The emerald hills of Manipur have been quietly glowing with a flurry of political activities. Within a span of two months, the state has seen two "historic" visits.
The first was on 13 September when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Manipur for the first time since the deadly ethnic clashes began in May 2023. His visit may have ended in a fizzle, but, on 22 October, in what many considered an even bigger headline, Thuingaleng Muivah, the 91-year-old patriarch of the decades-old Naga insurgency, returned home to his ancestral village, Somdal, after over 50 years of exile.
Muivah—a name both revered and (once) feared—is the head of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim's Isak-Muivah faction, also called the NSCN-IM, and the key negotiator of the 28-year-long (and still ongoing) Naga peace process.
After spending a week in his village, Muivah made a stopover on 29 October at the Naga-dominated Senapati district headquarters before leaving for Nagaland, his current place of residence.
The "historic" visit of Muivah meant many things to many people. In his first stop at Ukhrul, Muivah was met not only by a large gathering of Nagas, Thangkhul elders, and church bodies, but also members of Meitei civil society groups. Kuki armed groups, too, extended support to the homecoming. This shift is significant.
In 2010, the last time Muivah had attempted to return home, he had been blocked by the Okram Ibobi Singh-led Congress government on grounds that his return to Manipur would endager security and the territorial integrity of Manipur. Bloody reparations followed as Muivah's supporters clashed with state forces. This year, however, the valley-dwelling Meitei population seems to have welcomed Muivah's return.
Despite the "warm" welcome by both Kuki and Meitei civil society groups, the week of Muivah's stay has been one of painful memories and pendulous hopes in the face of eternal waiting.
An 'Emotional' Homecoming but a Strong Message
For the people of Somdal who had been awaiting this moment for over five decades, it was no less than magical. Like Solom Khamrang who said that it was a "privilege and a dream-come-true".
"It was a very emotional moment for the village. We have all grown up listening to stories of 'avakharar' (oldest father). He is our inspiration. The whole village, especially the elders, have worked very hard in the past few days to arrange everything and make the visit happen."Solom Khamrang
The 20-year-old runs a YouTube page in which he documents local news events. In the videos he shared, Muivah can be seen receiving a hero's welcome when he alighted from a chartered helicopter, unto a sea of blue flags, representing the envisioned state of Nagalim.
His address to the Nagas in Somdal, home to about 5,000 people including Muivah's younger (and only surviving) sibling and his nephew, was read out by his NSCN-IM successor VS Atem, the ‘Deputy Ato Kilonser’ or the 'Deputy Prime Minister of the Government of the People’s Republic of Nagalim'.
"The issue we are fighting for is greater and older than most of us who are gathered here at this Tangkhul Naga Long ground today," Muivah's successor read from his speech.
The "issue" refers to the demand for a separate, sovereign Naga state, often referred to as 'Greater Nagalim', comprising Nagaland as well as parts of Manipur, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Myanmar and regions Nagas have traditionally inhabited. On Tuesday, ahead of his visit to Senapati, Muivah reiterated that there is no doubt within the NSCN-IM about the way forward and that it would not deviate from its demands.
“They (Government of India) started giving ultimatums…We were forced to tell them that come what may, we will stand our ground. We know who the Indians are and their history,” the rebel leader told reporters in Somdal.
In what appeared to be a message for New Delhi, Muivah said, "If you don’t come to understand us, there is no point in our going to you".
The Greater Nagalim Question: A Look Back and a Look Forward
Naga resistance and calls for autonomy date back to the colonial-era Naga Club, eventually culminating in a separatist demand led by the Naga National Council (NNC). Formed in 1946 and led by AZ Phizo, the NNC declared Nagaland an independent state, a day before India's independence, on 14 August 1947.
Elu Ndang, former General Secretary of the Naga national civil society group Naga Hoho, states that the following years saw intense bloodshed and warfare between various fronts of the Naga nationalist and separatist movement and the Indian State. "By the late 60s, leaders like the Thangkhul tribe leader Muivah and Isak Chishi Swu of the Sema tribe started emerging, who redefined Phizo's politics," Ndang said.
