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For peace in the CHT
Fardin Hasin
Published at 06:23 PM June 20, 2017
Last updated at 06:56 PM June 20, 2017
There can be peace in the region /DHAKA TRIBUNE
The conflict in the CHT is more complicated than it seems
There are two sides to the CHT debate, two largely incompatible narratives presented by two parties always at war with each other, at least figuratively.
One side sees the CHT as simply a territory issue, a land that is home to internationally-funded secessionist groups, a land that has to be protected from external invasion at all cost.
The other side sees it as just another example of neo-colonialism (or just colonialism), where a marauding group of foreigners set upon a land and its people to take away all its resources.
Different as these theories may be, it is ultimately the execution where both parties disagree the most: The territorial conservatives think the only solution is one regarding permanent military posting in CHT, and some liberals think the only way out is through immediate demilitarisation.
But is it really that simple?
Could we really measure the sufferings and the repressions occurring in the CHT by the sheer scale of territorial control? Or do we know for sure if the instant removal of military camps will get rid of the conflict and give healthy, normal lives to the indigenous population?
No and no
In the cruel dichotomy posited by the CHT conflict, there appear to be only two options: Either you are in for your country against foreign agents nurturing chaos, or you are in for the disfranchised Adivasis against a colonial establishment that seeks to delegitimise their rights to their own land.
Yet in real life, these aren’t necessarily the thoughts that dominate the mindsets of the who’s who of the CHT.
We cannot suppress their language and their roots in our schools and then deem them barbaric and unpatriotic
The oppression is alive in CHT
The who’s who of the CHT need not necessarily be the people in CHT. It would be tremendously easy to just go ahead and portray it all as a Bangali versus Adivasi fight.
Often that’s what meets our eyes, and our perception of who the good and bad guys are ends up transforming the debate into a yes/no question.
Yet there is simply no room to not accept, if not confront, that oppression is alive and well in the CHT. It’s happening right now, in both direct and subtle forms. And the oppressed are undeniably non-Bengalis in most cases.
Yet this doesn’t solve the debate. It merely polarises it.
Not that simple
For the truth is, it’s not Bangalis versus Adivasis. It’s one group of citizens receiving direct assistance from the civil and military bureaucracy, and the other group of citizens represented willingly or unwillingly by organisations that spend half the time fighting each other, both figuratively and militarily.
They occasionally attack the army too, but less so over time.
We have all heard rumours about some foreign funding behind these organisations. And we may have heard it coming from members of law enforcement agencies active in CHT.
Yet, the question of Adivasis being discriminated against cannot be reduced to a statement of foreign provocation. And seeing as how these organisations are in no way united, it would also be a false assumption to say that Adivasis are single-mindedly determined to get themselves a new state.
If they were, the majority of them would rally behind a party championing those ideals. That is clearly not the case.
What the people want
But what really is the case? There seems to be no clear way to discover what the Adivasis really want; no fair polling is ever done in those areas. Voting is otherwise non-existent in our country.
So the question of what Adivasis want is rather multi-dimensional (I must apologise for representing what I perceive as their answers without their expressed approval. I have not met as many Adivasis as I would have liked to, before presenting these crude answers).
On the one hand, they want completely achievable things such as peace, prosperity, and civil rights.
On the other hand, some of them seem to desire a time before the settlers came in. This won’t be possible. Just as it will be impossible for Bangalis in the CHT to live and thrive without integrating with Adivasis.
For Bengalis in CHT is a reality. The dispossession of Adivasis is a greater reality.
The repression of their cultural, religious, and agricultural identity is the true existential threat to our country, not the fringe secessionist groups.
We cannot suppress their language and their roots in our schools and then deem them barbaric and unpatriotic for not loving Bangladesh (the way we want them to).
We cannot deny them their fair share of the profit found from CHT.
Stability in the region
Now we are at the primary question, that of capital. The lands of the CHT have many resources to offer. Who will be the ones to capitalise on them?
So far, it’s been only the army and the BGB. And that’s not just in CHT; it’s in the entire country.
The actual reality here is that since the government quite clearly lacks public support, it’s dependent on the army and bureaucracy to survive.
That means granting higher and higher salaries to public officials.
The CHT is no different.
The answer I can conclude with is a limited one. But it’s not without merit. Removing the army from the CHT right here right now would destabilise the region, but it may need to be done eventually.
Most importantly, we must prepare a social policy where Adivasis are treated as equal citizens. And we must prepare an economic policy which gives equal opportunities to Bangalis and Adivasis.
