Kohima, Jul 11: The United Naga Council (UNC) has said that the Nagas are today scattered and placed in the States of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland within India and Burma and it has been the aspiration of the Nagas no matter where they are, to live as one people under one political roof by removing all artificial State boundaries imposed on them.

The United Naga Council (UNC) while issuing this statement to Newmai News Network from New Delhi said that it had persistently carried forward the aspiration of the Naga people living in the present State of Manipur in solidarity with the Nagas located in other States.

"The unification/integration of Naga areas therefore simply means, the removal of all artificial State boundaries that were imposed on the Naga people by the State without the free, prior and informed consent of the Naga people", said the statement signed by its president KS Paul Leo and its general secretary Azang Longmei and added that unification/integration of Naga areas does not seek to disintegrate or encroach on other people's land, neither is it integration to the present Nagaland State.

The UNC then stated that the Nagas are encouraged by the fact that historical facts do not deny our statement and "we are ready to help in a peaceful resolution of the issue; nevertheless we are also prepared to go to any length to prove our position".

In view of the Naga People's Convention's (NPC) resolutions of August 8 and 9 in the year 2001 and 4th of November 4, 2005 to further launch non-cooperation and civil disobedience movements against the Government of Manipur while urging, the Government of India (GOI) to demonstrate their political will to resolve the Indo-Naga issue by carrying forward the peace process to an acceptable and honourable settlement at all cost an eleven member delegation of the United Naga Council (UNC) representing the Nagas from the present State of Manipur have come to Delhi on June 18 this year on behalf of the Naga people to handover the Manipur Hill House Tax for the year 2006 of 94894 households to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) as per the Naga People's Convention (NPC) Resolutions dated 4th November 2005, claimed the UNC statement.

"This is a part of our resolution taken on the 4th of November 2005 to take five immediate steps, which include the, payment of Hill house tax directly to Delhi or to Kohima," said the statement further.

It further stated that as part of the non-cooperation movement against the present non-cooperation movement against the present state of Manipur and demand for unification of all Naga homeland, the All Naga Students Association, Manipur (ANSAM) is seeking affiliation of private schools and colleges in Naga areas of Manipur to the board and university of Nagaland state.

In this regard ANSAM has decisively surrendered the prescribe textbooks of Board of Secondary Education, Manipur (BSEM) beginning from VIII X in the first phase.

All together 156 private schools and colleges have started introducing Nagaland Board of Secondary Education (NBSE) prescribe textbooks from the academic year 2006. A memorandum in this regard was submitted to HRD Minister by ANSAM, said the statement of the Naga body.

The UNC also said that the demand for unification of all Naga homeland was clearly demonstrated by the chiefs/chairman/headman of Naga villages in the present state of Manipur by the 'Declarations and Memorandum' already submitted to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on December 12, 2005 at New Delhi, endorsing in no uncertain terms that any honourable solution to the Naga peace process must begin with the unification of the Naga areas.

The UNC disclosed that its delegations had met the Indian leaders and conveyed our views that the issue we have brought to Delhi is an expression of our aspiration and to strengthen the ongoing peace process between the GOI and the Nagas.

The delegation includes representatives of Nagas from the present state of Manipur i.e.Hunphun (Ukhrul), Inriangluang (Tamenglong), Chamdil (Chandel) and Tahamzam (Senapati) districts, as well as 27 villages of Henglep Sub-division of Churanchandpur district, said the UNC.