Naga Scholars’ Association (NSA) organized an online panel discussion on the Free Movement Regime (FMR), bringing together scholars and experts to examine the implications of its abolition on cross-border communities.
Held via Google Meet, the discussion featured three panellists with firsthand knowledge of the issue, who collectively criticized the move as detrimental to border communities and Naga identity.
In a press release by NSA, the first speaker, co-founder of ECS Tuensang, Rev. Dr. Chingmak Chang, described the North Eastern and Burmese border communities as victims of colonial history, caught between two nations without full integration into either.
He criticized the Indian government’s approach, stating that North Eastern communities were often viewed as mere “tourism pieces” rather than integral members of the Indian nation.
Dr. Chang warned against an overly aggressive security-driven policy, asserting that abolishing the FMR was not a viable solution. “You don’t burn the house down to hunt the rat,” he remarked, advocating for holistic development as a more effective response to security concerns. He further suggested that FMR could have served as a stepping stone toward a broader regional model akin to the European Union’s open-border system.
The second panellist, human rights advocate James Pochury, spoke on the topic “Breaking the Chains: The Politics of Enclosure and the FMR Betrayal.” He framed the removal of FMR as part of a broader strategy to confine border communities within India’s economic and political framework, thereby suppressing Naga aspirations for self-determination.
Drawing historical parallels, Pochury likened the government’s approach to the Jewish Babylonian exile, emphasizing that economic restrictions keep border communities dependent on state-controlled resources. He further argued that psychological and cultural “enclosures” sought to erode Naga identity and autonomy, urging resistance and political reclamation.
Researcher and Indigenous rights advocate Athong Makury, speaking from Layshi, Myanmar, challenged the legitimacy of border restrictions, describing them as an artificial “Iron Curtain” designed to weaken the Nagas.
He called for unity and international advocacy to expose these policies, emphasizing that external border controls should not divide a people with shared history and identity. The discussion, moderated by NSA general secretary Dr. Apila Sangtam, traced the history of FMR, which existed in a 40 km border zone since 1967-68 and was reintroduced in 2018 under India’s Act East Policy, with the permissible zone reduced to 16 km. Dr. Sangtam noted that the recent decision to scrap the FMR has ignited debate.
The panellists collectively warned that abolishing FMR would further marginalize border communities and weaken the Naga position. They called for peaceful and strategic approaches, including people-to-people dialogue, grassroots mobilization, and policy advocacy, to address the issue.