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Land dispute leaves dozens hurt in Bangladesh

An indigenous community occupying disputed land have clashed with authority 'thugs'
Land dispute leaves dozens hurt in Bangladesh

A scene from clashes between tribal Santal people and laborers of a local sugar mill factory over disputed land in Gaibnadha district, Bangladesh on Nov. 6. (Photo by Rezaul Haque)

Published: November 08, 2016 10:29 AM GMT
Updated: November 08, 2016 10:40 AM GMT

Indigenous people in Bangladesh have been trying to reclaim their ancestral lands from a sugarcane plantation and mill leading to violent clashes, dozens of injuries and at least one alleged death.

Violence erupted in Gaibandha district on Nov. 6 when the Santal tribal community blocked laborers from the state-run Rangpur Sugar Mill from harvesting disputed fields, Subroto Kumar Sarkar, officer-in-charge of Govindaganj police station told ucanews.com.

"Police intervened to calm down the situation but the Santals started firing arrows and eight policemen were hurt. In response, police fired rubber bullets and lobbed teargas in self-defense but none of the Santals were wounded," he said.

No-one has yet been arrested and the situation is "calm now," according to Sarkar. 

The Santals, who are mostly Catholic, have dismissed his account.

"The mill authorities have hundreds of thugs, backed by the local administration and police. They were using the guise of harvesting sugarcane in order to remove tribal people," said Filemon Baskey, a Catholic and vice-president of the local Land Reclamation Committee.

"We tried to protest against the eviction move but we came under brutal attack. The police shot at us leaving five tribal people seriously hurt and one dead," he said.

And the violence has not abated, according to Baskey. Mill authorities continued their campaign against the Santals on Nov. 7.

"Two tribal villages near the mill have faced another round of violence with thugs looting valuables, livestock and vandalizing their houses. There are no police to protect them and villagers are trying to save themselves," he added.

The dispute goes back to 1952 when the government bought 744.62 hectares of the Santals' ancestral home to farm sugarcane. The sale agreement said that the land would be used to cultivate sugarcane only and if other crops were planted then it would first be returned to the district administration and then to the original owners.

Over the years, farm authorities leased out most of the land to cultivate crops including rice, wheat, maize and mustard leading the Santals to demand the return of their ancestral lands.

The situation turned violent when 1,600 tribal families squatted over 40 hectares claiming the land belonged to their forefathers. The farm authorities have been trying to evict them leading to a series of clashes.

Abdul Awal, managing director of the mill, said that the tribal people should vacate the occupied land. "We have made several requests to the indigenous community … but no one paid any heed," Awal told the Daily Star newspaper on Nov. 6.  

Bishop Sebastian Tudu of Dinajpur Catholic Diocese, which covers Gaibandha district, condemned the violence as "disappointing and shameful."

"These tribal people were owners of the land and well off, but they have been made poor and penniless systematically. As the land belongs to tribal people it should be returned to them because the mill is no longer using it for sugarcane cultivation as stated in the agreement," Bishop Tudu, a tribal Santal himself, told ucanews.com.

The prelate said most of the tribe are Catholics and the church is doing everything to protect their rights.

"We are concerned about their safety and security so we have been in touch with the local administration to try and calm the situation. If things don't work out, we will reach out to higher authorities in the government to solve this crisis," Bishop Tudu added.

 

A man being taken to hospital for treatment after clashes between tribal Santal people and laborers of a local sugar mill factory over disputed land in Gaibnadha district, Bangladesh on Nov. 6. (Photo by Rezaul Haque)

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