Peace Channel Kohima in collaboration with the People’s Forum for Peace Nagaland organized an inter-faith meet for Peace Building in Nagaland on November 3 at CAN Conference Hall, Kohima on the theme, “Transformed to Transform the Society.”
According to a press release by Kohima district coordinator, Alino S Chishi, it was organized with an aim prevent conflicts and intervene into them, and to promote peace. Dr Deben Bachaspatimayum, assistant professor NEISSR, Dimapur was the trainer on skills of Peace-building. Abea Mero, founder of Connect Organic Nagaland and peace activist, Niketu Iralu, delivered the message and keynote address respectively.
Niketu Iralu stated that the attitude of “no need” or saying “it will be okay without it” becomes a degrading force of stability in society. North East India is very far from major trade routes and seas, he said, as such it had rarely been influenced by things that have impacted the globe.
“One should be transformed in order to transform the world around us” he asserted. Iralu further stated that positive transformation should be the force to change the world unlike Hitler and Lenin who were negatively transformed by bitterness.
According to Iralu, forgiveness is the beginning of peace and the beginning of sustainable humanity and society. While delivering her message, Abea Mero said that Peace was a very wide subject.
She pointed out that today, society was in a situation where someone who may be educated may also resort to violence and killing just to fill their stomach. Most of the underground personnel in the Naga armies are orphans, illiterate or less educated or those who have been abused, and they have to resort to violence or join the military in order to get two-meals a day, she stated. Mero opined that to resolve these violent issues, efforts can also be made to encourage income generation activities to replace the violent means of taxation and extortion.
Dr. Deben Bachaspatimayum, in his speech said that the concept and process of globalization integrated with economics should be understood if Naga society is to create peace. Most of the conflict and violence developed due to the mismanagement of the economy and most of the communal violence is due to misunderstanding the process of globalization, he stated.
According to Dr. Bachaspatimayum, although Nagaland and North East India is a violent and conflict ridden region, there are also positive messages in the brutality and bitterness. He opined that conflicts and violence in many ways have been a positive force although views may differ on this.
The program was chaired by Victor Yhome. Fr Richard Fernandes, parish priest, St Francis De Sales Church, Kohima invoked God’s presence and a special number was presented by Akangkokla Namo. Altogether, 18 individuals from different NGOs, churches and different walks of life attended the program.