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Guwahati: Amid the prayers of good health and long life, 91 year old general secretary of the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) Thuingaleng Muivah, on Wednesday came to his native village Somdal in Manipur’s Ukhrul district, after five decades. As a helicopter with the 91-year-old Naga leader on board landed on the Bakshi ground in the Ukhrul district headquarters, thousands of Naga women in their traditional attire and men holding spears and wearing headgears welcomed Th Muivah amid huge cheers. Th. Muivah, who has been the principal negotiator in the Naga peace talks with New Delhi, since the NSCN (I-M) entered into a ceasefire in 1997, is scheduled to stay in Somdal village for a week before returning to Dimapur. Veteran Naga leader Mr Muivah, a Tangkhul Naga, is the last surviving founding leader of the NSCN. Several hoardings and wall paintings of Naga leaders have been put up in the district headquarters. Locals carried out a cleanliness drive at various locations of the district headquarters overnight, ahead of his visit. Mr Muivah also delivered a speech to the people where he asserted that a separate constitution and Naga national flags are non-negotiable demands of the community. Recalling that by signing of the Amsterdam Joint Communique and the Framework Agreement, the Government of India has acknowledged the "unique history and position" of the Nagas and accepted that sovereignty lies with the people. Meanwhile the Meitei Leepun (ML) in a statement said, “We warmly welcome the visit of Thuingaleng Muivah - not only a respected leader of the Naga people but an inspirational and visionary figure admired across communities - to his village and his motherland, Manipur.” The ML said the authorities allowing the 91-year-old insurgent leader to visit his ancestral village in Manipur's Ukhrul district's Somdal after more than 50 years was "a wise and compassionate decision." It is significant that Mr Muivah last tried to visit his ancestral village in 2010. However, the Congress government led by the then chief minister O Ibobi Singh stopped him from entering Manipur, leading to tension. ML calls itself a socio-cultural organisation. However, as with all controversial 'volunteer' groups that made headlines in Manipur in 2023, the ML also faces allegations of attacking members of the Kuki tribes when ethnic violence broke out in May that year. The ML has refuted all the allegations.
