At least ten Jummas were injured in a settler attack in Mahalchari under Khagrachari district yesterday, 27 November.
Sources from Khagrachari said the attack took place at around 3:30 pm near Mahalchari Police station when the Jummas were on their way to participate in a funeral in the village of Tholipara. The settlers were led by Jasim Uddin from Chongrachari cluster village and were armed with stick and dao (a kind of knife).
Four of the injured were admitted to Khagrachari hospital. Their condition has been stated to be critical.
The incident is a sequel to a series of other incidents. On 24 November, settlers led by Jasim Uddin, a fish trader, caught two UPDF supporters – Tissu Chakma (18) of village Bodanala and Tikon Tripura (18) from Sinkukchari -- and handed them over to the army. This created resentment among the Jumma villagers, who decided not to allow them to fish in their area.
Yesterday, at around 1pm when a group of settler fishermen went there to catch fish the Jumma villagers told them that they would not allow them to fish until the arrested UPDF supporters were set free. A heated altercation took place between the two sides, leading to a minor scuffle.
After coming back, the settlers incited their fellow brothers and attacked the Jummas near the police station without slightest provocation. These Jummas were not in any way involved in the previous incidents.
The Jummas tried to resist the attack but with little success. The police intervened only after the attack was over. Army personnel were also deployed later on.
At least ten Jummas were reported to have been injured in the premeditated attack. Four of them were admitted to Khagrachari hospital. They have been identified as Ulhapru Marma(42) son of Ushapru Marma of village Mahamunipara, Chinginala, Mahalchari; Kamol Marma (25) son of Ushapru Marma of Village Mahamunipara, Chinginala, Mahalchari; Mrs. Shuimrasang Marma(60) wife of Mr. Lailapru Marma of Village Khaiyongsa para; and Kangja aung Marma(34) son of Mr. Chailapru Marma of Village Khaiyangsa para. Mr. Kangja aung Marma is an employee (Bloc Supervisor) of Agriculture institute.
A few settlers also reportedly sustained minor injuries, but their identity was not revealed fearing criminal actions. None of the attackers has so far been arrested.
chtnews.com
News No. 172/2008, November 28, 2008
Friday, November 28, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Chittagong Hill Tracts & The Missing Pahari Vote
by Naeem Mohaiemen
Buried in the middle of the raja-raja war over elections is news of the ulu-khagra getting crushed. I first saw the news in an item in Shamokal: in a list of political parties denied registration, two names jumped out. UPDF (United Peoples Democratic Front) and PCJSS (Parbotto Chottogram Jonoshonghoti Samity). The only two large political parties representing the rights of the Pahari/Jumma people on Chittagong Hill Tracts.
Chittagong's regional paper Shuprobhat Bangladesh (27/10/08) first carried a detailed news item about this denial of election registration. Among mainstream newspapers, only Ittefaq (29/10/08) seems to have picked up the news. And there the matter will rest and die out. Or will it?
2007 marked the tenth anniversary of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Peace Accord. In the CHT, there was a crack down on political dissidents, which included not only members of indigenous political parties (JSS and UPDF), but also civil society representatives without political affiliation, who have been vocal on the rights of indigenous people. The year saw a continuation of the long-term unstated policy of ethnic displacement in the CHT (bringing Bengali settlers from elsewhere and displacing indigenous Jumma people), a trend that had accelerated during the five years of BNP-Jamaat government. At the same time, a few positive trends emerged: BLAST lawsuit regarding district judges' court, first meeting of CHT advisory committee in seven years, and the appointment of Raja Devashish Roy to Ministry of CHT Affairs.
The landmark 1997 Peace Accord that ended Shanti Bahini's twenty year autonomy insurgency shows very few signs of implementation. Vital clauses that have remained unimplemented by the last two political governments include activating the Land Commission, withdrawal of all “temporary camps” of Army, BDR, APBn (Armed Police Battalion), and handing over of full control of local civil and police administration to three hill district councils. The one Peace Accord clause that has been settled is the setting up of district judges’ courts in 3 hill districts to clear a backlog of over 25,000 cases . This followed a writ petition at the high court by BLAST. The verdict, delivered by the high court, instructed the government to set up district judge’s court in all three hill districts. Another positive development was the CTG’s decision to call a meeting of the CHT Affairs Ministry Advisory Committee, the first such meeting after a five year gap during the BNP-Jamaat government. At the same time, militant pro-Bengali settler group “Parbottho Shomo Odhikar Andolon” (The Hill Equal Rights Movement) continued to harass Pahari populations with the knowledge and support of local authorities.
