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Naga leaders coming for 'unconditional' talks

By Anjali Mody

NEW DELHI JAN. 8. The Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, is set to hold talks with the leaders of the Naga insurgent group, NSCN (I-M) here tomorrow, marking a major step forward in the five-year-long peace process.

The NSCN (I-M) chairman, Isak Swu, and the general secretary, Thuingaleng Muivah, arriving here, are prepared for a dialogue "without conditions'', K. Padmanabhiah, the Government's special emissary, said.

Talks with the NSCN (I-M) leaders, initiated by the United Front Government, have taken place over the last five years in Thailand and various European capitals.

Their coming to India caps a slow but determined progress in the peace process, marked by a ceasefire sustained over five years and the lifting of the ban on the organisation, Mr. Padmanabhiah said.

The last time the Naga leaders met an Indian Prime Minister in New Delhi was in 1967. They have, however, over the last decade met successive Prime Ministers, for informal meetings, abroad.

Mr. Vajpayee has met with them twice before, in Paris in 1998 and Japan in 2001.

The Nagas' major demands are the creation of a single administrative area for the Naga dominated areas of the north east, and greater autonomy, befitting their `unique' position in India.

These issues are expected to form the substance of the talks between the Prime Minister and the Naga leaders.

The meeting is considered a significant step in the on-going peace process and not one that will produce an immediate result.

There has been speculation about whether the lifting of the ban and meeting in New Delhi would lead to the NSCN (I-M)'s participation in the legislative elections in Nagaland.

There is, however, little substance to this speculation. Informed sources in government, however, suggest that the progress in the peace process may buoy voter interest in an election which could challenge the dominance of the current Congress Government.

Mr. Muivah and Mr. Swu will also meet the Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, the Defence Minister, George Fernandes, and the BJP president, M. Venkaiah Naidu.

They have also expressed an interest in meeting with the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, and other leaders such as the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Chandrababu Naidu, and the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa.

The meeting with Mr. Vajpayee is set for 7.30 p.m. on Thursday.

In the morning, Mr. Muivah and Mr. Swu are expected to visit the Raj Ghat.

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