“My family is in Sagaing Division in Burma, in Tirap, Changlang, and Longding of Arunachal Pradesh, and also in Mon District, Nagaland,” says Former ENPO President, Warning of Cultural and Refugee Crisis from Border Fencing

The Angh’s house in Longwa, Nagaland straddles the border between India and Myanmar. (Photo: nexplore)

The proposed security fence along the 1,643-kilometer India-Myanmar border threatens to sever centuries-old ties between families spread across India and Myanmar. Speaking on Cluster of MFI, a YouTube channel, former president of the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization (ENPO), Khoiwang Wangsha, highlighted how his own family, spread across Sagaing Division in Myanmar as well as Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland, would be affected by the fence.

“Our families—we keep meeting during the Aoleang Festival as a form of cultural exchange; we share a deep-rooted brotherhood,” Wangsha said. He stressed that this cultural connection would be severely impacted if the Government of India proceeds with constructing the border security fence, adding that all of Eastern Nagaland will be significantly impacted.

“For instance, Pangsha village lies on the international border. Their village is in Nagaland, India, but their fields are on the Burmese side, where they have been farming for years,” he explained, drawing attention to the border’s practical implications on the livelihood of border communities.

He recalled that this issue first arose during his tenure as ENPO president in 2017: “The same issue came up when I was the ENPO president in 2017, and we appealed to stop it even back then. I am shocked they have brought it up again.”

Wangsha further highlighted other villages affected by the proposed fence, stating, “Most of Yongkhao village lies in Myanmar. There are also Pesao village, Monyakshu, Wangti, Changlangshu, Chenmoho, and Longwa. If security fencing is built, it will cause huge problems for all these villages,” he said, expressing his shock and dissatisfaction over the Centre’s decision to proceed with the fencing.

He explained that the “imaginary” line between India and Myanmar was drawn in 1972 without consultation with local landowners or residents. “This line was decided solely by Rangoon (Now Yangon) and New Delhi based on watershed boundaries,” he noted, adding, “Now this imaginary line has become an international border.”

Wangsha warned of a potential refugee crisis if the fence proceeds. “Without land, we cannot live. Just look at how Bangladeshis are migrating to India without their land; this is already causing huge problems, and India is trying to stop them from entering the Northeastern states. If we leave our fields in Burma and stay only in Nagaland, we will have no other option but to set up refugee camps,” he warned.

Questioning the government’s rationale, which cites insurgency as a key reason for the fencing, Wangsha argued, “If the Naga political movement did not exist, there would be no underground movement. If they don’t want the underground movement, they should respect the decisions of the Naga people. Just because of underground movement the logic to make Indo-Myanmar border fencing should not happen.”

The former president appealed for greater understanding from both the India and the Myanmar sides.

MT

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