In a disturbing new development, a writ was filed in 2007 in the High Court by Advocate Md. Tajul Islam, a member of the Jamaat e Islami, challenging the constitutionality of the 1997 Peace Accord. The case has been filed against various Government Ministries but interestingly, did not initially include any of the CHT based institutions or Pahari leaders. Later, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council and the Rangamati Hill District Council petitioned the Court to become parties to the writ. In their response to the Court, they argue that the democratically elected National Parliament passed four laws ratifying parts of the Peace Accord: Parbattya Chattagram Ancholik Porishad Ain, 1998 (Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council Act, 1998), Rangamati Parbattya Zilla Sthaniya Sarkar (Shongshodhon) Ain 1998, Khagrachhari Parbattya Zilla Sthaniya Sarkar (Shongshodhon) Ain 1998, Bandarban Parbattya Zilla Sthaniya Sarkar (Shongshodhon) Ain 1998. They also argues that reservations for "tribal persons" of particular posts is fully mandated under Articles 28(4) and 29(3)(a) of the Constitution and also by the State’s international treaty obligations.
Advocate Tajul Islam's writ, filed at a strategic moment, has already accomplished what may be its main objective-- inclusion of Bengali settlers in the Pahari voter list for the December 2008 national elections. In response to this petition, a Division Bench ruled in August 2007 that until the writ is disposed, the Election Commission should not differentiate between permanent and non-permanent residents in CHT while registering voters. This would mean that Bengali settlers who have been brought to CHT as part of government policy of displacement would effectively be able to vote in the area -- this would result in permanently dismantling the one-time numeric majority of the Paharis, risking lack of representation at all levels of administration and public life. This could be interpreted as undermining the 1997 Peace Accord and the Hill District Council Acts of 1989 (Acts Nos. 19, 20 and 21 of 1989), which provide that only permanent residents of the respective Hill Districts can be enlisted as voters on the electoral roll for election in the respective Hill District Councils. In a straight vote, without separate seat allocations for the Pahari vote, Bengali candidates (who would get the votes of all settlers) would most likely win most (if not all) the seats of the CHT. Thus Bengali MPs will decide the life and future of Pahari people, undermining all their struggles for self-representation.
It is in this context that we look at the EC's decision to deny registration to UPDF and PCJSS. It in effect penalizes the Pahari people for participating in the democratic process, telling them they do not have the right to have their own regional political parties. Among the reasons stated by EC, as reported by Ittefaq, the parties have been denied registration because they lack offices and committees in ten Zilas and fifty Upazilas. There are several other "technical" reasons given as well, but this is the one that jumped out at me. Chittagong Hill Tracts has a total three Zilas. Based on this logic, a regional party representing indigenous people would never be able to contest the national election-- now or in the future.
In a writ petition currently being filed on behalf of United People’s Democratic Front (UPDF), each of the EC's arguments for non-registration is refuted. But legal arguments are not sufficient to sway the courts. One government official I spoke to said "there is not enough time to reverse the decision."
What it boils down to is political will. We have seen many rules being bent over the last six months (and even now) to accommodate the negotiations of the large political parties. What will it take to show a similar spirit of accommodation here? In order to allow UPDF and PCJSS to run their own Pahari candidates in their own indigeous land.
It is really up to you. Each and every silent one of you.
Portions of this op-ed are adapted from the author's chapter in 2007Ain Salish Kendra Annual Report.
Chittagong's regional paper Shuprobhat Bangladesh (27/10/08) first carried a detailed news item about this denial of election registration. Among mainstream newspapers, only Ittefaq (29/10/08) seems to have picked up the news. And there the matter will rest and die out. Or will it?
2007 marked the tenth anniversary of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Peace Accord. In the CHT, there was a crack down on political dissidents, which included not only members of indigenous political parties (JSS and UPDF), but also civil society representatives without political affiliation, who have been vocal on the rights of indigenous people. The year saw a continuation of the long-term unstated policy of ethnic displacement in the CHT (bringing Bengali settlers from elsewhere and displacing indigenous Jumma people), a trend that had accelerated during the five years of BNP-Jamaat government. At the same time, a few positive trends emerged: BLAST lawsuit regarding district judges' court, first meeting of CHT advisory committee in seven years, and the appointment of Raja Devashish Roy to Ministry of CHT Affairs.
The landmark 1997 Peace Accord that ended Shanti Bahini's twenty year autonomy insurgency shows very few signs of implementation. Vital clauses that have remained unimplemented by the last two political governments include activating the Land Commission, withdrawal of all “temporary camps” of Army, BDR, APBn (Armed Police Battalion), and handing over of full control of local civil and police administration to three hill district councils. The one Peace Accord clause that has been settled is the setting up of district judges’ courts in 3 hill districts to clear a backlog of over 25,000 cases . This followed a writ petition at the high court by BLAST. The verdict, delivered by the high court, instructed the government to set up district judge’s court in all three hill districts. Another positive development was the CTG’s decision to call a meeting of the CHT Affairs Ministry Advisory Committee, the first such meeting after a five year gap during the BNP-Jamaat government. At the same time, militant pro-Bengali settler group “Parbottho Shomo Odhikar Andolon” (The Hill Equal Rights Movement) continued to harass Pahari populations with the knowledge and support of local authorities.
