Karma pa

Khenpo Sogyal followed with a short, often humorous speech in which he spoke of the Seventeenth Karmapa as one "who makes the impossible possible" , and echoed the commitment of all present: We will follow the Gyalwang Karmapa in this life, and even in the next life. He reflected on how, within a month of the inauguration of Vajra Vidya Institute by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in December 1999, the Gyalwang Karmapa had arrived safely in India. Since then he had blessed the Institute with his presence each year. The simple ceremony concluded with the aspiration prayer for the well-being of Tibet and dedication prayers. THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF THE SCHOOL ANTHEM. Midst a retinue of eighty thousand gods and humans, The protector Shakyamuni discoursed at this place, Turning the Dharma Wheel of the four truths At the Deer Park, this blessed and auspicious ground. Here at this seat of our forefathers, the Kagyu lamas, Shines the sun of Dharma, sutra and tantra in union. A thousand lotus petals of learning blossom forth; prayers and activity For the flourishing of all Buddha's teachings converge here. Each and every compassionate intention Of the lord and lama Rigpe Dorje Is accomplished at all times, day and night. May this auspicious glory fill the entire world! This was written by Karmapa Ogyen Trinle at the request of Khenpo Lobzang Tendzin on the anniversary of Milarepa's passing, March 17, 2011.

His Holiness 17th Karmapa Teachings

Gyalwang Karmapa Teaches on  “The Middling Stages of Meditation” India Habitat Centre, New Delhi 22nd – 23rd April, 2011 The event was hosted by The Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, a not for profit, non-sectarian, non-denominational organization established with the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to His Holiness in 1989.  Gyalwang Karmapa taught for three sessions exploring themes from Acharya Kamalashila’s text “The Middling Stages of Meditation”, and answering general questions from the audience. There are certain fundamental themes in Buddhism, stated Gyalwang Karmapa, in his  general introduction. These include the view of cause and effect and dependent origination, which form   the basis of the Buddhist teachings;  samsara, the cycle of existence,  which is the cause of suffering, and the path of cessation  by which one can achieve the causes for liberation or nirvana.   Common to all sentient beings is the desire for happiness and the wish to avoid suffering, but in order to fulfill  these, they need to understand and subsequently abandon the causes of suffering.  Human beings are particularly fortunate because they possess human intellect which should be used first to investigate the causes of happiness and then to establish happiness. Gyalwang Karmapa suggested that it is failure to apply human intelligence coupled with lack of compassion which has led to many of the problems the world is experiencing today. Often actions were fuelled by the opposite of compassion−malicious intent−reflecting not only a basic lack of moral ethics,  but also  a failure to understand the true sources of happiness. We do not perceive our essential interconnectedness. Even ethical behaviour is often prompted by self-interest,   or else narrow-minded in  scope, limited to friends or family, not encompassing all sentient beings. It is as if we are trapped in an iron cage, a prison of our own making; this is essentially  the cage of grasping at a truly existent self. First we are attached to the “I“ and then to “my” − my possessions, my family, my friends, and so forth. We shut the door on those outside, and we are trapped inside. A prisoner only has access to a very few people, and, in the same way, trapped inside this iron cage, we do not know how to connect to others, and we dismiss their importance.  It’s our responsibility to destroy this prison, this iron cage of self-grasping, yet, unfortunatley, we are content in the present, and fail to comprehend how this cage is limiting our freedom. The method to liberate ourselves from this cage requires the combination of  wisdom with  love and compassion. Focusing specifically on the text, Gyalwang Karmapa then talked about  meditation on the Four Immeasureable Thoughts: May all sentient beings have happiness and its causes. May they be free from suffering and its causes. May they never be parted from the sublime bliss free from suffering. May they dwell in great equanimity, free from attachment and aversion to those near and far. The desire to benefit others is rooted in our sense of loving kindness, and the Four Immeasureable Thoughts begin with the wish for the happiness of all beings, which is the expression of loving kindness. The text suggests that we should use our mother as the example, because, usually, this view is first developed towards people close to us, and she has shown us great kindness. We should, however, also reflect on how all sentient beings have been like mothers to us −without them we would have neither food nor clothing, underlining the essential interdependence and interconnectedness which is fundamental to life!  This is an essential contemplation for Dharma practitioners, because it is the basis from which we can understand the intrinsic value and importance of all sentient beings. In addition, we need to recognise the commonality of all sentient beings in wanting  to attain happiness and avoid suffering. The second immeasureable thought is the wish that all beings be free from suffering,  which is the view  of compassion. Referring to his own experience, Gyalwang Karmapa illustrated how this freedom from suffering is an actual benefit in our power to give others.  “When I was a child,” he said, “ I used to eat meat, but a few years ago  I saw a documentary about the suffering of animals when they are slaughtered, and after that I had no choice but to become a vegetarian.” How long would it take to realise the suffering of other sentient beings? Did people have to wait until the Pacific Ocean turned red with blood or animals could speak in their own defence?  Nor was developing a sense of compassion contingent on disasters; there was no need to wait for 2012, and the world to be destroyed, quipped His Holiness. Compassion has to be voluntary and developed in a natural, almost instinctive way. The next two immeasureables are the wishes for all beings to possess  immeasureable happiness and immeasureable equanimity. The first of these is the antidote to envy and jealousy. It was very important for practitioners to develop the capacity to take delight in others’ happiness, to rejoice in their qualities and achievements  and not feel antagonism in the face of others’ success. First, though, we  should meditate on immeasureable equanimity, the fourth immeasureable.  Most people do not have actual enemies but there are people who might be termed “false enemies”, those who have harmed us in some way, real or imagined,  towards whom we feel anger or resentment. This is the point at which we need to develop  loving kindness towards them. Gyalwang Karmapa emphasised that Dharma practice is neither a  therapy session nor a kind of spiritual massage, but should rather  be compared to an extensive training programmme, such as soldiers undergo, which has to be practiced in all aspects of our lives, not just when we are sitting on the meditation seat in the shrine room. There could be many inconsistencies in developing loving kindness and compassion; for example, some might develop love and compassion towards others, but not towards close family members. It was  also just as important to meditate on love and compassion towards neutral people, those for whom we had no particular feelings, neither negative or positive. Ultimately, our loving kindess and compassion should embrace all sentient beings.  If we wanted to lead meaningful lives, we had to break out of the iron cage, transcend ourselves, and live as part of everything. In the second session, His Holiness considered the importance of bodhichitta and mindfulness. He began by acknowledging how most ancient Asian spriritual traditions have profound instructions. But having the teachings is not enough, he commented, they have to be practised, and the way of practising depends on the capacity of the practitioner. Comapring the other Buddhist vehicles and the Great Vehicle [Mahayana], His Holiness explained that, rather than seeking personal liberation from samsara, the unique contribution of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition is its commitment to transporting all sentient beings to liberation.  All great beings shared this wish.  Beings could be divided into three capacities or levels, and different practices existed for each of these levels of attainment. It was foolish to  try to attempt to practise beyond your level; one should train in the basics first as  it is impossible to bring benefit to all sentinet beings until you have tamed your own mind.  For the Mahayana practitioner, however, the  root of the path is bodhicitta, the mind of enlightenment -  the fundamental cause and condition of the Mahayana vehicle.  Thus it is crucial that we understand the reasons for developing bodhicitta. An example, often given in this context, is that of a family, asleep when their house catches fire. A member of the family makes his escape to safety, but on the threshold, with one foot in the house and one foot outside, he remembers the rest of the family, and goes back inside to save them. Hence bodhicitta has two aspects: liberating others and liberating one’s self. To think only of the benefit of others would be to fall into the extremes. Bodhicitta strives for complete enlightenment. Why? If we compare a fully-enlightened person, a Buddha, and someone who is still training on the path, there is a difference in capacity. The Buddha has perfected his capacity.  As you cannot benefit every being by a single method, the Buddha needs to be omniscient in terms of knowing all phenomena. This omniscience does not mean knowing how many different insects there are, rather it means knowing all the methods which can lead to the liberation of sentinet beings.   This all-knowing mind, knowing all phenomena, starts by placing attention on each phenomenon.  There are many different paths and methods for bringing sentient beings to happiness and  freeing them from suffering. Some originate in spiritual traditions and others do not. Yet, it is important that we respect and understand them all,  because each of them reveals a path for a person of a certain outlook or disposition.  However, there is often confusion over the nature of happiness. The things we view as happiness− the happiness of everyday experience−is contaminated happiness, affected by the suffering of change,  and similar to  the relief we feel when we put down a heavy load.  Only nirvana or Buddhahood is true happiness. Some people look for happiness in external things but this is not lasting happiness. For example you buy a new car and experience a sense of happiness and pleasure for a few days, and then the feeling fades.  Thus, we confuse ultimate happiness and a  feeling of temporary pleasure.  Or we throw a party or go fishing or hiking. Again, the sense of happiness is temporary becasue it is dependent on external conditions. We should, instead, use our intelligence to analyse what leads to true happiness, and then we will realise that in order to be happy, in order to develop natural, effortless happiness, we need to look inside ourselves. For example, when we meditate we feel peaceful, because it’s like coming home; our mind is relaxed, not worrying about the past or the future, but focussed on the present moment.  This state is not dependent on external conditions.  However, it is not possible to spend the day in meditative concentration! We are busy people!  We need a method which we can use in our daily lives.  In essence, we need to remain mindful, whatever we are doing, and use the analytical part of our mind, to observe whatever arises, and then, at the end of each day, we should ask ourselves, “What have I done today?”. Even if we can only develop mindfulness for some part of each day or some activities, it will make our lives meaningful. In the final session, Gyalwang Karmapa  discussed the two forms of meditation − insight meditation and calm-abiding− and the meaning of emptiness. Short-temperedness, he commented, seems to be on the rise in the 21st century – there are so many situations in which we begin to feel irritated  and even lose our tempers for example  when queueing in the hospital or the post office.  Meditation is a way to overcome this tendency. There are two methods of training in calm-abiding meditation or shamatha. One is in formal practice in a quiet place where we adopt the vajra position, and focus our mind. The second way, however, is to develop mindfulness in whatever daily activity we are engaged in – being present in that moment− whether we are eating or working, driving, and so forth. We need to practise  both  methods in order to calm our minds. Sometimes if we go out into the countryside or into the mountains,  places where there are few distractions, we can relax and rest from our daily life, and let our minds be at ease. . Similarly, daily meditation practice can become a way to rest our minds. In our busy lives, we  do not always have opportunity to go on retreat, and it is often difficult to find time for a formal daily meditation practice in our daily lives; for this reason we need to  consider how we can bring meditation into our daily activities.   Of course it is good to have a daily morning and evening formal practice of prayers and meditation −like the soldiers mentioned in the first session who are prepared for battle through extensive training exercises. When we undertake an exercise regime we are advised that the warm-up phase is most important. Daily meditation practise functions as both the warm-up and also as the recharging of our batteries. Being mindful throughout the day in all situations ensured that we use our time meaningfully, not wasting it. What then is meditation? The word in Tibetan means cultivating the habit or becoming accustomed to something. Once we have become accustomed,  it becomes effortless. There are many approaches to meditation, and Gyalwang Karmapa said he was not familiar with all of them himself, but key to meditation practice is that when a situation jolts or disturbs us emotionally, such as making us angry, being able to be mindful at that point, being able to stand back and observe the play of the mental afflictions, will have the effect of diminishing the degree of disturbance.   Rather like our experience of dealing with physical pain; when we focus our awareness on it, the pain diminishes. Thus it is important to nurture this practice of minfulness in our daily lives. Special insight or analytical meditation, vipassana, focusses on emptiness, the understanding of the fundamental nature of reality which can root out the ignorance which is the basis of cyclic existence, namely the clinging to the mistaken idea of an inherently-existent self.  Some people may think that emptiness is the negation of everything, so nothing exists, and selflessness means no self, so how can we accumulate karma and so on. This is the extreme of nihilism and is not the meaning of emptiness or selflessness. To say that something does not exist is not profound, whereas the meaning of emptiness is profound. It is not the same as non-existence. For example, when we analyse a vase, we cannot find the imputed object. What is this not-finding?  Is it the not-finding of something that exists or the not-finding of something that does not exist?  We are searching for something that does exist and not finding it. What does this mean? We are not saying that the vase does not exist, but rather, that we have misunderstood how it exists. It appears to us as if it exists from its own side, so when we search, we cannot find it. It does exist but not in that way. Similarly, to think that emptiness means non-existence is  wrong. When we watch an actor in a film,  he appears to us as if he really exists, but we know that he doesn’t. There is the mere appearance of the actor, which exists in dependence on various causes and conditions such as the film, the film projector, the screen and so on.  Therefore, this appearance is a dependent origination, produced by many causes and conditions. The appearance exists but the actor does not exist as he appears. It seems to have a true existence, that is how it apperas to the mind, but it is a mere appearance. In the same way all composite phenomena do not exist in the way in which we impute them to exist. They appear to us as if they are non-dependent. The “I” ,for example, appears to us as independent and autonomous, occupying the centre of our world, not depending on any causes or conditions.  In actuality, though the “I” exists,  it does not exist in the way it appears to us. It exists in dependence on many causes and conditions. Emptiness means an opportunity or opening. As  Nagarjuna said: For whatever emptiness is possible, for that everything is possible. Since things are empty, there are limitless  opportunities for everything and anything to arise. We think of ourselves as  self-sufficient  and independent, but through meditation on emptiness our minds are opened to the understanding that we are part of everything, and intrinsically interconnected.  When we view ourselves as independent we have a blinkered, narrow perspective, but through an understanding of  emptiness our minds are  opened up, becoming vast, extensive and at ease.  Whenever we feel under pressure, the feeling is so concrete, however, thinking of emptiness, that feeling dissipates completely.  The view of emptiness is far more than  a topic for research or discussion between university professors; such things can be pointless. Emptiness is an idea that has a practical application to our daily lives, something which brings benefit. Gyalwang Karmapa joked how once, when he took an examination, he only came second, so his tutor fudged the result to make the number two look like a one [easier to do in Tibetan script]. People often seem to have a negative view of zero. However, without zero, first and second do not exist.  Perhaps we should approach emptiness in the same way, as the source of all possibilities. The session concluded with questions from the audience. Finally, at the end of the third session, there was a special presentation to all members of the audience of the second edition of the commemorative book written for the yearlong celebration of the 900th anniversary of the birth of the First Karmapa, Dusum Khyenpa. These beautifully produced books were signed on the spot by the Gyalwang Karmapa and presented personally to each individual.

