The Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh: Integrational Crisis between Center and Periphery

SINCE JANUARY 1976, the law enforcement agencies in different parts of the Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh have come under repeated attacks by the so-called Shanti Bahini (Peace Corps).' In these attacks with sophisticated modern weapons, a dozen law enforcement personnel have either been killed or seriously wounded. Naturally, this causes the government of Bangladesh serious concern and arouses the interest of researchers who specialize in the study of political development. The immediate steps taken by the government have been two-fold: the law enforcement authority has been strengthened, and the government convened a convention2 to which most of the influential tribal leaders were invited with the aim of inducing them to persuade the dissident militant groups to reach a peaceful solution to the problem. Regardless of the success or failure of the government's venture in this connection, the important point for researchers in political development to consider is that the cause of militant action by anomic groups in this district is still unknown. This article will examine the primary sources of this violence and the factors that have led to the emergence of the militant "Shanti Bahini" as a dissident force demanding full autonomy for the Chittagong Hill Tracts.3 This type of crisis is not unknown in new nations burdened by ethnic or racial conflicts and primordial sentiments. In the political