We extend our greetings to all people in the Chattogram hill districts on the occasion of completion of 26 years of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Peace Accord.
On December 2 in 1997, the historic CHT Peace Accord was signed without the mediation of any third party, with a view to stopping bloody conflicts in the CHT. Simultaneously, we are also the CHT Peace Accord was signed between the CHT Affairs National Committee and the PCJSS at the initiative of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s worthy daughter Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, ending long-standing conflicts.
Sheikh Hasina’s this bold initiative will be memorable for peaceful settlement of disputes. All hope that CHT will be moving forward in development and progress in the continuation of the peace accord.
We think it is a rare happening in the world history. This peace accord brought an end to the long-term bloody racial skirmishes in the CHT region and established the trend of peace and development there.
The ruling Awami League led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has carried out huge development activities for the people living in the hill areas in the last 15 years. No other government did such development in this area in the past.
CHT will
be moving
forward in development and progress
in the
continuation
of the peace accord
The people of CHT, comprising three hill districts of Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachari in the south-east of Bangladesh, never witnessed such huge development works in the past. After the after the assassination of Bangabandhu, we saw undemocratic governments creating divisions between the Bangali and the hill people for their self-interest instead of maintaining social stability there.We also witnessed the horror killings, tortures and injustice continued haunting the hilly people. Grabbing of land and wealth and misuse of the state resources had also turned the region vulnerable.
On the other when BNP came to the power in 2001, the BNP-Jamaat government strongly opposed the accord and tried to create unrest in the area again but they failed to do so. However, after coming to the power in 2009, the Awami League government has again started implementing massive development programmes in all sectors, including education, health, electricity, communications, infrastructure and mobile networks in the region.
Many bridges have been built in the is region. The government has also established a Science and Technology University and a Medical College in Rangamati. Various activities are also being carried out by the Land Commission formed with the aim of settling land disputes.
Development activities are continuing in the three hill districts through Chattogram Hill Tracts Development Board and Hill District Councils. Therefore, CHT is no more a backward locality because of the timely steps taken by her government.
We think the people of CHT region have been able to solve this long-standing problem and are able to reach a solution. We all must thank Sheikh Hasina if we compare the situation in 1997.
The area has progressed so much only because of Sheikh Hasina’s sincerity and compassion. However, the full implementation of the peace accord has not been impeded yet due to bureaucratic tangle and other tactics despite passing of 26 years of the deal.
Therefore, the government will have to be more sincere in implementing the deal inked with PCJSS. In this regard, the CHT people will have to cooperate with the government for full implementation of the CHT Peace Accord and thus will build a prosperous, happy and peaceful ‘Sonar Bangla’ of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman through socio-economic development of the hill regions.
