PRESS STATEMENT
SAJEK'S BURNT VILLAGES: CITIZEN'S TEAM CALLS FOR INQUIRY
AND URGENT RELIEF
A group of citizens conducted an on-site inquiry on 28th
and 29th April 2008 in Sajek Union, Rangamati District,
following press reports of about 150 houses being burnt
down across seven villages in the area. On arrival in the
area, we saw that in eight villages within the reserved
forest area in Sajek Union -- Nursery Para, Daney
Bhaibachora, Bamey Bhaibachora, Purbopara, Balughatpara,
Retkaba, MSF Para and Gongaram Mukh â€" the mostly Pahari
houses which had been burnt down to the ground remained
just as they were. The charred remains of burnt houses
could be seen across a four kilometer long area. Many
people are still in hiding. Others told us that several
persons were injured during this incident. People do not
have proper shelter, and some remain under open skies.
During the on-site inquiry, we spoke to victims and
witnesses among both Paharis and Bangalis, other local
persons, and to Army personnel, to clarify what had
happened. Today we will attempt to outline for you the
situation we witnessed, the main causes behind it, and the
required action which we believe is necessary at this
point. Those of us who visited the area at our own cost did
so because we believed that the full facts of what had
occurred in Baghaichori, a remote hilly area, had not been
fully covered in the national media.
*****
To date, no official record appears to have been made of
exactly how many houses were burnt down, or how many people
affected. According to news reports, about 150 to 200
families have been affected, of whom most are Chakmas.
Speaking to victims and eyewitnesses of the incident, we
came to learn that on 20th April from about 9pm till early
morning houses in the area, mostly belonging to Paharis,
and some to Bangali Settlers, with most of their contents
including cooking utensils, books, clothes, were burnt to
ashes.
Several Chakma inhabitants of the area described how they
stood aside in fear, as their houses were burnt to the
ground.
* A Chakma inhabitant of Balurghat Para village, aged
45/50, stated 'Our rice, clothes, pots-pans-plates have all
been burnt. School books, birth registration certificates,
SSC certificates, they're all totally burnt.'
* Several eyewitnesses and victims mentioned that valuables
were looted by those who burnt down the houses. A Chakma
inhabitant of Daney Bhaibachora village, aged 35/40, ran
out of his home on hearing screaming at about 9.45pm on
20th April, to see a house was burning and people shouting
to be saved from the flames. His whole house had been burnt
to ashes. Only the charred remains of the wooden pillars
could be seen. He stated, 'The people who were setting
things alight, they first took out from our homes, the TVs,
beds, wardrobes, whatever they found, they looted, and at
the end they torched the houses. Those who set the houses
alight. They took everything. 'Another Chakma woman stated,
'I've heard that a TV was found in the Bangali Para. The
Army has said that they will return the TV'.
* An elderly Chakma, aged about 80 'I've never faced such
misery (oshanti) before.' In this home, there are two
school going students in this family, one studying for the
SSC and another in class seven, whose books have all been
burnt and who cannot attend classes.
Bangalis are also alleged to have put up huts after having
broken down the place of worship in Gongaram Mukh. Local
residents said that even after making a complaint to the
local Army Camp, there has been no action. After the fire,
about 30/35 families came to take shelter at the Baghaihat
Moitripur Jogi Bono Bihara [Buddhist Temple].
* The priest of the Bihara said 'I am ashamed to say this.
I am also a religious leader. This kind of incident has
happened in my area.'
Some of the Bangalis affected also described the events of
20 April. These Bangalis are known as 'settlers' to the
local Paharis.
