Militarization in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh
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MILITARIZATION IN THE CHITTAGONG HILL TRACTS, BANGLADESH The military has played a decisive role in Bangladesh. Its influence over political, economic and social affairs is particularly pronounced in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), a region of natural abundance and home to 11 indigenous groups numbering approximately 700,000 people; this is a region, however, which has experienced decades of relentless human rights violations. Despite occupying only 9% of the total territory of the country and being inhabited by 1% of the total population, around one-third of the Bangladesh army is deployed in the CHT and there are around 400 army, paramilitary and police camps in the area, a vestige of more than 20 years of low-intensity guerilla war led against the government from 1976 to 1997 by the armed wing of the indigenous political party, the PCJSS, in response to violations of the region’s autonomy. In 1997, a peace treaty known as the Chittagong Hill Tracts Accord was signed between the PCJSS and the Government of Bangladesh. This contained, among other things, provisions for the region’s demilitarization, the settlement of land disputes and a form of regional autonomy. Fourteen years on from the signing of the CHT Accord, however, de facto military rule still contin- ues, something to which this report attests. Bangladesh prides itself on being one of the world’s leading contributors of soldiers to United Nations peacekeeping operations but, at the same time, army personnel are repeatedly violating human rights at home. The direct involvement of army personnel in, or their covert support of, the numerous communal attacks on indigenous villages, often motivated by the quest for control of indigenous peoples’ traditional lands, is a case in point. The same goes for the military’s role in duties normally carried out by civilian agencies, such as development projects or the supervision of NGO activities, its influence over policymaking as well as the economic gains it receives from its involvement in, for example, tourism. This report documents the extent of the military presence in the CHT, the ways in which the military exert political, economic and social influence, and the consequences this presence has on the hu- man rights situation in the region. In a democratic country such as Bangladesh, de facto military control of a certain region in which no insurgency is prevalent and where there is no threat of conflict with neighboring countries should be a cause for great concern both for the Government of Bangladesh, the international donors providing development assistance to Bangladesh and the international agencies that have a mandate to address specific human rights situations. ORGANISING COMMITTEE CHT CAMPAIGN THE SLOW DEMISE OF The Region’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES SHIMIN Gaikou CENTRE INTERNATIONAL WORK GROUP FOR INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS MILITARIZATION IN THE CHITTAGONG HILL TRACTS, BANGLADESH THE SLOW DEMISE OF The Region’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES Report 14 IWGIA ORGANISING COMMITEE CHT CAMPAIGN SHIMIN GAIKOU CENTRE 2012 MILITARIZATION IN THE CHITTAGONG HILL TRACTS, BANGLADESH – THE SLOW DEMISE OF THE Region’s INDIGENOUS PEOPLES Copyright: IWGIA, Organising Committee CHT Campaign and Shimin Gaikou Centre Editor: IWGIA Proofreading: Elaine Bolton Cover design: Jorge Monrás Cover photo: Jenneke Arens Prepress and print: Eks-Skolens Trykkeri, Copenhagen, Denmark Hurridocs Cip data Title: Militarization in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh – The Slow Demise of the Region’s Indigenous Peoples Edited by: IWGIA Number of pages: 51 ISBN: 978-87-92786-20-3 Language: English Index: 1. Indigenous Peoples – 2. Human rights – 3. Militarization Geographical area: Asia – Bangladesh Date of publication: May 2012 The reproduction and distribution of information contained in this report is welcome for non-commercial purposes and as long as the source is cited. The translation of the report or the reproduction of the whole report is, however, not allowed without the consent of IWGIA. This report has been prepared and published with the financial support from the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and NORAD. ORGANISING COMMITTEE CHT CAMPAIGN PO Box 15939 - 1001NK Amsterdam - The Netherlands E-mail: [email protected] SHIMIN GAIKOU CENTRE (Citizens’ DIPLOMATIC CENTRE FOR THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES) 3-35-13-204 Higashi-komatsugawa - Edogawa-ku, Tokyo, 132-0033, Japan Tel & fax: (+81)3-5662-0906 INTERNATIONAL WORK GROUP FOR INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS Classensgade 11 E, DK 2100 - Copenhagen, Denmark Tel: (+45) 35 27 05 00 - Fax: (+45) 35 27 05 07 E-mail: [email protected] - Web: www.iwgia.org CONTENTS List of abbreviations .................................................................................................................................................. 6 1. Introduction............................................................................................................................................................. 8 2. The Objective and Conduct of the Study ............................................................................................................. 9 The overall objective ........................................................................................................................................ 9 Methodological approach ................................................................................................................................ 9 3. Background to the Chittagong Hill Tracts Conflict ........................................................................................... 10 4. Overview of the Military Presence in the Chittagong Hill Tracts ..................................................................... 12 The number of military personnel and army camps in the CHT .................................................................... 12 The role of the military during the armed conflict in the CHT ......................................................................... 13 Why is there still an overwhelming presence of the army in the CHT? ......................................................... 13 5. Ultra Vires Interventions and Role of the Military in the Chittagong Hill Tracts ............................................. 15 Human rights violations ................................................................................................................................. 15 Support to right-wing movements and religious extremism ........................................................................... 17 Intervention in State politics and civil administration ..................................................................................... 18 Counter-insurgency and development programmes ..................................................................................... 20 Economic interests ........................................................................................................................................ 21 Tacit consent to armed groups active in the CHT .......................................................................................... 23 6. Case Studies of Army Involvement in Human Rights Violations ..................................................................... 25 Case study 1: Mahalchari incident ................................................................................................................. 25 Case study 2: Baghaichari/Khagrachari incident ........................................................................................... 26 Case study 3: Ramgharh incident ................................................................................................................. 29 Case study 4: Eviction and land acquisition for army artillery firing range in Sualok, Bandarban ................. 30 Case study 5: Land acquisition and expansion of Ruma Cantonment in Bandarban .................................... 32 Case study 6: Religious persecution ............................................................................................................. 33 Case study 7: Arbitrary arrest and torture ..................................................................................................... 35 Case study 8: Violence against women: rape/attempted rape ...................................................................... 36 7. Issues and Concerns Regarding Dispatch of Bangladesh Military Personnel to UN Peacekeeping Missions ............................................................................................................................. 39 The significance of UN peacekeeping missions for the Bangladesh military ................................................. 39 International concern on the human rights situation in the CHT .................................................................... 40 Response to the UNPFII’s recommendations from the Government of Bangladesh ..................................... 41 8. Conclusion and Recommendations ................................................................................................................... 42 Recommendations......................................................................................................................................... 43 Annex ......................................................................................................................................................................... 46 Notes ........................................................................................................................................................................