaland is a small province containing fewer than five million people, and much of it is too young to place current events in perspective.It is also a welfare state with almost its entire budget coming from the Indian Central Government.Worse yet, almost half of its population are on the government’s payroll.What a waste of our resources!What should we call the vast hodge-podge of departments with countless branches and divisions, and assorted authoritative busybodies under whose bureaucraticweight the Nagas are now suffering?For the most part, it is reckless, wasteful, and destructive—aninsult to every genuinely humane sentiment and ideal.If our resources were utilized properly and judiciously,Nagaland could become a most desirable state and eliminate poverty altogether.Instead, it is referred to as a most corrupt state. I have concluded that the government itself is the abuse.No nation can survive without adequate private enterprises.How can we expect our people to progress without economic empowerment?Who do you think will benefitthe most ifany of the plans currently being proposed by some interest groups were to succeed?You be the judge.
The government does not bear the attributes of good governance: competent, efficient, protective, just, and transparent.Instead, it has become a vast web of deceit and corruption, doing more harm than good.Indeed, its true purposes are as reprehensible as its noble claims are false.A good leader makes us secure; a corrupt one dries up our treasuries.None of these actualities reflects our Naga cultural values.Tragically, not only our economic resources but even our political value system has been squandered.Principles and values that are central to Nagas’ identity have been labeled “obsolete,” and crimes and misuse of power and resources seem to be the preferred traits, all too often left without a shred of accountability. Nagas don’t need “politics.” Instead, what we need is to reconnect with our original patriotic values and goals.
In recent years, people have become despondent over the way our so-called leaders have betrayed us.Our struggle for freedom was stolen and squandered by a few self-seeking, self-appointed leaders when all Nagas were yearning to be a part of something greater—theregaining of our sovereignty.Even provincial politicians,the legitimacy of whose election is entirelydebatable, are now rallying behind a crooked plan, a plan destined to bringtotal destruction to our aspired dreams. Moreover,many who consider themselves as fighters of independence have failed to grasp the heart of the problem.In pointing fingers, they have diverted their attention to the patient’s flu and away from the cancer—the crux of the issue.What we have been witnessing is a tally of predictable actions from all factions.We abhor the political games being played by the various faction groups, maintaining a predictable pattern of cheap polarization, staged conflicts, and false agendas.We reject the idea that our cause is about the promotion of individuals’ narrow self-interests, and the underlying myth that everything these groups are doing is done for the sake of attaining our cherished dream.Either their leaders have misdiagnosed the problem or have flagrantly ignored the real issues, and exonerate themselves of any blame and instead pinpoint other bogeymen,playing “the blame game” as a survival strategy.We also believe that for too long the national freedom movement-turned-political organizations have failed to produce a compelling strategy and approach that can capture the moral and political imagination of the Nagas. They are obsessed with playing tactical games—acts of self-destruction—all the while failing to articulate an overarching vision of the original purpose of regaining our self-rule.True leaders don’t engage in blame games.
Democracy is one of God’s gifts to men and for centuries the Nagas have practiced the purest form of democracy until our freedom movement collapsed, fractured by those self-seekingand self-appointed leaders.Democracy means teamwork, a collective effort.Leaders are chosen by the people, for the people, and not by and for themselves.Unity builds strength.But where is the unity in Nagaland? What we need is the collective strength of our people, not the fragmentation encouraged by factions, nothing more, nothing less. The differences between the various faction-groups do not lie in their idealism or realism paradigm; they are based purely on greed, power, and control and they will manufacture anything to stay in power.We cannot expect the situation to improve until and unless we understand how we got here and correct it.We need a total transformation.Many people and various organizations are trying to build bridges that are going nowhere.Although these efforts are perhaps well-intentioned, something appears to be fundamentally wrong with the Nagas.The sad truth is that many individuals appear to crave titles and entitlements for themselves.I call this the danger of “The VIP Syndrome.”
In Nagaland there are too many leaders with toofew actions, meaningful actions, that is. A nation will rise or fall by its leaders.A politically shrewd leader with managerial acumen does not necessarily equate to that individual having moral values.In other words, one may exhibit exceptional skills in many areas yet lack moral and ethical judgments. He may be able to convince himself and a few followers, but that does not mean that whatever decisions he makesarenecessarily wholesome for the good of the nation. Outwardly,the intentions may seem plausible, yet may be shrouded in less than true objectives, eventually becoming enemies of integrity.
The book of Judges recounts the happenings in Israel when “everyone did what was right in his own eyes”(21:25). It was one of the bloodiest eras in Israel’s history. The so-called shakers and movers in Nagaland think that everyone is accepting whatever decisions they are making.They think that only two people can decide the fate of the Nagas, including coining what our country should be termed, such as “Nagalim.”Far from it, rather, people are tired of the same old stupid moves.Don’t ever assume that you can hijack the entire population.You may be able to fool some of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.
Nagas are intoxicated with violence and bloodshed, swimming in the pool of theinnocents’ blood.The cry for help is not about deliverance from our enemies; rather, Nagas are crying out to be delivered from their so-called “liberators.”Even the spears are crying out: “Stop shedding the innocents’ blood; stop your cheating business;stop misleading us.”Instead, let’s all do what is right and good for our country and for our children.Or, should we continue seeking our own individual pride and glory, and should we multiply our wealth, and leave the future of our children in poverty without any legacy?If so, then we will have failed as leaders, as a people, and as a nation.
Our society is filled with “model citizens” of dubious loyalty becoming prisoners of their own craftiness. While it is hard for peers to judge peers, it is even harder for corrupt officials and leaders to judge other corrupt officials and leaders. The system ends up with one person shielding another or a person not daring to speak up for fear of self-exposure. Hence, the cycle continues. We live in desperately needy times, with fingers of darkness penetrating our culture, our society, and our homes.Real battles, physical and spiritual,are raging with real casualties.This is the time for us to unite under the banner of God’s wisdom, His guidance and leadership and not rely on human strength and cleverness alone.
The urgency of the hour is the need forquality leadership to instill a sense of common purpose, to gather disparate interests, and to be inclusive, to give ground for the national interest.That effort, in turn, requires an open and thorough dialogue—not only regarding the issues that immediately confront us, but concerning the means and processes of attaining our ultimate objectives.Right now, the process falls far short.There needs to be a consensus, be it the functioning of the government setup, the political structure, the judicial system, or the dialogue with India.No one individual or group can exercise monopoly or arbitrarily establish the system.Similarly, no one should feel less patriotic just because they did not participate in the actual battle, or were trained in China or Pakistan.We need quality and honest leaders who will stand up for the truth and for others, and not for themselves.
Five years after the original “Spears Cry Out” article in 2007, the following recommendations remain unchanged.They are: (i) All various factions must renounce their stance, come together and discuss issues confronting us, at a place and time to be determined and arranged by a third party. (ii) All the Nagas must come together under one banner and one organization regardless of political differences and develop a common ground.There must be only one organization representing the entire Nagaland, approved and accepted by all citizens, and not restricted to one group or faction.The newly created organization and the new chosen leaders will meet with the Indian counterpart. Until this takes place, no activity should be carried out by any of the faction groups. (iii) India will not decide who will be represented in the dialogue.The people of Nagaland will decide who will represent them.
We must unite in the present to secure the future. Nagaland cannot afford to follow the path of not giving our children the opportunity to dream dreams and to make those dreams come true. Legacy matters. It matters what we leave behind. What do YOU want YOUR legacy to be? It is time to choose.
