History of Nagalnad

Nagaland became a state on December 1, 1963. Its status as part of India or as an independent entity beforehand has been disputed since 1956, and there are agitators for independence within the region.

On October 2, 2004, a series of attacks, including two bomb explosions, in the states of Assam and Nagaland killed at least 57 people and injured over 100. Officials have blamed two groups of separatist rebels, the United Liberation Front of Asom and National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB).

Nagaland has no written history. Till the nineteenth century when their lifestyles were first recorded, the Naga’s lived a life centered around agricultural and headhunting and the various rites and rituals connected to the two activities. The Naga people belong to the Mongoloid ethnic group. Every tribe, clan, has its own myths of the origin of the Naga people, tracing between them their first homes, it is suggested that their love of marine shells points to a bygone settlement near the sea, their spears (with ornamental barbs curling outward from a shaft) suggested some relationship with the resident of the Philippine Islands and Indonesian people, generally by the use of the lion loom, these are not substantial evidence to build a history of ancient times, but it does give hints on what may have happened.

The derivation of the word Naga is obscure. Some say it its been derived from the Sanskrit word Naga, a mountain, hence mountain man. Some linked it to be from the term warrior and some thought it was from the Hindi word Nanga, meaning naked and some believed it was derived from the word Naga, meaning snake. The most likely derivation is from the word Nok, which means people in some few local dialect. The name, however was not in general use among the Naga’s. It was given by the people from the plains and was used indiscriminately. When a Naga ask another Naga where he is from, the questioned is phrased “Which village do you belong to?” or “What tribe do you belong to?” even today.

Never were the Naga’s under any administration before the British Empire, though many writers claim to be, the British established rule over Assam and gradually annexed the Naga hill area to the British Empire. It is likely that the Naga’s bore their share of suffering during the troubled years at the end of eighteen century too. In the year 1832-33, Raja Ghambir Singh of Manipur, who had the ambition of achieving the permanent conquest of of the Naga Hills, marched through through Naga territories from Imphal. The British Government was not happy about this, but in a general way submitted some portion of the Southern Nagaland, now extending up to Mao under Manipur, to the Manipur rulers. The British put an end to headhunting and the inter village raids and the Naga’s settled to a more peaceful life of cultivation and trade. In 1887, after the the local officials were given authority to act as arbiters in inter village feuds to enforce their their powers, Kohima was established as the chief administrative centre of the area, with a sub centre at Wokha; a strong police force was posted in the interior; house taxes were collected. This was the beginning of of an effective administration in the Naga Hills, which was established in 1881. In 1888 a new sub centre was opened in Mokokchung.

On the other hand, the American Baptist Missionaries started their station at Molung among the Ao tribe and started educating the Naga’s and evangelizing the Naga people. Education was an integral part of the mission and converts were educated in their schools. Literacy was the stamp of authority that gave Christianity supremacy over traditional customs and belief. What the missionaries taught was to have a drastic effect on the traditional social fabric of Naga society. The missionaries had little understandings of the working Naga society and made little or no effort to look beyond the surface. When they saw, using beliefs as a yardstick was promiscuity, heathenism, barbarism and ignorance, converts were compelled to make a complete break with the tradition; they were forbidden to drink rice beers, take part in traditional singing and dancing, sleeping in the Morungs, or participating in any of the traditional co-operative activities of the community. They were actively encouraged to emulate their converts in every ways, dress included and to renounce their heathen brethren. The missionaries are even believed to have destroyed traditional artifacts. Many of the administrators of the time disagreed with the missionaries methods and feared they were destroying Naga culture. They would have preferred Naga culture unchanged. They failed to realize that by romanticizing the Naga’s as noble savages they were being a paternalistic as the missionaries. They themselves were not blameless. Their administration had introduced a market economy that brought an end to Naga self sufficiency. The only way up for Naga’s was through education which at the time was being provided by the mission schools. The product of these schools dressed like the sahibs, and spoke, read and wrote their languages. They were the ones who found employment usually in the service of the Government and started to earn salaries. In the new climate where new aspirations had replaced the old, their success did not go unnoticed. Their example was emulated by increasing number of Naga’s. Often these boys and girls went to Assam to continue their education. Some even went to colleges as far as Calcutta and Bombay. Naga’s were to come into even more contact with the outside world and new ideas with the coming of the two world wars.

The first world war did not have much impact on the the Naga’s, though Naga warriors were recruited for the Labors corps in France, the response of which was remarkable. The second world war, however, had a more devastating and far reaching effect. The Japanese penetrated up to Kohima under the Naga Hills District and the Naga’s faced the sufferings, dangers and disaster of the modern battle. The Naga’s gave invaluable support to the allied forces. Despite floggings, torture, execution and the burning of their villages, they refused to aid the Japanese in any way or to betray the allied troops, instead they guided the allied columns, collected information’s, ambushed the Japanese patrols, carried out supplies and helped the wounded in the battlefields.

