Speaking from his home in Agartala, the capital of the Northeast Indian state of Tripura, Mohendro Chakma recalls his role as the leader of the 19th group that was preparing to trek to the North East Frontier Agency (NEFA), present-day Arunachal Pradesh.
Indigenous displacement and our complicity
The Mro community held protests against the proposed hotel construction at the Kapru Bazar area in Bandarban on November 8, 2020. Photo: Collected
If you were forced out from your ancestral land today, where would you go? How long could you walk in your torn sandals? Where would you sleep as developers transformed the space shared by your siblings into a luxury suite for travellers willing to spend Tk 18,000 per night? How would you console your hungry children? What do you tell your old mother traumatised from generational conflicts?
The construction of a five star hotel and tourist spot in Bandarban by Sikder group will wipe out six villages of the Mro Indigenous community. The project will acquire about 405 hectares of land, levelling down hills, clearing forests and disrupting natural water sources.