Divers Paths to Justice - English - Forest Peoples Programme

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Divers Paths to Justice: Legal pluralism and the rights of indigenous peoples inSoutheast Asialands categorised as forests within Bangladesh - e.g. customary law versus‘colonialist’ Forest law regimes - show a clear subordination of customaryregimes to ‘statist’ interpretations of Forest laws. 9 The trend is not unlikethat seen in several other parts of South and Southeast Asia. 10 This paperwill not focus on these issues. It will, instead, discuss the major challengesin asserting and defending customary land rights in the CHT in areas notformally classified as forests. 11Legal, administrative and judicial pluralism in the Chittagong HillTracts: historical and current contextBureaucratic, traditional and elective authoritiesThe administrative and legal system in the CHT is unique in Bangladesh onaccount of both the structures of governance and the laws applicable to theregion. The CHT administration includes, in addition to the usualbureaucratic and elected local government system, the traditional selfgovernmentinstitutions of the rajas or ‘circle chiefs’, headmen andkarbaries (village chiefs), which do not occur in other parts of the country.These institutions were partially formalised during British rule (1860-1947)through legislation, although some of them predate the British advent in thearea. 12 Additionally, there are the three hill district councils and the CHTRegional Council, two-thirds of whose membership, along with theirchairpersonship, are reserved, by law, for “tribals”. 13 The latter institutions2002, 2004a, 2004ba, 2005; Roy C 2000:53-589 Roy & Gain 1999:22; Roy 2002:20, 26-29; Roy 2005; Roy 201010 Lynch & Talbott 199511 Although Forest Department officials do not manage or administer these lands,unlike those that are categorised as “reserved forests”, they nevertheless havejurisdiction over these lands when it comes to the issuance of the mandatory permitsfor sale and transit of timber. In this case, the department steps in on the grounds thatthese lands are categorised by the department as “unclassed State forests”.12 Serajuddin 1971, Chakroborty 1977, Brauns & Loffler 1990:27, Quanungo 1997.13 Roy 2000: 43-49; Roy R C:29-35; Roy 2009:21-30; Khan 2004:23-26; Martin2004:74-79.109
Divers Paths to Justice: Legal pluralism and the rights of indigenous peoples inSoutheast Asiaare the result of the autonomist struggle of the 1970s to the 1990s,culminating in the signing of the CHT accord of 1997 and the revival oflimited self-rule in the region through bureaucratic, elective and traditionalsystems of governance. 14CHT: an example of legal and juridical pluralismIt has been said that “[the] CHT is the example of a legally and juridicallypluralistic system. Legal pluralism exists on account of the concurrentapplication of customary, regional and national laws to the region. Juridicalpluralism is reflected through such matters as the co-existence of traditionaland State courts, based upon different traditions of justice, litigationprocedure, penal and reform systems, restitution and compensationprocesses, and so forth”. 15Conflict of systems and authorities in land allotmentFormal land grants through Deputy CommissionersThe CHT land administration system, especially with regard to the systemof land allotment, shows a conflict of traditions, particularly since the1970s. Prior to 1971, land grants to outsiders was not permissible by law.Except for the small extent of commercially valuable lands in marketcentres and the scarce valley-floor lands suitable for intensive irrigationorientedagriculture, CHT residents did not go for private titles.Amendments to the CHT Regulation of 1900 (to rule 34) in 1971 and 1979,led to the introduction of the practice of providing land grants to outsiderindividuals and companies. 16However, the practice of providing grants only after consulting the mauzaheadmen for specific cases, and the Circle Chiefs, in a general manner, was14 Roy 2000; Khan 2004; Martin 2004:21,74-7915 Roy 2004a:12716 Roy 2004b:30110
Page 2 and 3:
Divers Paths to Justice: Legal plur
Page 4 and 5:
Page 6 and 7:
Page 8 and 9:
Page 10 and 11:
Page 12 and 13:
Page 14 and 15:
Page 16 and 17:
Page 18 and 19:
Page 20:
Page 23 and 24:
Page 25 and 26:
Page 27 and 28:
Page 29 and 30:
Page 31 and 32:
Page 33 and 34:
Page 35 and 36:
Page 37 and 38:
Page 39 and 40:
Page 41 and 42:
Page 43 and 44:
Page 45 and 46:
Page 47 and 48:
Page 49 and 50:
Page 51 and 52:
Page 53 and 54:
Page 55 and 56:
Page 57 and 58:
Page 59 and 60: Divers Paths to Justice: Legal plur
Page 109: Divers Paths to Justice: Legal plur
Page 161 and 162:
Page 163 and 164:
Page 165 and 166:
Page 167 and 168:
Page 169 and 170:
Page 171 and 172:
Page 173 and 174:
Page 175 and 176:
Page 177 and 178:
Page 179 and 180:
show all

Divers Paths to Justice - English - Forest Peoples Programme

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?