Border fencing threatens Naga unity: NSO

Naga Students’ Organization (NSO), Naga Self-Administered Zone (NSAZ), Sagaing Region, Myanmar, has voiced deep concern over the ongoing construction of border fencing across Naga ancestral lands, especially in Pangsaung Pass-Nanyung township and nearby areas, warning that it threatens Naga unity, cultural continuity, and indigenous rights.
NSO appreciated United Tangshang Naga Council (UTNC) for abstaining from Pangsau Pass International Festival (PPIF) held from January 20-22, 2026, in Nampong, Arunachal Pradesh. It described the decision as a principled and timely stand that peacefully conveyed the Naga people’s opposition to fencing across ancestral lands. The move, NSO said, was not an act of hostility but a dignified assertion of indigenous rights.
According to NSO, celebrating cultural festivals loses meaning when indigenous lands are divided and community voices ignored. It stated that continued fencing separates families and villages, disrupts social, cultural, and economic ties, and fragments shared history and identity.
The organization cited the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, particularly Article 36 on cross-border relations and Articles 26 and 32 concerning land rights and free, prior, and informed consent.
NSO called on Naga communities along the Indo–Myanmar border to uphold unity through peaceful, responsible, and rights-based engagement, stressing that imposed boundaries cannot erase shared heritage.
It also urged Naga political and representative bodies to act with moral courage to safeguard the future of the Naga people through peaceful and lawful means, reaffirming its commitment to peace, justice, indigenous dignity, and unity.