Amendment to CHT accord’s provisions contradicting Constitution demanded

People of Chittagong hill tracts today urged the government to amend the provisions in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Peace Accord that "contradicts the Bangladesh's Constitution and are discriminatory".

At a roundtable organised by the Chittagong Hill Tracts Citizens' Forum at the National Press Club, participants said the CHT Peace Accord, signed between the government and the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti (PCJSS) in 1997, had raised hopes for ending the hill region's conflict.

However, 27 years later, peace has not been restored in the hills and five armed terrorist groups have emerged, they said.

Mustafa Al Ijaj, general secretary of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Citizens' Forum, Dhaka unit, alleged that several armed groups, including Santu Larma's PCJSS, have turned the Chittagong Hill Tracts into a haven for extortion through their terrorist activities.

"Extortion has become a system there, with around Tk400 crore being extorted annually from various businesses," he said adding if extortion is not paid, these groups resort to murder, abduction, torture, and other forms of violence.

He criticised the PCJSS president for not participating in national days such as International Mother Language Day, Martyrs' Day, Independence Day, and Victory Day, despite enjoying the status of a state minister.

He alleged that the CHT Accord gave additional benefits to the indigenous communities but regional organisations and their supporters have been using this opportunity to spread hate and anti-national propaganda against Bangladesh's national consciousness, sovereignty, unity, and development.

Some clauses of the accord have already been challenged in the High Court, which declared many of them unconstitutional, he said.

He said the constitution of Bangladesh has been amended 16 times, but the CHT Accord has yet to be revised. "No agreement or law can supersede the constitution, as all laws and agreements must fall under its framework."

Keynote speakers included Barrister Asaduzzaman Fuad, joint secretary of the AB Party, Engineer Alkas Al Mamun Bhuiyan, president of Chittagong Hill Tracts Citizens' Forum, and others such as freedom fighter Moniruzzaman Monir and Assistant Attorney General of the Supreme Court Advocate Alam Khan.