Abstract

Chapter 6 discusses the ways migration into Nagaland from other parts of India and from Bangladesh have created an explosive political narrative of ‘outsiders’ and threats to Nagaland's demographic balance. This narrative is led by highly gendered notions of Naga men as protectors of Naga territory, culture, and society from outside intruders.

Keywords: migration, xenophobia, outsiders

‘Stop Harbouring IBIs. They are Not Your Family Members’

Between November 2017 and January 2018, a series of five posters were plastered at intersections, markets, transport hubs and along walls and buildings in the busier streets of Dimapur and the neighbouring town of Chumoukedima. The posters, printed in plain white and pastel yellow, blue, pink and orange, carried various slogans agitating for more stringent checks on migration into Nagaland, the introduction and enforcement of policies to restrict migration into Nagaland, and the expulsion of illegal Bangladeshi migrants in particular. The five variations of the posters were: ‘Our fight is against IBIs [illegal Bangladeshi immigrants] and not against religion’; ‘Wake up Naga's [sic], no time to pretend we have our fundamental rights in our land’; ‘Restore back Inner Line Permit at Dimapur district’; ‘State government you have slept too long, deport illegal Bangladeshi migrants’; and ‘It is our rights to protect our land: [1.] Stop renting out to IBIs. [2.] Stop employing IBIs. [3.] Stop harbouring IBIs. They are not your family members’. Similar references to the problem of ‘outsiders’, and specifically to IBIs, appeared regularly in local newspapers, in public forums and events, in discussions on streets, in eateries, and in tea shops. IBIs, often referred to collectively as the ‘IBI menace’ seemed to be attached to almost all political issues in Nagaland in some way and were co-opted into various other political problems and projects. Public forums discussing unemployment and self-employment often segued into discussions of IBIs living in Nagaland and speculations that IBIs were the source of Nagaland's high unemployment rate by offering cheaper labour than locals were willing to work for (Nagaland Post, 2019).