Dimapur, March 14 (MExN): United Naga Tribes Association (UNTA) has expressed distress at the “adverse press statements” issued by various Naga organisations and villages bordering Assam as carried in the daily papers “criticizing one another while the entire Naga people want to bring about an amicable settlement to the vexed border issue between the State of Nagaland and Assam so that the people of Assam and Nagaland can co-exist peacefully just as our forefathers have maintained from time immemorial.”
Keeping such view in mind, UNTA said it has been appreciating the stand of the Government of Nagaland in matters to the border issue and have been extending co-operation to the Dimapur district administration in particular for understanding the ground realities.
While anticipating the Supreme Court’s verdict for its arbitration and disposal, UNTA in a press release has strongly appealed to all concerned Naga people to “stop criticizing and quarrelling unwittingly among ourselves so as to avoid creating more problems and misunderstanding amongst the people concerned.”
The release appended by UNTA chairman Chuba Jamir and secretary Hukavi Yepthomi further appealed to all the stakeholders to stop once for all the unnecessary and cheap statements that provoke each other.
Meanwhile, UNTA strongly condemned the “high handedness of the Assam police for continuously arresting the Naga people who are residing along the border since these people are not trespassing nor are the encroachers.” Stating that “under no circumstances mere villagers can be arrested and kept in Police remand and unlawfully booked them under NSA,” UNTA strongly urged the Assam police and Diphu administration to immediately release those Naga people booked under various Acts.
