The two-day peace talk between Government of India’s peace envoys and Naga separatist leaders of NSCN-IM have started in Amsterdam on Monday. They started talks to continue the nine-year long ceasefire from breaking down.

The union Labour Minister Oscar Fernandes and K Padmanabhaiah leads the government of India’s delegation. The Naga leader, Thuingaleng Muivah is leading the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM).

According to the senior NSCN-IM leader RH Raising,

we have our main agenda for the talks. We demand for a special federal relationship between India and Nagalim and for allowing us for self-governance.

The Naga leaders are also asking for a separate Naga constitution and the creation of a Greater Nagaland by slicing some parts of three neighboring states. Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh have opposed the greater Nagaland demand.

Earlier, in 1997, the NSCN-IM and the government of India has agreed for the ceasefire and got regular renewal of the ceasefire for continuous nine years. Now, the ceasefire is going to expire in June 2007.

During the last talk in October 2006, the rebel leadership had asked for the special federal arrangement and the talks ended without going to any conclusion.

The NSCN-IM has been blamed the Central government for not having a clear-cut plan to resolve the more than 60 years old Naga problems.

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