Nagaland demands autonomy from India


In this Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2019 photo, Neingulo Krome, 58, Secretary General of the Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights, displays a Naga flag at his home in Kohima, capital of the northeastern Indian state of Nagaland. Naga groups are holding talks with the Indian government to bring an honorable solution to their demand for self determination. "The flag has always a symbol of our identity and freedom. Even as students, we used to celebrate Naga Independence Day on Aug. 14 with friends by hoisting the Naga flag in the jungles secretly because we did not want the flag to be snatched away by the army," Krome said. AP Photo

India's government and Naga rebel groups held talks Thursday on ending 70 years of armed insurrection in the country's troubled northeast, but did not sign a widely expected peace agreement.

Nagaland state's top elected official, Neiphiu Rio, said in a tweet that a breakthrough had been achieved in the talks in New Delhi, but gave no details.

He described the development as a "great joy for all Nagas and the nation as a whole," and said peace would pave the way for genuine progress and nation-building.
A home ministry statement, however, referred to anxiety among some groups about an agreement and said all stakeholders would be consulted and their concerns taken into account before any settlement is reached.

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It did not elaborate or say whether the government had accepted a contentious demand by one Naga faction for a separate flag and constitution.
A seven-member umbrella group of rebels, the Naga National Political Group, also participated in Thursday's talks.
Indian media reports said government negotiators had set Oct. 31 as a deadline for concluding the talks.
Separatist groups have been fighting the Indian government, accusing it of exploiting the region's rich natural resources while neglecting local development.
The Naga insurrection began in the mid-1950s with
rebel leaders seeking an independent homeland.
In 1997, after years of often-violent encounters between the rebels and security forces, the Indian government and the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland signed a cease-fire agreement and started peace negotiations.

The rebel group watered down its original demand for an independent homeland and agreed to reach a solution under the Indian Constitution.

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