Karmapa Teachinh

"I am extremely saddened to hear about the loss of human life and the severe destruction caused by the recent earthquake in Sikkim and other parts of North and East of India, Nepal and Tibet. The people who are affected are in my thoughts. I offer prayers for the deceased and the survivors to be relieved of their pain and suffering soon."








                                                                                By H.H 17TH kARMAPA

Refugees within, Refugees without.............................

Features

Refugees Within, Refugees Without   April 1996

By Sanjoy Hazarika

The Chakma are too small to be so fragmented and scattered, but there is little incentive for anyone to try and redress their condition.

On 15 August 1947, the Indian tricolour went up a flagpost in Rangamati, the main town in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. The Chakma leaders had believed during the tortuous negotiations leading up to Partition that, given the religious composition  of the  largely  Buddhist CHT, their district would be parcelled out to India.

Not so, decided Sir Cyril Radcliffe, head of the commission with the task of apportioning the territories, and the Hill Tracts were awarded to (East) Pakistan. On 18 August, Pakistani troops marched into Rangamati, pulled down the Indian flag, and sent up in its place the star and crescent of Pakistan.

The days of travail had begun for the Chakma, a minority which, over the following half century, has had more than its share of fragmentation, even by South Asian standards. Today, their own homeland, the CHT, is overrun with Bengali settlers from the overpopulated Bangladeshi mainland, and divided groups survive under trying circumstances in Tripura, Mizoram and Arunachal.
However, for all the tragedy they have suffered, the world knows too little about Chakmas. Within Bangladesh, they pale to insignificance before the size of the mainland population and the suffering that regularly visits it. In India, Chakmas make up three segregated groups whose problem is one among so many in the increasingly violent Northeast, itself a region that suffers neglect from India´s rulers.

Colony to Bahini
The Chakma form part of the great Tibeto-Burman language family whose antecedents, like those of the tribal communities stretching all the way east from central Nepal, go back to the central and eastern Asia of thousands of years ago. The jungles of the CHT are home to several such Tibeto-Burman tribes, among whom Chakmas and Marmas are the largest.

The Hill Tracts, an undulating curiosity in a Bangladesh that is otherwise remarkable for its deltaic flatness, became a refuge for Buddhism even as the. faith declined across the region in the face of a resurgent Hinduism and, later, Islam. The Buddhist character of what is today the CHT, in fact, seems to have been cemented in the 14th century when Sawngma (Chakma) Raja Marekyaja migrated from neighbouring Arakan hills into the Chittagong belt to establish his rule and dynasty here.

During colonial times, the Chakma did not take kindly to new demands for taxes by the British, who had to make at least three major offensives to subdue the tribals until an agreement was extracted from them. However, relations with the British became progressively cordial afterward, to the extent that Chakmas under Rani Kallendi sided with the imperial rulers during the Great Mutiny of 1857.

