Police raids UPDF office at Khagrachari, arrests members

Police have raided the office of United People's Democratic Front (UPDF) at Swanirbhar Bazaar in Khagrachari district today, 23 May, at 11:30 a.m. (Bangladesh Standard Time) and arrested a number of its members including the chief coordinator of the Party's Khagrachari district Unit Mr. Shachib Chakma.

UPDF members were holding a meeting about their June 7 rally planned to be held in Khagrachari to protest the ongoing land grabbing spree of the government. The arrest has been made to foil the rally.

It is not yet known how many UPDF members got arrested, but eight are confirmed. They are Sachib Chakma, Pradipan Khisha, Ranjan Moni Chakma, Pulock Chakma, Ronnie Tripura, Kerington Chakma, Ani Bikash Chakma and Natun Kumar Chakma.

Police also picked up Hill Women's Federation president Sonali Chakma and General Secretary Antarika Chakma and herded into the police pick-up, but were released a little later. Both of them were present at the meeting.

The arrest has come on the heels of an incident in which government-backed Jana Samhati Samiti members yesterday, 22 May, tore off UPDF's posters announcing the June 7 rally in Khagrachari town.

The arrested UPDF members have been taken to Khagrachari police station. It is not yet known on what grounds they have been arrested or whether any case has been filed against them.

This is the second time arrest for some of today's arrested UPDF members.

Earlier Sachib Chakma had been arrested on 11 February 1998 from Naniachar in Rangamati district. He had to stay some months behind bars and was released on bail.

Pradipan Khisha was first arrested by army on 18 February 1992 from Manikchari when he, along with other members of the Hill Student's Council, were returning from Dhaka by bus after submitting a memorandum to the then Prime Minister. Five others were also arrested along with him. Later, their detention had been challenged in the High Court of Bangladesh and the court ordered their immediate release.

Ranjan Moni Chakma had the taste of police arrest in 1999. He was detained for seven months without charge.

Lastly, Natun Kumar Chakma was one of the 37 UPDF members arrested in Chittagong on March 15 this year. He was freed after 22 hours along with other detainees. Mr. Chakma is a repatriated Jumma refugee leader and joined the UPDF last year.

At its eighth co-ordination meeting held in Chittagong from 7 - 10 May UPDF decided to organise a grand rally in Khagrachari to protest the land grabbing spree of the government. The decision was prompted by recent government's land acquisition notices for the construction of a battalion headquarters office of the Bangladesh Rifles, the border security force of the country.

If implemented, the decision of the government will immediately evict 74 Jumma families in three villages in Babuchara under Khagrachari district.

In another incident, on 20 May the government-backed Jana Samhati Samiti members kidnapped six members of the Hill Students Council in Boradam under Dighinala Thana in Rangamati district. The JSS members forced to halt a jeep carrying PCP members when it reached Rebang club, known as JSS outpost, and took away six of them at gun point. The PCP members were returning from Khagrachari after attending their organisation's 16th founding anniversary programme.

The kidnapped PCP members - Mito Chakma, Suman Chakma, Nipon Chakma, Sushil Chakma, Uddipan Chakma and Sonadhan Chakma - are yet to be freed.

Prepared by Press Section, Publications and Publicity Department, United People's Democratic Front (UPDF), May 23, 2005, Dhaka.