Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1998, published 87th ILC session (1999)

Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention, 1957 (No. 107) - Bangladesh (Ratification: 1972)

1. The Committee notes the Government's report. It recalls that an armed conflict has been going on in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region between government forces and the Shanti Bahini (Peace Force), the armed wing of the Parbattya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS, United Peoples' Party of the CHT) for over 20 years. It notes with interest that a Peace Agreement was signed between the Government and the PCJSS on 2 December 1997, a copy of which the Committee has examined. The Committee hopes the Government will provide detailed information in its next report on the implementation of this Peace Agreement.

2. The Committee notes that, under section 1 of the General Chapter of the Peace Agreement, the CHT is recognized as a region inhabited by tribal peoples and that both sides recognize the need for protecting the characteristics and realizing the overall development of the CHT. It further notes that the Peace Agreement contains a framework for amending the Hill Tracts Districts Local Government Council Acts (Acts No. XIX, XX and XXI of 1989) providing the three district councils with more regulatory and administrative powers. It also provides for the establishment of a regional council, consisting of ex officio members of the district councils as well as other members, with reserved seats for tribals, indirectly elected by the district councils, with regulatory, supervisory and coordinating powers, as well as the establishment of a ministry on Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs with a tribal minister. The Committee notes that the Peace Agreement also contains provisions for the partial demilitarization of the CHT and amnesty for those armed members of the PCJSS who surrender their arms within a certain time. Finally, the Committee understands that legislation to implement the Peace Agreement has been adopted and is being implemented. The Committee requests the Government to provide it with copies of the relevant legislation and, taking into account the present observation, to clarify the relationship between the Peace Agreement and the new legislation and their respective force under national law, as well as to provide detailed information on their implementation.

3. Legislation in force. With reference to its previous comments regarding the concerns of tribal representatives over the possible repeal of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regulation (No. 1 of 1900) through the Hill Districts (Repeal and Enforcement of Law and Special Provision) Act, 1989, the Committee notes from the Government's report that a committee has been set up to examine the effects of this possible repeal. The Committee understands in this regard that the 1989 Act has not yet entered into force and that a Bill is before Parliament to repeal it, and requests the Government to keep it informed on the status of the Act. The Committee also notes that under section 11 of the Chapter of the Peace Agreement on the Hill Tracts Regional Parishad (council), the regional council to be established is to provide the Government with advice and proposals with regard to any contradiction that may exist between the 1900 Regulation and related laws and regulations, and the 1989 Local Government Council Acts. The Committee also notes that under the Peace Agreement the Government may formulate any law regarding the CHT subject to discussion and the advice of the regional council. In this regard, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the legal status of the consultation and advisory powers of the regional council, and on the way in which they have been exercised in practice.

4. Articles 11 and 14 of the Convention. With reference to its previous comments regarding the power of the district councils to allocate land rights, the Committee notes the Government's comment that a solution for this issue has been provided for in the Peace Agreement. The Committee also notes that, under section 26 of the Chapter of the Peace Agreement on Chittagong Hill Tracts Local Government/Hill District Council, no lands in a particular district can be leased out, sold, purchased or transferred without prior permission of the relevant district council, regardless of laws that may stipulate otherwise, with the exception of reserved forest, the Kaptai Hydro-electric Project Area, the Betbunia Satellite Station area, state-owned industrial enterprises and government-owned lands. Please indicate the proportion of the Chittagong Hill Tracts covered by this exception. The Committee also understands that the Government cannot acquire or transfer any lands, hills and forests under the jurisdiction of a district council without its prior approval.

5. In this respect, the Committee recalls the concern it has previously expressed that the Government should act with dispatch to resolve conflicting land claims between tribals and non-tribals in the CHT, taking into account the number of illegal settlements and the large number of tribals who had fled from their lands. While it is considering the matter in detail in a request addressed directly to the Government, the Committee requests the Government to provide a full report on developments in this regard. This should include information on the procedures established to resolve conflicts, and on their implementation.

6. Return of tribal refugees. The Committee notes that, as stated in section 1 of the Chapter of the Peace Agreement on Rehabilitation, General Amnesty and Other Issues, an agreement was signed between the Government and tribal refugee leaders on 9 March 1997 at Agartala, Tripura State, India, with regard to the return of tribal refugees staying in Tripura State. It notes that their return under this scheme will continue unaltered within the framework of the Peace Agreement and that the internally displaced tribals in the three hill districts will be rehabilitated through proper identification by a task force. In this respect, the Committee requests the Government to inform it of the total number of tribal refugees that fall within the rehabilitation scheme, the number of tribal refugees that have been repatriated under the Peace Agreement so far, the assistance they have received upon repatriation and any problems that may have been encountered during and after rehabilitation. It also requests the Government to inform it of the activities of the task force responsible for the rehabilitation of the internally displaced persons, including information on the definition and method used in ascertaining their status, their total number, the number rehabilitated, the assistance they have received and problems that may have been encountered during and after rehabilitation.

7. In addition to the tribal refugees in Tripura State, most of whom have been documented, the Committee understands that a substantial number of undocumented tribal refugees are staying in Mizoram State, India, and that some of these have also been repatriated and rehabilitated. The Committee requests the Government to provide any available information on the total number of undocumented tribal refugees, the number rehabilitated and the assistance they have received. Furthermore, the Committee has received reports that the added pressure of rehabilitated refugees on agricultural activity and food supplies has led to famine in certain areas of the CHT. It has also received reports that the non-deliverance of rehabilitation packages has contributed to this situation and that especially the returnees from Mizoram State have been the victim of this famine. The Committee understands that the Government has supplied food to the affected areas, and requests it to provide information on the number of people affected, and measures taken to alleviate the plight of these people, as well as information on the causes of the food shortage and measures envisaged to provide for a sustainable solution of the problem.

8. Articles 2 and 10. Alleged human rights violations. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes that the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment has stated that the continuing flow of information about abuses committed by the army in the CHT suggests that the Government should establish effective and independent means to monitor the army's counter-insurgency methods in the area (UN document E/CN.4/1997/7). In addition, the Committee continues to receive reports of human rights violations, including reports on violations committed after the signing of the Peace Agreement, against the tribal inhabitants of the CHT. These include reports on the abduction in the night of 11-12 June 1996, of Kalpana Chakma, the Organizing Secretary of the Hill Tracts Women Federation, which, the Committee understands, is of particular concern to the tribal inhabitants of the CHT since her fate apparently remains unknown and the final report of the three-member inquiry committee was not made public. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on measures taken or contemplated, especially within the framework of the Peace Agreement and its implementation legislation, to protect the life and property of the tribal inhabitants of the CHT.

9. Planning and execution of development projects (Articles 2, 6 and 27). The Committee understands that a Ministry on Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs, as well as an interim Regional Council, has been set up. It requests the Government to provide information on their composition, mandate and powers. It understands that, apart from its administrative and regulatory powers, the Ministry plays an important role in the formulation and planning of development programmes. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the activities of the Ministry relating to development, including any coordination and executive activities it may undertake. Please provide further information on the impact of the different development projects undertaken or under consideration on the socio-economic and cultural development of the tribal inhabitants of the CHT, including assistance from the International Labour Office which is being proposed, and the modalities for including tribal participation in the formulation and evaluation of the projects outlined in the report. The Committee would also appreciate receiving information on the modalities of tribal participation in the planning and implementation phases of programmes and projects undertaken under the auspices of the various international agencies.

10. The Committee is raising additional points in a request addressed directly to the Government.