In 1860, the British divided the hill tracts into three subdivisions, under the control of three tribes. In 1900, in return perhaps for loyalty shown, they introduced a regulation banning the settlement of outsiders in the Hill Tracts and prohibiting the transfer of land to non-indigenous people. The 1935 Government of India Act defined the hills as a "Totally Excluded Area", taking it out of Bengal´s control.

These actions to protect the tribal identity and economy were strongly resented in Dhaka and Calcutta. The displeasure found expression immediately after 1947 in the open season that was declared for settlers. Successive regimes in East Pakistan, and later Bangladesh, supported the influx of Bengali-speaking Muslim migrants into the 5,000 sq km Hill Tracts, which is sparsely populated in relation to the rest of the country. Today, as a result of the aggressive settlement policy, the Hill Tracts has a population of 900,000 which is evenly divided between Muslim homesteaders and the indigenous Buddhists.

If the first political blow suffered by the Chakma was when their territory was placed with East Pakistan, the following decades saw successive measures that fuelled discontent. It started with the crackdown on the anti-Pakistan demonstrations of 1947. Then came the inundation of prime agricultural lands by the Kaptai Dam reservoir, one of the first mega-projects in all South Asia. The reservoir displaced tens of thousand Chakmas.

During the 1971 war for Bangladesh´s liberation, the CHT population backed the Mukti Bahini against the Pakistani army. The following year, Manobendra Larma, who had been elected to the national parliament from the Hill Tracts, called on Sheikh Mujibur Rahman with a delegation, seeking to place Chakma concerns on the new nation´s political agenda. As it became clear that Shiekh Mujibur and the new establishment he represented was in no mood to listen, Mr Larma set up the Jana Sanghata Samiti as a political group, and later, its armed wing, the Shanti Bahini.

Over the course of the following years, operations by the Bangladeshi army in the Hill Tracts against the Shanti Bahini led to an exodus of Chakma refugees into neighbouring Tripura, the Indian state which juts like a wedge into Bangladesh´s east. Over the last 2 0 years, Indian security forces have supported the Chakma fighters and have provided training which is conducted for the most part in Tripura. During this period, the Bahini has carried out a series of attacks on Bangladeshi forces and on civilian targets as well.

There was a split in the Bahini in 1983 and a faction surrendered to the Dhaka authorities. However, the leftist group that is backed by India battles on. Manobendra Larma was killed during the factional infighting, but his brother, Shanto, has continued the campaign against Dhaka. The hills are presently quiet, as a ceasefire is in force while peace negotiations continue.

Fourfold Division
The number of Chakma who continue to live in their homeland of the Chittagong Hill Tracts is said to be about 300,000. Another 80,000 Chakmas are to be found concentrated in the southwest of Mizoram, the Indian state that is sandwiched between Burma and the CHT. Most of this population is now regarded as Indian, having lived in Mizoram for generations. A third group of most recent arrivals is located in Tripura, and numbers 50,000. Here since 1988, these Chakma refugees fled the Bangladesh Army operations against their villages in the CHT. Today, they live in decrepit settlements that are euphemistically termed refugee camps by the Indian government.

A fourth group of Chakma consists of those displaced by the Kaptai Dam reservoir in 1964, who were forced to fend for themselves when the erstwhile government of East Pakistan failed to pay compensation. About 30,000 of these Chakma "development refugees" ended up in the Cachar and Lushai hills (which later became the Mizo Hills, and then the state of Mizoram). At least 20,000 more left for the Arakan hills in Burma, where they are now settled.

"They came in a hopeless, pathetic condition, just with the clothes that they wore," recalls one senior Mizoram official, who was part of the Assam government team that received the Chakma in the Cachar and Lushai hills. At one point, the Indian authorities toyed with the idea of moving the Chakma en masse to the Andaman and Nicobar islands, but it was later decided to shift the refugees to the North East Frontier Agency, now the state of Arunachal Pradesh.

No Honour, Nor Dignity
The Chakma encampments in Tripura are not "refugee camps" as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees would define them. They have none of the facilities available to, say, the Bhutanese refugees in the Jhapa camps of Nepal. The Chakma huts are of mud and thatch, and for years they have received from the Government of India a measly daily quota of 400 grams of rice, some salt, and 20 paisa on the side.

Because this dole is hardly enough, many Chakmas work outside the camps for wages lower than what the locals ask. This has created tension, and recently, the Tripura state government passed an order restricting the refugees to the camps. This year, for the first time since the Chakmas arrived in Tripura, refugee students were not allowed to sit for school-leaving examinations of the state education system.

Repatriation talks between the Bangladesh authorities, the Indian Government and the Chakma leadership have continued over the past few years, but there appears little hope that the refugees will be returning anytime soon with the "honour and dignity" that their leaders insist on. Assurances from the Bangladeshi authorities do not seem enough, and the Indian side does not favour forced repatriation. Conditions are far from settled, especially as the ceasefire between Dhaka and the Shanti Bahini is due to end on 31 March.

The Chakma of Mizoram, while they seem to be the most secure among the displaced groups, have problems of their own. Regarded as Congress party backers, they were granted an autonomous district council back in 1972. The local Mizo, who see a cultural and demographic threat in the Chakma presence (they now make up ten percent of Mizoram´s population), resent the granting of the council, especially as it was done without consulting them. Besides, the Mizo also suspect that many of the state´s Chakmas are subsequent migrants from Bangladesh, and not part of the original settlers.

The Mizo are predominantly Presbytarian and they recently celebrated 100 years of the coming of the Church to their hills. The growth of the Chakma population, whether natural or through illegal influx, has sparked a campaign of intimidation by the militant Mizo Students Union. Chakmas have been assaulted, their houses torched, and names struck off the electoral lists. The anti-Chakma campaign is set to  resume this spring and continue through the summer. "The Chakma are foreigners, and they do not belong here," is the refrain among the Mizo student leaders.

Another 70,000 or so Chakmas are into hard times in nearby Arunachal Pradesh, where a student-led campaign is underway to drive out the Kaptai ´oustees´ who were settled here by the Indian government 32 years ago. Here, too, a campaign to frighten them is on, which recently forced hundreds to flee to the relative safety of Assam. The Supreme Court of India has given directives against the anti-Chakma drive, but Arunachali leaders and agitators insist that the campaign will continue. The Central government has appointed a committee to review the situation, but with both the state government and opposition agreed on the question, uncertain times loom ahead for the Chakma of Arunachal.

Demographic Threat
In their homeland of the Chittagong Hill Tracts as well as in their Northeast India exile, the Chakma are about as vulnerable as it is possible for any community to be. A tenuous peace prevails in the Hill Tracts themselves, and in the points of their diaspora in India—Tripura, Mizoram, and Arunachal—they face hostile locals and a rising threat of eviction. The politics of demography is all the rage in the Northeast, and the Chakma have no constituency. The New Delhi authorities may try to show understanding, but that is no match for the rising animosities on the ground. The fact that the Chakmas of the Northeast are fragmented into three different populations makes their voice that much weaker.]

If there were to be a common effort by New Delhi politicians and bureaucrats, the chief ministers and opposition leaders of the Northeast states, the Chakma leaders, and eminent members of the public, a humane solution that addresses the interests of longtime residents as well as the demographic concerns of the locals may be found.

Even in the unlikely event of the Chakma problem in the Northeast being resolved in a few swift strokes, however, the problem of Chakma in the Chittagong Hill Tracts would remain. That was, after all, how it all began.

~ S. Hazarika is a Delhi-basedwriter with special interest in the Indian Northeast.

False Propaganda against Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh on social media

False propaganda against Chakmas on social media

By Paritosh Chakma

The internet is both an evil and a Good Samaritan. It is the source of all information, good and evil. In recent times, internet, in particular the social networking sites, have played (and are still paying) critical roles to usher in revolutions in India and abroad, particularly in the North Africa and West Asia.

However, apparently, as anything else in this world, social media too has its own negative sides. It is often used by people with vested interests to spread misinformation and promote hatred towards particular groups or communities against whom they are prejudiced (for whatsoever reasons).

One such recent example I have come across was in Facebook group “Tribes of North East India”, where a member (apparently a “native” of Arunachal Pradesh) made a scathing attack on Chakmas in his state.

“Chakmas are not marginalized … they live like a BOSS in Diyun circle of changlang district. Rape, murder, kidnapping are the way of life by CHAKMAS there,” he wrote in one of his comments.

I was horrified to read this. I am not from that state but I keep myself abreast with the situation of the Chakma people there.

“Rape, murder, kidnapping” are the “way of life” of the Chakmas? I can only imagine of this in my wildest dreams. Way of life? The way of life of the Chakmas is economic impoverishment, statelessness and going to bed every night with the hope of a new beginning the next day which is, however, yet to come. For the last about half a century they have been putting their hopes against hopelessness.