In a disturbing new development, a writ was filed in 2007 in the High Court by Advocate Md. Tajul Islam, a member of the Jamaat e Islami, challenging the constitutionality of the 1997 Peace Accord. The case has been filed against various Government Ministries but interestingly, did not initially include any of the CHT based institutions or Pahari leaders. Later, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council and the Rangamati Hill District Council petitioned the Court to become parties to the writ. In their response to the Court, they argue that the democratically elected National Parliament passed four laws ratifying parts of the Peace Accord: Parbattya Chattagram Ancholik Porishad Ain, 1998 (Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council Act, 1998), Rangamati Parbattya Zilla Sthaniya Sarkar (Shongshodhon) Ain 1998, Khagrachhari Parbattya Zilla Sthaniya Sarkar (Shongshodhon) Ain 1998, Bandarban Parbattya Zilla Sthaniya Sarkar (Shongshodhon) Ain 1998. They also argues that reservations for "tribal persons" of particular posts is fully mandated under Articles 28(4) and 29(3)(a) of the Constitution and also by the State’s international treaty obligations.
Advocate Tajul Islam's writ, filed at a strategic moment, has already accomplished what may be its main objective-- inclusion of Bengali settlers in the Pahari voter list for the December 2008 national elections. In response to this petition, a Division Bench ruled in August 2007 that until the writ is disposed, the Election Commission should not differentiate between permanent and non-permanent residents in CHT while registering voters. This would mean that Bengali settlers who have been brought to CHT as part of government policy of displacement would effectively be able to vote in the area -- this would result in permanently dismantling the one-time numeric majority of the Paharis, risking lack of representation at all levels of administration and public life. This could be interpreted as undermining the 1997 Peace Accord and the Hill District Council Acts of 1989 (Acts Nos. 19, 20 and 21 of 1989), which provide that only permanent residents of the respective Hill Districts can be enlisted as voters on the electoral roll for election in the respective Hill District Councils. In a straight vote, without separate seat allocations for the Pahari vote, Bengali candidates (who would get the votes of all settlers) would most likely win most (if not all) the seats of the CHT. Thus Bengali MPs will decide the life and future of Pahari people, undermining all their struggles for self-representation.
It is in this context that we look at the EC's decision to deny registration to UPDF and PCJSS. It in effect penalizes the Pahari people for participating in the democratic process, telling them they do not have the right to have their own regional political parties. Among the reasons stated by EC, as reported by Ittefaq, the parties have been denied registration because they lack offices and committees in ten Zilas and fifty Upazilas. There are several other "technical" reasons given as well, but this is the one that jumped out at me. Chittagong Hill Tracts has a total three Zilas. Based on this logic, a regional party representing indigenous people would never be able to contest the national election-- now or in the future.
In a writ petition currently being filed on behalf of United People’s Democratic Front (UPDF), each of the EC's arguments for non-registration is refuted. But legal arguments are not sufficient to sway the courts. One government official I spoke to said "there is not enough time to reverse the decision."
What it boils down to is political will. We have seen many rules being bent over the last six months (and even now) to accommodate the negotiations of the large political parties. What will it take to show a similar spirit of accommodation here? In order to allow UPDF and PCJSS to run their own Pahari candidates in their own indigeous land.
It is really up to you. Each and every silent one of you.
Portions of this op-ed are adapted from the author's chapter in 2007Ain Salish Kendra Annual Report.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
The Islam in the eyes of Dalai Lama
New Delhi, India -- What can be more astonishing between a saint confusing people and a rogue speaking the truth? Two such unexpected observations became media bytes recently.
The Dalai Lama, on a month-long trip to the US and South America, said at San Francisco and Chicago that Islam is a religion of compassion which is being unfairly marginalised by few extremists. Ye Xiaowen, the Director of State Administration for Religious Affairs, recently said that Buddhism can reduce social divisions in China better than Islam and Christianity, adding Buddhism can help believers cope with fast-changing society plagued by wealth gap and social unrest.
In the past, the Dalai Lama has criticised both Christianity and Islam for their evangelisation and conversion programmes. Communist China has persecuted all religions including Buddhism. But now, faced with Christian evangelisation and Islamic resurgence, China wants to promote Buddhism, which is also in sync with the ageless Chinese ethos. Intriguingly, Buddhism can help cope with psychological problems amongst people of China, the country with highest execution and suicide rate.
I hold the Dalai Lama in the highest esteem. However, his certification of Islam left me bewildered. It might be true that only a minuscule section of Muslims is indulging in suicide bombing. But why is this section not inspired to work among the sick, poor, illiterate and lepers like Christians? The answer would seem to lie in the analysis of the lives of Jesus Christ and Mohammed, which adherents of the respective religions follow. Why is there a difference between Yasser Arafat and the Dalai Lama when both Palestine and Tibet are "occupied territories"?
