Emergence of new rebel group, the Kuki-China National Front, is blamed for an uptick in unrest in Chittagong Hill Tracts
Christians and a rights body have called for justice and peace in Bangladesh’s Chittagong Hill Tracts after recent violence killed at least four people and displaced hundreds in the restive region.
A laborer was killed when a roadside bomb exploded in Bandarban district on May 23, local media reported.
Earlier, on May 17, a member of the largely Christian Tripura ethnic minority was killed and another injured in a bomb blast in the Salopipara area of the same district.
On May 16, two soldiers were killed and two injured in a bomb blast and shooting by the Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF) insurgent group, according to a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations Directorate of the Bangladesh military.
Jonathan Tripura, a pastor of a local Baptist Church said the violence has forced more villagers to flee the area.
He said they have joined hundreds of other villagers who fled the area in April after eight ethnic Christians were killed in a shootout.
“More villagers have fled since the outbreak of this latest violence. People have taken refuge with their relatives in other districts ... some have even crossed the border into India,” Tripura told UCA News.
He said he is currently at a cousin’s house in Bandarban town.
The KNF is a newly emerged rebel group supposedly seeking to fight for the rights of the Zo people — the ethnic minority Bawm, Lusai, Pangkho, Khyang, Khumi and Mru tribes.
It is believed to have connections with the Kuki-Chin National Army, an insurgent group active in Myanmar and India.
Media reports say a significant number of KNF members are Christians. The outfit has been involved in turf wars with several ethnic armed groups in the Buddhist-majority region.
Bangladeshi security forces have accused the KNF of training Islamist extremists, prompting raids on alleged hideouts and training camps since last October.
When asked about Christian involvement in the insurgency, Tripura said he deplored the violence.
"I don't know if they are Christians or not. Peace or rights are never established by force of arms, regardless of religion. I don't support people who talk about rights with guns,” he said.
Emdadul Haque, chief of Thanchi police station said security has been beefed up as a result of the latest violence.
“We are trying to provide maximum security for people in the area. But armed groups have become quite active and now they are laying mines, which is causing fear among residents,” Haque told UCA News
Yaithai Bawm, 26, an ethnic Bwam group member and father of two, said he fled his home 20 days ago and was living with a relative in the neighboring Rangamati district.
“After seeing the dead bodies of the eight people who died in April, I decided to leave the village,” Bawm, a Baptist Christian, told UCA News.
He said his family is struggling to make ends meet as his relative is not well-off.
“We are in a tough situation. This won’t change if peace is not restored to allow us to return home.”
The rights group, the International Chittagong Hill Tracts Commission, expressed concern over the ongoing unrest and called for the protection of civilians in the region.
In a statement on May 23, the group deplored the violence and accused the military of using “human shields” during operations against insurgents.
The commission urged the authorities to launch “a prompt, impartial, and effective investigation," release any civilians taken for military operations and use all feasible means “to avoid and minimize civilian harm.”
The Chittagong Hill Tracts is a hilly, forested region comprising Bandarban, Rangamati, and Khagrachhari districts. For decades, it has been the only tribal-dominant region in the Muslim-majority country. The majority of about a dozen tribes are Buddhists and some groups such as Tripura, Bawm and Marma are largely Christian.
The region has witnessed deadly violence since the 1970s when tribal groups formed an insurgent outfit to demand autonomy and resist the state-sponsored migration of Bengali Muslims.
The insurgency left hundreds killed and thousands displaced until the signing of a peace treaty in 1997.
However, some tribals opposed the treaty and continued the struggle by forming another rebel group.
The group split in recent years, triggering a new wave of violence and a series of turf war killings.
Help us keep UCA News independent
The Church in Asia needs objective and independent journalism to speak the truth about the Church and the state.
With a network of professionally qualified journalists and editors across Asia, UCA News is just about meeting that need. But professionalism does not come cheap. We depend on you, our readers, to help maintain our independence and seek that truth.
A small donation of US$2 a month would make a big difference in our quest to achieve our goal.
Share your comments
SPECIAL EBOOKS
