Peaceful Living Condition

Geographic Area: The three districts of Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) - Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachari- are surrounded by the Chittagong and Cox's Bazar plains stretching along the Bay of Bengal on the West, by the Indian States of Tripura and Mizoram on the North and the East and by the Arakan Region of Myanmar (Burma) on the South and Southeast. The hills of the CHT are extensions of the Himalayas, which run north to south. The CHT (5,093 sq. miles which is almost 10% of total land of Bangladesh) is a unique region with innumerable hills and hillocks, forest springs and rivers and fascinating different natural lakes including man made Kaptai Lake. It is completely different in geography, surface and soil conditions, while the rest of the country is flat and a few feet above the sea level.
Mahalchari Upazila of Khagrachari district is located close to the Rangamati-Khagrachari road and about 28 km from Khagrachari district town. The Upazila covers an area of 362 sq km consisting of 5 Unions and 100 villages. The river Changi flows across the Mahalchari Upazila. The population is more than thirty thousands including the ethnic communities- Chakma, Marma, Tripura, etc.

Diversity of peoples and the cultural differences among the Indigenous communities and the Bengalis: According to the different research reports and literary information on the CHT, there are 12 indigenous communities live in CHT. Each community belongs to its own traditional culture and custom, language and life style, roles and rituals, which distinguishes them from one another. The names of the indigenous communities are (1) the Chakma, (2) the Marma, (3) the Tripura, (4) the Tangchangya/Dengnak, (5) the Lushai, (6) the Pankhua, (7) the Kheyang, (8) the Murong (9) the Bawm, (10) the Chak, (11) the Khumi and (12) the Mru. The Chakma, Marma, Tripura, and Tangchangya are the largest communities among them by population. The indigenous communities mainly originated from Tibetan, Mongolian and Burmese (Myanmar). Dominant religions of them are Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity. Almost all the indigenous people are now bi-lingual. They have learnt Bengali language for communicating with the mainstream population, but they speak in their own language among themselves. The indigenous people are freer in their behavior pattern in their society. The women work harder than men, but the women are discriminated according to their customary or traditional inheritance laws. However, the indigenous women have more mobility in their areas even to markets at Upazila and District levels in comparison to Bengali women. The Indigenous women are used to do marketing, cultivate land and other activities with their male partners in addition to childcare and household works.
In contrast to cultural majority, the community spirit is stronger among the indigenous communities. Consensus for decision-making, an important value of the indigenous community, is historical and geographical. This value has strong linkage in the traditional agricultural practices such as Jhum (slash-and-burn) cultivation. These cultural values tie people together and is reflected in different aspects and decision making in the society.