* Md Rafiqul Islam came to Baghaichori about 10/11 years
ago. He lives in the Musulman Para. About two months ago,
he put up a hut near the Pahari houses in Gongaram Mukh. On
the night of the incident, he said he had heard the sounds
'Ujao, Ujao', and fled from his home in fear. He said:
'Hearing the cries of Ujao Ujao coming closer, I fled and
took shelter in the army camp.' Another eyewitness, the
General Secretary of Baghaichori Bazaar Shomiti stated that
'On the night of the incident, at about 9.45 I was in
Major Hafiz's vehicle [as we came out of the Camp, where
there was an event going on for the founding anniversary of
the 2 B Regiment, on hearing a hullabaloo from outside]. We
heard the sounds 'Ujao, Ujao' and saw about 100/150 masked
people wearing black clothes setting houses alight. They
were not local Paharis. They were outsiders.'
Victims' Accounts of the Background to the Arson Attacks:
The vast Sajek Union is located at one end of Rangamati
District, and mainly comprises of Reserved Forests. Any
settlement in this area is considered to be illegal. But
many Paharis have lived in this area for generations in
accordance with their customary norms and without any
official title deeds.
Both Paharis and Bangalis noted as a cause of the incident
that there had been rising tension in the area for about
two months. The main reason for this tension was that the
Bangalis had been erecting houses near or adjacent to the
Pahari's houses. The same sight could be seen all along the
four kilometers of the main road between Baghaihat and
Gongaram. Next to the Pahari house or across it is a house
of a Bangali settler, in which no-one appears to stay or to
sleep at night. After talking to the Settler there, we
learned that these huts have been put up over the last two
months or so. From the beginning the Paharis could not
accept that Bangalis would establish settlements on their
traditional lands. There had already been conflict and
confrontation over this issue. First the Paharis had
objected to the Bangalis erecting these buildings. Although
the hut construction did not end in the face of these
protests, the tensions certainly increased.
From a visit to the area, it became evident that the fire
could not have spread from house to house given the sparse
density of their location, rather each house must have been
separately set alight. For example, we saw in Bhaibachora
village that between two burnt down Pahari houses a Bangali
settler, Abul Malek and his mother in law Anwara Begum were
in residence. Even though the two Chakma houses burnt down
on 20th the hut in the middle did not.
Except for in Gongram Mukh, we could see that the Pahari
homes had been burnt to the ground, but next door or close
by Bangali homes or huts remained standing. This pattern
indicated that whoever had been responsible for the
burnings had most likely planned the exercise, identified
the Pahari and Bangali houses and then set them alight.
Almost everyone mentioned two names, Ali and Babul, as
being the ones most involved with trying to displace the
Paharis from the area through fear. A Chakma inhabitant of
Gongaram Mukh said that Ali and some others had come to his
shop on 19th April and threatened him that if he remained
there till after dusk, then they would burn him and the
shop down and kill his whole family. In fear, he sent his
wife and children to another house that very evening. On
the next night, 20th April, his house was burnt down. With
tears in his eyes, this man said, pointing to his torn
short sleeved shirt and lungi, ' I've been wearing these
same clothes ever since the burnings'.
A Karbari from one village said 'If they see 2/3 of us
talking to each other, they inform the Army Camp.Another
Pahari inhabitant of Gongaram Mukh, unwilling to state his
name, said 'We were told to put up our houses about 2/3 km
away from the road. The Settlers' houses would be next to
the road. Ali and his cronies said that they would
slaughter us like sacrificial cows if we said anything
about it.'
It is true that the fires began because of the ongoing
tensions between Paharis and Bangalis, but in our view the
reasons were deeper, that is the construction of Bangali
settlements here and pushing the Paharis into an even more
marginal and vulnerable existence. But it is also true that
most of the Bangalis who live in that area are extremely
poor, dependent on government rations. These marginal
people, from different districts of the country, are
surviving there on government patronization.
Relief and Rehabilitation:
Relief has now been distributed in the area on three
occasions, most recently on the occasion of the visit by
the Army Chief on 29 April, when each affected person was
given Taka 500 and some food (5 kg rice, 1 kg dal and 2 kg
potatoes). On two earlier occasions, Taka 500 had been
given from the army and civilian administration
respectively. During the Army Chief's visit it was
announced that each family would be given Taka 10,000 for
reconstruction of their homes. Several of those we
interviewed said that this amount would not be adequate.
