Adinno Z. Phizo, president of the Naga National Council (NNC) and eldest daughter of Naga leader A.Z. Phizo, died at Bethel Hospital in Kohima on October 8 following a brief illness. She was the head of the NNC (Adinno) faction.
Her death was announced in a joint notification issued by the NNC and the Federal Government of Nagaland, which said she passed away at 8 pm. Details of the funeral and the period of mourning will be announced later, the organisations said.
Adinno Phizo took over the leadership of the NNC after her father died in London on April 30, 1990. She was initially appointed acting president and was formally elected to the post at a meeting in Kohima on May 12 that year.
Her leadership received further endorsement at an NNC general meeting held in Longmisa village in March 1991, which, according to accounts of the organisation, drew more than 6,000 people.
A.Z. Phizo, who lived from 1904 to 1990, was a prominent figure in the Naga movement for self-determination. His daughter continued to uphold the NNC’s position on Naga sovereignty and the 1951 plebiscite, which the organisation maintains recorded an overwhelming vote in favour of independence.
Adinno Phizo spent several decades in London with her father before returning to Nagaland on significant occasions. In 1990, she accompanied his mortal remains to Kohima.
