[Reader-list] Army Blocks Fact-Finding Team in Sajek

[Shambhu Rahmat]

This is what Army regime-backed Bengali racism looks like.

http://www.drishtipat.org/blog/2008/04/27/sajek

BREAKING NEWS: Fact-Finding Team Blocked By Army
chtnews.com/News No. 71/2008, April 30, 2008

A 13-member investigative team of progressive Bengalis, which visited
the place of occurrence in Sajek, came back to Dhaka yesterday.
Jointly led by Ms Moshrefa Mishu, a veteran leftist leader and
convenor of Biplobi Okyo Front, and Mr. Manos Chowdhury, teacher of
Anthropology Department, Jahangirnagar University, the team reached
Sajek on 28 April.

One of the team members told chtnews.com that they were halted by
Major Kabir at Dighinala and were not allowed to speak freely with the
victims. "We were boarded their army vehicle and driven to the place
of occurrence. During the visit we were not allowed to talk to the
Pahari (Jumma) victims and to visit their burned houses." he said. "It
was a guarded and restricted visit, and wherever we went we were
flanked by military personnel." said Ricoh Chakma who accompanied the
team members. The team members are expected to hold a press conference
on their Sajek visit.

Memo to Debashish Roy: Victims of Sajek arson attack, who held a press
conference in Dhaka on 27 April, submitted a memorandum to Barrister
Debashish Roy, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser and in charge of
CHT Ministry, on 28 April demanding adequate compensation to the
victims and punishment to those responsible for the attack.

Moeen U Ahmed's visit: an eye wash. Army chief Moeen U Ahmed visited
Sajek yesterday and blamed "a section of the population there" who is
"always involved in terrorist activities in an effort to sabotage the
area's development". Asked to comment on his visit, Mithun Chakma,
General Secretary of the Democratic Youth Forum, said, "the visit of
Moeen U Ahmed is nothing but an eyewash, a damage control exercise."
He said the objective of his visit was quite clear and it was to save
the culprits like Lt. Col. Sajid Md. Imtiaz and businessman Golam
Mowla, the masterminds behind the brutal attack. "It is a big question
as to why the government had decided to send Gen. Moeen instead of
Barrister Debashish Roy, who is in charge of Chittagong Hill Tracts
Ministry." he said.