ENPO asks Nagaland tribe's to not participate in Hornbill Festival starting from December 1

Firm on its demand of the creation of Eastern Nagaland, the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation (ENPO) has asked the tribes of the area not to participate in Hornbill Festival starting from December 1.

There would be “no display” of any cultural items of the seven tribes during the mega event. The Hornbill festival will be inaugurated by Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar on Thursday.

The ENSF and ENWO said they have no objection to state government order asking Village Guards (VGs) to participate in the Statehood Day Celebration on December 1 at Kohima. VG’s are government employees who can be present on the Statehood day in the capacity of official duty, but they can participate only in their official uniform and not in traditional cultural attire as demanded by the government.


ENPO has also resolved to observe December 4 and 5 as “Black Days” in the entire region of eastern Nagaland. On December 4 last year in the Oting incident in Nagaland 14 civilians and one security personnel died in a firing incident in Nagaland's Mon district.

Nagaland State Cabinet had appealed to the ENPO and tribal hohos (apex bodies) of Eastern Nagaland to participate in Hornbill Festival by allowing their cultural troupes to join.

Last year six tribes withdrew from the Hornbill Festival following the Oting killing. Hornbill festival is an international tourism event of Northeast India and is held for 10 days annually from December 1.

On Separate state demand Nagaland cabinet has recently resolved whenever Nagaland Legislative Assembly session was convened, legislators and members of Eastern Nagaland Legislators’ Union (ENLU), if and when they desired to discuss, may move accordingly and the issue would be deliberated threadbare.

The ENPO has appealed to the people living in eastern Nagaland, to hoist black flags in all households and remember those killed in the Mon killings incident on December 4 and 5 last year.

Nagaland also celebrates December 1 as the statehood day.