Only refugees know what it is meant to be “refugees”. But Chakmas' life is worse than the refugees of India. Technically, the government of India does no longer consider them as “refugees” and therefore they do not receive any free ration (or at subsidized rates) or cash doles, housing assistance or any other facilities from the government. They do not live in refugee camps; they live in “villages” and they fend for themselves with the limited resources available locally. To be fair to the Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh who have been treading through an uncertain path, unsure of their destiny, for the past about five decades, they have shown considerable patience, perseverance and wisdom against all odds. Lack of livelihood sources and lack of employment opportunities can drive any community, in particular the youngsters, to go awry. But Chakmas have displayed great wisdom and civilizational traits in being able to remain peaceful in trying times and circumstances such as the one they have faced.

Therefore, I challenged the commentator to show any example of rape committed by Chakma against indigenous women. He could not. Instead, he told me if at all I am so concerned I could shelter three-four Chakma families from Arunachal in my home state.

That is not the issue here, I retorted. I exhorted him to come out with the facts and educated him saying that people only should believe him on the basis of facts he produced and not by his mere allegations. While he stated that rape was the way of life of the Chakmas, he couldn’t produce a single example of rape, and therefore stood exposed. 100 per cent.

This is one of the examples how the social media, in particular the Facebook, is being used by a gaggle of people with vested interests to spread misinformation about other communities based solely on their perception but without any facts. We must counter those thugs everywhere we meet them - be it on the street or on the online forums.

It is our duty to educate such people on the Chakma community. I hope you agree with me on this.

INDIAN CHAKMAS ANGRY AT 'BENGALEE' TAG IN BANGLADESH

Indian Chakmas angry at 'Bengalee' tag in Bangladesh

By Paritosh Chakma

Published in Merinews.com, 12 December, 2011

[The Indian Chakmas are angry over the fact their brethren in Bangladesh were forcibly identified as 'Bengalees' in the recently amended Constitution of Bangladesh.]

INDIAN CHAKMAS have expressed their anger at ‘Bengali tag’ of their brethren, which is aimed at ‘destruction of their identity’ in the recently amended constitution of Bangladesh. Fifteen Indian Chakma civil society organizations submitted a joint “protest letter” to the visiting Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Minister of Bangladesh, Mr Dipankar Talukdar at Kamala Nagar, headquarters of Chakma Autonomous District Council (CADC) in South Mizoram today, protesting against his alleged support to the unacceptable reference of the Chakmas and other indigenous peoples including Lushai, Tripuri, Garo etc as “Bengalees” in the recently amended Constitution of Bangladesh.

The Chakmas from Mizoram, Assam, Tripura, Meghalaya, and Arunachal Pradesh through their civil society organizations expressed the “angst of the Indian Chakmas” against the “destruction of identity of the Chakmas in Bangladesh” as a consequent to the 15th Amendment to the Constitution of Bangladesh passed on 30th June 2011 which has branded the Chakmas and other indigenous peoples including Lushai, Tripuri, Garo as “Bengalees”.

The Chakmas civil society organizations have demanded a "written assurance" from Dipankar Talukdar (who also belongs to Chakma community) that after his return to Bangladesh he will take all the necessary measures to impress upon the Sheikh Hasina government to recognize the Chakmas and other ethnic communities as “indigenous peoples” in the Constitution of Bangladesh.

The Indian Chakmas also demanded Mr Talukdar’s personal intervention in his capacity as Member of Parliament and Minister of CHT Affairs for speedy and full implementation of the CHT Peace Accord of 1997 signed between the Government of Bangladesh and the indigenous peoples of CHT which would help restore peace and bring development to the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

The 15 signatory organizations to the memorandum are Mizoram Chakma Development Forum, Tripura Chakma Students Association, Arunachal Pradesh Chakma Students Union, MAADI, Meghalaya Chakma Students Union, Guwahati Chakma Students Union, Barak Valley Chakma Students Association, The Chakma Voice, Mumbai Chakma Association, Dibrugarh Chakma Students Union, Mizoram Chakma Students Union, the Central Young Chakma Association, Mizoram Chakma Social Forum, Mizoram Buddhist Association and Chakma Mahila Samiti.

Mr Dipankar Talukdar is on an official visit to India (Mizoram) from 7-11 December 2011 to strengthen trade relations between the two countries.


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Also read, Chakmas peeved at 'Bengalee' tag, The Seven Sisters Post, 11.12.2011

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                          Nanda Priya(Binod Chakma) Delivering Speech

                               Nanda Priya with His Holiness 17th Karmapa at Bodh Gaya

                      Nanda Priya along with President of India Smt. Pratibha Patil

             Nanda Priya Along With Prime Minister of Bhutan Shri Jigmey Y. Thinley

                                                            Nanda Priya

                     Nanda Priya along with Prime Minister of India Shri Mon Mohan Singh

         Nanda Priya along with Prime Minister of Tibet in Exile Shri Lobsang Sangay

                        Nanda Priya at International Buddhist Conference at Bodhgaya

Nanda Priya with Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya, VSV, USP, ndc, psc, SLAC is a Sri Lankan military officer and is the current Commander of the Sri Lankan Army.[1] Prior to his appointment as army commander, he was the Commander Security Forces Headquarters - Wanni during the final Eelam war with overall command of the SLA offensives in the Wanni region during 2008 - 2009 period that led to a major victory for the SLA over the LTTE in the Sri Lankan civil war.[2]

                  Nanda Priya along with Tourism Minister of Bihar Shri Sunil Kumar Pintoo                                                                 

The Chakma people of Arunachal Pradesh, a state in northeast India, have been fighting for citizenship for over six decades. Having fled Bangladesh in the 1960s, they think it’s time India recognised them.

“I came to India when I was just ten years old. I have lived all my life here, but I still can’t vote. I am not a citizen of India,” says Vishwakarma Chakma, a 58-year-old villager in Diyun, Arunachal Pradesh. Vishwakarma and his family fled Chittagong in neighbouring Bangladesh in 1964 along with thousands of other families.

Fleeing Bangladesh
There were two main reasons for the Chakmas, an indigenous Chittagong hill tribe, to leave Bangladesh, then East Pakistan. “One was the Kaptai hydro-electric power project by East Pakistan, which ruined all the houses on the Chittagong hills. All our lands were submerged underwater, all our houses were devastated,” says Susheel Chakma*, an employee of a Chakma NGO in Diyun, the most densely Chakma-populated district in Arunachal Pradesh.

He adds, “And another reason was religious persecution. The Chakmas are Buddhists. And they were a minority in Muslim-dominated East Pakistan. There was a constant fear of religious tensions flaring up.”

Legitimate refugees
The Indian government, at that time led by Jawaharlal Nehru, offered the Chakmas a refuge in India. They crossed over the border legitimately, with the consent of the border security. “Everyone was given a paper while crossing over. That is the proof that they are legitimately residing in India,” Susheel says.

But the Chakmas in Arunachal haven't been given refugee status. Susheel also points out that since then many families have lost these vital papers: “They were uneducated tribal people crossing the border and didn’t know much about how things would turn out later on. So many of them haven’t managed to save the papers from the rains and fires etc.”

Horrid past
Vishwakarma remembers very little from the time he fled Bangladesh with his family. “I remember my parents telling me that we had lost everything. I have a few images in my head from our home that was under water,” he says.

When they first arrived in Arunachal Pradesh, Vishwakarma’s family had to start life from the scratch. “My father offered to till land in someone’s farm and that’s how we started living here,” he says. Like Vishwakarma’s family many Chakma people also settled in other northeastern parts of India including Tripura and Manipur.

Tribal rivalry
The Chakmas in other states of India have been granted citizenship, but those in Arunachal have fallen behind due to tribal politics. The indigenous Singpho tribe in the state has dominated local politics since the first elections were held in the region.

“They know that if they give us voting rights, they won’t stay in power any longer, that’s why they won’t let us cast a vote,” says a Chakma villager, who doesn’t want to be named, fearing an ethnic backlash. He points out the numbers: “There are 50-60,000 Chakmas living in Arunachal Pradesh according to the latest census. Even one third of that number is enough to secure a majority.”

Tough life
The repression of the Chakmas has played out in struggles at various stages. Vishwakarma’s son Sanjay, 35, is agitated about his lack of job opportunities. “They wouldn’t take me in a government job. There is no hope. It’s sheer discrimination. Some of my friends who have attempted to do things outside the Chakma community have faced serious threats to their lives,” Sanjay says.

Tribal clashes between the Chakmas and Singphos were common until very recently. A Chakma youth, who wishes to stay anonymous, describes how he didn’t go to the school in his neighbourhood because it was Singpho-dominated. “If I went and sat in the classroom there, I was scared I would get beaten up or harassed,” he says.

