Withdraw military rule from CHT

Withdrawal of military rule from the Chittagong Hill Tracts is essential for the region’s democratic transformation, said economist Prof Anu Muhammad yesterday.
Speaking at a roundtable titled “Establishing Democratic Governance and People’s Rights, Dignity, and Power in the CHT” at Jatiya Press Club, organised by the United People’s Democratic Front, he urged the interim government to prioritise this issue and break from the policies of previous administrations.
To achieve democratic transformation, the interim government must take this issue seriously and remove military rule from the CHT, he said.
He said many demands proposed by the CHT Basic Rights Conservation Committee after the 1992 Logang massacre remain unfulfilled and are now part of the UPDF’s current demands.
Anu Muhammad explained that the term “settler” emerged during the regime of President Ziaur Rahman as part of a government programme to relocate poor, landless Bangalees to the CHT.
This, he said, was a military project designed to reduce the indigenous population to a minority, creating an artificial conflict between indigenous people and settlers.
Criticising the government’s neglect of CHT issues, he pointed out that many indigenous people were displaced by the Kaptai Dam during the Pakistan era.
Despite their participation in the 1971 Liberation War, their rights were not secured afterwards, he said.
Prof Muhammad said Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s encouragement for indigenous people to identify as Bangalees led to further problems.
“Military rule has resulted in continuous violence, including the 1992 Logang massacre. Even after the 1997 Peace Accord, critical issues like land rights and constitutional recognition for indigenous peoples remain unresolved,” he said.
He also highlighted the lack of transparency in the CHT’s economic activities, referencing the secretive occupation of hills by military and civilian individuals, including retired officials and political figures.
He urged the interim government to investigate and publish a list of illegal land occupiers and issue a “white paper” detailing economic projects and their expenditures in the CHT.
He called for constitutional recognition for indigenous peoples and urged the Constitutional Reform Commission to prioritise this issue.
He also advocated for the formation of a People’s Inquiry Commission to investigate recent killings in Rangamati and Khagrachhari, and the broader history of genocide in the CHT.
Physician Harunur Rashid, Barrister Jyotirmoy Barua and  general secretary of  Biplobi Workers Party Saiful Haque also spoke at the event.
The event was moderated by UPDF organiser Mikel Changma, where a seven-point demand, including the immediate withdrawal of military rule and the establishment of a democratic environment in the CHT, was presented.