I was going through the schedule of the Dalai Lama's forthcoming tours on his website. After visiting the US, he is going to Latin America, then Belgium before returning to India. He then goes to France and the US. Early this year, he visited Israel where he addressed an audience at Hebrew University, Jerusalem. But does he visit Islamic countries like Syria, Morocco, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan? Will he be heard in these countries the way he is in Europe and America? Israelis visit Dharamsala in droves. But do Arabs visit him? It is the same story with Hindu monks as well, who fly from India to England, France and the US (leaving the stretch between Pakistan and Morocco).
There can be no bitter irony than a Buddhist monk defending Islam as religion of compassion. Except for mountainous pockets like Ladakh, Tibet and the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), Buddhism disappeared from India under the sword of Islam. BR Ambedkar, who later embraced Buddhism along with his followers, writes in the essay, 'The Decline and Fall of Buddhism', "There can be no doubt that the fall of Buddhism in India was due to the invasions of the Musalmans. Islam came out as the enemy of the 'but'. The word 'but', as everybody knows, is an Arabic word and means an idol. Not many people, however, know what the derivation of the world 'but' is. 'But' is the Arabic corruption of Buddha. Thus the origin of the word indicates that in Moslem mind idol worship had come to be identified with the Religion of Buddha. To the Muslims, they were one and the same thing. The mission to break the idols thus became the mission to destroy Buddhism. Islam destroyed Buddhism not only in India but wherever it went. Before Islam came into being, Buddhism was the religion of Bactria, Parthia, Afghanistan, Gandhar and Chinese Turkestan, as it was of the whole of Asia. In all these countries Islam destroyed Buddhism... (Writings and Speeches, Vol 3, p 230)
He continues: "The Musalman invaders sacked the Buddhist Universities of Nalanda, Vikramsila, Jagaddala, Odantipur to name a few. They razed to the ground Buddhist monasteries with which the country was studded. The monks fled away in thousands to Nepal, Tibet and other places outside India. Muslim commanders killed a very large number outright. How the Buddhist priesthood perished by the sword of the Muslim invaders has been recorded by the Muslim historians themselves...".
Seen in this light the destruction of Bamiyan Buddha by the Taliban in February 2001 does not seem out of place. Smashing the head of Brahma in Thao Maha Brahma or Phra Phrom Erawan Shrine in Bangkok on March 21, the "mentally disturbed" Muslim youth who did it, proved there is a method in this madness. It reflects the atavistic iconoclastic behaviour of Islam. The tragedy of Chakmas (Buddhists) in CHT is also on predictable lines. It will be interesting to know whether the Buddhists of Ladakh and CHT too feel Islam as a religion of compassion.
Peace Campaign Group (PCG) is a New Delhi-based organisation run by Chakmas, who are Buddhist monks as well, but who fled Bangladesh due to Islamic persecution in the early 1990s. They later obtained Indian citizenships and now actively focus on human rights violation in CHT. PCG recently demanded a Darfur-like UN intervention in CHT, which has been a victim of Islamic demographic aggression, systematically carried out by Bangladesh. Bhante Bhikkhu Prajnalankar, general secretary of PCG, travels around the world on a shoestring budget, to highlight the plight of his people in Bangladesh. A monk, he has no inclination to teach the world Zen and Nirvana. Pursuing Nirvana, he says, will not help when the ground beneath your feet is taken away.
Buddhist Thailand is more aware. It has a no-nonsense approach towards the Islamic secessioism in the south - Narathiwat, Pattani, Songhkla and Yala. Buddhists civilians are frequent targets of Muslim attacks in Narathiwat province of Thailand. But the Thai Government's approach is as decisive as it could be in a democracy. On October 26, 2004, Thailand police entered a historic mosque in Pattani where recalcitrant elements had made a stronghold, and flushed them out. Seventy-eight detained Muslims perished, many of them crushed and suffocated, after hundreds of detainees were loaded in two trucks. Thailand rejected any UN probe into the massacre of Islamist militants in southern Thailand.
Buddhism is a compassionate religion; with its stress on non-violence, it was ill-prepared to meet Islam militarily. The Dalai Lama's comments reminds me of Gandhi, whose message of compassion found no takers amongst Muslims. Speaking about Gandhi's tour of England during Second Round Table Conference, Subhas Chandra Bose said, "During his stay in England, he had to play two roles in one person, the role of a political leader and that of a world-teacher. Sometimes he conducted himself not as a political leader who had come to negotiate with the enemy, but as a master who had come to preach a new faith - that of non-violence and world-peace." (The Indian Struggle 1920-1942, p 252). The Dalai Lama is playing world teacher, more than Tibetan supreme leader, and this time he has gone overboard.