NegotiationsThe Chakmas have taken their concerns to the Indian government on many occasions. On all previous counts, they have been offered consolation that they would soon be handed citizenship. But that hasn’t been the case yet.

Bimal Kanthi Chakma, a leader of the Chakma Committee for Citizenship, is still hopeful. “We have had recent negotiations with the government and we have again requested them to pay attention to our case. They have asked us for time. In two months, we should hopefully have a decision that will favour us,” he says.

Next generation
Until then, little will change for the Chakmas. Sanjay’s wife delivered a baby boy eight months ago. But Sanjay still hasn’t been able to register his son's birth.

“The Chakmas have a tough time acquiring a birth certificate. Officially, they are offered certificates, but the reality on the ground is different. I went there several times and they kept asking me to return another time. I gave up after trying for a few months. How long can I keep begging?” he asks.

Sanjay’s son would be the third generation of their family to have been born in India, but whether he will be recognised by the government, is still in unclear.

*Name changed on request 

The chakmas and their Rights

The Chakmas Refugees and Their Rights

By Chunnu Prasad

The problem of Chakma and Hajong refugees are not very new in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. It is also true that the migration is a human phenomenon and it has to accept by all the human beings throughout the universe. The problem of refugee in this universe is one of the most painful activities which happened particularly after the Second World War. Nobody wants in this universe to recognize him or her as refugee or synonym to this. The Chakma and Hajong refugees’ problem is one of the most critical but contemporary problem in the region which created lots of tension between the people who claim themselves indigenous and the Chakma and Hajong refugees of Arunachal Pradesh. Civil society is completely inactive in Arunachal Pradesh to provide the basic fundamental as well as human rights.

The paper particularly focuses on the various issues of the Chakma and Hajong refugees’ problem as well as the working of the civil society in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. It also critically discusses the other provisions of the constitution which is directly or indirectly related to the Buddhist Chakma and Hajong refugees of the state.


Introduction:

During the last over three decades, the Chakmas and Hajongs refugee issue has been the matter of simmering discontent among the indigenous tribal people of Arunachal Pradesh. The casual decision of the then Governor of Assam on April 10, 1964 to settled these refugees in Arunachal Pradesh did not take into consideration the legal protection of the indigenous tribal people and there tradition, culture, custom and identity.

The problem arising out of settlement of Chakma and Hajong refugees in Arunachal Pradesh during the period 1964-69 is as old as the settlement itself. The origin of the problem lies in the manner of settlement as it was done violating all the time-honored norms, principles and legal provisions. Obviously, the Chakmas and Hajongs refugee issue has been agitating the minds of the indigenous tribal people, the Central Government, the State Government, Human Rights Organisations and Chakma and Hajong refugees themselves temporarily settled in Arunachal Pradesh for over many decades.

While in the opinion of the indigenous tribal people, their customary laws have been encroached upon by allowing settlement of Chakma and Hajong refugees by the Central Government much against their wishes, these refugees have been mounting pressure on the authorities concerned to grant them citizenship rights so that they can legalize their temporary stay on the plea that they have been staying over three to four decades in Arunachal Pradesh.

If the problem is viewed from the demographic perspective emerging on account of fast growth rate of Chakma and Hajong population and also due to influx of non-settler Chakmas and Hajongs from outside the state, it becomes abundantly clear that the ethnic population will soon be reduced to a minority. The indigenous tribal people of Arunachal Pradesh view the presence of Chakma and Hajong refugees on their soil as a serious threat to their own survival, their age-old customs and traditions and also to the peace and tranquility of the state, which Arunachalees believe. At stake, therefore, is the very existence of Arunachal Pradesh as an ethnic state in the Indian Union in its pristine glory. In order to appreciate objectively the problem, it is necessary to know the background of the state of Arunachal Pradesh, its history and the nature of the tribal population inhabiting the state.

An information and communication society should be based on human rights and human dignity. With the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as its foundation, it must embody the universality, indivisibility, interrelation and interdependence of all human rights – civil, political, economic, social and cultural including the right to development and linguistic rights. This implies the full integration, concrete application and enforcement of all rights and the recognition of their centrality to democracy and sustainable development.

Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is of fundamental and specific importance, since it forms an essential condition for human rights-based information and communication societies. Article 19 requires that everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas, through any media and regardless of frontiers. This implies free circulation of ideas, pluralism of the sources of information and the media, press freedom, and availability of the tools to access information and share knowledge. Freedom of expression on the Internet must be protected by the rule of law rather than through self regulation and codes of conduct. There must be no prior censorship, arbitrary control of, or constraints on, participants in the communication process or on the content, transmission and dissemination of information. Pluralism of the sources of information and the media must be safeguarded and promoted.

Civil Society

Civil society, in the first part is about the institutional changes in the modern period, which established the democratic governmental and capitalist market. Secondly, concerned with non-governmental associations that directly do not deal with the commercial business and thirdly, it deals with the whole voluntary sector, excluding government, but includes both business and third sector (which comprises neither government nor market).

Civil society is a network of the citizens and the nongovernmental organizations. This network lies between citizens on the one hand and the state on the other. According to David Held, civil society is made up of areas of social life, the domestic world, economic sphere, cultural activities and political action which are organized by private or voluntary arrangements between individuals and groups outside the direct control of the state. Thomas, Hobbes, in “Laviathan” points that the civil society means, consent of every one and allows every one’s freedom to do whatever the law of the state prohibit. Tocqeville said that civil society is rather civilest social interaction between mob and the state. Lastly, G.W.F Hegel was the first who distinguished the state from civil society in every phase of life except the government. He describes it as a repository of public freedom; while state remain the final source of moral authority.

Arunachal Pradesh one of the largest refugees dominated state in India who settled forty years back (1964). The very fact is that the governmental administration as well the civil society is completely ineffective to provide the basic fundamental rights to the refuges and with that these refuges are continuously denied their rights and liberty by the state and civil societies. Now the very basic question is to be ask is, why the civil society is not working in the state when it comes to the Chakma and Hajong refugees, why right to information are not allowed to accesses by these refugees which is one of the fundamental rights or to be say human rights.



Historical understanding of the State:

The recent history and the administration of Arunachal Pradesh can be said to date back to 1838 when the British extended their administration to the frontiers which now form Arunachal Pradesh. The administration to this area under that regime failed to meet the desired result due to absence of good communication. It was only in 1914 that the British Government thought of treating these areas as a separate frontier tract to be administered somewhat differently from the rest of Assam. Consequently, the Assam Frontier Tracts Regulation, 1880 was extended to the North East Frontier Tracts and the Tracts were declared as “Excluded Areas” of Assam. They were administered by the Governor of Assam through the political officer in his discretion.

When the Constitution of India came into force in 1950, another change was effected in the administrative set up. The Government of Assam was relieved of its responsibility of looking after administration of the “Excluded Areas”. However, the discretionary power was vested in the Governor of Assam, who served as the agent of the President of the Republic of India. In 1954, all these tracts formed into the North East Frontier Agency (NEFA). On the enactment of North Eastern Area (Reorganization) Act 1971, NEFA was made Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh on 21st January 1972. On 20th February 1987, Arunachal Pradesh was made a full fledged state within the Indian Union.

Even after so many political and administrative developments which culminated in the formation of the present state of Arunachal Pradesh the laws, rules and regulations which were applicable during the British period continued to be in force even today. The state of Arunachal Pradesh consists exclusively of different tribes. Part X of the Constitution read with the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution governs the administration of the state of Arunachal Pradesh. The entire area of the state has been declared as Scheduled areas. It was the endeavors of the constitution of India and various other enactment to protect and maintain the exclusive culture, custom and traditions of the local tribal people and was consistent with their ethos and aspirations.

The ethnic tribes of Arunachal Pradesh have very similar culture, tradition and custom with very rare differences. They have been following their customs and traditions, evolved over ages from time immemorial. These customs, traditions which are integral part of their life and living in tough hilly terrain in challenging circumstances have given rise to a distinctive identity to the indigenous tribal people.

The efforts being made by the state Government in preserving the tribal identity and culture are however being jeopardized by the presence of the Chakma and Hajong refugees in the state. The people of Arunachal Pradesh distinguish themselves that there is nothing common between the tribal people of Arunachal Pradesh and the Chakma and Hajong refugees. The fact that both bear Mongoloid features further complicated the issue. Both belongs to the tribal groups one from the sate of Arunachal Pradesh and another from the Chittagong Hill Tract (CHT) respectively, no doubt there is religious differences. Chakmas are largely Buddhist than animism but, on the other hand the Arunachalees are largely animism, very few populations are Buddhist. With all these few differences, it can be generalized that the ethnic identity of both the groups never the last common in some areas.

