Seeks Governor’s intervention to reconsider decision
Hundreds of people staged protest rallies on Monday under the banner of the Konyak Union (KU) at multiple locations, including Longwa village and Tobu town, opposing the proposed border fencing and the scrapping of the Free Movement Regime (FMR) by the Government of India along the Indo-Myanmar border.
The demonstrators expressed strong resentment, arguing that the move would divide indigenous communities living on both sides of the border and disrupt their traditional way of life.
During the rally, many were seen with placards and banners that read “Free movement inside our Konyak territory is outright, don’t snuff it out!”, “Walls create hatred, not security”, “A border fence divides families, not just lands”, “Recognize our ancestral lands, not imaginary borders”, “Respect indigenous rights, not colonial legacy” etc.
Later, a representation to Nagaland Governor, signed by KU president Tinghok Konyak and general secretary Manpang K Wangyen, was submitted through deputy commissioner Mon.
In the representation, KU sought governor La Ganesan’s intervention in appealing the central government to reconsider the decisions to fence the Indo-Myanmar border and scrap the Free Movement Regime (FMR) provision of 2018 from the international border. KU appealed Ganesan to take up the matter on humanitarian grounds with the central government, calling for reconsideration of these decisions.
They cautioned that both the decisions would have a profoundly adverse impact on the Konyak Naga community, whose ancestral lands and people had been inseparably connected on both sides of the border since time immemorial.
They said that the border demarcation between India and Myanmar had its origins in arbitrary colonial decisions, beginning with the Treaty of Yandaboo in 1826, followed by modifications in 1834, 1881, 1894, 1896, 1921, 1992, and finalised at the Yangon Agreement on March 10, 1967 among prime ministers Zhou, Jawaharlal Nehru, and U Nu.
They alleged that these agreements were made without the consent or knowledge of the Konyak Naga community, whose territories were split without regard for the indigenous people’s cultural, social, and familial ties.
KU said the Konyak community had always lived as one people, sharing land, resources, and kinship across the imposed border, with many Konyak villages, including those within India, even having large portions of their agricultural lands in Myanmar.
The union pointed out that the fencing of this boundary would not only deprive them of their farming lands, but also severely disrupt their livelihoods, causing unimaginable hardship.
KU said this would also lead to the loss of vital connections for Konyak families residing in Myanmar who depended heavily on the Indian side for ration, daily needs, and basic necessities.
According to KU, particularly distressing was the situation of Longwa village where the border line arbitrarily cut through the heart of the village. They said it was inconceivable and deeply inhumane to consider erecting a fence through the centre of such a community or impose pass permits on villagers who had lived freely across this land for generations.
KU argued that if fencing was deemed necessary, it should follow the traditional boundary lines of the Konyak community, and not the artificial lines drawn by colonial and post-colonial authorities. They declared that the Konyak community would not accept any forceful division of its land and people.
Further, strongly objecting to the scrapping of the FMR that was implemented in 2018 to acknowledge the close ties between tribal communities on either side of the border, the union maintained that this regime had been crucial in preserving the cultural integrity and social fabric of border communities.
KU said the decision of the Ministry of Home Affairs to revoke the FMR and fence the 1,640 km boundary was based on false premises and a misrepresentation of the realities faced by indigenous communities.
The union pointed out that this move contradicted the central government’s own stated “Neighbourhood First” and “Act East” policies that aimed to foster closer trade, connectivity, and people-to-people ties with Myanmar and Southeast Asia. They said this marked a significant reversal of the free border movement that had existed for generations between India and Myanmar.
Reiterating that KU remained firm in its stand to protect the rights, land, and unity of the people, they hoped that the governor’s intervention would lead to a more just and compassionate resolution.