Sources by: http://islamicmoslem.blogspot.com/2008/11/islam-in-eyes-of-dalai-lama.html
The Dalai Lama, on a month-long trip to the US and South America, said at San Francisco and Chicago that Islam is a religion of compassion which is being unfairly marginalised by few extremists. Ye Xiaowen, the Director of State Administration for Religious Affairs, recently said that Buddhism can reduce social divisions in China better than Islam and Christianity, adding Buddhism can help believers cope with fast-changing society plagued by wealth gap and social unrest.
In the past, the Dalai Lama has criticised both Christianity and Islam for their evangelisation and conversion programmes. Communist China has persecuted all religions including Buddhism. But now, faced with Christian evangelisation and Islamic resurgence, China wants to promote Buddhism, which is also in sync with the ageless Chinese ethos. Intriguingly, Buddhism can help cope with psychological problems amongst people of China, the country with highest execution and suicide rate.
I hold the Dalai Lama in the highest esteem. However, his certification of Islam left me bewildered. It might be true that only a minuscule section of Muslims is indulging in suicide bombing. But why is this section not inspired to work among the sick, poor, illiterate and lepers like Christians? The answer would seem to lie in the analysis of the lives of Jesus Christ and Mohammed, which adherents of the respective religions follow. Why is there a difference between Yasser Arafat and the Dalai Lama when both Palestine and Tibet are "occupied territories"?
I was going through the schedule of the Dalai Lama's forthcoming tours on his website. After visiting the US, he is going to Latin America, then Belgium before returning to India. He then goes to France and the US. Early this year, he visited Israel where he addressed an audience at Hebrew University, Jerusalem. But does he visit Islamic countries like Syria, Morocco, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan? Will he be heard in these countries the way he is in Europe and America? Israelis visit Dharamsala in droves. But do Arabs visit him? It is the same story with Hindu monks as well, who fly from India to England, France and the US (leaving the stretch between Pakistan and Morocco).
There can be no bitter irony than a Buddhist monk defending Islam as religion of compassion. Except for mountainous pockets like Ladakh, Tibet and the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), Buddhism disappeared from India under the sword of Islam. BR Ambedkar, who later embraced Buddhism along with his followers, writes in the essay, 'The Decline and Fall of Buddhism', "There can be no doubt that the fall of Buddhism in India was due to the invasions of the Musalmans. Islam came out as the enemy of the 'but'. The word 'but', as everybody knows, is an Arabic word and means an idol. Not many people, however, know what the derivation of the world 'but' is. 'But' is the Arabic corruption of Buddha. Thus the origin of the word indicates that in Moslem mind idol worship had come to be identified with the Religion of Buddha. To the Muslims, they were one and the same thing. The mission to break the idols thus became the mission to destroy Buddhism. Islam destroyed Buddhism not only in India but wherever it went. Before Islam came into being, Buddhism was the religion of Bactria, Parthia, Afghanistan, Gandhar and Chinese Turkestan, as it was of the whole of Asia. In all these countries Islam destroyed Buddhism... (Writings and Speeches, Vol 3, p 230)
He continues: "The Musalman invaders sacked the Buddhist Universities of Nalanda, Vikramsila, Jagaddala, Odantipur to name a few. They razed to the ground Buddhist monasteries with which the country was studded. The monks fled away in thousands to Nepal, Tibet and other places outside India. Muslim commanders killed a very large number outright. How the Buddhist priesthood perished by the sword of the Muslim invaders has been recorded by the Muslim historians themselves...".
Seen in this light the destruction of Bamiyan Buddha by the Taliban in February 2001 does not seem out of place. Smashing the head of Brahma in Thao Maha Brahma or Phra Phrom Erawan Shrine in Bangkok on March 21, the "mentally disturbed" Muslim youth who did it, proved there is a method in this madness. It reflects the atavistic iconoclastic behaviour of Islam. The tragedy of Chakmas (Buddhists) in CHT is also on predictable lines. It will be interesting to know whether the Buddhists of Ladakh and CHT too feel Islam as a religion of compassion.
Peace Campaign Group (PCG) is a New Delhi-based organisation run by Chakmas, who are Buddhist monks as well, but who fled Bangladesh due to Islamic persecution in the early 1990s. They later obtained Indian citizenships and now actively focus on human rights violation in CHT. PCG recently demanded a Darfur-like UN intervention in CHT, which has been a victim of Islamic demographic aggression, systematically carried out by Bangladesh. Bhante Bhikkhu Prajnalankar, general secretary of PCG, travels around the world on a shoestring budget, to highlight the plight of his people in Bangladesh. A monk, he has no inclination to teach the world Zen and Nirvana. Pursuing Nirvana, he says, will not help when the ground beneath your feet is taken away.