Arunachal Pradesh or the erstwhile NEFA had sui generic, political status both during earlier British rule as well as in the post-independence era. From the very beginning when the British took possession of territory, the efforts were made to pre-British rule as well as in the post-independence era. From the very beginning when the British took possession of territory, the efforts were made to preserve the tribal society in its pristine form and protect it from any outside interference in its culture, values and socio-religious norms. By various laws, rules, regulations and orders, the government, ensure that the tribal society, its identity and its culture would be protected.

Arrival of the Chakma and Hajong Refugees in Arunachal Pradesh and Human Right Violation:

During the partition of India in 1947, the people of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) under present-day Bangladesh, sought to be a part of India and even hoisted the Indian National Flag on their lands. However, the Bengal Boundary Commission headed by Redcliff awarded the CHTs to Pakistan although 98.5 percent of the population of the CHTs was non-Muslim. The then Pakistan Government took a serious view of the hoisting of the Indian flag by the Chakmas and embarked on a series of repressive measures. Unable to bear the atrocities and faced with displacement on account of the construction of the Kaptai Hydel Project about 30,000 Chakmas and Hajongs migrated to India in 1964. They were settled in Arunachal Pradesh after due consultation with the local leaders by the Central Government of India under a “Definite Plan of Rehabilitation”. The Government of India extended all possible kind of helps including financial aids, employment, trade, license, book grants etc for proper establishment of their shattered life. After the partition of India, the Government’s policy was to grant citizenship to those who originated from areas that were part of Undivided India. The rest of the migrants were accorded Indian citizenship. However the Chakmas and Hajongs were not granted Indian citizenship. In the wake of the anti-foreigner agitation in Assam, the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh undertook a series of repressive measures beginning in 1980. The State Government vide its letter No. POL –21/80 dated 29th September 1980 banned public employment for the Chakmas and Hajongs in the State. In 1991, the State Government under its order No FPSO-3/90-91 of 31 October 1991 issued by the Circle Officer of Diyun withdrew ration card facilities under the Public Distribution System. In 1994, the State Government under its order vide no. CS/HOME/94 dated 21 November 1994 further directed ‘withdrawal of all kinds of facilities from the Chakma Settlement area”.

In 1991, the Committee for Citizenship Rights of the Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh (CCRCAP) was formed to demand for citizenship rights of the Chakmas and Hajongs of Arunachal Pradesh. Starting in 1992, the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh became more hostile and started inciting sectarian violence against the Chakmas and Hajongs. The All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU) served a “Quit Arunachal Pradesh” notice to the Chakmas to leave the State by 30 September 1994. As a result, a large number of Chakmas fled from Arunachal Pradesh and took refuge in the neighboring Indian State of Assam. However, the State Government of Assam issued shoot at sight orders against the fleeing Chakmas and Hajongs. The CCRCAP approached the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC) about the deadline set by the AAPSU and the threat to the lives and property of the Chakmas and Hajongs. The NHRC treated it as a formal complaint and asked the State Government and Central Government to report on the issue. On 7 December 1994, the NHRC directed the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh and Central Government to provide information about the steps taken to protect the Chakmas and Hajongs. This was ignored till September 1995. In the meantime, the harassment, intimidation, arrests and detention continued and increased. The issue became critical following the meeting of all-party leaders and the AAPSU held at Naharlagan, Itanagar on 20 September 1995. Political leaders of Arunachal Pradesh led by then Chief Minister Mr. Gegong Apang passed a unanimous resolution to resign en masse from the national party membership if the Chakmas and Hajongs are not deported by 31 December 1995. The resolution also prohibited any social interactions between the local Arunachalees and the Chakmas and Hajongs. The CCRCAP approached the NHRC again on 12 and 28 October 1995 to seek protection of their lives and liberty in view of the deadline and support extended to the AAPSU by the State Government. As the State Government was inordinately delaying the transmission of information regarding the steps taken to protect the Chakmas and Hajongs, the NHRC, headed by Justice Ranganath Mishra, approached the Supreme Court to seek appropriate relief and filed a writ petition (720/1995). The Supreme Court in its interim order on 2 November 1995 directed the State Government to “ensure that the Chakmas situated in its territory are not ousted by any coercive action, not in accordance with law.” As the 31st December 1995 deadline approached, then Prime Minister P V Narashima Rao formed a high-level committee headed by then Home Minister S B Chavan. On 9 January 1996, the Supreme Court gave its judgement in the case of NHRC vs. State of Arunachal Pradesh, issuing the following orders:

a) The first respondent, the State of Arunachal Pradesh, shall ensure that the life and personal liberty of each and every Chakma residing within the State shall be protected and any attempt to forcibly evict or drive them out of the State by organised groups, such as the AAPSU, shall be repelled, if necessary by requisitioning the service of para-military or police force, and if additional forces are considered necessary to carry out this direction, the first respondent will request the second respondent, the Union of India, to provide such additional force, and the second respondent shall provide such additional force as is necessary to protect the lives and liberty of the Chakmas;

b) Except in accordance with law, the Chakmas shall not be evicted from their homes and shall not be denied domestic life and comfort therein;

c) The quit notices and ultimatums issued by the AAPSU and any other group which tantamount to threats to the life and liberty of each and every Chakma should be dealt with by the first respondent in accordance with law;

d) The application made for registration as citizen of India by the Chakma or Chakmas under Section 5 of the Act, shall be entered in the register maintained for the purpose and shall be forwarded by the Collector or the Deputy Commissioner who receives them under the relevant rule, with or without enquiry, as the case may be, to the Central Government for its consideration in accordance with law; even returned applications shall be called back or fresh ones shall be obtained from the concerned persons and shall be processed and forwarded to the Central Government;

e) While the application of any individual Chakma is pending consideration, the first respondent shall not evict or remove the concerned person from his occupation on the ground that he is not a citizen of India until the competent authority has taken a decision in that behalf;

Despite the clear and unambiguous order of the Supreme Court, the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh has not taken any measure to implement the court’s directions. Rather, the State Government has undertaken various measures to undermine and violate the Supreme Court judgement. The State Government has been making the conditions of the Chakmas and Hajongs untenable by denying them fundamental rights such as right to education and other basic facilities such as health care, employment facilities. Other measures included a complete halt to any development activities, refusal to provide trade licenses, refusal to deploy teachers in the schools located in the Chakma and Hajong areas, withdrawal of all pre-primary (Anganwadi) centres and finally forcible eviction by claiming the lands of the Chakmas and Hajongs as forest lands.

After the Supreme Court judgment, the AAPSU and State Government of Arunachal Pradesh began inciting communal hatred. The State Government, however, became more tactful, calculated and deliberate in its anti-Chakma activities. With a view to repel any move to submit citizenship applications to the Deputy Commissioners, the State Government attempted to provoke communal passions by calling a state-wide bandh on 22 January 1996. The then Chief Minister, Mr. Gegong Apang, went to the extent of describing the Supreme Court judgment as the “step-motherly attitude of the Centre” and calling it biased judgment”. On 26 January1997 the AAPSU also called a state-wide bandh. On 4 May 1998, 27 Chakmas went to submit the citizenship applications to the Deputy Commissioner of Changlang District. The citizenship applications were verified by the First Class Magistrate of Margarita, Assam. However, the Deputy Commissioner of Changlang refused to accept the applications. Due to the pervasive fear and the hostile situation engineered by the State Government, the Chakmas and Hajongs were unable to submit applications to the Deputy Commissioners. It was after discussions with the officials of Union Home Ministry that the Chakmas and Hajongs started submitting citizenship applications to the Deputy Commissioners through the Union Home Ministry in February 1997. Over the years, around 4000 citizenship applications have been submitted. However, the concerned Deputy Commissioners have been blocking the said applications by not verifying them and not forwarding them within a reasonable period of time in spite of an amendment in the Citizenship Rules, 1956. Under Rule 9 of the Citizenship Rules (Amended), 1998 the Deputy Commissioner/State Government is required to forward the citizenship application within a period of six months. The blocking of citizenship applications in this manner is a clear contempt of Supreme Court order in which the apex court clearly held that the Deputy Commissioners are bound to forward the applications received by them, with or without inquiry, as the case may be, to the Central Government for consideration. It has been learnt that the State Government has forwarded around 260 citizenship applications in January 2000 after due verification. However, until today the Union Home Ministry has not taken any decision on these applications despite the fact that all the applicants have provided documentary proof (such as identity cards issued by the State Government) that can stand judicial scrutiny to prove their migration in 1964 and continuous stay in Arunachal Pradesh. Justice delayed is justice denied. The refusal of the Central Government to grant citizenship to 260 applicants whose applications have been verified is further denial of justice.

