The Chittagong Hill Tracts
The Chittagong Hill Tracts in the south-eastern corner of Bangladesh is home to different minority nationalities who differ markedly from the dominant ethnic Bengali people of the plainland in respect of ethnicity, religion, culture, custom, tradition and lifestyle.
Collectively known as Jumma people, these minority nationalities are not recognized in the national constitution of Bangladesh and are subjected to mounting injustice and repression.
Since Bangladesh came into being in 19971, a systematic campaign of ethnic cleansing has been put in place to wipe out these people from the map of the CHT. To achieve this strategic objective, the government of Bangladesh has done two things: first it has brought approximately 400,000 Bengali settlers into the CHT from 1979 to 1984 and secondly, deployed one-third (80,000 personnel) of its regular troops to the area. This has resulted in the huge deterioration of human rights situation: more than a dozen massacres and mass killings took place in which hundreds of Jumma people were killed.
The Jumma people organized themselves into a resistance movement and waged an armed struggle under the leadership of Jana Samhati Samiti (JSS).
In December 1997, JSS signed a peace deal with the government of Bangladesh and bade farewell to the struggle. The accord has failed to bring peace in the CHT as it does not fulfill the basic minimum demands of the Jumma people. Therefore, the Jumma people rejected the treaty and began to organize themselves under a new political platform in the name and style of the United People's Democratic Front (UPDF) founded on 26 December 1998. During the last eight years, the Party has been able to gain overwhelming support in the CHT. Recently, it has held its first national congress in Dhaka and elected a new central committee with Praist Khisha and Rabi Shankar Chakma as its president and General Secretary respectively. The congress has vowed to carry on the struggle for FULL AUTONOMY through peaceful and democratic means.
Present situation in CHT
Despite the government- JSS treaty, the overall human rights situation has not improved at all. Military presence is still all pervading and military operations, raids, tortures, arrest and detention of innocent people are still going on. On the other hand, political repression on UPDF and its associated organisations is widespread. Hundreds of their activists have been arrested and put to jail. The party is often denied democratic space and its peaceful public rallies are attacked and disrupted.
Another vexing issue is land. The treaty has failed to restore customary land rights to the Jumma people and land grabbing is continuing unabated. In Bandarban district of Southern CHT, thousands of acres of land belonging to the Jumma people have either been already taken away or are in the process of being acquired in the name of expansion of military facilities.
Setter Attack
In August 2003, the Bengali settlers attacked 10 Jumma villages in Mahalchari Upazilla (Sub-district) in Khagrachari district. The attack - which left two Jummas killed, 10 women raped and Buddhist monks tortured - was aimed at grabbing Jumma land and turning the area into a Bengali dominated one.
There are many such incidents of attacks and other human rights violations which go unreported in the national media outlets.
Speak out
It is about time the international community spoke out aloud about human rights abuses in the CHT. Please urge the government of Bangladesh to stop human rights violations in CHT and start a political dialogue with the Jumma political parties aimed at finding a durable peace in the area.
To the caretaker government of Dr. Fakruddin Ahmed:
The CHT people have been subject to mounting neglect during the previous governments. The CHT people hope the interim government of Dr. Fakruddin Ahmed would take courageous steps and try to make amend the historical injustices meted out to them.
Collectively known as Jumma people, these minority nationalities are not recognized in the national constitution of Bangladesh and are subjected to mounting injustice and repression.
Since Bangladesh came into being in 19971, a systematic campaign of ethnic cleansing has been put in place to wipe out these people from the map of the CHT. To achieve this strategic objective, the government of Bangladesh has done two things: first it has brought approximately 400,000 Bengali settlers into the CHT from 1979 to 1984 and secondly, deployed one-third (80,000 personnel) of its regular troops to the area. This has resulted in the huge deterioration of human rights situation: more than a dozen massacres and mass killings took place in which hundreds of Jumma people were killed.
The Jumma people organized themselves into a resistance movement and waged an armed struggle under the leadership of Jana Samhati Samiti (JSS).
In December 1997, JSS signed a peace deal with the government of Bangladesh and bade farewell to the struggle. The accord has failed to bring peace in the CHT as it does not fulfill the basic minimum demands of the Jumma people. Therefore, the Jumma people rejected the treaty and began to organize themselves under a new political platform in the name and style of the United People's Democratic Front (UPDF) founded on 26 December 1998. During the last eight years, the Party has been able to gain overwhelming support in the CHT. Recently, it has held its first national congress in Dhaka and elected a new central committee with Praist Khisha and Rabi Shankar Chakma as its president and General Secretary respectively. The congress has vowed to carry on the struggle for FULL AUTONOMY through peaceful and democratic means.
Present situation in CHT
Despite the government- JSS treaty, the overall human rights situation has not improved at all. Military presence is still all pervading and military operations, raids, tortures, arrest and detention of innocent people are still going on. On the other hand, political repression on UPDF and its associated organisations is widespread. Hundreds of their activists have been arrested and put to jail. The party is often denied democratic space and its peaceful public rallies are attacked and disrupted.
Another vexing issue is land. The treaty has failed to restore customary land rights to the Jumma people and land grabbing is continuing unabated. In Bandarban district of Southern CHT, thousands of acres of land belonging to the Jumma people have either been already taken away or are in the process of being acquired in the name of expansion of military facilities.
Setter Attack
In August 2003, the Bengali settlers attacked 10 Jumma villages in Mahalchari Upazilla (Sub-district) in Khagrachari district. The attack - which left two Jummas killed, 10 women raped and Buddhist monks tortured - was aimed at grabbing Jumma land and turning the area into a Bengali dominated one.
There are many such incidents of attacks and other human rights violations which go unreported in the national media outlets.
Speak out
It is about time the international community spoke out aloud about human rights abuses in the CHT. Please urge the government of Bangladesh to stop human rights violations in CHT and start a political dialogue with the Jumma political parties aimed at finding a durable peace in the area.
To the caretaker government of Dr. Fakruddin Ahmed:
The CHT people have been subject to mounting neglect during the previous governments. The CHT people hope the interim government of Dr. Fakruddin Ahmed would take courageous steps and try to make amend the historical injustices meted out to them.
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