previously harmonious communities. Some linked these to regional trends pointing to greater Islamic, Buddhist and Hindu fundamentalism in South Asia, and some linked this to the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar, and the ongoing population upheaval of CHT through the arrival of Bengali Muslims. Whatever the mix of factors, it was clear that this was an emergent concern for indigenous leaders and students alike:
“We have two ways to survive here in our country. One, all indigenous people are converted to Muslim, or we have to fight against the state’s imbalanced power, or we have to die. To be a Muslim, or to die? Which one? This is my conclusion.”
try to incorporate some of these learnings in order to encourage all groups to come to the table in order to implement the CHT Accord.
Women’s Rights
Violence against women is an issue in CHT, and incidents often attract great media and civil society attention. While Bengalis and indigenous peoples remain divided on many issues within CHT, there is widespread agreement on the need to curb violence against women, and often bi-partisan support for women’s rights issues among civil society actors. This means that this could be an area of opportunity for improving Bengali-indigenous relations.
Education and Job Opportunities
While the issue of state development in CHT was often a prickly one, students were quick to praise the use of quotas in helping to improve access to education and jobs for indigenous students. This may represent an area in which the government could work to repair their relations with indigenous peoples. In addition, given the willingness of the state to work on these issues, and the acceptance of the local population of their support in this area, this could also be an area through which more participatory, locally-driven, and sustainable development programming could be trialled, potentially providing a framework for other areas of development if successful. Gains in education may also provide an opportunity to talk further about education reforms, and the way in which the history of indigenous peoples in Bangladesh is taught in schools.
Recognition of Indigenous Identity and the Language Study
While recognition of indigenous identity by official means remains contentious, there is a window of opportunity presented by the upcoming survey of languages in Bangladesh. This survey was often cited as a good opportunity to raise awareness about the existence of many diverse indigenous languages in Bangladesh, and in
turn the people who speak them. Knowing the tight link between language and identity, this study perhaps presents an opportunity to push for greater recognition of the linguistic diversity of Bangladesh, as a stepping-stone to achieving greater recognition of cultural and ethnic diversity too.
Image 4. Aftermath of an attack on indigenous peoples in Khagrachari in 2013. 74
74 Photo sourced from http://chtnewsupdate.blogspot.sg/2013/08/massive-communal-attack- by-bengali.html.
P O L I C Y R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S
The policy analysis team has segmented policy recommendations into short- and long-term, while specifying the main actors for every recommended action. Specific timeline for short-term recommendation is under five years, while long-term recommendation is five to fifteen years. While state or non-state actors will take the lead on a particular action, the recommendations also allow a certain level of flexibility and collaboration. The approach was adopted to accommodate a cohesive and structured policy-development with clearly outlined key messages that also aim to alleviate factors of identity crisis. The recommendations are summarized in Table 2.
Table 2. Snapshot of the Recommendations for the CHT.
ISSUE TIMELINE ACTIONS ACTORS
Education:
Strengthen teaching of mother-tongue languages and history to build recognition and acceptance
Short- term
Develop and adopt policies that enable and allow CHT pupils to complete basic education in their mother-tongue language
State: MoE and MoCA
Conduct pilot studies within CHT on best way to learn
indigenous language State & Non-State: MoE
& Local Communities Establish baseline data to improve teaching practices in
the CHT State & Non-State: MoE
or CSOs Revise curriculum and provide of teaching materials and
training for indigenous language teachers State: MoE
Promote of teaching jobs to indigenous teachers State: MoE and MoCA Run pilot schools to teach in indigenous languages State: MoE
Examine and revise on curriculum and teaching materials in Bangladesh history
Train teachers nationwide on teaching history State & Non-State: MoE with NGOs and CSOs Long-
term Scale-up schools teaching in indigenous languages in
other primary schools State: MoE
Recognise indigenous languages in the constitution State: Bangladesh Government Safety and Security:
Improve relations between indigenous peoples and the military, and
improve the role of
Short-
term Establish community relations coordinator within the CHT
military and police units State: Ministry of Home
Affairs and the Military Establish dedicated indigenous cadetship or traineeship
within the military and police forces operating in CHT
the civilian police in
CHT Train military and police officials on community-sensitive
policing and conflict resolution and mediation techniques Non-State: BRAC and CSOs
Initiate and facilitate regular courses and trainings military and provide platforms for discussions and exchanges of opinions between the military, indigenous community, and civil society
Non-State: BRAC
Long-
term Modernise the military (e.g., shift focus to peacekeeping,
border security, arms control) State: Military Extend learnings from international peacekeeping training
to entire military force Land: Redesign the
Land Commission to effectively address land-related
disputes
Short-
term Re-establish the Land Commission as a fully autonomous
and independent body State: Ministry of Land
and Land Commission Recruit a competent and impartial Chairperson of the
Land Commission State: Land Commission
Educate and train Land Commission's administration and leadership on land governance
State & Non-State: Land Commission and UN- Habitat
Extend Land Commission office to Rangamati and
Bandarban districts State: Land Commission
Long-
term Establish ethnically and gender inclusive leadership, with additional involvement of Bengali and indigenous peoples’ representatives
State: Land Commission
Strengthen the role of female participation in the land
dispute-settling State & Non-State: Land
Commission and CSOs Shift the Land Commission's judicial-type of functioning State & Non-State: Land
Commission and CHT Community
Facilitate continuous dialogue between victims and
perpetrators State & Non-State: Land
Commission, UNDP, BRAC and CSOs
Establish an updated database on land in CHT State & Non-State: Land Commission, Other
Government Agencies, UN Habitat
Awareness: Sensitize media to develop greater ethnic unity within Bangladesh
Short-
term Develop and establish a positive campaign on national
identity Non-State: Social Media
Influencers, Traditional Media Networks, CSOs and UNDP
Engagement: Bridge Bengalis and
indigenous peoples to foster
cooperation and trust
Short-
term Strengthen women groups and develop cross-cutting
advocacy efforts through conversations and discussions Non-State: UNDP, BRAC and CSOs
Conduct exchange programmes between upper secondary students in CHT and students across Bangladesh, of Bengali and indigenous origin
Non-State: NGOs and CSOs
Provide financial and/or organisational support for youth- driven entrepreneurship and development initiatives in CHT
Support the strengthening of existing shell youth organisations
Sustainable
Development Plan:
Political Participation, Capacity Building, Advocacy and Development
Long-
term Remove party requirements and indirect discrimination for
the indigenous peoples to participate in the political arena State: Government Capacitate and encourage indigenous peoples to take
part in political life State & Non-State:
Government and CSOs Improve implementation capacity and transparency
(e.g., series of training activities, consultancy) Non-State: CSOs Financial inclusion of indigenous peoples through access
to industries and skills upgrading State: Government and CSOs
Incorporate environmental impact assessment as project component
Include mitigation plan for initiatives that entail negative environmental externality