Buddhist Thailand is more aware. It has a no-nonsense approach towards the Islamic secessioism in the south - Narathiwat, Pattani, Songhkla and Yala. Buddhists civilians are frequent targets of Muslim attacks in Narathiwat province of Thailand. But the Thai Government's approach is as decisive as it could be in a democracy. On October 26, 2004, Thailand police entered a historic mosque in Pattani where recalcitrant elements had made a stronghold, and flushed them out. Seventy-eight detained Muslims perished, many of them crushed and suffocated, after hundreds of detainees were loaded in two trucks. Thailand rejected any UN probe into the massacre of Islamist militants in southern Thailand.
Buddhism is a compassionate religion; with its stress on non-violence, it was ill-prepared to meet Islam militarily. The Dalai Lama's comments reminds me of Gandhi, whose message of compassion found no takers amongst Muslims. Speaking about Gandhi's tour of England during Second Round Table Conference, Subhas Chandra Bose said, "During his stay in England, he had to play two roles in one person, the role of a political leader and that of a world-teacher. Sometimes he conducted himself not as a political leader who had come to negotiate with the enemy, but as a master who had come to preach a new faith - that of non-violence and world-peace." (The Indian Struggle 1920-1942, p 252). The Dalai Lama is playing world teacher, more than Tibetan supreme leader, and this time he has gone overboard.
Sources by: http://islamicmoslem.blogspot.com/2008/11/islam-in-eyes-of-dalai-lama.html
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Kapaeeng Watch News Release : 11 November 2008
Indigenous peoples observe token hunger strike in Sylhet city
On 8 November 2009 indigenous peoples and green activists observed a token hunger strike in the Sylhet city, demanding cancellation of the government decision to cut 4,000 trees at village Nahar Pan Punji in Moulvibazar district.
The Sylhet Paribesh Andolan, an environmental organisation, arranged the token hunger strike programme from 10:00am and 2:00pm on the premises of the Central Shaheed Minar in the city.
More than 500 indigenous people from different areas of the region and activists of 13 environmental organisations and human rights groups participated in the programme. Later, a rally was held with former vice-chancellor of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Professor Sadar Uddin Ahmed, in the chair.
The divisional coordinator of the Adivasi Paribesh Raksha Committee, Father Joseph Gomez, delivered inaugural speech at the rally. Representatives from different socio-cultural organisations and political leaders attended the rally. Lawyers EU Shahidul Islam, Bedananda Bhattacharjya, Dr Abdul Awal Bishwas, Sharif Jamil, Abdul Karim Kim, Gouranga Patro, Jubel Lusai, Joseph Haui, Jesmin Lamin and Michel Dandala, among others, spoke at the rally.
The speakers condemned in the government move to cut down 4,000 trees at village Nahar Pan Punji near the Nahar Tea Garden in Shreemangal. They termed the government move a mockery to the indigenous peoples to destroy the trees in the indigenous peoples, while the government is continuing plantation programme across the country.
The indigenous peoples threatened to continue movement pled expressed their pledge to continue their movement against the government order until its cancellation.
It is mentionable that indigenous Khasi people have been cultivating betel leafs in their traditional punjies for generations. However, government recently ordered to cut 400 trees of Nahar Pan Punji destroying cultivation of betel leaf (Pan) which is only source of income of indigenous Khasi people.
25th Death Anniversary of M N Larma observed in Dhaka and CHT
On 10 November 2008 National Committee on Celebration of 25th Death Anniversary of Manabendra Narayan Larma organised half-day programme to mark 25th death anniversary Manabendra Narayan Larma, pioneer of the indigenous Jumma peoples of Chittagong Hill Tracts and former Member of Parliament at National Press Club in Dhaka. The programmes include placing flowers at the portrait of MN Larma, memorial meeting, reciting poetry, lighting and cultural programme.
Presided by eminent academic Prof. Kabir Chowdhury, the memorial meeting was discussed by eminent teacher of Dhaka University Prof Serajul Islam Chowdhury, President of Communist Party of Bangladesh Manjurul Ahsan Khan, presidium member of Gono Forum Pankaj Bhattacharja, politburo member of Workers Party Haider Akbar Khan Rano, teacher of Dhaka University Prof Sadeka Halim, eminent columnist Abul Moksud, general secretary of Bangladesh Adivasi Odhikar Andolon (BAOA) Prof. Mesbah Kamal, executive director of Nijera Kori and human rights activist Ms. Kushi Kabir, information and publicity secretary of PCJSS Mangal Kumar Chakma and secretary general of Bangladesh Indigenpus Peopels Forum Sanjeeb Drong. Member secretary of National Committee Prof. Ajoy Roy delivered welcome speech while Journalist Kamal Lohani delivered the MN Larma memorial lecture at the programme. Discussion was moderated by Associate Professor Robayet Ferdous of Dhaka University and editor of Mqwrum Mr. Dipayan Khisa. Among others, Former adviser to the caretaker government Advocate Sultana Kamal, eminent writer Selina Hossain, Prof Dalem Chandra Barman of Dhaka University, president of BAOA Prof. H K S Arefin, eminent human rights activist Ms. Rosaline Costa, executive director of ALRD Shamsul Huda and attended the programme.
