History

Background of the CHT

The land and water of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. The CHT is south eastern part of the Himalayas, thus in stark contrast with mainland Bangladesh mountainous. In 1962 the Pakistan Government built a Dam at Kaptai, which inundated 45 percent of the fertile land of the CHT. Rangamati, the capital of the CHT is surrounded with water and mountains.

The Chittagong Hill Tracts (hereafter CHT), an area of 13,295 square kilometers, is the south eastern part of Bangladesh, bordering the Arakan and Chin States of Burma, and Tripura and Mizoram States of India. From the time immemorial the CHT have been the home of thirteen indigenous ethnic groups. They collectively identify themselves as the Jumma people, the first peoples of the CHT. They are Chakma, Marma, Tripura, Tanchangya, Mro, Murung, Lushai, Khumi, Chak, Khyang, Bawm, Pankhua, and Reang. The Jumma people are distinct and different from the majority Bengali population of Bangladesh in respect of race, language, culture, religion and ethnicity.

1. British Period(1787-1947):

Similar to other indigenous peoples of the world, the Jumma people were also independent before the British colonial period. The British annexed the CHT area in 1860 and created an autonomous administrative district known as "The Chittagong Hill Tracts" within the undivided British Bengal. In 1900, the British enacted the Regulation 1 of the 1900 Act in order to protect the Jumma people from economic exploitation of non indigenous people and to preserve their traditional sociocultural and political institutions based on customary laws, common ownership of land and so on. Throughout the British colonial period the 1900 Act functioned as a safeguard for the Jumma people, prohibited land ownership and migrations of non indigenous peoples in the CHT. In 1947, Indian subcontinent was partitioned on the basis of religion, Pakistan for Muslims and secular India for non Muslims and Muslims alike. Despite 98.5 percent of the population of the CHT were Jummas and thus non Muslims, the Pakistani leadership conspired and the Boundary Commission of Great Britain ceded the CHT to East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in violation of the principles of partition and against the wishes of the Jumma people. The Jummas vehemently protested against the decision, but to no avail. On 15 August, 1947 the Chakma youths under the leadership of Sneha Kumar Chakma hoisted tricolor Indian fag at Rangamati, capital of the CHT and in the southern CHT at Bandarban the Marmas who have cultural similarity with Burma hoisted Burmese fag. Six days later the Indian flag at Rangamati was lowered by the Pakistani Army at gun point

2. Pakistan Period(1947-1971):

From the very outset the Pakistani Government looked at the Jummas with an eye of suspicion for being anti Pakistani during the partition. Jummas were discriminated in jobs, business and education. During the Pakistani rule, the Government of Pakistan amended the 1900 Act several times against the wishes of the Jumma people in order to find a legal excuse for migration of non indigenous people into the CHT. It deliberately ignored the fact that the 1900 Act was an indispensable legal instrument for ensuring the safeguard of the Jummas, and that it could not be amended without mutual agreement. On contrary, Pakistani Government interpreted the 1900 Act as a legacy of British colonial administration which helped separating the CHT from the rest of the country. The predicament of the Jumma people began with the building of a hydroelectric dam in the early sixties which flooded 1,036 Square Kilometers of land, submerged 40 percent of the best arable land and displaced 100,000 Jummas from their ancestral homes.

3. Bangladesh Period(1971- Present):

After nine months of war of independence with Pakistan, Bangladesh emerged as an independent state on 16 December 1971. During the war of independence it was alleged that the Jummas in general remained indifferent to the cause of war against Pakistan. Soon after the Pakistani army withdrew, the Mukti Bahini (liberation forces of Bangladesh) went on rampage against the Jummas in the CHT. On 15 February 1972, a delegation of the Jumma people led by M.N. Larma, called on Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and submitted a written memorandum with four point charter of demands consisting of 1) Autonomy for the CHT, 2) Retention of the CHT Regulation 1900, 3) Recognition of the three kings of the Jummas, 4) Ban on the influx of the non Jummas into the CHT. Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman categorically rejected these demands. In March 1972, M.N. Larma formed Jana Samhati Samiti (JSS), later a military wing the Shanti Bahini was added to it.

4. Arrests, Tortures and Kidnapping:

In the name of counter-insurgency the Jummas have often been detained and tortured by the army. Thousands have perished in the armed encounters, extra-judicial executions, tortures, rapes and so on. Bangladesh security forces often resorted to mass detention and torture of the helpless villagers and left many of them crippled for life. For further consolidating their authority over the villagers, security forces have uprooted villages and forcibly kept them in so called "cluster villages" (known as concentration camps), where they live under constant supervision of the military.

5. Bengali Muslim Settlers:

In the late 1970s President Zia sponsored migration of Bangladeshi settlers into the CHT, providing land grants, cash and rations. This programme was not made public at the time, and its existence was denied by the representative of the government. Now the government acknowledges that there was a programme of sponsored migration. Bangladeshi settlers, with the connivance of the almost totally Bengali administration, have been able to take over land and even whole villages from the Jummas. By 1981 the Bangladeshis made up nearly one third of the total population of the CHT.

6. Forcible Conversion and Religious Persecution:

Forcible conversion is considered as a state sponsored method of assimilation. Al-Rabita, a Saudi government funded NGO, is the main Islamic missionary organisation active in the region, backed by the military, it is entrusted with the Islamisation of the region. The Jammat-i-Islam, an Islamic fundamentalist party works actively with the military in the CHT. The number of mosques and madrashas(Islamic schools) are rapidly increasing in the area. Apart from proselytisation, there have been religious persecution in the form of violation and destruction of religious places of the Jummas by the Bangladesh military. In 1986, within a period of eight months 54 Buddhist temples have been destroyed and 22 Hindu temples were burnt down by the Bangladesh military.

7. Massacres:

Since 1980 there have been 13 major instances of massacre of the Jummas by the Bangladeshi settlers and the Bangladeshi security personnel. These are:

Kaukhali-Kalampati Massacre, 25 March 1980 - Bangladesh Army and the Bangladeshi settlers gunned down 300 Jummas.

Banraibari-Beltali-Belchari Massacre, 26 June 1981: - Bangladeshi settlers under the protection of the Bangladesh Army, murdered hundreds of Jummas.

Telafang-Ashalong-Tabalchari Massacre, 19 September 1981: - The Bangladesh Army and the settlers invaded the Jumma villages of Feni valley and murdered hundreds of Jummas.

Golakpatimachara-Machyachara-Tarabanchari Massacre, June-August 1983: - The Bangladesh Army and the settlers executed months long campaign against the Jumma villages and murdered 800 Jummas.

Bhusanchara Massacre, 31 May 1984 - the massacre was carried out jointly by the 26 Bengal Regiment of the Bangladesh Army and the Bangladeshi settlers. At least 400 Jummas were killed. Many women were gang raped and later shot dead.

Panchari Massacre, 1 May 1986 - hundreds of Jummas (actual number not known) were killed and injured by the Bangladesh Army. 80,000 Jummas fled across the border to India.

Matiranga Massacre, May 1986 - The Bangladesh Army gunned down at least 70 Jumma civilians in reprisal to fighting with the Shanti Bahini.

Comillatilla, Taindong Massacre, 18-19 May 1986 -the Bangladesh Rifles (a paramilitary force) intercepted 200 Jummas while fleeing across the border to India and opened fired on them.

Hirarchar, Sarbotali, Khagrachari, Pablakhali Massacres, 8,9,10 August, 1988 - The Bangladesh Army along with the Bangladeshi settlers killed hundreds of Jumma civilians and gang raped Jumma women.

Langadu Massacre, 4 May 1989 - the Bangladeshi settlers murdered 40 Jummas, dead bodies never recovered.

Malya Massacre, 2 February 1992 - the Bangladeshi settlers murdered another 30 Jummas.

Logang Massacre, 10 April 1992 - 400 Jummas killed by the Bangladeshi military and the Bangladeshi settlers.

Naniachar Massacre, 17 November 1993 - about 100 Jummas killed by the Bangladeshi settlers.

8. The CHT Treaty:

The Jana Samhati Samiti (JSS), the political platform of the Jumma people signed a treaty with the Bangladesh government on 2 December, 1997. The treaty failed to safeguard the survival of the Jumma people. The Bangladesh government did not have the sincere desire to solve the problem of the CHT. The treaty had rather been used by the Bangladesh government as a facade to impress the donor countries. The treaty does not address the fundamental problem of the Bangladeshi settlers and the militarisation of the CHT, it rather legalizes the settlers in the CHT.

Sources:

Life is not ours: the Chittagong Hill Tracts Commiission

Unlawful Killings and Torture in the CHT: Amnesty International, 1986

The Charge of Genocide: Organizing Committee for the CHT Campaign, 1986

Survival International Report: London

A History of the CHT

> by Naeem Mohaiemen. Additional research by Sagheer Faiz

Chittagong Hill Tracts: 5093 square miles, 10 percent of Bangladesh’s total land area. It’s forest area is 47 percent of the country’s total forest land. Ethnic minority groups include Chakma, Marma, Tripura, Chak, Khyang, Khumi, Murung, Lushai, Bawm and Pankho.

Chakma Queen Manikbi’s husband fought many battles with Maghs in the country called Roang (Arakan) in the year 1118 – 1119 AD (Vide Arakan History: Dengyawadi, Aradafung, pages 17 to 19). During the reign of Chakma king Kamal Chega, there was war with Roang and the Chakmas migrated into that country (Bangladesh Dist. Gazetteers, Chittagong Hilltract pp. 33 – 34).

14th century- Sawngma (Chakma) Raja Marekyaja migrates from Arakan hills to Chittagong belt to establish his rule and dynasty.

1715- Chakma king Jallal Khan establishes treaty with the Mughal Nawab.

1715-1760- CHT is independent kingdom, paying revenue from Cotton/Karpas to the Mughal Nawab. Hence the name, “Karpas Region”.

1760-1780- CHT maintains independent kingdom status, but pays revenue to the British rulers.

1777 & 1780- Chakma warriors fight the East India Company

1787- Chakma king Jan Baksh Khan pledges allegiance to East India Company. Chittagong Hill Tracts goes under complete control of the British. British pledge not to intervene in administrative affairs of the region. Hunter cites an 1829 regulation to say: “In 1829, Mr. Halhed, the Comissioner stated that the hill tribes were not British subjects but merely tributaries and that we recognized no right on our part to interfere with their internal arrangement.”

20 June, 1860- Notification No 3302 separates the hill area of Chittagong from Chittagong district and creates an independent district called Parbatya Chittagong.

1861- Parliament passes Indian Council Law. The Law recognizes the regulations passed by Governor General or local authorities with regards to areas outside the Law’s jurisdiction.

1870- Government Of India Act passed, allowing the Governor General to amend laws related to the “special areas”

1881- Chittagong Hill Tracts Police Regulation 1881 allows Hill Tracts people to form their own independent police force

1 May, 1900- Chittagong Hill Tracts Manual law passed. The area is given exemption from administration as an “Excluded Area” to help preserve minority “tribal” culture and heritage. CHT divided into Chakma, Bomang and Mong Circle. Headmen and Karbari to act as local administrators. Manual’s Regulation 34 banned non-hill people from buying or acquiring land in the area.

1920 & 1925- Manual revised to further enhance the safety of the Tribal people.

1935- India Rule Law ratifies and recognizes validity of CHT Regulation (1900).

17 August, 1947- As partition approaches, Lord Mount batten pressures Sir Cyril Radcliffe to redraw his lines– over the Chittagong Hill Tracts and several Punjab districts. In the end, Radcliffe assigns CHT to the new state of Pakistan.

15-20 August, 1947- Chittagong Hill Tracts People’s Association expresses their doubt as to whether their rights will be preserved if they are assigned to Pakistan. The Association raises the Indian flag in the Rangamati District Administrator’s office. Some leaders of the Bomang Royal family also protest by raising Burmese flag in Bandarban.

21 August, 1947- Baluch Regiment arrives in Chittagong Hill Tracts and forces protesters to lower Indian flag. The Regiment then raises the Pakistan flag.

Tribal leaders Kamini Mohon Dewan and Sneha Kumar Chakma clash over whether Tribal rights will be protected in Pakistan. A large group that is fearful for their rights give up their land and cross over into India.

1948- The new Pakistan government expresses suspicion over allegiance of Hill Tracts people, removing Chittagong Hill Tracts Police Regulation 1881. In fear of their safety, several thousand Tribal people seek refuge in India and Burma. Later, when the Indian and Burmese governments attempt to bring international pressure to take back the refugees, the Pakistan government agrees to abide by 1900 Chittagong Hill Tracts Manual Law.

1950- Violating Chittagong Hill Tracts Manual law, Pakistan government settles several hundred Muslim families in Nanaiachar, Longdu and Bandarban.

1956- Chittagong Hill Tracts Manual law 1900 is ratified in first constitution.

1962- The Pakistan government begins to take away Tribal control by replacing the phrase “separate ruled area” with “Tribal (Upajati) Area” and making major changes to the regulation.

1957-1962- Kaptai Hydro Electric Project Dam is built. 40 percent of agriculture land in CHT goes under. Thousands of Hill Tracts peoples lose their only source of income.

1964- Hill Tracts peoples who lost their lands in the Kaptai Dam project are moved to Rehabilitation Areas. Dissatisfied with the rehabilitation efforts, 50,000 families take refuge in India. 20,000 of these refugees are later settled by the Indian government in the Arunachal area. The remainder settle in Tripura and other Indian states.

1971- Bangladesh liberation war begins. Major Ziaur Rahman and his troops escape to India via CHT, with help from tribals in the area.

5 December, 1971- After Pakistani soldiers vacate Chittagong’s Panchori region, non-Tribal freedom fighters kill 14 Hill Tracts people. Authorities forbid Tribal freedom fighters when they attempt to intervene.

29 January, 1972- Newly independent Bangladesh’s leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, assures Chakma representatives that Chakmas would get their due share of government jobs.

15 February, 1972- Representatives of the Chakma King hand over a 4-point manifesto to Sheikh Mujib, asking for autonomy for Chittagong Hill Tracts.

24 April, 1972- Manobendro Narayan Larma, member of the King’s council, presents the 4-point manifesto to the committee drafting the Bangladesh constitution.

24 June, 1972- Larma forms a regional political party, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Solidarity Party, to champion the cause of regional autonomy.

13 February 1973- During a tour of the Hill Tracts, Sheikh Mujib says, “From today, there are no tribal sub-groups in Bangladesh; everyone is a Bengali.”

In the general elections of 1973, the tribals’ Solidarity Party wins two seats in the Parliament for Larma and Chai Thowai Rowaza.

August 1975- The political landscape shifts radically after Sheikh Mujib’s assassination. Larma goes into hiding and the Solidarity Party creates an armed militant wing, the Shanti Bahini.

1976- Under the leadership of Ziaur Rahman, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board is created, with Area Commander of Chittagong Cantonment as Chairman. The Board sets up a plan to rehabilitate the resettled Bengali poor in Chittagong. Chakma land is redistributed among Bengali settlers, and they also receive government loans to cover their basic food expenses.

29 May 1977- The Shanti Bahini launches a lethal attack on local armed forces. In response, both the Army and Navy in the area are fortified to the extent that the ratio of armed forces to CHT residents is 1:5.

26 December 1977- In a direct warning to Shanti Bahini and Chakmas, Chittagong Cantonment Area Commander Maj. Gen. Manzur announces, “We don’t want you. You can go off wherever you please. We just want your land.”

1979- Professor R.I. Chowdhury of Chittagong University leads a survey team to interview tribals. The results are uniformly critical of the Kaptai Dam project. 93 percent felt they were economically self-sufficient before the flooding. 89 percent claim they lost their homes due to flooding, and 69 percent said the compensation they received was insufficient.

25 March 1980- The Kalampati (Kaokhali) Massacre: the local Martial Law Commander convenes a Chakma meeting at a Buddhist temple. Officers open fire on the gathering, creating a death toll of almost 300. Non-tribals attack Buddhist temples and Chakma residences in the area. MP Upendra Lal Chakma organizes a press conference demanding justice. He accompanies two opposition MPs, Shahjahan Shiraj and Rashed Khan Menon, on a site visit.

25 April 1980- In a press conference, the 3 MPs demand immediate inclusion of Chakma autonomy into the Bangladesh constitution, curtailing of Army presence and cessation of “non-tribal” resettlement in the area.

December 1980 – The Zia government, after light criticism of the Kalampati massacre, passes the Disturbed Area Bill, bestowing upon the Chittagong Police Sub-Inspector and any Non-Commissioned Army Officers the right to shoot individuals suspected of illegal activities and the right to raid any home suspected of storing weapons.

29 July 1980 – Following an earlier closed-door meeting with Chakma leaders, President Zia is quoted in the Guardian (London) as saying “We are doing some wrong there. We are being unfair to the tribes. It is a political problem that is being dealt with by Police and Army action. Yet it can be settled politically very easily. We have no basis for taking over these lands and pushing these people into a corner. We should at least call a meeting of these tribal leaders and ask them their demands.”

30 May 1981 – President Zia is assassinated in Chittagong in a coup led by Maj. Gen. Manzur .

5 February 1982 – Led by the President’s Secretary on Tribal Affairs Subimol Dewan, a group of tribal and non-tribal representatives meet with President Abdus Sattar. The Sattar regime does not see any further resolution of the Tribal problem; the few educational and occupational quotas created under Zia are gradually eliminated.

27 July 1982 – After coming to power, General Ershad meets with three Chakma leaders. He sends Chittagong Cantonment Area Commander Maj. Gen. Mannaf as his representative to Rangamati.

3 October 1983 – Gen. Ershad proposes a package deal to resolve the Hill Tracts crisis. Meanwhile, a rift within the Solidarity Party leads to the assassination of Manabendro Narayan Larma at the hands of supporters of rival Priti Kumar Chakma.

1984- In their report to the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations (WGIP), the Anti-Slavery Society of London criticizes the Bangladesh delegation’s report at previous year’s session. In particular the Bangladesh delegation’s claim that “Bangladesh has no indigenous population” comes under attack.

May 1985- Asian Conference On Religion And Peace (South Korea) presents report on “The crisis of the Chittagong Hill Tracts” which accuses Bangladesh of violating ILO Convention 107 on Tribal and Indigenous Populations.

21 October 1985 – The 1st summit meeting between the Solidarity Party and the government takes place, with promise of further resolution at a 2d summit scheduled for Christmas. However, the 2d summit falls through and rehabilitation of non-tribals continues.

2 August 1985- Bangladesh delegation to UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations strongly attacks London-based Anti-Slavery Society’s report on Hill Tracts. The delegation chair calls the report “baseless allegations” and “attempts to tarnish the image” of Bangladesh.

1986- First International Conference on Chittagong Hill Tracts held in Amsterdam.

2 June/ 27 July 1986 – Shantibahini launches two separate attacks on the non-tribal population. In retaliation, Bengali settlers pillage local Chakma communities. Many tribals are frightened into crossing the border into India’s Tripura kingdom. Meanwhile, the government claims there are 30,000 non-tribal settlers in CHT, not 50,000 as reported by Jumma activists.

19 September 1987 – In an effort to restore peace to the area, Tribal leaders meet with Gen. Ershad and resolve to find a political solution to the Chakma problem, as opposed to the Shanti Bahini’s search for a solution through violence. Ershad formulates a National Committee headed by the Planning Minister A. K. Khondokar.

17 December 1987 – 19 June 1988 – No resolution is reached during four summit meetings between the government and the Solidarity Party. A 5-point manifesto for regional autonomy is rejected on the grounds that it is untenable under a one-party government. Political solutions circumventing the autonomy issue, including a bid to include Chakma representatives within the government, are rejected by the Solidarity Party.

December 1987- CHT Commission is formed in Netherlands by UN International Working Group on Indigenous Affairs. Commission later brings out influential “Life Is Not Ours” report, which faults Bangladesh government for failing to enter Peace Talks with tribal leaders.

8 August 1988 – The Bagaichari Massacre: an attack on tribal villages in retaliation for a Shanti Bahini attack on Army troops.

14/ 15 December 1988 – The 6th summit meeting breaks down in spite of the Solidarity Party’s compromise in changing the terminology from “regional” to “local” autonomy.

28 February 1989 – A bill is passed in Parliament to allow the creation of local governments in all three districts. These local governments would be led by a “tribal” elected by all members of the Local Government Council.

4 May 1989 – The Shanti Bahini launches an armed response to sabotage the local governments and their electoral process, leading to the assassination of Sub-District Committee Chairman Abdur Rashid Sarkar. In retaliation, settlers attack local Chakma villages, reducing them to infernos. This incident is known as the Longdu Massacre . The martial law government takes over the electoral process, installing its own representatives.

July-August 1990- The UN Economic & Social Council Commission on Human Rights (Working Group on Indigenous Populations) reviews the state of Chittagong Hill Tracts. The number of Hill Tracts refugees in India is reported to be 70,000.

6 December 1990- Gen. Ershad is toppled from power by a popular uprising. In the ensuing melee, a Committee of Tribal students stage a press conference demanding the removal of the local governments.

10 April 1992- Bengali settler Kabir Ahmed is killed, allegedly for the attempted rape of a Jumma woman. In retaliation, settlers and law enforcement authorities devastate the Chakma village of Logang, with a death toll of 300. A wave of international condemation follows. In Japan, 130 NGOs and individuals organize a protest against the incident. Later this coalition forms “Japan Committee on CHT Issues”. Anti-Slavery International, Survival International and Amnesty International send protest letters to Bangladesh High Commission in London. Khaleda Zia’s government forms an inquiry committee to investigate the massacre.

22 April 1992- At Bangladesh Aid Consortium meeting in Paris, Finance Minister Saifur Rahman is greeted by protests against Logang massacre by European human rights organizations.

May 1992- Amnesty International issues report on Logang killings and sends letter to Bangladesh government asking for full inquiry into tribal deaths.

19 May 1992- Violence escalates in the area when yet another youth fracas leads to the formation of a non-tribal Greater Chittagong Committee for Student Uprising.

20 May 1992- Frustrated over government inaction over local violence, Gautam Dewan, Chairman of the Rangamati Local Government Council, hands in his resignation.

8 July 1992- The BNP government presents a bill in Parliament to increase the life-spans of the local governments. Despite vehement opposition from Tribal members among the rival Awami League party, the bill is passed.

10 July 1992-The government creates a Committee to resolve the Chakma problem, led by Communications Minister Oli Ahmed. Leaders of the 3 local governments question legitimacy of the Committee for not including elected MPs.

7 October 1992- Justice SH Khan’s “Logang Disturbances Inquiry Commission” brings out a report blaming the Shanti Bahini for causing the Logang massacre. The report is criticized for biased findings. On page 24, the report states “[Bengali settlers] must raise their own security force namely village defense party who should be given arms and training for protection of the village”– this statement is widely seen as condoning Bengali violence against Jumma people.

5 November 1992- The first summit meeting between the Solidarity Party and the Committee ends unresolved.

17 November 1992- The Naniarchar massacre ? a Tribal student protest is responded to by an army attack on the village of Naniarchar, with 90 tribals killed. Although an inquiry committee is launched by the government, its report remains unpublished.

10 December 1992- International Year of World’s Indigenous People begins. The event is a catalyst for controversy in Bangladesh as a government Minister declares “Bangladesh has no indigenous people”. The statement is condemned by NGO’s, activists and Jumma leaders. Faced by government inaction, NGOs organize “Indigenous Peoples Day”.

March 1995- The US State Department’s “1994 Human Rights Report” reports that government settlement programs increased the number of Bengalis in CHT from 3 percent in 1947 to 45 percent in 1994.

23 March 1995- 45 Bangladeshi intellectuals sign a statement accusing Bandarban Police of organizing attacks on tribal students. They include Justice K.M. Sobhan, Dr. Kamal Hossain, Abdul Mannan Chowdhury, Dr. Humayun Azad, and Meghna Guha Thakurata.

1996- Jumma People’s Network of Asia Pacific Australia (JUMNAPA) publishes paper reporting on militarization of Hill Tracts. According to the report, in 1994 there was 1 army officer for every 15 tribals (or “Jumma” people).

23 June 1996 – The Awami League (AL), led by Sheikh Hasina, is elected to power. In the Chittagong Hill tracts constituencies, AL members win parliament seats through repeated promises to work towards solving the Tribal problem. Post-election however, there is consternation at government inaction. In a bid to gain attention, the Shanti Bahini kills a group of 28 Bengali woodcutters.

18 July 1996- Government estimate says 8,000 tribals, soldiers and civilians have been killed to date. Tribal activists say the number is much higher.

30 September 1996 – The Solidarity Party calls a one-month cease-fire to promote discussion with the government. Belatedly, the government forms a National Committee with the aim of resolving the Chakma crisis.

1997- In the 3d update to “Life Is Not Ours” report, CHT Commission (Netherlands) says “negotiations can be successful only if the traditional systems of land rights in CHT are acknowledged”.

14 September 1997 – PCJSS chairman Jyotirindriyo Bodhipriya Larma, alias Shantu Larma, flies into Dhaka for first time since beginning of insurgency to begin talks with the government.

18 September 1997 – After four days of talks, Shantu Larma announces a draft agreement to end the insurgency. Cease-fire is extended until Dec 31. A focal point of the agreement is resolution of disputes over land ownership.

14 October 1997 – At a rally in Bogra, BNP leader Khaleda Zia accuses government of conspiring to hand CHT over to India. She also accuses the government of planning to withdraw the army from the area.

17 October 1997 – PM Sheikh Hasina assures country that army won?t be withdrawn from CHT. She also says: ?We don?t want our people, the citizens of a sovereign country, to stay as refugees in other countries.?

1 November 1997 – In response to calls for making the draft Peace Treaty public, Sheikh Hasina says full disclosure prior to signing may cause complications.

26 November 1997 – Parbattya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS) to hold seventh round of talks with National Committee on CHT (NCCHT) in Dhaka to finalize Peace Accord.

Sources: Daily Star; Bhorer Kagoj; JaiJaiDin; US State Department; UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations; Refugee Studies Programme (University of Oxford); Center for World Indigenous Studies (Washington); “Genocide in Bangladesh”- Wolfgang Mey; Chittagong Hill Tracts Study & Research Center (Engineering University, Dhaka); International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR); “No Land Rights in Bangladesh”- Colin Johnson; Ray (Dhaka Tribal Student Union, Bijhu Collection)- Biplab Chakma; Existence- Deshpriya Chakma (Dhaka Tribal Student Union); Topic: Chittagong Hill Tracts- Sidhartha Chakma (Nath Brothers); Stop Genocide in Chittagong Hill Tracts- Ogbongha Mohather (Calcutta); Life Is Not Ours- CHT Commission (Netherlands); “CHT: Militarization, Oppression & the Hill Tribes”- Anti Slavery Society (London); Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board Report (1992-93); Upajathis & Adivasis in Bangladesh- Surendra Lal Tripura (Ed. Hafiz R. Khan); Chittagong Hill Tracts: In search of Self-rule and Autonomy- Biplab Chakma (Pathak Shomabesh, 1997); Manabadhikar Shomonay Parishad; Jumma People’s Network of Asia Pacific Australia; HIMAL (April 1997)

A Early History of The CHT

The coastal plains of Chittagong have always been coveted by the peoples of the region, the Chakmas, the Arakaneses and the Tripuras. In 1666 the Chittagong area was annexed by Shaista Khan the Mughal governor of Bengal. Fighting broke out between the Mughals and the Chakmas. In 1713 an agreement was reached under which the Mughal Emperor granted the right to conduct trade and commerce with the adjoining areas in the plains to the Chakma Raja on payment of a small tribute in cotton.

At the Battle of Plassey, on June 23, 1757 the British East India Company defeated the army of Nawab Siraj-ud-daulla with the collaboration of his deputy Mir Jafar the 'traitor'. As a result of this victory, the British East India Company became the virtual rulers of Bengal. In 1760 Mir Jafar was replaced as Nawab of Bengal by his son-in-law, Mir Kasim, who, in a secret treaty, ceded the three districts of Burdwan, Midnapore and Chittagong to the British. Once the British extended their authority to Chittagong, the Chakma Raja agreed to pay his yearly tribute in cotton amounting to nine maunds (about 35Okgs) to the British in order to enjoy the privileges of trade in the plains.

The first contact between the Chakma Raja and the British East India Company was in 1763 when Mr Henry Verelest, the Chief of the Chittagong Council, issued a Proclamation recognising the jurisdiction of the Chakma Raja over "All the hills from the Pheni River to the Sangu, and from Nizampur Road to the hills of the Kuki Raja". In April, 1777 the Chief of Chittagong wrote to the Governor General, Warren Hastings, complaining that Rono Khan (who was a general of the Chakma Raja) was "committing great violence on the Company's landholders by exacting various taxes and making several demands without authority or legality". In November, 1777 the Chief of Chittagong asked Captain Ellesker, the Commander of the Twenty- second Battalion of sepoys, to send some of his men to protect the people from Ronu Khan's ravages. It is interesting to note that many of the Chakma Rajas had Muslim names and adopted the title Khan though they continued to be Buddhists and never embraced Islam.

Rono Khan the general of the Chakma King formally declared war against the British in 1777, the war lasted for ten years until 1787. In 1784 under instructions from the British authorities Mr Irwin, who was then the Chief of Chittagong, conducted negotiations with the representative of the Chakma Raja for a peaceful solution without any success. The war ended in 1987 when the British had imposed an economic blockade and forced the Chakma Raja Jan Bakhsh Khan for a negotiated settlement. This was the begining of the British hegemony over the Chakma Kingdom of Chadigang (Chittagong).

In 1791 the Board of the East India Company authorised the Collector of Chittagong to replace the cotton tribute by a cash payment which was fixed at 1,775 rupees. In 1829 the Commissioner of Chittagong, Mr Halbed. in his report clearly stated:

"The hill tribes of the Chittagong Hill Tracts are not British subjects, but merely tributaries, and we have no rights on our part to interfere with their internal arrangements".

Sources:

All That Glisters: by M.K. Khisha
The Chittagong Hill Tracts: Militarization, Oppression and Hill Tribes, Anti Slavery International, 198

Massacres in the CHT

Chittipudi Chakma, 6 months, daughter of Manek Kumar Chakma was killed by the Bangladeshi settlers on 2 February 1992 at Malya massacre. Two bombs exploded on a passenger boat. The explosion killed a passenger and seriously injured the driver of the boat. The survivors swam ashore, but the armed Bangladeshi settlers were awaiting for them and attacked the Jumma passengers - men, women and children. About 30 Jummas were killed.

Since 1980, the Bangladesh military and the Bangladeshi settlers had committed 13 major massacres in the Chittgong Hill Tracts (hereafter CHT). Even then massacres were not new in the CHT by then. During the Bangladesh's liberation war against Pakistan, in 1971 the Mukti Bahini (freedom fighters of Bangladesh) perpetrated 3 massacres against the Jumma civilians in the CHT. But it was during the war against Shanti Bahini (the armed resistance of the Jumma people), the Bangladesh Army and the Bangladesh Government stepped up the frequency and intensity of mass murders against innocent civilians. These massacres are executed by systematic planning of the Bangladesh military, often in collaboration with the Bangladeshi settlers to uproot and wipe out the Jumma people from their land. These massacres include only the incidents where large number of people are killed in a single day at a single spot. Large number of People are also killed in military operations of extensive periods in wide areas, those are included in 'Reprisal Attacks' of 'Genocide' section.

Kaukhali Massacre, 25/03/1980:

There have been numerous attacks on the Jumma people by the settlers and the Bangladesh Army. But the massacre of Kaukhali Bazaar of Kalampati on 25th March 1980 stands out, because it was the first massacre in which indigenous people were killed in their hundreds. 300 Jummas were killed in this massacre and many more were injured.

On that they the Bangladesh military had asked the Jumma people to gather in the bazaar on the pretext holding a meeting for the reconstruction of a Buddhist Temple. Following the gathering the military suddenly encircled the area and opened fired on the unarmed Jumma civilians. The innocent Jumma people were completely caught by surprise. The Bangladesh military beforehand had informed and armed the Bangladeshi settlers for the massacres. The the Bangladeshi settlers assisted the Bangladesh Army by axing the injured men, women, and children, whom the military had hidden in the background for the massacre. Buddhist temples and religious images had been destroyed by the Bangladesh Army and the Bangladeshi settlers. Thousands of Jummas took refuge in the Indian state of Tripura. Later on they were repatriated on an agreement between the Tripura government and the Bangladesh Army, and on the promise that things like that would not happen again.A parliamentary investigation team was formed by then Ziaur Rahman Government, but the report never saw the daylight. The military officers who engineered the killings not only were never punished, they were promoted in the ranks of the Bangladesh Army.

Banraibari-Beltali-Belchari Massacre, 26/06/1981:

The Bangladeshi settlers, under the protection of the Bangladesh army, invaded the Jumma area in the vicinity of Banraibari, Beltali and Belchari, murdered 500 Jumma men, women and children, and occupied their villages and farmlands. Thousands of Jumma people fled to the nearby forests and 5,000 of them managed to seek refuge in the Tripura State of India

Telafang-Ashalong-Gurangapara-Tabalchari-Barnala Massacre, 19/09/1981:

The Bangladesh army and the Bangladeshi settlers made co-ordinated attacks on 35 Jumma villages including Telafang, Ashalong, Gurangapara, Tabalchari, Barnala etc. in the Feni valley of the CHT, plundered and burned the villages, and killed many thousand men, women and children. Thousands of Jumma people died as a direct and indirect result of these attacks.

The surviving villagers fled to the Indian State of Tripura and to the adjacent forests. Although the Bangladeshi regime had denied that these refugees were from the CHT, it was forced by the international community to repatriate them. These Jumma people were met at the border by hostile Bangladeshi officials and were given the equivalent of $18 and were left to their fate. Return to their native villages was impossible because their homes and possessions had been appropriated by the Bangladeshi settlers. Many of them died of starvation and of diseases.

Golakpatimachara-Machyachara-Tarabanchari Massacre, June-August 1983:

On 26 June, 11,26,27 July and 9,10,11 August 1983, the Bangladesh armed forces and the Bangladeshi immigrants massacred the Jumma people of the villages of Golakpatimachara, Machyachara, Tarabanchari, Logang, Tarabanya, Maramachyachara, Jedamachyachara etc. Hundreds of houses were looted and burned, and 800 people were murdered. Most of the victims were old men, women and children. After clearing the area of the Jumma people the government settled Bangladeshi families there.

Bhusanchara Massacre, 31/05/1984:

In the early morning of 31 May 1984, the Shanti Bahini guerillas attacked the settlements of the Bangladeshi settlers at Gorosthan, Bhusanchara and Chota Harina of Barkal Upazilla (Sub District). About 100 Bangladeshi settlers were reported killed, their homes burned down in the attack. Three BDR (Bangladesh Rifles) camps in the locality were also simultaneously attacked so that the BDR personnel could not intervene. Bhusanchara was the village most severely affected. The attack was given extensive coverage in the Bangladesh news media and President Ershad visited the affected area on 5 June 1984. No publicity was given, however, to the reprisals taken against the Jumma population by the Bangladeshi security personnel immediately after the assaults on the Bangladeshi settlements.

Some of the Jumma people, apparently anticipating retaliatory raids, left their homes at once and sought to hide in the surrounding forests. Others remained in their villages. Later on 31 May and the following day, the Bangladesh Army personnel, from the 305th brigade of the 26th Bengal Regiment, and members of the 17th battalion of the Bangladesh Rifles, accompanied by the Bangladeshi settlers, attacked the Jumma villages in the area, principally Het Baria, Suguri Para, Gorosthan, Tarengya Ghat, Bhusanchara and Bhusan Bagh. A total of 400 Jumma people including children and women were killed. Many women were gang raped and later shot dead. Seven thousand Jummas crossed the border into the Indian state of Mizoram.

