In the hilltop village of Longwa, the boundary between India and Myanmar runs right through the center, a division that has never mattered much to the local Konyak tribe. For them, national borders were irrelevant until now.
Tonyei Phawang, the Angh (hereditary tribal chief) of Longwa, who lives on the border, explains, “I eat in Myanmar and sleep in India.” However, this status quo is now being threatened. The Indian government has moved to revoke the longstanding Free Movement Regime, a system that allowed locals to cross the border without restriction, and is considering building a fence that could divide villages like Longwa.
On a typical day, the Longwa marketplace is bustling, with shoppers from Myanmar bringing in goods like salt, flour, and clothes, traveling to the village because the nearest market in Myanmar, Lahe, is a day’s drive away. The residents, many of whom travel between both sides for shopping, education, or medical care, had never seen the concrete border marker erected in the 1970s as a symbol of division, as they had no concept of national borders at the time.
Phawang, reflecting on the past, says, “At that time we had no idea this is India or Myanmar. It was a free land. There was nobody who understood English or Hindi. They understood nothing.”
The Konyak tribe, like many Indigenous Naga tribes, straddles the mountainous region dividing India and Myanmar. Due to this, many in Longwa feel a sense of belonging to both countries. “I am from both India and Burma,” Phawang adds, citing his involvement in elections in both nations.
Recent changes to the border policy, including the revocation of the Free Movement Regime in February 2024, have raised concerns among the locals. The Indian government cited national security and the preservation of demographic integrity as reasons for the shift. As a result, Longwa residents have seen increased border security measures, though some, like former Konyak women’s leader B. Phohi Konyak, argue that this new system is already affecting those who need to travel across the border for medical or educational reasons.
The Indian government’s decision to build a fence along the Indo-Myanmar border could further impact Longwa. With 170 out of the village’s 990 buildings located on the border line, the proposed fence would cut through homes, a government school, and an army camp.
Local opposition to these changes has been vocal. In early February, Longwa residents organized a protest, displaying placards with slogans such as “Respect Indigenous rights, not colonial legacy!” The Nagaland state government has also passed a resolution opposing the revocation of the Free Movement Regime and the border fence construction.
Khriezo Yhome, a senior fellow at the Asian Confluence think tank, warned that these changes could violate international agreements aimed at protecting the rights of border-straddling Indigenous communities. Yanlang, a 45-year-old village council member, summed up the sentiment of many locals: “For us, there is no Burma Longwa or India Longwa. How can one village and one family be divided?” (Extracted from Associated Press)