Born in 1935 in Somdal, Muivah showed an early inclination toward the Naga nationalist cause. "Somdal is known for contributing leaders to the Naga movement. The great leader and Thangkhul evangelist Rungsung Ruichumhao is from Somdal, as is his brother and former Congress MP Rungsung Suisa, who later joined the Naga political movement."
The story goes that it was Suissa who encouraged Muivah to learn about the Naga cause, and acted as an early political mentor to him, Ashang Kasar, who's an activist, former politician, and Naga community leader from Ukhrul, told The Quint.
"I have known 'Uncle Muivah' for many years. I met him in New Delhi for the first time in 1997. He was a very dynamic leader. But I grew up hearing about his tales."Ashang Kasar
In fact, all Naga youth in the 80s and 90s grew up listening to the legends of Muivah. Stories of Muivah leading the underground movement for Naga freedom after learning the Maoist political philosophy of socialist, armed rebellion and stories of his training in guerilla warfare in China are almost like miracle tales, Kasar recalled.
"We printed tales of his adventures in China and his life in the jungles, and published them back in Manipur. He was a very learned man; we read and disseminated his views. It was a way for many youth to learn about the Naga identity and history in and beyond Nagaland".
In 1964, Muivah set out on foot, trekking towards Nagaland where he joined the NNC in 1964, eventually becoming its General Secretary. In 1975, however, when the NNC signed the Shillong Accord with the government of India, Muivah reneged against Phizo, claiming the latter had "betrayed" the Naga cause. He, Isak, and SS Khaplang broke away from the NNC and formed the NSCN in 1980s. The NSCN has since splintered into several factions, the two main ones being NSCN (K) led by followers of the Konyak leader Khaplang, and the NSCN-IM, the Isak-Muivah faction.
Through the 90s, the NSCN-IM has been active in the demand for a sovereign Nagalim state, and has on different occasions been on loggerheads with both the Kukis and Meiteis as well as the state and central governments.
In 1997, after decades of hostility, the NSCN-IM signed a ceasefire agreement with the Government of India, bringing Muivah out of the forests and onto the negotiation table.
Since then, the "peace process" has gone on for 28 years.
In 2015, the Modi-led government signed the Naga Peace Accord or the Agreement Framework with the NSCN-IM after, reportedly after 70 rounds of talks. Similar peace accords followed with other armed factions. Kasar says since then, it has been another decade of waiting.
Personal is Political
The day of Muivah's arrival in Somdal saw a sea of blue flags representing Nagalim, accompanied by spear-bearing Nagas in feathered headgear amid a district-wide shutdown. People turned up in emroidered Thangkhul shawls and chanted 'Kuknalim' (Long Live the Land). Those who witnessed it said that the event seemed to bring back the haydays of the Naga nationalist movement. But the optics belie the underlying politics.
The NSCN-IM's security grid itself was of significant interest. Muivah was given Z-plus cordon in a state under President’s rule, showing how closely the Centre was watching the proceedings. Earlier this year, AK Mishra, the Centre's representative for the Indo-Naga peace talks, met Muivah at Camp Hebron for a "closed door meeting" and also held meetings with the Working Committee of the Naga National Political Groups (WC NNPGs), coalition of seven Naga groups with whom the Centre inked yet another peace agreement called the Agreed Position in 2017.
Sources close to the Intelligence Bureau that reportedly oversaw his departure and arrival from Dimapur confirm the the entire movement had been facilitated by the Government of India.
"It seems the Centre wanted to build goodwill with the Nagas by facilitating the visit, but Muivah's speeches in Manipur seem to have flipped the gesture on Centre's head and renewed conversations about the Naga solution, especially among the youth," Ndang said.
