The ruling class has resorted to a "colonial system" to administrate and oppress indigenous people in the country's hill region, said Parbatya Chattogram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS) President Santu Larma today.
Santu Larma, formally known as Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma, said hill people are deprived of their belongings and facing existential crisis.
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He said a conspiracy has been hatched and is now well established which saw the ruling class incentivizing people from the plain to make settlement in the hill region and snatch away what belongs to indigenous people.
Santu Larma was addressing a discussion at the capital's Liberation War Museum, jointly organised by PCJSS and Bangladesh Adivasi Forum, marking the 25th anniversary of signing of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Peace Accord.
The accord was signed on December 2 in 1997 between the government and PCJSS.
Santu Larma said the accord was achieved by indigenous people as a result of their struggle but its full implementation as promised by the government is a far cry now.
The accord will not see the desired light if democracy and harmony are not established, he said.
He added it took about 15 years for the government to amend the CHT Land Dispute Resolution Commission Act formulated in 2001 in line with the accord while a set of rules for the act's proper implementation now seems like "building castle in the air".
He made a call for a greater unity to wage stronger movement to achieve the due rights.
Santu Larma blamed the government for "creating division" among indigenous people and called upon to establish rule of law in the CHT region.
Addressing the discussion, Workers Party President and lawmaker Rashed Khan Menon said the CHT Peace Accord was signed as a means of resolving political issues in the region.
However, when it came to implementing the accord, it was not seen "politically but through the lens of security", he added.
Prof Mesbah Kamal, vice chancellor of Bangladesh University, said the CHT accord brought the end to an armed conflict in the region but question still remains to what extent peace has been established there.
He also mentioned that problems of the region are political and those need to be resolved politically.
Rights activist Khushi Kabir said in the past indigenous women of the region faced torture and violence and there is worrying situation at present which leads to think that such incident may recur in the future.
Ruhin Hossain Prince, general secretary of Communist Party of Bangladesh, stressed the need for a specific roadmap to implement the accord fully.
Journalist Sohrab Hasan and indigenous community leaders Sanjeeb Drong and Rabindranath Soren, among others, spoke at the discussion.
