On behalf of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), we wish to address the leaders and people of Nagaland on this important day, which commemorates the Declaration of Independence of Nagaland, 50 years ago.

This time is a crucial time in the history of the Naga people. The Naga people have suffered much in the conflict that has engulfed the region for the past decades. But today, under the able leadership of the Chairman of the NSCN Mr. Isak Chishi Swu and the General Secretary, Mr. Th. Muivah, a beginning has been made towards peace in Nagalim. It takes great courage to embark upon a peace process and to undertake negotiations. For this process to succeed, it is important for the Naga people to stand united with their leaders, so that all difficulties can be overcome, and a durable solution can be achieved.

The UNPO stands fully in support of the peace process, which we hope will bring an end to the suffering of the people of Nagalim and will restore to them their fundamental rights.

May God be with you.

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(Dr. MICHAEL C. VAN WALT VAN PRAAG)
Councilor Political Affairs

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(TSERING JAMPA)
Deputy General Secretary

Respected People of Nagalim:

The 50th anniversary of resistance to a political order which had been imposed by colonial powers, is a fine opportunity to commemorate the commitment of the Naga people who still are longing for honorable peace, justice, freedom and the right to self-determination. Too, we like to express our deep appreciation to the new steps done by the Naga people in order to achieve a political solution for the Indo-Burmesian region.

In this context, please accept our sincere wishes for joy and success to a free Nagalim where people can live without any harassment, develop their rich culture and enjoy the abundant wealth of this region.

Again, with deep regards over your commitment.

Yours sincerely,

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(TILMAN ZULCH)

Fifty years of struggle is a very long time. Therefore it is an honor for me to be able to collaborate with the Naga people in their struggle to retain their independence. Every people has the right to self-determination, whether this means autonomy or complete independence is up to the people in question to decide, not to the British, nor to the Indians.

Despite all the atrocities, the oppression and the secret war, it is surprising to see the Naga people and their movements still that active and vital. It is the dynamism that will lead the Naga people to obtaining what they want: the right to maintain their own cultures and languages, as well as their own political, social and religious systems.

It is at the same time unbelievable that these 50 years of resistance have been almost completely ignored by the Europeans governments, parliaments, media and non-governmental organizations. If one can say a thing about the Indian Government, then it is that it has been successful in getting the Naga issue, as well as most of the other conflicts in the region out of attention. Even now it is difficult to get the issue on the agenda of institution such as the European Parliament because of the strong pressure of the Indian Government not to touch the Indian sovereignty. But the world is slowly changing for the better.

It is the achievement of organizations and movements like the NSCN and the Naga People's Movement for Human Rights, each with its own agenda and objectives, to have brought the Naga struggle to Europe, and to create alliances with peoples who are willing to listen to the plight of the Nagas, and to act to advocate their rights.

I have the luck to be one of these people; and I remain convinced that all these efforts will not remain useless. One day Nagalim will be free again, freed from occupation, war and oppression just like many others have been able to get their right to self-determination recognized, and the Naga people will be able to freely determine their own destiny. At that time, other peoples will ask the Naga people for their support and advice in order for these others to be able to deliver this needed solidarity and wisdom.

The Naga nation has the right to maintain its own identity, its own social and political institutions and to a genuine democratic and community-oriented political system. Once this is established, the Naga people and their movements will have something to show to the world. That it takes more than 50 years of British colonization and 50 years of Indian colonization, even combined, to make unsuccessful attempts to defeat a people as strong as the Nagas is a matter of substantive inspiration.

For the rights to self-determination of all the indigenous peoples! For free Nagalim!

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(WENDEL TRIO)

On the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of Nagalim on 14 August 1947, the KWIA wants to extend its congratulations to the Government of the People’s Republic of Nagaland, collectively chaired by Messrs. Isak, Khodao and Muivah.

We want to use at the same time this event to extend our congratulations to the National Socialist Council of Nagaland under the collective leadership of Chairman Isak Chishi Swu, Vice-Chairman Khodao Yanthan and General Secretary Th. Muivah for its brave resistance to Indian and Burmese colonialism and its efforts to protect the Independence and Sovereignty of Nagalim for the past decades.

The KWIA hereby expresses its continuing support for these efforts now that the Government of India, after fifty years of occupation, armed confrontation and brutal repression, has declared that it would seek a political solution for the Indo-Naga conflict.

We hereby express our support for the ceasefire agreement declared from both sides on 25 July 1997 and put into effect on 1 August 1997, in the firm belief that the emerging peace process is not only in the interest of the Naga Nation but in the interest of the indigenous nations of the Southeast Himalayan Region.

K U K N A L I M

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(JOHAN P.A. BOSMAN)

Congratulations on publication of the book 50 Years of Resistance. More book of this type are needed so that the genocide of the Government of India will be exposed.

