Little is know about the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh (CHT), an area of approximately 5,089 square miles in southeastern Bangladesh. It is inhabited by indigenous peoples, including the Bawm, Sak, Chakma, Khumi Khyang, Marma, Mru, Lushai, Uchay (also called Mrung, Brong, Hill Tripura), Pankho, Tanchangya and Tripura (Tipra), numbering over half a million. Originally inhabited exclusively by indigenous peoples, the Hill Tracts has been impacted by national projects and programs with dire consequences. This book describes the struggle of the indigenous peoples of the Chittagong Hill Tracts region to regain control over their ancestral land and resource rights. From sovereign nations to the limited autonomy of today, the report details the legal basis of the land rights of the indigenous peoples and the different tools employed by successive administrations to exploit their resources and divest them of their ancestral lands and territories. The book argues that development programs need to be implemented in a culturally appropriate manner to be truly sustainable, and with the consent and participation of the peoples concerned. Otherwise, they only serve to push an already vulnerable people into greater impoverishment and hardship. The devastation wrought by large-scale dams and forestry policies cloaked as development programs is succinctly described in this report, as is the population transfer and militarization. The interaction of all these factors in the process of assimilation and integration is the background for this book, analyzed within the perspective of indigenous and national law, and complemented by international legal approaches. The book concludes with an updateon the developments since the signing of the Peace Accord between the Government of Bangladesh and the Jana Sanghati Samiti (JSS) on December 2, 1997.

The common properties in Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh have been degraded due to curtailment of right of the indigenous people by the Forest Department, government policy relating to modernization of the central economy, deployment of military and settlement programs in the land of indigenous people. Therefore, in the context of common property management, the research study aimed to identify state's role on conversion of indigenous people's common property and also discovered customary practice of the indigenous people in common lands. The findings of the study reveal that government policy regarding conservation of forest and non-recognition of the indigenous people's customary rights over their land in the national legal frameworks have negative consequence over the natural environment of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. The study shows that indigenous peoples have their traditional knowledge which is effective for the conservation of nature and supporting livelihood which are not being recognized by the state legislation. The study found that detachment of the indigenous people from the nature brings destruction of nature as well as misery for the people. The study also found that international legal instruments and practical experiences as well as local knowledge could be applied for the required policy interventions in order to address the conflicting issues of Common property and livelihood of the indigenous people's.

More than fifteen years after an agreement guaranteeing the rights of Pahari-Indigenous peoples to their traditional lands in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts, Pahari continue to be denied access to their land. Many are forced to eke out a living on state-owned 'forest land', land that was in fact once theirs. The 1997 CHT-Accort promised to restore Pahari to their traditional lands, following their large-scale and repeated displacement during an armed conflict that saw tens of thousands of Bengali settlers occupying their land with the encouragement of the government. Today, clashes between Bengali settlers and Pahari over land are commonplace and the Bangladeshi army maintains a heavy presence in the area. The authorities' have remained ineffectual throughout, failing to protect the Pahari's right to security, their rights to traditional lands, and their livelihoods and way of life which are inextricably linked to those lands. This negatively affects all Pahari, particularly Pahari women. Amnesty International calls on the government of Bangladesh to respect its obligations under the international human rights law, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and take concrete steps to return the Pahari's traditional lands to them, with the effective participation of Pahari women and men in the process.

The common properties in Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh have been degraded due to curtailment of right by the Forest Department, government policy relating to modernization of the central economy, deployment of military and settlement programs in the land of indigenous people. Therefore, in the context of common property management, the research study aimed to identify state's role on conversion of indigenous people's common property and also discovered customary practices of the indigenous people. The findings of the study reveal that government policy regarding conservation of forest and non-recognition of the customary rights over indigenous land in the national legal frameworks have negative consequence over the environment and forest of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. The study shows that indigenous peoples have their traditional knowledge which is effective for the conservation of nature and supporting livelihood which are not being recognized by the state legislation. The study explores that detachment of the indigenous people from their own land brings destruction of nature and misery for the indigenous livelihood.

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