Govt to hold talks with NSCN(I-M) in Amsterdam

NEW DELHI: Ahead of talks to renew the ceasefire with the major Naga insurgent outfit, NSCN(I-M), that expires on July 31, the government will hold two days of parleys with the group in Amsterdam this week to discuss "substantive issues", including the outfit's demand for a Greater Nagaland.
    
The Central team, led by Minister for Statistics and Programme Implementation Oscar Fernandes and comprising the Centre's pointsman for the Naga peace process K Padmanabhaiah and some Union Home Ministry officials will leave for the Netherlands on May 17 and stay on in Amsterdam for two days for the dialogue.
    
"All issues, including that of renewal of ceasefire with The NSCN (I-M), will figure in the talks which are aimed at keeping the dialogue with the government going," sources said.
    
The NSCN (I-M) and the security forces in Nagaland have been holding fire since 1997 when the ceasefire accord was reached.

 

The accord has been extended every year since then, except last year, when it was renewed for six months on the insistence of the Naga outfit and further extended by six months in February.
    
The key and "most contentious" demand of the Naga group has been the issue of Greater Nagalim (Nagaland), to bring all Naga-dominated areas in the northeast under one administrative mechanism. However, it has seen strong opposition from Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh.