Monday, April 28, 2008

IJPNUS sumitted a memorandum to UN Secretary General


To
Mr. Ban Ki Moon
The Secretary General, United Nations Headquarter
1st Avenue, 46th Street. New York, NY 10017.

Dated: April 25, 2008

Sub: - An appeal to save the Indigenous Jumma People of CHT, Bangladesh from extinction.

Your Excellency,

We are a group of Buddhist monks and indigenous Jumma People from Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) region of Bangladesh would like to present our grievous problem faced by the indigenous people of the CHT in Bangladesh.

Backround,
In 1947, at the time of Indo-Pak independence from British rules, the indigenous population of CHTs was 98%. And CHT was merged with Pakistan leaving the indigenous Jumma people at the mercy of the Pakistan Govt. Since then a process of elimination of indigenous people has been started. Presently the population of the indigenous people is 35% and Bengali Muslim population is 65%. If the present process is continued for another two decades, the indigenous populations are bound to vanish and eliminated from the land of CHTs.

In early 1960 the Govt. of Pakistan constructed a hydro-electric dam on the Karnafuli River thereby displacing thousands of indigenous peoples from their ancestral homeland, without proper rehabilitation and compensation.

A Serious and dangerous blow to the indigenous people of CHTs came after the independence of Bangladesh. The government of Bangladesh started rehabilitating Bengali settlers in a planned manner right after the independence. In late 1970s the government settled half a million Bengalees in CHTs over the indigenous people’s lands. Since the independence of Bangladesh, several massacres have taken place toward the indigenous Jumma people in CHTs.

With these points elaborated above we would like to bring the following attached points to your Excellency for thoughtful consideration and to take the necessary steps to prevent on

going land grabbing, killings, atrocities, torture, religious persecutions and human rights violations.

CHTs Peace Accord,
Two decades old arms struggle ended by signing a Peace Treaty which is widely known as “CHT Peace Accord”. It was signed on December 2, 1997 between the government of Bangladesh and Parbatya Chattagram Janasamhati Samity (PCJSS) but after a decade the accord yet to be implemented.

Civil & Military enforcement,
Civil and military officials who served in Banderban Hill Districts have taken 1000-1500 acres of land each from the Indigenous Jumma peoples land. Arrangements should be made to return all lands belonging to Indigenous Jumma People.

More than few hundred indigenous people have been arrested since January 2007, often on false arms charges. Many have been tortured and given long and unjust prison terms, and some indigenous Jummas have died in police custody. Ranglai Mro was beaten and tortured before being given a 17 year sentence. It is widely believed that he was targeted for protesting against the eviction of 750 Mro families from their lands to make way for an army training centre.

Military Atrocities,
We have learnt that the military and Para military of the Bangladesh Government are actively involved for all encroachment activities in CHTs. It is a great shame that Major Qamrul Hassan the Sub Zone commander (37 E. Bengal 4 Brigade) of Betchari in Bara Merung who has just returned from Africa and posted in CHTs after completion of his tenure of the UN Peace mission is involved in such nefarious and inhuman activities in CHTS.

Likewise Army officers and commanders in Panchari, Dighinala, Mahalchari, Naniarchar, Jurachari, Baghaichari, Kaukhali and many other parts of CHTs are actively involved in such activities.

Religious persecutions,
Religious persecution and intolerance is high in CHTs Bangladesh. As you are aware the majority of the Indigenous Jumma people are followers of Theravada Buddhism. It has been reported that the settlement of illegal Bengali Muslim’s have taken place in the lands of Buddhist temple Sadhana Tila, Boalkhali Buddha Vihara and Orphanage under Diginala sub-district, Arjo Kuthir at Maischari in Mahalchari sub-district under Khagrachari Hill Tracts.

The government official has ordered not to build any Buddhist temple in Mahalchari. There are persecutions and arrests of Buddhist monks and novices on false charges.


Land-grabbing,
In March 2007 Ruma cantonment acquired about 7,570 acres of ancestral land belonging to indigenous Jumma people for extension of its garrison and ordered more than 400 families to leave the area. In Bandarban district alone, 40,077 acres of land have been given in lease to illegal settlers while a total of 94,066 acres of land were acquired for so-called aforestation projects and 75,686 acres were acquired for establishment of military bases in the district.

In another recent case of land-grabbing, illegal settlers have reportedly taken over 59 acres of land belonging to 17 indigenous Jumma people in Kobakhali Mouza (No-51) under Dighinala police station in Khagrachari district. In an operation lasting from 1st to 15th August 2007, large groups of settlers led by former Union Parishad (UP) member Mohammed Abu Taleb of Hashinchonpur village and former UP member Mohammed Kader of Kobakhali bazaar took control of the hilly lands belonging to Chakma people with the direct assistance of the army, the para military forces and the local Village Defence Party (VDP, Bengali Muslim arms group in village) members.

We have also learnt that illegal land grabbing and settlement of non-resident plain settlers have continued in other parts of the CHT, including Maischari, Guimara, Matiranga, Manikchari, Panchari in Khagrachari district and Naniarchar, Jurachari, Kawkhali, Rajsthali in Rangamati district and many parts of Bandarban district. In Bandarban hundreds of thousands of acres of land have been taken away under various pretexts.

Illegal Settlements,
In June 2007, the military reportedly settled down at least 200 Bengali families at Dhankupya village under Khagrachari district after forcibly evicting 12 indigenous families from their ancestral lands. Earlier, on 8 March 2007, an army camp was set up on the land of Prithiviraj Chakma at the same village to protect the settlers.

You will also be aware about the on- going activities of the Bangladesh military that has unlashed a reign of terror across the CHTs by carrying out extra-judicial killing, arbitrary arrests, illegal detention, lodging false cases and terrorizing the people by frequent raids, military operations, torture, threats and intimidation.

Voter enforcement:-
Under the emergency rules the Caretaker-Government & Election Commission of Bangladesh made national identity card and voters list where most of the indigenous Jumma people are not included. The extremely biased Military rulers, civil servants and other Bengali employees forcefully and with the aim to outnumber the indigenous Jumma people in region have enlisted all illegal settlers in new voter list. This is totally against the two guaranteed rights of indigenous Jumma people’s such as (i) The CHTs regulation of 1900 & (ii) The Peace Accord of 1997. The military officers in collusion with the Bengali civil servants & employees unlawfully issued permanent resident card and land-holding certificates to hundreds of thousands of Bengali outsiders making them eligible to be voters in the CHTs.

Extra-judicial Killing,
On 5 August 2007, Rasel Chakma, son of Paritosh Chakma of Dewan Para village under Naniarchar Upazila (sub-district) in Rangamati district was arrested by the security forces and killed in custody. The security forces claimed that he died of a heart attack but the body reportedly bore injury marks of torture.

Earlier, on 3 March 2007, a group of army personnel from Ghilachari camp under Naniachar Thana arrested Suresh Mohan Chakma, son of Phedera Chakma at Choichari village in Rangamati district without any warrant or reason. The victim was tortured at Ghilachari army camp in Rangamati district and he died on 7 March 2007, a day after his released.

Arrest under False Charges,
It has been observed that indigenous Jumma people have been unfairly targeted by the military that they are taking advantage of the Emergency situation. Since the declaration of Emergency on 11 January 2007, at least a few hundred Jumma people have been arrested.

False cases such as extortion, kidnapping, murder etc have been lodged against the arrested Jumma people. During raids, the military planted weapons and ammunition and claimed to have recovered the same from the house of the detained persons to show grounds for arrest. Most cases have been filed under Section 16 (b) of the Emergency Power Rules of 2007, which denies release on bail to the accused during the enquiry, investigation, and trial of the case. Many have been indicted by courts under the arms Act.

Persecution of indigenous leaders,
In July 2007, Satyabir Dewan, general secretary of PCJSS; Ranglai Mro, chairman of Sualok Union Parishad and headman of Sualok Mouza and Bikram Marma, president of Kaptai Upazila PCJSS branch were sentenced to 17 years of jail for each by a court in Chittagong under the arms Act for allegedly possessing illegal arms. Another indigenous leader, Sai Mong Marma, organizing secretary, PCJSS Kaptai upazila branch was sentenced to 10 years in jail under the arms Act. It has been widely alleged that these leaders have been falsely implicated under the Arms Act for protesting against the injustices committed by the Bangladesh military in CHT.

For example, UP chairman Ranglai Mro was targeted for protesting against the eviction of 750 families of the Mro indigenous community from their lands to make way for an army training centre in remote villages of the Bandarban Hill District in December 2006.

