Naga society today is going through a turbulent phase. Not that we have not seen turbulence in the past but what we are witnessing today is so overwhelming that it makes one wonder if it is by chance or by design that we are where we find ourselves today. Nonetheless, whether it is by chance or by design, we have none but ourselves to blame. There is just too much division, distrust and ambiguity in our society, so much so that we are no longer able to even make a public statement today without the risk of being branded or labelled as being pro or against one or the other group. It would augur well for the Nagas to realize that ours is not a monolithic society. We are a society as diverse as can be. As such, there will always be diverse opinions and interests. That, however, should not mean that we should be drawing rigid boundaries among ourselves. We certainly do not want to amputate our limps simply because it hurts after a long day’s walk!
It is sad to see that, today, someone talking about the Nagas as a whole is being branded as being in favor of one group while someone talking about the Nagas of present day Nagaland state is being labelled as pro another group. Normally, in a democratic society, groups of people with divergent opinions talk it out and at least try to find some sort of common ground but it seems we are not too good at it. Then again, as if that is not enough, we build walls around ourselves instead of building bridges. It is in a way normal to build walls for our safety but it is not healthy to be exclusionists and build walls just to keep the others out. As much as we would like it to be otherwise, we know that Naga people have been divided into four different Indian states. Now, even among the Nagas of Nagaland state, we are divided into blocs. Further, even within the same tribe, we are divided into ‘ranges’ and the divisions go right down to the village level where we are divided along the lines of clans and khels. Perhaps, this ‘natural tendency’ to divide among ourselves along one or the other line is the reason why Nagas as a group of people have not been able to be truly united in the real sense of the term.
In any given society, there always are some people who exploit the collective weaknesses of that society to fulfil their vested interests. We can’t say we are free from that kind of exploitative people either. It is difficult to pinpoint as to who stands to gain from the fragmentation, division and disunity among the Naga people but it is easy to say who stands to lose – the Naga people.