After 24 years of signing the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord, the key points of the accord remained unsettled and the conflicts still prevail. This is not only disturbing for the ethnic people but also a threat to the state of Bangladesh.
The CHT Peace Accord was signed on 2 December 1997 to end the two-decade conflict in the hill district and improve the lot of the people there. The agreement was signed by the then Chief Whip Abul Hasanat Abdullah on behalf of the government of Bangladesh and president of the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti (JSS) Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma (Santu Larma).
The agreement states that the tribal Chittagong Hill Tracts region will be considered a tribal-populated area and the need to preserve the character of the area and attain it overall development has been acknowledged. Bangladesh government alleged that the conflicts in the area continued due to the clashes between different groups. On the other hand, Jana Sanghati Samiti says that the hill tribes are united under the leadership of the organisation which signed the treaty. They said the government is hindering the peace by breaking that unity by forming various political groups.
According to the treaty, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council and the three Hill District Councils were formed, but the important issues that were supposed to be assigned to these bodies, including local governance, have not been fulfilled till date. These institutions were supposed to be run as elected bodies with permanent residents of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. But the issue of who is a temporary resident and who is permanent is still unresolved. The main problem in the Chittagong Hill Tracts is the formation of the Land Commission as per the treaty. But they have not been able to start work yet due to non-issuance of rules. The government amended the act in 2016 taking JSS objections into cognizance.
On the other hand, before the Land Commission started its work, the rehabilitated Bengalis living in the hills in the name of the Citizens' Council were carrying out anti-contract activities there. At the time of partition in 1947, 98 per cent of the population in hill tracts were ethnic people. They have become minority now.
In that case, how will it be possible to maintain the characters of tribal areas? Although the agreement gives priority to the hill tribes in the local government bodies, the Bengalis have a strong foothold in the elected local government bodies such as municipalities, upazila parishads and union parishads.
It is unfortunate that the Awami League government that signed the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord 24 years ago is still in power, and though they did not get enough time in the first phase after signing the treaty, they have been in power for 13 consecutive years since 2009. In that case, if any clause or clauses of the treaty are not implemented, the authorities cannot avoid its liability.
The government will have to find out the reason of why there is no peace even after 24 years of signing the treaty. Blaming each other will not solve the problem. If peace is established in the Chittagong Hill Tracts or if there is economic development there, the people of the whole country will get its benefits. If peace is to be restored in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, there is no alternative to full implementation of the treaty.