That genocide has killed over 200,000 Nagas in the last 50 years, as well as over 250,000 of our Sikh brothers and sisters since 1984, almost 60,000 Kashmiri Muslims since 1988, and tens of thousands of Assamese, Tamils, Manipuris, Dalits, and others. Such an intolerant state cannot be democratic.

Your resistance to the tyranny of the Indian government has served to strengthen all of the freedom movements throughout India. When those of us who are working for freedom support each other, we strengthen the ability of the Nagas, the Sikhs of Khalistan, and all the people of South Asia to achieve the freedom that is the birth right of all people and all nations.

Our cause is a just cause. It is the cause of freedom. The people of Nagaland and the people of Khalistan are partners in the struggle for the noble cause of freedom. We seek, as you do, to determine our own future. On behalf of the Sikh Nation, I wish success to the Naga Nation in your struggle.

No amount of repression can deny freedom to any nation. Like Khalistan, Nagaland is a sovereign nation. With the grace of God it will be free soon. Let us work together to bring freedom and posterity to South Asia.

Sincerely,

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(Dr. GURMIT SINGH AULAKH)

It gives me immense pleasure to know that the Government of the People's Republic of Nagaland (GPRN), under the vanguard of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) and under the guidance and charismatic leadership of Chairman Isak Chishi Swu, Vice-Chairman Khodao Yanthan and General Secretary Th. Muivah, is going to commemorate the completion of fifty years of Naga people's patriotic resistance against Indian and Burmese imperialism.

I, on behalf of the people of Ri Hynniewtrep, pledge our goodwill and solidarity to the Naga people. The Khasis had, and shall continue to share, our hearts with the thousands of Naga men and women who lost their precious lives in defense of Nagalim and her honor. Also we firmly condemn the cases of rape and torture perpetrated upon the Naga people by the occupational Indian Army.

I fully believe that the ongoing Peace talks between the National Socialist Council of Nagaland and the Government of India to bring about an amicable political solution to the vexed Indo-Naga problem will be a successful enterprise.

I sincerely wish the Ministry of Information & Publicity a grand accomplishment in its latest undertaking.

May God bless you all. Long live the friendship between Nagalim and Ri Hynniewtrep.

Khublei Shibun

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(JULIUS K. DORPHANG)

It has been many years now since the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) entered into meaningful relationship with other organizations of the Southeast Himalayan Region. During this long period we have helped and encouraged each other fruitfully and our friendship gained momentum and maturity.

Hence, it gives us a great pleasure and happiness to know that the Government of the Peoples’ Republic of Nagaland is bringing out a “SOUVENIR” to commemorate the completion of 50 Years of Resistance Movement by the Naga people against unlawful occupation of Nagalim by India and Myanmar. The struggle of the Naga people against mighty powers such as India and Myanmar is appreciated. The Nagas have not only resisted for their rights and freedom but also inspired all the exploited and oppressed peoples of the Southeast Himalayan Region to fight for their rights to self-determination. We have a firm belief that, through the sweet partnership that exists between the NDFB and the NSCN, the day is not far off when freedom shall reign supreme in our midst.

Even as we reiterate our solidarity and solemn support to the struggle of the Naga people for their freedom, the NDFB wishes the Ministry of Information and Publicity, GPRN, a grand success in its present undertaking and other ventures to come.

LONG LIVE THE FRATERNITY AND SOLIDARITY OF
THE PEOPLES OF SOUTHEAST HIMALAYAN REGION

Your comrade-in-arms,

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(NABLA)

It is a matter of great prestige that the Naga Nation has successfully completed five decades of its resistance against the forcible occupation of Nagalim by India and Burma.

The Naga people, like the Dimasas, have suffered greatly in the cruel hands of the occupational Indian armed forces. It is indeed a high time for the peoples and nationalities of the Southeast Himalayan Region to move forward in one accord to bring about a permanent solution that has been eluding us for so long a time. The Dima Halam Daogah, as would organizations of oppressed peoples in the Southeast Himalayan Region, assures the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) of its commitment and fullest support in its struggle to regain the freedom of the Nagas.

I, on behalf of the Dimasa people, express warm greetings and solidarity to the Naga people and wish the Ministry of Information and Publicity (MIP), Government of the People’s Republic of Nagaland (GPRN), a grand success in its endeavor to bring out this Souvenir in commemoration of 50 Years of Naga Independence.

With best regards,

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(DILAOBRA)

"There is not and never was an India, no Indian nation, no people of India", observed Sir John Strachcy in 1888. But the British colonial administration united this “mere geographical expression like Europe or Africa” to such a degree that some Hindu Indian leaders began to cherish a belief in its capacity to make a nation. This newly developed belief was the seed of the present independent India, which has now become a real “prison-house of nations”. The day she won independence, her expansionism raised its uncivilized and out-dated head.

