ABSTRACT
Since the dawn of Independence, parts of the North-East have been subject to various insurgency movements. The Naga insurgency dominated the 1950s decade while Meitei militancy raised its head in the 1960s in Manipur. Surges of insurgency followed in Mizoram, Assam, Tripura, and Meghalaya with parts of Arunachal Pradesh being the most recently affected. The government, while meeting force with force, has also resorted to peace negotiations with various insurgent groups from time to time, leading to settlements with some of these groups. However, not all such agreements have held, and even where they have, more frequently than not, have been challenged by rival factions in the outfit leading to continued violence. In other cases, the negotiations have been inordinately long raising questions regarding their purpose. In all cases, however, the period of negotiation has witnessed an increase in extortion by the negotiating outfit. At the same time, the negotiations have generally resulted in an overall decline in violence and diminution in fear of underground outfits, creating openings for development and democratic functioning. It is thus pertinent to examine whether conflict resolution initiatives need to be persevered with or should be jettisoned in favour of greater reliance on the force option.