As far back in 1918 an organization was formed by A group of Naga’s who returned from France, Its members were Christian’s educated Government officials and headmen from various Naga villages called the Naga Club. This was the first attempt at consolidating a Naga identity and solidarity. Their activities which included a cooperative store and holding discussions were informally supported by local British administrators. During this period the Indian Independence movement had begun to gain momentum and the British Government was negotiating the future of the country. The Naga’s club felt that in order to preserve the Naga’s tribal identity they should be allowed to decide their future for themselves. They feared that Naga culture would be engulfed by that of the plains people which they had come to see as the antithesis of their own. As, Second World War ended, the Naga Club and the tribal councils that had been formed along its lines had merged and evolved into an organization called the NNC (Naga National Council) which dedicated to reforming Nagaland from the scratch of the war and advocated Independence for Nagaland. It held that the Naga’s being fundamentally different from the mass of the Indian people and had lived independently before the British conquest of their territory. Therefore, their inclusion into the Indian Union would be an artificial and forced one. A delegation led by Mr. Z.A.Phizo met with Jawaharlal Nehru to reiterate this stand. The Indian Government maintained that the Naga Hills were an integral part of the British India, and the Naga Hills District was handed over to India with the rest of the British India.

When it became evident that Independence would not be allowed, nine members of the NNC signed a Declaration of Independence. This move was ignored by the Indian Government. The NNC then started negotiations with the Governor of Assam, Sir Akbar Hydari. They reached an agreement with him called the ‘Nine Point Agreement’ but it was more of a compromise. The NNC gave more importance to the clause that gave them the right to reconsider their status within India after ten years. The NNC believed that this gave them the option of choosing Independence. For the Indian Government such an option did not even exist. The fundamental difference of opinion between the NNC and the Indian Government led to armed revolt and many years of insurgency that continues to this day. The NNC held a plebiscite in 1950 which resulted in a majority supporting the NNC stand. In 1952 talks between Mr. Z.A.Phizo and Mr. Jawaharlal Nehru ended without any results. In 1955 fighting broke out after NNC leaders were arrested. The NNC went underground and in 1956 proclaimed the Naga Federal Government with a President, Parliament and Ministers under the leadership of Mr. Z.A.Phizo. The first flag of the Naga federal Government was unfurled in 1956 at Phensinyu, a Rengma village. In the following years a virtual undeclared war was fought between the Indian army and the Federal Government. Unfortunately, the innocent Naga’s bore the brunt of the hardships. Villages were relocated. Without any prior warnings, the villagers would be ordered out of their houses and the village torched. Innocent villagers were often tortured and beaten if suspected in aiding the insurgents. On the other hand, the insurgents also killed Naga’s suspected of collaborating. Businessmen, Government servants, villagers ordinary citizens are often compelled to ‘donate’ grain and cash for the cause of the Naga’s. By the end of the 50’s and 60’s many Naga’s had wearied of the violence and the disruption of their lives and longs for PEACE till this day.

An organization of Naga leaders called the NPC (Naga People’s Convention) was formed for negotiation the settlement for peace. They held meetings attended by large numbers of villagers and delegates representing all the Naga tribes. It was decided that the Naga’s should opt for statehood within the Indian Union. In 1963 the Naga Hills districts of the state of Assam was granted Statehood. From then it was to be called Nagaland. The NPC became a political party called the NNO (Naga national Organization). It formed the first Government of Nagaland after gaining majority in the elections. The Federal Government refused to settle for anything short of total independence and continued to fight the Indian Army. It also targeted the Naga’s who had led the movement of peace and statehood and attempted to assassinate leaders. There was still no peace in Nagaland. Negotiations initiated by the Nagaland Baptist Church Council with Reverend Michael Scott as mediator resulted in a cease-fire in 1964 but the basic differences between the NNC and NPC remained irreconcilable. In 1966 negotiations broke down. The cease fire had brought an end to the war like situation in the state but sporadic encounters between the NNC and Indian Army continued. In 1972 the Indian Government formally terminated the cease fire. By that time NNC had forged links with China and other insurgency movements in neighboring Burma (Myanmar) where some of them based their camps; but, dissent within the organization had grown and by 1975 a faction of the NNC living within Nagaland signed a Peace treaty known as the Shillong Accord with the Government. Another factions calling itself NSCN (National Socialist Council of Nagaland) led by Mr. Muivah, condemned the move and continues to fight for independence. Today the NNC and the NSCN have further both split within themselves into splinter groups each competing for supremacy and legitimacy as the official representative of the Naga independence movement.