'CHT may go beyond control'

The situation in Chittagong Hill Tracts might go beyond control within the next five to six months if the government did not show “visible” progress in implementing the CHT peace accord, Santu Larma said yesterday.
The hills people do not want to hear promises anymore, they want deeds, he said.
Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma, popularly known as Santu Larma, was speaking at a press briefing after a meeting of the CHT peace accord implementation committee at the office of the deputy chief leader of parliament, Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, who is also the chairman of the implementation committee.
At its fourth meeting, the committee agreed to place a bill for amending the CHT Land Dispute Resolution Commission Act, 2001, in the current budget session of parliament.
At the last meeting, the national committee on implementation of Chittagong Hill Tracts peace accord had finalised a draft for amending the 2001 act with 13 proposals, but the land ministry sought fresh opinion on three proposals.
At yesterday's meeting, the committee withdrew the proposal for handing over the functions of land commission to CHT affairs ministry, but stuck to the other two points, said Santu Larma, chief of pro-peace body Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS) and also a member of the committee.
He said, “Instead of taking any effective steps to implement the accord, the state rulers have been deceiving the hill people for the last 14 years. If the government does not pay attention to this, the longstanding problems in CHT may get worse.”
Nothing significant had happened since the peace accord was signed between the government and PCJSS in 1997, alleged Larma.
After the meeting, Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury said they had almost completed the tasks for amending the land commission act. The bill might be placed in the House after discussions with the prime minister.
Asked whether the land commission would be instructed to keep its activities stalled as it had stirred controversy among the hill people, she said it would also be finalised after consultation with the premier.
Santu Larma said he had also informed the committee about the “criminal activities” of the United People's Democratic Front and asked to government to ban the outfit, which to him, was working against the treaty at direct support of some quarters in the government.
He said the committee chair had taken the responsibility to convey the issue to the top echelon of the state.
Jatindra Lal Tripura, chairman of Task Force on Rehabilitation of the Repatriated Refugees also attended yesterday's meeting. Prime minister's adviser on foreign affairs Gowher Rizvi was also present there on special invitation.
Tension brewed afresh in the hills after the CHT land dispute resolution commission had announced that it might hear cases by way of “special measures” due to repeated crisis of quorum for its meetings. Regional political parties are reported to be preparing to resist the commission move. Commission members from hill communities have been boycotting the commission proceedings since February 2011, demanding an amendment to the 2001 act that set up the commission.
The three political parties in the region, the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti, the United People's Democratic Front and the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti (MN Larma) said they would not accept any such move.