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Bangladesh rebel leaders welcome army pullout


An ex-tribal leader in Bangladesh's southeastern hill region welcomed Thursday a move by the army to withdraw troops from the area, 12 years after a peace deal was signed.

The announcement by the armed forces late Wednesday to remove a large number of troops from the Chittagong Hill Tracts, which borders Myanmar, came after a two-decade uprising for autonomy by tribes ended in 1997.

A former military leader of the main tribe involved in the insurgency in·sur·gen·cy  
n. pl. in·sur·gen·cies
1. The quality or circumstance of being rebellious.

2. An instance of rebellion; an insurgence.


insurgency, insurgence
1.
 told AFP (1) (AppleTalk Filing Protocol) The file sharing protocol used in an AppleTalk network. In order for non-Apple networks to access data in an AppleShare server, their protocols must translate into the AFP language. See file sharing protocol.  that while the move was welcome, he hoped for a complete withdrawal in future.

"We hope after the implementation of this partial withdrawal, the army will pull out the remaining troops in a bid to restore total peace and normalcy nor·mal·cy  
n.
Normality.

Noun 1. normalcy - being within certain limits that define the range of normal functioning
normality
 in the hills," said Ushatan Talukder, former chief of the military wing of the Parbattya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS).

The army said it would withdraw 2,100 troops from the hills, including three infantry battalions, and would dismantle dis·man·tle  
tr.v. dis·man·tled, dis·man·tling, dis·man·tles
1.
a. To take apart; disassemble; tear down.

b.
 35 security camps in the three hill districts, but did not say how many troops would remain.

The pullout pull·out  
n.
1. A withdrawal, especially of troops.

2. Change from a dive to level flight. Used of an aircraft.

3. An object designed to be pulled out.

Noun 1.
 will be completed by September and is the "biggest" withdrawal of army troops from the Chittagong Hill Tracts since the government signed a peace treaty with the PCJSS in December 1997.

Despite the treaty, signed when current premier Sheikh sheikh
 or shaykh

Among Arabic-speaking tribes, especially Bedouin, the male head of the family, as well as of each successively larger social unit making up the tribal structure. The sheikh is generally assisted by an informal tribal council of male elders.
 Hasina was last in power, unrest in the area has continued.

In the peace pact, the government promised regional councils and a complete withdrawal of troops. Although councils were set up, the Samity is unhappy that thousands of troops have not left the region.

When Hasina's government was ousted in 2001, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party Bangladesh Nationalist Party (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ জাতীয়তাবাদী দল Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Dôl  government which took over halted implementation of the agreement.

Hasina returned to power at the beginning of this year.

Since the pact, scores of people were killed in clashes, mainly between the deal's supporters and opponents who say it does not give sufficient autonomy.

Official figures show 2,500 people died during the two decades of fighting but tribal leaders say the real number is 5,000.
Copyright 2009 AFP South Asian Edition
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright (c) Mochila, Inc.

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Author:AFP
Publication:AFP South Asian Edition
Date:Jul 30, 2009
Words:334
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