A Jumma villager from Het Baria gave the following account of his experience to the Amnesty International:

"My village falls in the Barkal rehabilitation zone where large number of Muslims have settled over the years. There is thus continuous tension between the two communities. In the summer of 1984 there were frequent clashes and the Muslims often used to threaten us saying that the army will come and teach us a lesson. The army came on May 31, accompanied by a large group of Muslims some of whom were armed. They destroyed our village, raped women and killed people. I saw two women getting raped and then killed by bayonets. One Aroti, who is my distant cousin, was also raped by several soldiers and her body was disfigured with bayonets. Several people, including children, were thrown into burning huts. I was among the people singled out for torture in public. Five or six of us were hung upside down on a tree and beaten. Perhaps I was given up for dead and thus survived. The memories of that day are still a nightmare for me. Even now I sometimes wake up in a cold sweat remembering the sight of the soldiers thrusting bayonets into private parts of our women. They were all screaming 'No Chakmas will be born in Bangladesh".

Panchari Massacre, 1/05/1986:

On April 29th, 1986, the Shanti Bahini (resistance of the Jummas) simultaneously attacked the BDR border outposts at Assalong, Chota Assalong and Taidong of Khagrachari District and followed it up with swoops on new settlements of the Bangladeshi settlers. Reprisals by the Bangladesh army, BDR, Ansars (Islamic Guard) and the Bangladeshi settlers, began immediately after 29 April.

On 1 May and the following days, law enforcement personnel, together with Bangladeshi settlers, entered a number of Jumma villages in the Panchari-Khagrachari area and arbitrarily killed the Jumma inhabitants. The villages included Golakpratimachara, Kalanal, Soto Karmapara, Shantipur, Mirjibil, Hetarachara (also known as Khedarachara Mukhpara), Pujgang, Laogang, Hathimuktipara, Sarveswarpara, Napidapara and Dewan Bazar. After entering the Jumma villages, The Bangladeshi security personnel ordered the inhabitants to assemble on open ground, men separate from women, away from the villagers' huts. While the villagers were held in this way their settlements were set on fire by the Bangladeshi settlers. The Bangladeshi security personnel then opened fire randomly on the groups of villagers who were assembled, killing hundreds of Jumma men, women and children

Part of this process was described to the Amnesty International by a woman from Mirjibil, about a mile from Panchari, who was witness to the killing of another woman, aged in her 70s:

"As soon as the raid on my village began, people (other villagers) began to shout asking everybody to leave the village. But before most people could gather their senses the soldiers and the Ansars had come. They were followed by several hundred Muslim settlers.... They immediately began to ransack the village."

"The soldiers asked the men and the women to stand separately.... One old woman, Phoidebi, had trouble getting up and joining the group outside. A soldier shot her at close range."

Matiranga Massacre, May 1986:

Following the Bangladesh military atrocities described above many people from the affected areas sought refuge in the forests away from their homes. A few hundred people from several different villages gathered during the first week of May between the villages of Sarveswarpara and Manudaspara, in the Matiranga area. One night, probably that of 1/2 May although the precise date is not known, while they were trying to reach the Indian border, they were ambushed by a detachment of Bangladeshi soldiers. The soldiers opened fire without warning and shot at them randomly, without provocation. Over 70 Jumma people were killed.

Comillatialla-Taindong Massacre, 18-19/05/1986:

After the Matiranga massacre a large group of Jumma people fleeing from their homes, numbering over 200, most of whom were of the Tripura nationality, were moving towards the Indian border at Silachari in southern Tripura in mid May. Their presence in the area appears, to had been known for some time to the Bangladeshi security personnel. They were eventually discovered, by the troops of the 31st battalion of the Banglaesh Rifles (BDR), who surrounded them and made them walk into a narrow valley between the villages of Comillatilla and Taidong. In the restricted space of this valley, the soldiers fired indiscriminately at the group, killing most of the people. Once the firing had ceased, a number of Bangladeshi settlers further attacked the group with machete to kill the injured men, women and children.

. The massacre was described to the Amnesty International by a survivor and refugee in India:

"I am chief of a large colony of Tripuri tribals and we used to live a little outside Matiranga. Around the end of April and early May, when the Shanti Bahini began raids on the BDR, army and Muslims, the soldiers began to come and bother us. We told them we were not even Chakmas and had thus nothing to do with the Shanti Bahini. But they harassed us."

"Later, on 8 May, they came in strength and began to burn our village. The officer-in-charge said you Hindus have no place in Bangladesh and asked us to run away. We decided to flee along with some Chakma families in our neighbourhood. But the soldiers did not even let us run away in peace. They chased us and we hid in the jungles in the day, making some progress by night."

"Last Sunday (18 May) we were approaching the border when a large group of soldiers caught us. The officer said that we would be treated nicely and settled back. He asked us to walk back. The soldiers were around us."

"They took us to a narrow valley between Taidong and Comillatilla and there suddenly we heard thousands of bullets and shrieks and screams of our people. At least 200 of our people, mainly Tripuris, died. I do not even have any trace of my family. I do not know whether my family members are still in hiding somewhere or if they got killed."

"As bullets rained from all sides the Muslims too descended on the valley, raping women and killing people with swords, spears and knives; we all ran for our lives in (the) direction of India."

Hirachar-Sarbotali-Khagrachari-Pablakhali Massacres, 8,9,10 August, 1988:

The Bangladesh Army along with the aid of the Bangladeshi settlers killed hundreds of the Jumma people(actual number not known, figures based on the eye witness report) in the above areas. Many women were gang raped by the Bangladesh Army and the settlers.