Some Paharis alleged that Bangali Settlers had been given
more relief. We also saw a number of Chakmas come back
empty handed from the event.
Who is Responsible?
When traveling from Khagrachari to Baghaihat in Baghaichori
located at the end of Rangamati upto Gongaram Mukh, any
ordinary citizen would wonder 'Is this my country'? Because
of the intensity of army checking. There is very tight
screening there. The names of whoever enters or exits the
area is written down. Each such person has to give their
identity. The car numbers are noted. And on leaving the
area, that number is again checked. We thought it was
important to ask how such an arson attack could take place
in the midst of such close monitoring.
We asked some of the Pahari victims, who do you think is
responsible? They said without any hesitation that they
saw Bangali settlers burning down the houses, and the Army
were with them. On the other hand, the Bangali victims said
that local Paharis were not involved with the incident, but
rather outsiders.
Army's Statement:
We met with personnel at the Baghaihat Army Camp. When
asked about whether the Army Camp had any involvement with
the incidents, Commanding Officer Lt Col Imtiaz stated
'There is no question of any connection. We heard the
sounds 'Ujao! Ujao!'and shouting and quickly went there. I
sent forces. I also went there myself. I would definitely
say that outsider Paharis carried out this terror, those
who don't want to see Paharis and Bangalis living together
in peace and harmony'. He further informed us that it
appeared to him that prima facie the JSS or UPDF were
responsible for this incident. In response to a query about
whether any action had been taken re the activities of Ali
and Babul, Lt Col Imtiaz further stated that 'The Karbari
of Gongaram Mukh, Bilash Chakma had raised a complaint
about threatening Mongol Kumar Chakma, and after that we
held Ali for four days but then let him go. No-one else has
brought any complaints to us.' He also said that he would
take action if he found that our claim that Ali was using
the CO's name to terrorize or exploit the local inhabitants
is made out.
Our Recommendations:
We want to place a few recommendations on the basis of our
on-site inquiry, interviews with related persons and an
analysis of the situation is as follows:
1. Establish an independent and impartial Judicial Inquiry
Commission, required to publish its report within a fixed
time period; prosecute and provide exemplary punishment to
those found responsible for the attacks;
2. Provide adequate compensation and undertake prompt
rehabilitation of persons affected during the arson attacks
in Sajek Union, including reconstruction of houses;
3. To release the three persons held in the Baghaichori
Army Camp;
4. To cease all Bangali settlements in Sajek Union and the
three Hill Districts;
5. In accordance with the CHT Accord 1997
a) To activate the Land Commission, to review and settle
all land disputes;
b) To withdraw army camps from the CHT; and
c) To enable full functioning of the civil administration,
including through effective functioning of the CHT Regional
Council.
*****
The group of citizens which conducted an on-site inquiry at
Sajek Union in Baghaichori Upazila in Rangamati District
comprised of:
Syed Abul Maqsud, Writer, Journalist
Ziauddin Tareque Ali, Member, Shonmilito Shamajik Andolon
Pankaj Bhattacharya, Member, Shomilito Shamajik Andolon
Shameema Binte Rahman, Journalist
Supriyo Chakma, Prothom Alo, Rangamati
Jewel Dewan, Advocate, BLAST, Rangamati
Rubayet Ferdaus, Associate Professor, Dhaka University
Sara Hossain, Advocate, Supreme Court
Abu Ahmed Faizul Kabir, Investigator, Ain o Salish Kendra
KCing Marma, Student, Chittagong University
Rajiv Mir, Assistant Professor, Chittagong University
Anirban Saha, Investigator, Ain o Salish Kendra
* * *
Peace Campaign Group (PCG)
RZ-I-91/211, West Sagarpur, New Delhi-110046, India
Tel: + 91-11-2 539 8383
Telefax: + 91-11-2 539 4277
E-mail: pcgoffice@yahoo.co.in, pcgonline@gmail.com
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