On 3 June 2007, human right defender, Santoshhito Chakma alias Bakul (age 52), who also serves as the General Secretary of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Jumma Refugee Welfare Association was arrested by the police from the Chengi Square in Khagrachari town. His arrest was totally unlawful and politically motivated. He was arrested when he

He was returning home after attending a meeting of the Task Force on rehabilitation of the returnee Jumma refugees at the Circuit House. The police did not give any reason for his arrest.

On 29 May 2007, Milton Chakma, assistant co-coordinator of the Hill Watch Human rights Forum and also a leader of United Peoples Democratic Front (UPDF), was arrested from Chengi Bridge in Khagrachari without any arrest warrant. Mr. Chakma was shown arrested on the basis of a first Information Report (FIR) filed by Mohammed Shahidul Islam, Sergeant (N0-3998686) of 24th Bengal Regiment. In the army records, he has been shown arrested on 31 May 2007, although the Bangladesh army had picked him up on 29 May 2007 from Chengi Bridge area. He was implicated in a false murder case.

On 5 May 2007, Tatindra Lal Chakma, central committee member of PCJSS, was arrested in connection with false extortion case filed by Mohammed Fuyad Hussain, manager of Grameen Bank of Babuchara branch with Dighinala police station in Khagrachari district. The military allegedly compelled Mr. Hussain to file the false case against T. L. Chakma. This was proved when the complainant denied involvement with Mr. Chakma before the court and the court granted bail to Mr. Chakma in June 2007. But the bail was cancelled on 23 July 2007 as Mr. Hussain was forced to withdraw his statement under tremendous pressure from the military. Again on 2 August 2007, two false cases of murder have

reportedly been filed against Mr. Chakma with the Dighinala police station to ensure that he is not released from jail. Presently, he has been kept at Khagrachari jail.

The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) in the southeastern corner of Bangladesh is home to eleven ethnic nationalities who have been living there for centuries. They have their own customs governing land use and management system which is often referred to as traditional land rights by which lands are owned by the whole community. The successive governments of Bangladesh have refused to acknowledge this right of the Jumma people and settled under a state-sponsored transmigration program approximately one million Bengali people on the lands of the indigenous Jumma people. This has had a devastating impact on the Jumma societies and became a perennial source of tension and conflict in CHT.

We consider it is our moral duty to seek yours sympathetic support to prevent these inhuman activities on the indigenous Jumma people in Bangladesh. Hereby, we are making an appeal for immediate implementation of the following demands as a lasting solution of the inhuman problems in CHTs. We also urge to pressure the government of Bangladesh to take the following measures in the interest of the people of the CHTs and for the greater interest of Bangladesh.

1. To implement fully the existing laws;- (i) The CHTs Regulation of 1900, (ii) The CHTs Peace acoord-1997, under the supervision of the United Nation.

2. To prepare a new Voter List in the CHTs region in accordance with the provisions of the said existing laws because the extremely biased Military Rulers, Civil Servants, and other Bengali employees illegally and forcefully have enlisted all illegal settlers in the new voter list.

3. To send a UN Special Rapporteur or Team of Expert to the CHTs Region to investigate all the genocidal crimes committed by the Bangladesh against indigenous Jumma people.

4. To stop Military atrocities and human rights abuses on indigenous people in CHTs;

5. To immediately stop illegal land grabbing and return the illegally occupied lands to their rightful owners;

6. To stop using the Bengali speaking settlers as a tool of national oppression against Indigenous Jumma people and to withdraw all illegal settlers from CHTs.

7. Appointment of indigenous people in all posts under the CHTs local government system.

8. Establishment of international Human Rights Camp in CHTs.

9. Constitutional guarantee for the future safeguard of indigenous people.

Your Excellency please accepts the assurances of my highest consideration.
Yours truly

(Buddha Ratana Bhikkhu)
President
Indigenous Jumma People`s Network, USA

The following reports are enclosed herewith for your kind information
1. The Bureau of Democracy US hunman Rights Report-2007 (attached, 2 pages)
2. Reports of distinguished citizen of Bangladesh (attached, 11 pages)
3. Asian Centre for Human Rights reports (ACHR) (attached, 4 pages)
4. Survival International (attached, 1 page)
5. Bodhi, the links, (attached, 4 pages)
6. Jumma People`s Network, UK, Report (attached, 3 pages)
7. Human Rights Congress for Bangladesh Minorities (attached, 4 pages)
8. Asian Indigenous & Tribal People’s Network (attached, 3 pages)
9. Some Daily news from Bangladesh (attached, 6 pages)