Bawm tribesmen fleeing from Bangladesh enter Mizoram

Agartala, Jan 11, 2025, By Our Correspondent131

Around 30 tribals from Bangladesh’s Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), including 16 children and four women, fled to Mizoram following an offensive by the Bangladeshi military, officials reported on Friday. The refugees, belonging to the Bawm clan of the ethnic Mizo community, arrived in Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district over the past two days after crossing forested hills near the border.

A Mizoram Home Department official stated that the refugees came from two CHT villages, Kersetlang and Pankhiang. Upon entering Indian territory, Assam Rifles personnel escorted them to a camp in Tuithumhnar village, where they were provided with food and shelter.

The influx adds to an ongoing refugee situation in the district. By December last year, 2,014 people from the CHT had already sought shelter in Lawngtlai, citing alleged attacks and atrocities by the Bangladesh military targeting the Kuki-Chin National Army (KNA), an ethnic insurgent group advocating for a separate tribal state. Lawngtlai, which shares an unfenced border with Myanmar and Bangladesh, also hosts 5,930 Myanmar nationals and 84 displaced tribals from Manipur.

The state government is considering relocating and consolidating Bangladeshi refugees into four villages within Lawngtlai to facilitate better support and management, according to Lalmuanpuia Punte, the political advisor to Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma and MLA of the ruling Zoram People's Movement (ZPM).

Mizoram has been a refuge for displaced members of the Kuki-Zo-Chin-Hmar-Bawm tribal community, who share ethnic and cultural ties with the Mizos. Since May last year, around 7,800 people from Manipur have taken shelter in Mizoram after ethnic violence erupted in the neighboring state. Additionally, 33,004 Myanmar nationals, including 12,572 children, have sought refuge across Mizoram since the military coup in Myanmar in February 2021.

The refugees from Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Manipur are accommodated in various camps, government facilities, and rented houses spread across Mizoram’s 11 districts. The state government continues to manage this humanitarian crisis amidst limited resources and ongoing challenges.