Indeed, Muivah's return to his village brings the long arc of his and the Naga movement's journey to a full circle and back in public view. As Muivah's speech emphasised, the tale is older than many that were present in the crowd, one that started in the jungles of the Northeast and now tapers at the negotiation tables of New Delhi.
Muivah also said, "We have not surrendered our free existence and sovereignty".
Emphasising their commitment to the "Naga political solution", a senior NSCN-IM leader told The Quint that a political settlement "can only be on the lines of the Framework Agreement, signed between the NSCN-IM and the Modi government in 2015. Its clauses include recognising a separate Naga flag and constitution for the Nagas." Both demands have so far met with refusal from India.
The 2015 Framework Agreement acknowledged the "unique history and position of the Naga people", but did not resolve the territorial claims of Nagalim. In recent interviews to local media outlets, VS Atem the Deputy Ato Kilosner has blamed the Centre for the delay in reaching a solution.
While Muivah has reiteared the Naga political cause, most observers and political analysts felt that the visit was more personal than political, and perhaps an effort to shape a symbolic end to the legacy of Muivah, who continues to enjoy mythic influence in the Thangkhul-dominated parts Manipur.
"He is a 91-year-old man. I hear he has not been keeping well. It makes sense that he wanted to visit his home, perhaps for one last time. It otherwise does not have too many immediate political implications, as the underlying equations of identity politics have changed over the course of the millenium," said political analyst Pradip Phanjoubam.
"He would've been sent by the NSCN-IM to test the water: whether the Meiteis and Kukis would oppose him entering Manipur. The fact that they didn't is a kind of victory for him, in terms of Naga integration," a northeast expert and professor of history added on condition of anonymity.
A symbolic homecoming is perhaps the only way to neatly tie up the luminary's legacy while sidestepping the question of territorial sovereignty beyond India, says Phanjoubam.
It is clear that the masses do not want prolonged conflict. Even senior NSCN-IM leaders have become used to the comforts of city life. Muivah himself has long left the guerilla ways behind, living in a sprawling space which doubles as the NSCN-IM headquarters in Camp Hebron near Dimapur.
But with Muivah, personal has always been political. The giant is yet to retire and still exerts vast influence upon the complex ins-and-outs of identity and inter-ethnic politics in the northeast (and the vast infrastructure of arms and military expertise that remains under the NSCN-IM). It would be incorrect to write the leader off just yet.
Moreover, Tangkhuls within the NSCN-IM are already divided in three factions. Once Muivah passes, the IM faction is bound to break up. His focus on peace and unity at this time, thus contains a deeper message for the Nagas as well.
The Kuki-Naga Conflict: Ghosts of Past and Premonitions of Future
Meanwhile, in the Kuki-Zo-dominated parts of the hills, the visit has brought both a sense of restiveness as well as memories of violence. The Kuki-Naga conflict of the 1990s had led to many deaths and eventually led to the formation of armed Kuki groups like the Kuki National Organisation (KNO).
In wake of the recent Kuki-Meitei conflict, the mood in the hills seems different. Seilen Haokip, a senior leader of the KNO, said, "The KNO wishes Muivah well!" But in villages and among locals, there is concern over the apparent smoothening of relations between Nagas and Meiteis in wake of the ongoing conflict between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo-Hmar people.
"There is no doubt that the Meiteis would want to improve relations with the Thangkhuls, who are known as the more deadly militant force in Manipur and surrounding regions. There is also the question of the 'original' inhabitants of Manipur," Kishalay Bhattacharya, author of Che in Paona Bazaar and Dean at the OP Jindal School of Journalism and Communication, said.
"You see, the Meiteis are a revivalist group. They always hark back to the glory days of Kangleipak, the indigenous Meitei kingdom. In that story, the Thangkhuls have always been the guards of the Meitei kings."Kishalay Bhattacharya
The historical symbolism of a Meitei-Thangkhul reconciliation is significant as it helps the current Manipuri government's narrative against Kukis being "outsiders" and "interlopers".