Political History of Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT): After the promulgation of "Chittagong Hill Tracts Regulation Act - 1900" and afterwards through different amendments, CHT region is now exposed to three competing governance systems of which one represents the traditional governance institutions (Circle Chiefs with their Headmen and Karbaris), another includes the representatives of administrative control including Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police (SP); and the other involves newly emerged regional and sub-regional governance institutions like the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council (CHTRC) and the Hill District Council (HDC). Therefore, it is the dynamics of relationship between these three competing systems that substantially affects the socio-economic development of the peoples of the CHT region. Besides, there are elected representative (Member of Parliaments and Union Parishad Chairman and Members) and the Military who also play an important role in the Hill Tracts. The Circle Chiefs (Rajas) actually had acquired monopoly over all trades between the hill and the plains during the British rule. All the circles are divided into Mouza/Para (Village). The Karbari controls the Para especially in the event of social disputes and other issues related to the settlement of family feud within the Para. The head of Mouza (known as Headman) is responsible to look after the legal matters as well as collection of taxes from the landowners.
The CHT has the status of a subdivision from 1891, which became a district by the Regulation of 1900. In 1919 the district was divided into three subdivisions, which were raised to three districts, namely Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachari in 1981. Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) as a part of Bangladesh became independent from the rule of Pakistan in 1971. There was no space for Indigenous peoples in newly formed Constitution of independent Bangladesh. Therefore, a movement for establishing the rights of the indigenous peoples was initiated under the leadership of Parbataya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS), which was established in 1972.
The majority of the populations in the area were indigenous communities and since their socio-cultural conditions are different from the plain landers, the pattern of administration has been different even during the British rule prior to the partition and Independence of then Pakistan in 1947. According to different sources, the Bengali population was about 2% of the CHT population around 1947 whereas the Bengali population increased to 48.57% in 1991 (1991 population census). But the Adivasi Forum now claims that the Bengali population has been already increased to 52% in CHT. This dramatic increase in population of the Bengalis in the CHT was induced by the then Military Government of the former President Ziaur Rahman (who later on formed “Bangladesh Nationalist Party-BNP”) to outnumber Indigenous people in the CHT. As a consequence the population of Bengalis is now more than the Indigenous people in the CHT and most of the businesses have gone under the control of the Bengalis. Since the transmigration started by the then Military Government, the Army and the Bengali settlers began to forcibly and illegally occupy the ancestral & community land of the Indigenous people of CHT. Moreover, the Army and the Bengali settlers started conflicting with the Indigenous people in different ways at different places of CHT. It is obvious that the dramatic change in the composition of the Indigenous and the Bengali population has upset the social and ecological balance in the CHT. In consequence, thousands of Indigenous people fled to Tripura state of India, where they took shelter in different refugee camps for their security. The unrest and agitation situation under the leadership of PCJSS turned into worse. Thus, the place of peace and tranquility gradually became uneasiness, discomfort and bloodshed.
In 1996 the Awami League came into power. A National Committee started negotiation and protracted dialogue with PCJSS for establishing peace in CHT. Finally, after a series of dialogues the Awami League led Government and the PCJSS came to a consensus and signed in a CHT Peace Accord on December 2, 1997. After the Peace Accord PCJSS took the charge of interim CHT Regional Council on May 12, 1999. Progress has been made in other areas such as the then Awami League led Government amended the existing laws to facilitate the implementation of the peace accord. All the refugees returned from India, the Ministry of CHT Affairs was established with an Indigenous person as the Minister (now, during the tenure of BNP led Government, the Ministry is run by the Prime Minister directly although an Indigenous person, Mr. Moni Swapan Dewan, has been appointed as the Deputy Minister). An Indigenous person was replaced the ranking military official as the Chairman of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board (CHTDB), but during the tenure of BNP led Government a Bengali person, Mr. Wadud Bhuiya, MP has been made as the Chairman of the CHTDB. There is still frustration among the CHT Indigenous people, as the CHT Peace Accord has not been sincerely implemented by any of the Governments, such as, (1) Land Commission has not been reactivated for last nine years although the tenure of the Commission is three years only. (2) Gradual withdrawal of around 400 non-permanent military camps with about 20,000 soldiers has not been implemented and (3) other areas of CHT accord also have not been implemented. Contrary, according to the sources of National Dailies, oppression in different ways on the Indigenous people after the CHT accord is the common events in CHT, i.e. abductions, killings, land grabbing etc. by the Army and the Bengali settlers. As for a few examples, Mr. Naguram Tripura (45) was abducted after he had got back 1.40 acres of land through a Court verdict on July 16, 2003 and has not returned as on today (11/7/06). He received financial assistance from ICDP-CHT to run the case. An Adivasi couple, Barun Kumar Chakma and his wife have been killed at mid night by a group of Bengali settlers on August 2, 2004 (Prothom Alo: August 5, 2004). The report further says that the ulterior motive behind the murder was to occupy the land. The same Daily on 9 June 2004 reported, “9560 acres of Adivasi land in Ruma Upazila is being exerted to grab for the extension of Ruma cantonment. 200 families belonging to the Mru and Tripura communities live under constant fear as the land have been snatched away by the Bengali settlers in Lama Upazila with military back-up.” Both external and internal dislocations of indigenous families and human rights violations and evictions have disrupted their security and the entire socio-economic life in the area. The state policy of settling Bengalis in the CHTs has resulted long-term and multi-dimensional negative effects on social ties of the indigenous communities.
The Regional Council and the Hill District Councils have not been made functional to its desired extent owing to lack of political will, allegedly on the part of the present and immediate past governments. This resistance against devolution, originating from non-recognition of the indigenous peoples of the country and the unwillingness to share political power and resources (including land and forest) with them, lies at the heart of the current problems in CHT. Support of the state mechanism in favor of the Bengali settlers intensifies the prevailing tension.
After the CHT signing of the Peace Accord "United Peoples Democratic Front (UPDF)" was formed to divide the indigenous peoples of CHT into two groups in order to weaken the unity of the indigenous peoples.

Background of the Concept Paper:The People of the Mahalchari were also living in tension as well. But the Mahalchari violence has increased the tension among the CHT people. On 26 August 2003, Bengali settlers attacked the hilly people of Mahalchari of Khagrachari district. The attack left two Adivasi people dead including one eight-month child and scored hundreds of injured while about 437 houses of nine villages, four Buddhist Temples and one primary school were burnt into ashes. The sufferings of the people were beyond description - inhumane, shocking and unbearable. The affected villages were Noapara, Basantapara, Kerenganal, Durpurjayanala, Pahartali, Sawmillpara, Babupara and Remesu Karbaripara of Mahalchari Union and Lemuchari of Maischari Union of Mahalchari Upazila. Media also reported about widespread looting, raping of 10 women and harassing Buddhist Monks. The casualty in terms of property destruction estimated by PCJSS is more than Tk. 30,000,000/-, which equals to US$ 506,757. The property accumulated little by little by the Adivasis peoples for generations has damaged in a moment by such atrocious way.
Afterwards, Caritas as a humanitarian organization successfully completed the construction of traditional shelters (Low Cost Housing) for 329 fire-affected families with the financial assistance and cooperation of UNDP. Besides, non-food household materials were also distributed to 437 fire-affected families through the financial support of German Embassy in Dhaka. The affected people are now living in their new shelters with a new hope and aspiration of life. The fire-affected people are now grateful to Caritas and its donor partners and the Government for extending financial and technical support for the rehabilitation in a horrible situation timely and effectively.