In 1947, the British left the entire South Asian sub-continent to shape its own destiny by itself. At that time South Asia, which is now taken to be a better name than Indian sub-continent as it carries no political bias, was composed of around six hundred or so political entities having distinct identities of their own. On 14 August 1947 the Nagas, a non-Indian Mongoloid people living in the Southeast Himalayan Region, declared independence. The next day India followed suit. Thinking that they were entitled to inherit the whole of the British empire in the sub-continent, the Hindu Indian leaders left no stone unturned to swallow up all the entities. The Nagas were one of such political entities whose right to independent national existence were deprived of by India. Through empty promises and flagrant deceptions, India came in to colonize the Nagas. Day by day the tentacles of Indian colonialism spread out to have a forcible hold on every aspect of the Naga national life. Thoroughly disillusioned, the Nagas took up arms against the alien aggression and determinedly defended their freedom. India has been employing every possible weapons including its armed forces, easy money, political stratagems, etc. to suppress this popular movement. But all these undemocratic acts could not intimidate the valiant Nagas into submission. On the contrary, the independence movement has been consolidated beyond any form of defeat.

Now all the peoples of the Southeast Himalayan Region have revolted against Indian colonialism. In a sense this is no more than following the political examples set by the Nagas. The Naga freedom struggle is not only a pathfinder but also a great physical prop to others in the region.

The Naga people richly deserve praise for their rare revolutionary courage and tenacity on the completion of half a century of freedom struggle. The Kanglei people owe the Naga people a lot for the immense emotional and physical support given to them in their on-going national struggle for the liberation of Kangleipak. The KYKL hopes that the Naga people, through the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) under the able collective leadership of Chairman Isak, Vice-Chairman Khodao and General Secretary Muivah, will continue to inspire the whole region to a higher and broader struggle for complete independence of the Region.

In conclusion, I, on behalf of the people of Kangleipak, wish the Ministry of Information and Publicity, Government of the People’s Republic of Nagaland, a grand success in its endeavor to bring out a Souvenir to commemorate the 50 Years of uncompromizing resistance put up by the people of Nagalim against the forces of domination.

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(N. OKEN)

It is so pleasing to know that the Ministry of Information & Publicity, Government of the People’s Republic of Nagaland, is bringing out a “Souvenir” in commemoration of the completion of 50 Years of Resistance gallantly put up by the Naga people against Indian and Burmese armed occupation of Nagalim.

I, on my own behalf and the National Liberation Front of Twipra (NLFT) and the people of Twipra Kingdom, extend my heartiest congratulation to all the leaders of the NSCN and the freedom loving people of Nagalim for their great dedication, sacrifices and dynamic leadership that which had endured 50 Years of marching in full swing towards the appointed destination.

I firmly believe that the "Souvenir" of the GPRN will be of historic significance to many nationalists. The story of true revolutionary life and fifty years of experience of the Naga national struggle for independence will bring about a great change to the people of Nagalim as well as to every revolutionary group of the world. Moreover, for national liberation, I am persuaded that it will be of great help to every revolutionary patriot to always remember the fact that “what we think today is the gift of yesterday for tomorrow”. It is my firm belief that the synergetic efforts and enduring bond of relationship and cooperation that exist between the peoples of Nagalim and Twipra will be further strengthened in the years to come.

It is my sincere wish and prayer to the Almighty God that the publication of this Souvenir bring joy and enlightenment to everyone.

With warm revolutionary greetings.

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(Mg. D. BALTHANG)

I am extremely happy to learn that the Government of the People’s Republic of Nagaland, led by the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN), is bringing out a Souvenir in commemoration of the 50 Years of Naga People’s political struggle and resistance.

I, on behalf of the National Liberation Front of Twipra (NLFT) and the Borok Nation of Twipra Kingdom, extend my heartfelt congratulation to the leaders of the NSCN/GPRN and other National Workers for the exemplary patience demonstrated by them during the 50 Years of struggle against Indian colonialism.

Besides encouraging other peoples and revolutionary organizations of the Self Defense United Front of Southeast Himalayan Region, I am fully convinced that the publication of this Souvenir will usher in a great change in the field of revolutionary movement of the Naga nation and also in propagating its cause and objectives the world over.

It is my humble prayer that the Almighty Father will grand success to the NSCN and the Naga people. As the saying goes “Pen is mightier than sword”, it is essential that we write as much as we can. Let honorable peace prevail in Nagalim and other parts of the Southeast Himalayan Region through the publication of this esteemed Souvenir.

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(Mg. K. MWKTHANG)