On 28 January 1996, Mr. Pularam Chakma (50), of Udaipur village under Diyun Circle of Changlang district, and Mr. Maratsa Chakma, S/o- Mr. Ratna Kumar Chakma, aged 16, of Vijoypur village under Bardumsa circle of Changlang district went for harvesting the mustard crop. They were working for Mr. Chandra Kri and Mr. Pyola Kri of Namgo village under Chowkham circle of Lohit district. Mr. Pularam Chakma and Mr. Maratsa Chakma were attacked by about 20 AAPSU activists and beaten up mercilessly at Medo Bazar of Lohit district in full public view. Mr. Pularam Chakma was beaten to death on the spot. Mr. Maratsa Chakma, who was left for dead, however later gained consciousness and was able to get assistance at a nearby Chakma house. CCRCAP had approached the NHRC on the issue.

The State Government of Arunachal Pradesh has adopted various policies to evict the Chakmas and Hajongs by issuing orders for eviction to show that its actions were being done legally without violating the Supreme Court judgement. On 8 December 1997, the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh issued eviction notices to 66 Chakma families in Kamakhyapur and Raj Nagar areas under Changlang district. Earlier, on 11 November 1997, the Circle Officer of Diyun, Mr. D Riba served quit notices (memo No Diyun/LR/EVC/97) to 109 families of Jyotsnapur village under Changlang district and directed them to proceed to their original settlement areas. Mr. Riba did not give any explanation for such eviction notice. In his notice, Mr. Riba simply stated, “You are hereby directed to proceed to your original settlement Jyotipur village with family latest by 20 November 1997 without fail. Failing which legal action will be initiated against you.” The Chakmas have been living in Jyotsnapur village for the last two decades. They have settled in Jyotsnapur village after the Diyun River flooded their areas and destroyed their houses during monsoon. For the last two decades, the State Government did not raise any objection. In fact, it was the officials of the State Government who ordered the Chakmas to settle in Jyotsnapur village.

When three Chakma families re-built their huts, the Forest Officials visited the area on 21 January 1997 and demolished them again. The properties of all the damaged houses were seized by the Forest Corporation officials, transported in two trucks with the help of 40 labourers and auctioned at Miao market in Changlang District on 21 January 1997. On 2 February 1997, the Forest Corporation Ltd officials planted trees in that area. The plantation in the Chakma inhabited areas was carried by Shri B Ajang (Divisional Manager of Forest Corporation), Mr. K K Dev (Range Manager), Mr. A Dutta (Assistant Range Manager), Mr. D D Dubey, Forest Guard, Mr. L Abou, Forest Guard, Mr. R H Lowang, Forest Guard and Mr. S K Dhar, Forest Guard. In addition, the State Government in other places evicted many Chakmas from other villages.

The Circle Officer of Diyun Mr. D Riba called a meeting with the local tribal leaders on 27 October 1997 at his office where it was unanimously decided not to “engage any Chakma/Hajong people for their agricultural field, contract work and business” by 30 October 1997. The Circle Officer issued a Circular Vide No DYN/CON-4/97 dated 27 October 1997. The Circle Officer also issued another notice on 31 October 1997 Vide No DYN/JUD-1/97, directing to “discontinue the engagement of Chakma/Hajong people in agricultural field/business and contract work forthwith”.

In 1998 the State Government imposed an economic embargo on the Chakmas and Hajongs. Agricultural products such as ginger, chili and master seeds produced by the Chakmas and Hajongs have no market in the local areas. They have to be sold in neighboring Assam. However, to sell these cash crops in Assam require permission from the State Government. But, the Chakmas and Hajongs continue to be denied permission/licenses to sell their products in Assam. As a result, their products are damaged. The CCRCAP filed a PIL bearing No. Civil Rule 4/1998 before the Honorable Gauhati High Court and the same is still pending for adjudication. The State

Government taking advantage of the judicial delay until today is denying them permission to sell their products.

While the Government of India has been taking measures to make the right to education a fundamental right, the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh has been taking all measures to completely deny the right to education to the Chakmas and Hajongs.

All the forty-nine pre-primary schools (Anganwadis), were withdrawn in 1994 (vide No. CS/HOME/94 dated 21 November 1994) during the State sponsored agitation to oust the Chakmas and Hajongs from Arunachal Pradesh. The Anganwadi Centres are yet to be restored. Consequently, the Chakmas and Hajongs have been facing a generation gap in education despite the Government of India making the right to education as a fundamental right. The Anganwadi Centres had provided employment to 98 women. The withdrawal had resulted in their termination from job without any compensation.

For about 40,000 Chakma and Hajong population there is only one Government Secondary School at Diyun. In the absence of any middle school in the whole Diyun circle, this school has to accommodate all the Chakma and Hajong students passing out every year from more than 10 primary schools operating in the Chakma areas. Around 1,400 (12 teachers) are enrolled in this school with virtually no infrastructural facilities. The school building is built by the Chakmas and no grant is given by the State Government. No developmental works has been undertaken by the State Government- bench, desk, duster and other required furniture are self-arranged by the guardians of students.

The State Government of Arunachal Pradesh in a circular on 31 October 1991 (No FPSO-3/90-91) had ordered all the Chakmas and Hajongs to surrender their rations cards under the Public Distribution System to the Circle Officer. Thousands of Chakmas and Hajongs were forced to surrender their ration cards to the State Government. Despite the Supreme Court judgement the State Government has not returned the ration cards. The Chakmas and Hajongs are very poor and rely to a large extent on the Public Distribution System. Ration card facilities are indispensable for the daily labourers. By denying the ration card facilities, the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh has condemned them to poverty. As stated above, the Chakmas and Hajongs are not even issued permission to sell their cash crops in neighbouring Assam. They are not issued licenses for trade in the local markets. At the same time, hundreds of families were rendered landless due to soil erosion caused by the Noa-Dihing River and its tributaries. More than 80 percent of the Chakmas and Hajongs are below poverty line. Yet the Chief Secretary to the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh, Mr. P M Nair in a letter to Additional Secretary P D Shenoy, MHA vide letter no D.O.No.HMB(B)-74/96 of 9 March 2000 stated that “at present Chakmas are not covered under the Public Distribution System as they are self-sufficient in food grains”. It must be mentioned that if the local people can be covered under the PDS despite having all the facilities at their disposal, the claim of the State Government that the Chakmas and Hajongs are self-sufficient economically is far-fetched. In fact, the Chakmas and Hajongs are not covered under the PDS merely because they are not citizens, which is again contrary to the Supreme Court’s directions.

Since 22 October 1997, the Circle Officer of Diyun Circle, Officer in Charge of Diyun Police Station and Second Officer of Diyun Police Station came to the shops of Chakmas in Diyun Bazar and verbally ordered the closing down of shops belonging to the following persons:

The State Government vide circular dated 29th September 1980 and circular dated 31st October 1997 has banned employment in government service, agricultural field, contract work and business etc. for the Chakmas and Hajongs in the state, resulting in the unemployment among a large number of educated youths. The ban on employment continues until today.

The entire Chakma-Hajong area consisting of 30 villages, there is only one Primary Health Centre (PHC) at Diyun circle, whereas, in other local areas PHC has been provided in almost all villages. The PHC of Diyun hardly able to cater the needs of Disseminated by Asian Indigenous & Tribal Peoples Network for public information Chakmas and Hajongs as it has only one doctor, five nurses and eight beds. The patients often remain unattended and therefore people prefer to give their own treatment gained by way of experience. Instances of malarial deaths and other simple and serious diseases otherwise not fatal are numerous. Though it is claimed that the Chakmas are provided medical facilities, in effect they are still denied treatment. Nurses also charge money to give injections. Some Chakma villages such as Dharmapur, circle Miao, Bijoypur, circle Bordumsa and Deban area (eight villages) in Changlang district are located far away from the nearest PHC. As there are rivers, which are sometimes flooded, people remain cut off sometime for a month from rest of the places. Therefore, even simple fever often proves fatal in these places.

The State Government has banned all development activities in the Chakma and Hajong areas. In an order vide no. CS/HOME/94 dated 21 November 1994 the state government of Arunachal Pradesh directed “withdrawal of all kinds of facilities from the Chakma Settlement area”. Some of the problems due to lack of any public development works are given below:

(a) The Chakmas and Hajongs have not been provided with drinking water facilities. Some villagers have to travel a distance of more than one and half kilometer to fetch water for drinking as well as for other domestic uses. During rainy season the river water causes several diseases, as it becomes unfit for drinking.

(b) No construction of roads, bridges and culverts are undertaken in the Chakma and Hajong inhabited areas. In the absence of infrastructures like roads, bridges, other developmental activities are unimaginable.

(c) Almost 90 percent of the Chakma villages are not provided with electricity though economically and technically most viable. Even those few villages having connections, electricity supply has been cut off since 1994 due to the non replacement of worn out apparatus or because of willful negligence on the part of the concerned officials. Complaints/reminders to authorities for replacement of worn out apparatus all these years have gone unheeded.

