Mizo Accord is said to be the only insurgency in the world that ended with a "stroke of pen". Critically discuss the factors that made this accord successful.

Model Answer:
The antecedent causes of the Mizo conflict included dissatisfaction with the Lal (chieftainship) system, the British colonial policy residue of treating Mizo-inhabited areas as ‘excluded areas’, resulting in separatist tendencies. But, the idea of addressing the root cause of Mizo conflict played a significant role towards finding a resolution framework.Firstly, the demand for separate homeland for Mizos was based on the basis of common geographical location and not on common ethnic kinship.Secondly, the Laldenga (MNF leader) was flexible in giving up the idea of sovereign Greater Mizoram, the other leaders accepted it and gave way to MNF to talk with the centre. Thirdly, various stakeholders of the Mizo civil society including Church, Young Mizo Association (YMA) and the Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP) played a crucial role in sustaining the peace process. They worked in tandem without contradicting each other’s objectives. Thus, we see that the case of Mizoram in India provides informative lessons for conflict resolution. Factors such as addressing the root causes of the conflict, de-escalation in violence, empathizing with the conflicting actor, surrender policy for insurgents, indigenous mediators, absence of peace-spoilers, strengthening of local institutions, formation of a pan-Mizo identity and limited ‘use of force’ policy all played a role in establishing peace in Mizoram.