Council for Human Rights - Forum on Minority Issues - Seventh session; 25-26 November 14
2014.
Item 6: Avoiding Renewed Conflict - the building of peace and diversity management.
LA VOIX DES JUMMAS (LVJ), FRANCE, 7, square Paul Lafargue, 91000 Evry, France
Madam Chairlady, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The French Association La Voix des Jummas is honored to participate in the 7th Forum on
Minority Issues and thanks all the organizers.
The Jummas live in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region of South-Eastern Bangladesh and
consider themselves as Aboriginal people according to the UN Declaration of 2007.
The settling of the Bengali settlers in this region that was encouraged by the
Government of Bangladesh since the late 1970s, subjected the Jummas to violence and
mass killing. Acts of violence continued despite the Chittagong Hill Tracts Agreement of
1997, as evidenced by the burning down of Jummas villages, as well as cases of rape
and murder. In some cases, state authorities either supported the settlers, or played a
passive role.
95% of perpetrators of sexual violence on girls and indigenous women are Bengali
settlers who are administrative staff members of both the forestry service and the
armed forces.
Perpetrators enjoy complete impunity for their acts due to the lack of access to justice of
the Jummas victims. Help from the police is slow or non-existent. The victims cannot file
complaints because of their ignorance of their rights and of their lack of knowledge of
the official language. The authorities impede investigations.
1. Recommendations to the Government of Bangladesh:
Implement UPR recommendations – elimination of violence against women
and end of the culture of impunity – which was promised by the government
of Bangladesh in the second UPR session in 2013.
Recognize in the national constitution ethnic, cultural and religious
minorities of Bangladesh as Indigenous Peoples.
Demilitarize the Chittagong Hill Tracts and control the region through
effective, multi-ethnic, multi-gender and non-discriminatory police force.