Fardin Hasin is a freelance contributor.
http://www.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2017/06/20/for-peace-in-the-cht/
Fardin Hasin
Published at 06:23 PM June 20, 2017
Last updated at 06:56 PM June 20, 2017
There can be peace in the region /DHAKA TRIBUNE
The conflict in the CHT is more complicated than it seems
There are two sides to the CHT debate, two largely incompatible narratives presented by two parties always at war with each other, at least figuratively.
One side sees the CHT as simply a territory issue, a land that is home to internationally-funded secessionist groups, a land that has to be protected from external invasion at all cost.
The other side sees it as just another example of neo-colonialism (or just colonialism), where a marauding group of foreigners set upon a land and its people to take away all its resources.
Different as these theories may be, it is ultimately the execution where both parties disagree the most: The territorial conservatives think the only solution is one regarding permanent military posting in CHT, and some liberals think the only way out is through immediate demilitarisation.
But is it really that simple?
Could we really measure the sufferings and the repressions occurring in the CHT by the sheer scale of territorial control? Or do we know for sure if the instant removal of military camps will get rid of the conflict and give healthy, normal lives to the indigenous population?
No and no
In the cruel dichotomy posited by the CHT conflict, there appear to be only two options: Either you are in for your country against foreign agents nurturing chaos, or you are in for the disfranchised Adivasis against a colonial establishment that seeks to delegitimise their rights to their own land.
Yet in real life, these aren’t necessarily the thoughts that dominate the mindsets of the who’s who of the CHT.
We cannot suppress their language and their roots in our schools and then deem them barbaric and unpatriotic
The oppression is alive in CHT
The who’s who of the CHT need not necessarily be the people in CHT. It would be tremendously easy to just go ahead and portray it all as a Bangali versus Adivasi fight.
Often that’s what meets our eyes, and our perception of who the good and bad guys are ends up transforming the debate into a yes/no question.
Yet there is simply no room to not accept, if not confront, that oppression is alive and well in the CHT. It’s happening right now, in both direct and subtle forms. And the oppressed are undeniably non-Bengalis in most cases.
Yet this doesn’t solve the debate. It merely polarises it.
Not that simple
For the truth is, it’s not Bangalis versus Adivasis. It’s one group of citizens receiving direct assistance from the civil and military bureaucracy, and the other group of citizens represented willingly or unwillingly by organisations that spend half the time fighting each other, both figuratively and militarily.
They occasionally attack the army too, but less so over time.
We have all heard rumours about some foreign funding behind these organisations. And we may have heard it coming from members of law enforcement agencies active in CHT.
Yet, the question of Adivasis being discriminated against cannot be reduced to a statement of foreign provocation. And seeing as how these organisations are in no way united, it would also be a false assumption to say that Adivasis are single-mindedly determined to get themselves a new state.
If they were, the majority of them would rally behind a party championing those ideals. That is clearly not the case.
What the people want
But what really is the case? There seems to be no clear way to discover what the Adivasis really want; no fair polling is ever done in those areas. Voting is otherwise non-existent in our country.
So the question of what Adivasis want is rather multi-dimensional (I must apologise for representing what I perceive as their answers without their expressed approval. I have not met as many Adivasis as I would have liked to, before presenting these crude answers).
On the one hand, they want completely achievable things such as peace, prosperity, and civil rights.
On the other hand, some of them seem to desire a time before the settlers came in. This won’t be possible. Just as it will be impossible for Bangalis in the CHT to live and thrive without integrating with Adivasis.
For Bengalis in CHT is a reality. The dispossession of Adivasis is a greater reality.
The repression of their cultural, religious, and agricultural identity is the true existential threat to our country, not the fringe secessionist groups.
We cannot suppress their language and their roots in our schools and then deem them barbaric and unpatriotic for not loving Bangladesh (the way we want them to).
We cannot deny them their fair share of the profit found from CHT.
Stability in the region
Now we are at the primary question, that of capital. The lands of the CHT have many resources to offer. Who will be the ones to capitalise on them?
So far, it’s been only the army and the BGB. And that’s not just in CHT; it’s in the entire country.
The actual reality here is that since the government quite clearly lacks public support, it’s dependent on the army and bureaucracy to survive.
That means granting higher and higher salaries to public officials.
The CHT is no different.
The answer I can conclude with is a limited one. But it’s not without merit. Removing the army from the CHT right here right now would destabilise the region, but it may need to be done eventually.
Most importantly, we must prepare a social policy where Adivasis are treated as equal citizens. And we must prepare an economic policy which gives equal opportunities to Bangalis and Adivasis.
Fardin Hasin is a freelance contributor.
http://www.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2017/06/20/for-peace-in-the-cht/