Participants including academics, politicians and rights activists at a commemorative meeting paid rich tributes to M N Larma. Speakers said that M N Larma was not only a leader of the ethnic minority communities but also a leader of all those who were denied their rights as he represented their voice. He had dedicated himself to establishing the rights of deprived people whoever they may be a member of indigenous ethnic community or a mainstream Bengali people.
Prof Kabir Chowdhury said M N Larma was not only the best leader of hills people but also the leader of all deprived people. He was a man whose name still inspired the younger generation years after his death. The killers thought they would wipe out his name from history. But the reality is different. He is remembered by all. But people pronounce the names of his killers with extreme hatred.
Prof Serajul Islam Chowdhury said that we could not yet achieve the freedom we wanted and M N Larma dreamt of, because we could not try the war criminals and recognise the ethnic minority people. The non-recognition of the indigenous peoples in the constitution proves that Bangladesh is yet to become a democratic country. He said the country needed a united struggle to realise the dream of M N Larma, the dream of the people as a whole.
Before the discussion, different organisations namely National Committee on Celebration of 25th Death Anniversary of Manabendra Narayan Larma, PCJSS, BASAD, Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum, Communist Party of Bangladesh, Gono Forum, Workers' Party, BAOA, Hill Students' Council (PCP), BISAF, HWF, Indigenous Students of Dhaka College, BAGACHAS, GIMA, Hill Students' Hostel, Biplobi Workers' Party including academics, media workers and rights activists placed flowers at the portrait of MN Larma. The memorial meeting was followed by lighting at the portrait of MN Larma and cultural programme performed by indigenous artists and Udichi Shilpigosthi. National Committee also published a booklet and a poster.
Demands of National Committee: Earlier on 8 November 2008 National Committee, in a press conference held at Dhaka Reporter's Unity, put forward a charter of demands to the government, which includes renaming of the Chittagong-Rangamati Road after Manabendra Larma, setting up of his statue in either Dhaka or Chittagong and inclusion of his life sketch in national curriculum.
In CHT: PCJSS observed the 25th Death Anniversary of M N Larma in three hill district headquarters in CHT on 10 November. The programmes on this occasion include placing flower-wreaths at the portrait of MN Larma early in the morning, lighting and soaring of paper-balloon at the evening. President of PCJSS Mr. Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma paid tribute in Rangamati.
On 8 November 2009 indigenous peoples and green activists observed a token hunger strike in the Sylhet city, demanding cancellation of the government decision to cut 4,000 trees at village Nahar Pan Punji in Moulvibazar district.
The Sylhet Paribesh Andolan, an environmental organisation, arranged the token hunger strike programme from 10:00am and 2:00pm on the premises of the Central Shaheed Minar in the city.
More than 500 indigenous people from different areas of the region and activists of 13 environmental organisations and human rights groups participated in the programme. Later, a rally was held with former vice-chancellor of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Professor Sadar Uddin Ahmed, in the chair.
The divisional coordinator of the Adivasi Paribesh Raksha Committee, Father Joseph Gomez, delivered inaugural speech at the rally. Representatives from different socio-cultural organisations and political leaders attended the rally. Lawyers EU Shahidul Islam, Bedananda Bhattacharjya, Dr Abdul Awal Bishwas, Sharif Jamil, Abdul Karim Kim, Gouranga Patro, Jubel Lusai, Joseph Haui, Jesmin Lamin and Michel Dandala, among others, spoke at the rally.
The speakers condemned in the government move to cut down 4,000 trees at village Nahar Pan Punji near the Nahar Tea Garden in Shreemangal. They termed the government move a mockery to the indigenous peoples to destroy the trees in the indigenous peoples, while the government is continuing plantation programme across the country.
The indigenous peoples threatened to continue movement pled expressed their pledge to continue their movement against the government order until its cancellation.
It is mentionable that indigenous Khasi people have been cultivating betel leafs in their traditional punjies for generations. However, government recently ordered to cut 400 trees of Nahar Pan Punji destroying cultivation of betel leaf (Pan) which is only source of income of indigenous Khasi people.
25th Death Anniversary of M N Larma observed in Dhaka and CHT
On 10 November 2008 National Committee on Celebration of 25th Death Anniversary of Manabendra Narayan Larma organised half-day programme to mark 25th death anniversary Manabendra Narayan Larma, pioneer of the indigenous Jumma peoples of Chittagong Hill Tracts and former Member of Parliament at National Press Club in Dhaka. The programmes include placing flowers at the portrait of MN Larma, memorial meeting, reciting poetry, lighting and cultural programme.
