Mangal Kumar Chakma

The Quota Reforms Movement-turned Anti-Discrimination Movement of students followed by uprising of students-masses has caused down fall of Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government after which an Interim Government has been formed in Bangladesh. The main spirit of the movement was to bring a reform in the state systems through eradication of the discriminatory functioning of the state. Hence, it is quite natural on the part of the Interim Government to act, among others, upon the reforms of the state systems.

Needless to say, it is the vulnerable and marginalised communities who mercilessly fall prey to any form of discrimination. In case with Bangladesh, the backward indigenous peoples living in plains and Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) are of no exception to the system. Especially, it is due to the continuous discrimination being meted out to the indigenous Jumma peoples of CHT for the decade after decade, for which there has been continuing the mass movement in CHT since 1960s. As a result of the continuous movement of the masses, the historic CHT Accord was signed in 1997 aiming at bringing an end to the existing discrimination and deprivation of the indigenous Jumma peoples and thereby ensuring a perennial solution to the CHT crisis by peaceful and political means.

After signing the Accord, the then Awami League government, as though implemented some provisions of the Accord, did not go ahead with implementation of the two-third portions of the Accord including the core issues. Consequently, the issues that were left unimplemented are: stepping up lawful and administrative measures to preserve the tribal-inhabited feature of the CHT region; devolving the subjects of general administration, law & order, police (local), land & land management, forest & environment, development of communication system, etc. to the CHT Regional Council and three Hill District Councils established under the Special Governance System within purview of the Accord and holding elections in the Councils after formulation of Election Rules, Electoral Rules and enumeration of the permanent residents of CHT in the electoral roll; Formation of Hill Police Force with the permanent residents of CHT; Returning of the dispossessed lands of Jumma people to the owners by settling the disputes of lands through the CHT Land Dispute Resolution Commission and formulation of the Rules of the Commission; Cancellation of all leases of lands given to the non-residents; Withdrawal of all temporary camps including the ‘Operation Uttoran’ (Operation Upliftment); Ensuring proper rehabilitation of the India-returnee Jumma refugees and internally displaced Jumma families after returning their dispossessed lands to them; Appointment of permanent residents in all available jobs in CHT with priority preference to the Jumma people; Bringing amendment to all the laws, Rules and Regulations applicable to CHT in consonance with the CHT Accord; Relocation of Bengali settlers from the lands and homesteads of the Jumma people, etc.

It is worth mentioning that due to non-implementation of the Accord which led to no achievement of political and peaceful solution to the CHT crisis, rather the steam roller of discrimination and deprivation upon the Jumma people has been made more intense with brutal suppression and oppression. The activities of state machineries designed to anti-Accord and counter-productive to the interest of the Jumma people have been strengthened to further extent. Consequently, it has become a routine to the daily life of Jumma people to witness the events of arbitrary arrest, atrocities of jailing, extra-judicial killing, enforced disappearance and abduction, forceful occupation of lands, forcible eviction from own lands and homesteads, entangling in false cases, communal attacks, arson in houses, violence against women, etc.

The Sheikh Hasina-led government of Bangladesh did not only bring destruction to the democratic structure of the country but also had an abhorrable ill effort to null the space of peaceful and political solution to the CHT crisis through implementation of the CHT Accord. The commitment of ensuring rights of the Jumma people given through signing of the Accord was heinously breached by the Hasina-led government, itself. The Hasina-led government unbelievably committed extreme deception with the Jumma people. The institutions of CHT Accord Implementation and Monitoring Committee, CHT Land Dispute Resolution Commission, Task Force for rehabilitation of India-returnee Jumma refugees and internally displaced persons, CHT Regional Council and the three Hill District Councils were made totally dysfunctional, in deed.

It is mentionable that in the case with implementation of the CHT Accord, which was signed without the third party, it is only the CHT Accord Implementation and Monitoring Committee – the recognized and only authority acceptable to both the parties, and the decisions and recommendations of which are obligatory to both the government of Bangladesh and Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samity (PCJSS) as the signatories. But the Hasina-led government did undertake no initiative to implement any of the decisions taken in the meetings of the Committee. Thus how the Committee became only an institution for the name sake.

In this perspective, for the sake of implementation of the Accord, it is considered necessary to appoint a competent person for the post of Convener of CHT Accord Implementation and Monitoring Committee by the Interim Government in consultation with the PCJSS immediately. After appointment of the Convener, the unimplemented issues of the Accord may be identified in the meetings of the Committee. It is most urgent that a time-bound workplan (roadmap) for implementation of the unimplemented issues of the Accord be adopted in the sessions of the Committee. Then the Interim Government can undertake initiative for implementation of the Accord in accordance with the roadmap.

In this case, the crucial role of Ministry of CHT Affairs is undeniable. During the reign of the Sheikh Hasina government, the Ministry of CHT Affairs was never seen displaying positive role in the matter of implementation of the Accord. Whereas, the Ministry was formed under the provision of the Accord. Hence, it is expected that the Ministry should act upon positive role for implementation of the Accord and in favor of the interests of CHT. But the role of the Ministry was quite reverse to the Accord. It is hoped that the Interim Government will undertake proper measures to bring the Ministry back to the track leading to implementation of the Accord.

Whenever it comes to the issues of democratic and human rights of the country people, the Sheikh Hasina-led government would extol the statement related to the development. The government would focus on the description of how it was going to set the country among the ranks of middle-income countries and that way it used to conceal its self-styled democratic and rule of law in the country. Similarly, in the case with CHT, the Hasina-led government used to hold high the tale of its development programs as strived to conceal its failure in implementing the Accord and its suppressive and oppressive designs meted out to the Jumma people. The hill people expect that the Interim government, in place of such conspiring and fraudulent role of the state systems in CHT, will be able to set the state systems on the right path quite pro-people, eco-friendly and friendly to the culture of indigenous peoples.

It is also hoped, the Interim Government that came to existence through uprising of anti-discrimination and student-mass movement will be able to realize the discrimination and deprivation of the Jumma people at depth and as a part of the reforms in the state systems, it will pace up with firm step in bringing an end to the discrimination and deprivation existent in CHT. The space of ending existed discrimination and deprivation over Jumma people lie in the proper, speedy and fullest implementation of the CHT Accord. It can be said without doubt that the Interim Government that has come to its formation through mass uprising has the jurisdiction to undertake strong step to remove the discrimination and deprivation of the state machineries through proper implementation of the CHT Accord.