(d) The Chakma and Hajong farmers were provided improved seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, agricultural tools and implements at subsidized rates till 1991 and these facilities were stopped thereafter. On the other hand, the other locals are being provided with high yielding variety of seeds, technical know-how and agricultural training and other assistance including monetary aid.

On 23 August 1995, a petition was filed before the Rajya Sabha Committee on Petition. After extensive visits to several places where the views of the local people, the Chakmas, experts, the State Government and the Central Government were taken into account, the Committee in its 105th Report of 14 August 1997 recommended the speedy granting of Indian citizenship to the Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh. It was also recommended that “all the old applications of Chakmas for citizenship which have been either been rejected or withheld by Deputy Commissioners or the State Government continue to block the forwarding of such applications to Central Government, the Central Government may consider to incorporate necessary provision in the Rules (or the Act if so required) whereby it could directly receive, consider and decide the application for citizenship in the case of Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh.” The Committee further recommended that the Chakmas be also considered for granting them the status of Scheduled Tribe at the time of granting the citizenship. Although, the Government of India has submitted Action Taken Report, practically none of the recommendations of the Rajya Sabha Committee on Petitions have been implemented until today.

After the Arunachal Pradesh government threatened that all members of State Assembly would resign en masse if the Chakmas and Hajongs were not expelled by 31 December 1995, a committee headed by the Prime Minister of India was established. A Sub- Committee under the chairmanship of the Union Home Minister was formed to find an amicable solution to the Chakma problem. The Home Ministry officials headed by Mr. P. D. Shenoy, Additional Secretary (Ministry of Home Affairs) representing the said Sub-Committee visited the Chakma and Hajong inhabited areas on 6 and 7 March 1999. The Sub-Committee in January 2000 submitted the report to the Union Home Minister, who is currently the chairman, containing specific recommendations to resolve the Chakma and Hajong problem. Unfortunately, no decision has been taken for implementation of the recommendations of the Home Ministry team.

In addition to the Chakmas and Hajongs who migrated in 1964, there are about 5,000 Chakmas and Hajongs who are born after the migration of their parents in 1964. They are Indian citizens by birth under Section 3(1) (a) of the Indian Citizenship Act, 1955 which states that “except as provided in sub-section (2), every person born in India, - (a) on or after the 26th day of January, 1950 but before the commencement of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 1986” is a citizen by birth. The CCRCAP filed a complaint with the National Human Right Commission on 12 December 1997 against the denial of franchise rights to the Chakmas and Hajongs. The NHRC issued notice to the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh and the Union Government of India on the issue. In their replies to the NHRC, both the Central Government and the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh recognised that “as per the provisions of the Citizenship Act 1955, every person born in India on or after 26 January 1950 and before 1 July 1987 are citizens of India by birth and therefore eligible for electoral rolls.” However, when the Chakmas and Hajongs who were born after their parents’ migration and are citizens under Section 3(1)(a) of Indian Citizenship Act, 1955, went to the Assistant Electoral Registration Officer of Diyun under Changlang District of Arunachal Pradesh, the officer refused to accept their Form 6 – Application for inclusion of name in electoral rolls. The CCRCAP approached the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The MHA informed it that the Election Commission had been requested to include all the Indian citizens into the electoral rolls. But the Election Commission took no action. Since no action has been taken to ensure that the Chakmas and Hajongs are enrolled in the voters’ list, the PUCL and the CCRCAP filed a writ petition (CPR no. 886 of 2000) before the Delhi High Court. In its judgement on 28 September 2000, the Delhi High Court ordered the registration of all eligible voters. This order, too, was flouted on various pretexts. Till date, not a single Chakma or Hajong has been included in the electoral rolls. During the revision of electoral roll 2001 around 2000 Chakmas and Hajongs filed claim applications enclosed therewith their proof of age, residence etc. All the claim applications were, however, rejected for not specifying house enumeration number and due to lack of polling station in the Chakma areas. It may be stated that the allotment of house enumeration number and setting up of polling station are tasks of EC and the Chakma and Hajong applicants cannot be punished for omission on the part of the officials of the EC. The repeated representations to the EC failed to elicit any positive result.

Conclusion:

It is true that the tribal areas of this country have special status, and all these rights are given by the supreme book of the land called “Constitution of India”. It is the only Constitution of India and Parliament of India who recognizes all the rights, identity and status of the tribes and their regions. But one also has to understand that the same Constitution also discuss about Article 21 (Right to life) and other fundamental rights, as well as the provisions of the Citizenship rights which is directly or indirectly related to the Chakma and Hajong refugees of this country. No doubt we should respect the tribal identity, culture and etc, for their proper development to bring them to ‘mainland’ but with that, on humanitarian ground other groups who are also tribal before refugees in the Chittagong Hill Tract (Bangladesh) (Chakmas and Hajongs) should be respected largely. Once selfish nature adopted and feeling of regionalism developed, the system automatically changed without any gain.

People of Arunachal Pradesh has to understand that the legal part of the Constitution which providing rights to the Chakma and Hajong refugees to settle and get the status of Schedule Tribes in the state, and also Indira-Mujib agreement of 1972 allow legally to settle in the land of India with all the fundamental rights and other rights which Indian availing.

One also has to look all the provisions of the Constitution and Acts, and it is really, one of the most important areas to be focus. But discussing only the provisions of Inner Line Regulation Act, Special Status State, Bengal Regulation Act of 1873, and etc is I think, baseless and biased, because all these are not the free mind provisions. All these provisions adopted by the British India when India was their colony and it has to be changed. We cannot continue the British made Colonial rule and regulation, policies and Acts to tackle different types of situations even after 57 to 58 years of independence, we are following the cynical policies, i.e., the policy of inner-line regulation, which I found one of the most inhuman policy towards the Indians, and if it continues I don’t think it allow the tribal to mix with the mainland India and remove the tag of backwardness.

Whatever the case may be the Chakmas and Hajongs are those people who participated in India’s war of independence, whose forefathers lost their life to make India independent. Chakmas and Hajongs have right to get their share in a proper legal manner. The issues of Chakmas and Hajongs in Arunachal Pradesh are completely political because all the parties fueling the issue only for political gain. Apart from all this oppose and politics of deport, of Chakmas and Hajongs in the state, it has come to light that few tribes of Arunachal like Singpho and Tangsa are supporting citizenship rights of the Chakma and Hajong refugees in the state, because they know that the Chakma and Hajong refugees are legally correct and they should be given citizenship within a time bound period.

Chakmas and Hajongs came to India before forty years and have been fighting for their basic fundamental rights. Human rights are the basic fundamental rights to all the people who are residing in India. It is one of the most legal which is directly or indirectly related to the rights and liberties of the Chakmas and Hajongs. Working of civil society and governance is very poor or to be said that there is one of the worse functioning of the civil society in Arunachal Pradesh because the governmental administration as well as non governmental organizations are not functioning even to the minimum level to provide the basic fundamental rights i.e., right to life. The very simple example is the problem of Chakma and Hajong refugees in the state who are fighting to survive and waiting for the grant of citizenship and scheduled tribe status from years old.

Finally, without fueling and heating the issue more, it is very genuine to ask the question to all the political parties and NGO’s that, why till today the Chakma and Hajong refugees problem is not being settled down?, what is the reason, even after the Supreme Court, Delhi High Court, Guwahati High Court Judgment, and Rajya Sabha Committees suggestion as well as the National Human Rights Commissions directions to grant citizenship rights and fundamental rights to all the Chakma and Hajong refugees of Arunachal Pradesh, not been forwarded as such? Why civil society is not functioning in the state when it comes to the issue of Chakmas and Hajongs. Apart from it many question is to be discussed and asked which is very complicated but valid.

Lastly, we can conclude by saying that all the solution is to be sort out under the paradigm of the Indian Constitution. There should be a democratic solution to the problem which satisfies the people of Arunachal Pradesh and which also at the same time takes into full consideration, the humanitarian requirements of the innocent Buddhist Chakma and Hajong refugees in the state of Arunachal Pradesh.

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Chunnu Prasad is a Doctoral Research Fellow in Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He has published number of research paper in different journals, viz. Journal of Peace Studies, Economic and Political Weekly, Third World Impact, Think India, South Asia, Third Concept (five articles), South Asia Politics, Indian Journal of Political Science, Radical Humanist, Social Action, Radiance Weekly, Social Change, Punjab Journal of Politics, Ham Dalit, Man and Development, Eastern Anthropology etc. He also worked as a Research Assistant with National Academy for Training and Research in Social Security, funded by Ministry of Labour, Government of India, and Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR), funded by HRD ministry, Government of India, Project Fellow with Political Institutions in India, Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Presently he is working with the Indian Institute of Dalit Studies, New Delhi.