Presided by eminent academic Prof. Kabir Chowdhury, the memorial meeting was discussed by eminent teacher of Dhaka University Prof Serajul Islam Chowdhury, President of Communist Party of Bangladesh Manjurul Ahsan Khan, presidium member of Gono Forum Pankaj Bhattacharja, politburo member of Workers Party Haider Akbar Khan Rano, teacher of Dhaka University Prof Sadeka Halim, eminent columnist Abul Moksud, general secretary of Bangladesh Adivasi Odhikar Andolon (BAOA) Prof. Mesbah Kamal, executive director of Nijera Kori and human rights activist Ms. Kushi Kabir, information and publicity secretary of PCJSS Mangal Kumar Chakma and secretary general of Bangladesh Indigenpus Peopels Forum Sanjeeb Drong. Member secretary of National Committee Prof. Ajoy Roy delivered welcome speech while Journalist Kamal Lohani delivered the MN Larma memorial lecture at the programme. Discussion was moderated by Associate Professor Robayet Ferdous of Dhaka University and editor of Mqwrum Mr. Dipayan Khisa. Among others, Former adviser to the caretaker government Advocate Sultana Kamal, eminent writer Selina Hossain, Prof Dalem Chandra Barman of Dhaka University, president of BAOA Prof. H K S Arefin, eminent human rights activist Ms. Rosaline Costa, executive director of ALRD Shamsul Huda and attended the programme.
Participants including academics, politicians and rights activists at a commemorative meeting paid rich tributes to M N Larma. Speakers said that M N Larma was not only a leader of the ethnic minority communities but also a leader of all those who were denied their rights as he represented their voice. He had dedicated himself to establishing the rights of deprived people whoever they may be a member of indigenous ethnic community or a mainstream Bengali people.
Prof Kabir Chowdhury said M N Larma was not only the best leader of hills people but also the leader of all deprived people. He was a man whose name still inspired the younger generation years after his death. The killers thought they would wipe out his name from history. But the reality is different. He is remembered by all. But people pronounce the names of his killers with extreme hatred.
Prof Serajul Islam Chowdhury said that we could not yet achieve the freedom we wanted and M N Larma dreamt of, because we could not try the war criminals and recognise the ethnic minority people. The non-recognition of the indigenous peoples in the constitution proves that Bangladesh is yet to become a democratic country. He said the country needed a united struggle to realise the dream of M N Larma, the dream of the people as a whole.
Before the discussion, different organisations namely National Committee on Celebration of 25th Death Anniversary of Manabendra Narayan Larma, PCJSS, BASAD, Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum, Communist Party of Bangladesh, Gono Forum, Workers' Party, BAOA, Hill Students' Council (PCP), BISAF, HWF, Indigenous Students of Dhaka College, BAGACHAS, GIMA, Hill Students' Hostel, Biplobi Workers' Party including academics, media workers and rights activists placed flowers at the portrait of MN Larma. The memorial meeting was followed by lighting at the portrait of MN Larma and cultural programme performed by indigenous artists and Udichi Shilpigosthi. National Committee also published a booklet and a poster.
Demands of National Committee: Earlier on 8 November 2008 National Committee, in a press conference held at Dhaka Reporter's Unity, put forward a charter of demands to the government, which includes renaming of the Chittagong-Rangamati Road after Manabendra Larma, setting up of his statue in either Dhaka or Chittagong and inclusion of his life sketch in national curriculum.
In CHT: PCJSS observed the 25th Death Anniversary of M N Larma in three hill district headquarters in CHT on 10 November. The programmes on this occasion include placing flower-wreaths at the portrait of MN Larma early in the morning, lighting and soaring of paper-balloon at the evening. President of PCJSS Mr. Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma paid tribute in Rangamati.
Friday, November 7, 2008
BCABA: Congratulates to Mr. Barack Obama
Dated: 11/06/2008
Your Excellency Mr. Barack Obama
Congratulation!!
We, the members of the indigenous peoples migrated from Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) region of Bangladesh; congratulate you from the core of our hearts on your historic victory in the election for the presidency of the United States of America.
We only hope that the USA and the world will prosper with loving kindness, racial harmony, religious tolerance and regional cooperation under your brilliant, constructive and dynamic leadership of the 21st century.
May Lord Buddha Bless you!
May Lord Buddha Bless the United States of America!
Kirti Ranjan Chakma
President
Your Excellency Mr. Barack Obama
Congratulation!!
We, the members of the indigenous peoples migrated from Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) region of Bangladesh; congratulate you from the core of our hearts on your historic victory in the election for the presidency of the United States of America.
We only hope that the USA and the world will prosper with loving kindness, racial harmony, religious tolerance and regional cooperation under your brilliant, constructive and dynamic leadership of the 21st century.
May Lord Buddha Bless you!
May Lord Buddha Bless the United States of America!
Kirti Ranjan Chakma
President
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