Govt grants ‘safe passage’ to HNLC for speeding up peace process

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJuly 19, 2022

Hynniewtrep National Youth Front (HNYF) president Sadon K Blah on Tuesday informed that the central and state governments have agreed to grant a ‘safe passage’ to the Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) for speeding up the peace process.  

Speaking to reporters, Blah, who has been appointed as the representative of the HNLC said, “the central and state governments have agreed to grant a safe passage to the leaders of the HNLC, who are to be engaged in the talks for the peace process, where they can come and go and may be stationed themselves within the territory of India.”

He said the safe passage will enable the HNLC leaders to come and have a direct discussion with the authorities, be it of the state or central government. This will speed up the peace process if the leaders of the HNLC are able to join the discussion and negotiate across the table.

Blah said the question of ceasefire may not be the appropriate topic to discuss now as we are still in the first chapter where we have to talk about the legality of allowing the HNLC to come to the negotiating table.

“If the ceasefire has to happen, it will happen only after the HNLC has put forward their point of view in front of the central and state governments,” he said.

The HNLC representative said that the political issues or the agendas of the outfit are yet to be discussed and put in public domain.

Blah said as per protocol the government in the coming days has to take appropriate decisions regarding the rehabilitation of the cadres of the HNLC.

Blah denied having any information about the present strength of the banned organization and said, “let the leaders of the HNLC come and have a discussion with the authorities concerned all those things will be known (in the process).”