"While there has been sporadic conflict between the Nagas and Meiteis, the Kuki-Naga rivalry is more potent. Incidentally, insiders confirm that Naga and Meitei underground organisations have been lending support to central forces against Myanmarese insurgency on India's borders in the last couple of years," Bhattacharya said.
For some among the Kuki-Zo-Hmar people, the arrival of Muivah to his ancestral village brought back memories of violence. Reverend Lamkeng Lhouvum, pastor at the Kuki Baptist Convention, remembers the fateful day in September 1993 when his father, also a pastor, and two brothers, were killed by Naga underground militants during the infamous Joupie massacre at the peak of the Kuki-Naga conflict.
Incidentally, the date of the massacre was 13 September (a day that the Kukis still observe as a black day), the same date Prime Minister Modi chose to visit the Kuki-dominated Churachandpur (Lamka) in September. The symbolism was not lost on the Kukis.
Lhouvum, however, says that reconciliation, which is essential for the survival and development of the hill tribes of Manipur, needs more than just symbolic gestures. "I follow the teachings of Christ and as a man of God, I believe in forgiveness. But as a human being who watched his family suffer violence, I can forgive but cannot forget."
"Kuki youth today want to reconcile with Nagas as well, no doubt. But the Nagas need to assure certain conditions and they must seek apology for the wrongs done, especially to the families who lost their kin,"Reverend Lamkeng Lhouvum
The recent geopolitical changes in Manipur and questions of redrawing territories are bound to lead to inter-ethnic shifts and bear long-term implications, with Kukis and Nagas laying claims over territory. The Nagas, for instance, have long claimed that all of Kangpokpi region in Manipur, home a large number of Kuki people, is entirely Naga territory. Many Kukis-Zo-Hmar people, including civil society leaders, remain silently worried that any understanding between the Nagas and Meiteis could impinge on the Kuki claim to territory within Manipur and dig up old bones of contention.
Caught in a Loop of Waiting
But does Muivah and the NSCN's movement mean the same things to Nagas today as it did at the peak of the Naga separatist movement? Depends on where you ask.
While the Nagas in Manipur remain more politicially and ideologically aligned with Muivah, a Thangkhul, the dominant Naga tribes in Nagaland including the Angami, Ao and Konyak Nagas, may find his fading relevance a political boon, owing to the inter-ethnic rivalries within the Naga communities.
"Nagas are observing the developments in Manipur closely but for the most part, the incident has not caused too much of a stir in the state as it has in Manipur," a political observer in Nagaland said.
It is also true that among younger Nagas, though the Naga politicial solution holds emotional value, it has ceased to be a practical demand.
"It isn't that Naga youth today is not passionate about the Naga political cause. The Naga identity remains strong, and we still want recognition for our history and heritage. You will find the number of Naga youths in public or government jobs remains low. This is because there is still this mistrust and unease to fully assimilate. The truth is, Nagas now has conflict fatigue," Limalendel Longkumer, an independent journalist from Mokokchung, Nagaland, told The Quint.
Incidentally, the timing of the Muivah visit has coincided with developments in internal Nagaland politics. The last few days have seen the merger of the two key regional Naga parties—the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) and the Naga People's Front (NPF)— on 18 October. The merger marks a milestone in Naga regional politics.
Longkumer claims that while there is no obvious connection, the timing is significant.
"These parties, while they too support the demand for the Naga political solution, are not exactly supporters of NSCN-IM. So the visit could be a symbolic last hoorah for the leader trying to assert his political influence, or trying to find a way in with the Centre to comfortably ride out the shifts in Nagaland's internal politics."Limalendel Longkumer
The fact is that Nagas today face conflict-fatigue. Almost every Naga family has been the victim of conflict in the last seven decades and every household has a tragic story of loss. Longkumer said that while Nagas obviously still root for the proverbial Nagalim, "young people today want jobs, they want development. Some want to be included in the national narrative of 'vikas'. They want an end to this ceaseless loop of waiting".