Nov 01, 2006

Nagalim: Group of Ministers to Deliberate on Peace Process


The Group of Ministers on the Naga issue will meet soon to deliberate on issues thrown up during talks between Indian officials and NSCN-IM leaders two weeks ago.

NEW DELHI: The Group of Ministers on the Naga issue headed by Union Labour Minister Oscar Fernandes will meet soon to deliberate on sensitive issues thrown up during talks between Indian officials and NSCN-IM leaders in Amsterdam two weeks ago.

"The GoM will meet very soon, most probably within a month," K Padmanabhaiah, the interlocutor for the Naga talks, said after meeting Home Minister Shivraj Patil on Tuesday.

The GoM, which will be briefed on deliberations at the Amsterdam meeting held during October 17-19, would deliberate on the issues raised there, he said.

Rebutting reports that the last round of talks had made no headway in resolving the six decade-old Naga problem, official sources said there were bound to be "minor aberrations" in finding a solution to the dragging issue.

There are many ups and downs in every peace process and the government is looking for a "package" rather than a "piecemeal" solution to the problem in Nagaland, they said.

However, all efforts would be made to resolve these questions, the sources said, without elaborating on what these issues were.

Reports have suggested that the NSCN-IM has been insisting on a separate constitution for Nagaland that would give the Naga tribals a greater say on key issues like the exploitation of natural resources.