Longadu Massacre, 4/05/1989:

Abdur Rashid, a Bangladeshi community leader was gunned down by an un-identified gunman. The Bangladesh authority and the Bangladeshi settlers suspect that he was gunned down by the Shanti Bahini, due to his involvement in the racially motivated crimes against the Jumma people, though Shanti Bahini denies the claims.In reprisal to Abdur Rashid's killing the Bangladesh Army, the Village Defense Party (armed group formed by the Bangladeshi settlers) and the settlers carried out this gruesome massacre. 40 Jumma people were killed, there dead bodies never returned to the relatives. Their houses were burnt down and Buddhist temples in the area were destroyed. Among the fallen victims were the wife, children and grand-children of the former chairman of the local council Mr. Anil Bikash Chakma. The Bangladesh Army had grabbed his land and settled the Bangladeshi settlers around his homestead. Mr. A.B. Chakma's friends and relatives had warned him of the potential danger of living so close to the Bangladeshi settlers. But he had no where else to go. On that day he was not in home, and that saved his life. Later on even after repeated appeal to the Bangladesh military authority, the dead bodies were never returned for Buddhist religous rites and cremation.

Malya Massacre, 2/02/1992:

On 2 February 1992 two bombs exploded on a passenger boat at Malya. The boat was on its way from Marishya to Rangamati. Malya is now inhabited by the Bengali settlers from the plain. The explosion killed one passenger and seriously injured the driver of the boat. The survivors swam ashore, but the armed Bengali settlers were waiting for them. The settlers attacked the Jumma passengers- men, women and children. About 30 of them were killed. Fourteen bodies were recovered, the others were lost in the water.Some representatives of the Jumma people were supposed to board the boat on their way to Rangamati and Dhaka to protest against recent army atrocities in the area: Captain Masiur Rahman of Bangladesh army had tortured a student Mr. Biswamuni Chakma and a Buddhist monk (the Rev. Bodhimitra Bhikkhu) and had treated some female students indecently. Moreover three Buddhist Viharas (monasteries) had been desecrated by the army. According to an eye-witness account, two members of the security forces boarded the boat at Dulachari carrying two kerosene tins. They disembarked at the next stop, leaving the tins. These exploded shortly afterwards. The Bangladesh media reported that the explosion was caused by the Shanti Bahini.

Logang Massacre, 10/04/1992:

On 10 April 1992 the biggest massacre in a single day, at single place, in the history of the CHT took place at Logang cluster village in Khagrachari District, perpetrated by the Bangladeshi security forces and the Bangladeshi settlers.

The military forces forcibly relocated some fifteen hundred Jumma families from the surrounding Jumma villages to the Logang cluster village, which is nothing but a concentration camp, and distributed their ancestral villages and farmlands to the Bangladeshi infiltrators free of cost. Then they hatched a plot to find an excuse to get rid of those Jumma prisoners. On 10 April, 1992, the military authorities sent two Bangladeshis, armed with machete, to rape some Jumma women who were grazing their cattle at their Logang cluster village. The Jumma women tried to defend themselves and at the same time they cried for help. A Jumma gentleman came to their rescue and asked the Bangladeshi rapists to leave the Jumma women alone. Instead of going away, the rapists attacked the Jumma gentleman and hacked him to death. During the attack, one of the rapists was also injured. After killing the Jumma gentleman, the rapists went straight to the camp of the Bangla Desh Rifles (BDR). The military authorities found the excuse they were looking for and used the injured rapist as a victim of the Shanti Bahini (SB) attack. On the pretext of searching out the SB, the military forces and the Bangladeshi settlers combinedly attacked the Logang cluster village immediately after the arrival of the two rapists at the BDR camp. They hacked many Jummas to death and shot dead those who tried to flee. Then the invaders forced the old people, women and children into their homes and burnt them alive by setting their homes on fire.

The exact number of the Jumma people killed at Logang will never be known, as many of the dead bodies had been removed by the military immediately after the massacre. According to several eye-witness reports the number must be well over 400. Some 800 houses were burnt down and more than 2000 people fled across the border to Tripura of India after the massacre.

Naniachar Massacre, 17/11/1993:

On 17 November 1993 at least 29 Jumma people were killed and more than a hundred wounded when Bangladeshi settlers, supported by the Bangladesh Army, attacked a peaceful rally of Jumma people in Naniarchar Bazzar. The rally was organized by the Greater Chittagong Hill Tracts Hill Students' Council, with the advance permission from the local authorities, and was part of a campaign against the use of the only waiting shed for motor-lauch passengers as an army check post. The reports about the massacre which the CHT Commission has received from various Bangladeshi and Jumma peoples' organizations and individuals all draw roughly the same picture of the cause of events. Naniarchar is surrounded on three sides by the Kaptai Lake, so people travel mostly by boat. People arriving and departing from Naniarchar are regularly questioned and harassed by the army personnel from the checkpoint. There was widespread resentment among the local residents against the army checkpost.On 17 November, soon after the students had held their meeting and rally, Bangladeshi settlers led by Union Council member Ahmed Miah held a counter demonstration, for which they had obtained permission on the same day. There were joined by a few hundred settlers from adjacent villages, led by Md. Ayub Hossain, president of Parbatya Gana Parishad (Hill Tracts Peoples' Council, an organization of the Bangladeshi settlers, not to be confused with the Hill Peoples' Council of the Jumma people), and Abdul Latif, chairman of Burighat Union Council. They arrived on boats, armed with iron rods, sticks and machete. Surprisingly, the settlers were not disarmed by the army personnel at the check post. Tension rose and at one point the settlers started attacking the Jumma people. Even the Jumma people who tried to escape by jumping into the lake were hacked to death. It was reported that the law enforcing agencies did not try very hard to stop the attack and observed impassively. Students defended themselves with firewood and sticks which they collected from tea shops. Then the settlers were already retreating, there was a whistle from the army camp and the army opened fire on the students.

Investigations:

Most of the massacres of the Jumma people, have never been investigated by the Bangladesh Government. After a few massacres the government did set up an investigation committee, but never to much effect. The report of the inquiry committee set up after the Logang massacre in April 1992 in which few hundred Jumma people were killed by the Bangladeshi security forces and the Bangladeshi settlers, was made public. However it largely projected the Bangladesh Army version of the event. The report of the Naniarchar Massacre in November 1993 has never been made public. Moreover, never have persons responsible for any massacre or other human rights violations been tried in court. At the most a few of the army officers have been transferred or given early retirement.