Photo: S. Subramanium

STUDENTS' VOICE: Members of the Naga Students' Union stage a rally for peace and justice in New Delhi on Tuesday. Peace talks are to be held between the Centre and NSCN-IM in Amsterdam on June 22.

NEW DELHI: Ahead of the crucial talks between the Centre and the NSCN(IM) due to begin in Amsterdam on Thursday, scores of Naga students, dressed in their traditional costumes, took out a march here on Tuesday, demanding that the Union Government expedite the ongoing Naga peace process for a durable and lasting political solution.

The `Rally for Peace and Justice' was organised by the Naga Students Union, Delhi (NSUD) to exhort the public at large and the Centre in particular to honour their aspiration for a lasting political solution in the State.

The rally from the Mandi House to Parliament Street saw the participation of representatives of several students' unions and associations from Nagaland and the north-east.

NSUD president Chitho Nyuso said the Centre should respect the aspirations of the Nagas to live as a "single political unit." He urged the Central Government to integrate Naga areas, without which the ceasefire talks would be rendered futile .

"The Indian Government has the moral and political responsibility to show its commitment to the substantive points put forward by the Naga people for a lasting political solution," Mr. Nyuso said.

The students staged a play on the Naga resistance movement against "occupational forces in Nagalim."

The rally organisers said while they appreciated the Government's official recognition of the "unique history and situation of the Nagas," they failed to understand why it had not taken any concrete step to resolve the six-decade-long insurgency problem in the country.

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