{"id":100,"date":"2026-06-25T13:26:49","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T13:26:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/?p=100"},"modified":"2026-06-25T13:26:49","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T13:26:49","slug":"border-deaths-no-justice-bangladesh-pays-for-myanmars-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/border-deaths-no-justice-bangladesh-pays-for-myanmars-war\/","title":{"rendered":"Border Deaths, No Justice: Bangladesh Pays for Myanmar\u2019s War"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Insight Report
<\/strong>
There is no war on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. But people are dying. Someone cooking in their own kitchen. Someone playing in their courtyard. Someone working in a banana grove. Someone who went into the hills and never came back.

Every time, the same scene.
Gunfire on the other side. Mortar shells fall. Armed groups clash. Sometimes a landmine explodes.

Then a family in some border village of Bangladesh is changed forever. News gets reported. Officials visit the scene. In some cases, a small amount of financial assistance arrives.

Then everything stops. Investigations stop. Justice stops. The visible presence of the state stops. But the grief of the border people does not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Death Certificate Says \u2018Natural Disaster\u2019 After Mortar Shell Kills Woman in Her Kitchen
5 February 2024. In a home on the border edge of Ghumdhum Union in Naikhongchhari, Hosne Ara Begum was cooking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At the time, fierce fighting was raging inside Myanmar. Suddenly, a mortar shell came flying from across the border.

Hosne Ara was killed on the spot. A Rohingya labourer died in the same incident.
The autopsy report and hospital documents clearly stated that she died from blast injuries.
But the family alleges that the death certificate later issued by the Union Parishad listed the cause of death as \u201cnatural disaster.\u201d

Her son, Md. Ibrahim, says: \u201cThe MSF hospital papers clearly say death by bomb blast. But the Union Parishad death certificate says natural disaster. My question is \u2014 if a bomb comes from Myanmar and kills someone, how is that a natural disaster?\u201d

In his words, that single phrase captures the entire political and administrative reality.

\u201cEven a small child wants justice for their mother\u2019s murder. Losing a mother means an entire family is destroyed. But we have come to understand \u2014 in this country, if you are killed at the border, there are very few places to seek justice.\u201d

Hosne Ara\u2019s husband, Badsha Mia, filed a case. But more than two years have passed with no visible progress.

\u201cPolice were saying they couldn\u2019t catch the accused. If you want to keep the case going, go ahead \u2014 if not, leave it. After that, nothing happened.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After 27 Days of Fighting, Hujaifa Loses the Battle<\/strong>

<\/strong>Hujaifa was just 12 years old. She was playing in the courtyard with friends. A bullet came flying from the direction of the border. She was critically wounded and taken first to Chittagong, then to Dhaka.

After fighting for his life in the ICU for 27 days, the child died.

Her father, Jasim Uddin, still carefully keeps his daughter\u2019s toys, socks, and the half-eaten packet of dal-bhaja from the day it happened. He kept stopping mid-sentence as he spoke.
\u201cShe wasn\u2019t fighting a war. She was sitting at a shop eating snacks, playing with toys. A bullet hit a child\u2019s body. Then she fought death for 27 days.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n


He says that at the time, the Arakan Army and the Rohingya armed group RSO were exchanging fire. At one point, armed members crossed into Bangladeshi territory and continued shooting. One of those bullets struck Hujaifa as she played in the courtyard.
The family has filed no case. Because they do not know against whom to file one.
\u201cThe bullet came from across the border. But whose door do I knock on for justice?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Father Killed in Mine Blast Two Weeks Before His Child Was Born
<\/strong>
24 May. In a hilly banana grove between border pillars 41 and 42 in the Tumru border area, a group of labourers had gone to work.

Suddenly, an explosion. Shaifuching Tanchangya, Akyamong Tanchangya, and Chikyang Tanchangya were killed on the spot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

All three were from Fatrajhiri area of Valukyapara in Ghumdhum Union, and all were the primary breadwinners of their families.

Shaifuching\u2019s wife, Makingching, gave birth just seven days after the incident \u2014 she had lost her husband nearly two weeks before she would hold her child.

\u201cHe was supposed to come back with money from selling bananas. He never came back.\u201d
As government assistance, she received only a few thousand taka.

Nothing after that. No case. No news of any investigation. No compensation.
Local Union Parishad member Angsai Marma says: \u201cIt was a devastating incident. While trying to save one person, two more died. Three families were destroyed overnight.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018What Is the Point of Talking?\u2019<\/strong>

Dukmala Tanchangya lost her husband Akyamong Tanchangya in the same blast. But she does not want to speak to journalists.

Neighbours say her resentment toward the state runs so deep that she believes talking serves no purpose.

From a distance, Dukmala shouts: \u201cWe didn\u2019t get justice. Instead, now they\u2019re blaming us.\u201d
This silence reflects the long experience of the border people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

They have seen people die, get injured, and go missing \u2014 but not a single incident has ever reached a judicial conclusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Missing Man \u2014 And No Search<\/strong>

Wamong Chakma has been missing for nearly four months. His wife, Usasing Chakma, says he went into the hilly border area to collect bamboo and never returned.

The family does not even know if he is alive. Most strikingly, they have not filed any case.
Because they believe it would yield nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Usasing says: \u201cWe contacted the police and BGB, but they said they could not go into that area. There is no news of whether Wamong is even alive.\u201d

Naikhongchhari Police Station OC Mozammel Haque says GD entries have been made for at least two missing person cases in the border area \u2014 including Sumon Tanchangya and Waimong Chakma.

\u201cNo trace has been found yet. The matters are under investigation,\u201d he says.
He acknowledges, however, that police capacity for investigation in the remote border areas is limited.

\u201cLegally, BGB has the primary responsibility in border areas. For any incident, we have to coordinate with them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hanif Lost His Leg in His Own Country<\/strong>

<\/strong>Md. Hanif, a resident of Lambabil area in Whaikyang, Teknaf, lost a leg to a mine explosion while walking to his own fish enclosure.

The incident happened inside Bangladesh \u2014 he was walking along the Naf riverbank toward his enclosure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Suddenly, an explosion. In an instant, one leg was severed from his body.
While hospitalised at Chittagong Medical College Hospital, he received 30,000 taka in assistance from the BGB.

Nothing came after. He now lives with his wife and child, dependent on his younger brother\u2019s income.

Hanif says the explosion occurred roughly 20 feet inside the embankment, where enclosures are located before the Naf river. He believes mines may be scattered even further inland.
He is now unemployed, staying home. His household runs entirely on his younger brother\u2019s earnings.

\u201cWho do I file a case against? Even the police didn\u2019t come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is Happening Inside the Border?<\/strong>

Locals allege that armed groups of various kinds operate across wide stretches of the border.

Some name Rohingya armed factions. Others mention the Arakan Army. Still others say ordinary people have no way of knowing who belongs to which side.

As a result, going to work in the hills, grazing livestock, or visiting plantations has become dangerous.

Ulasing Tanchangya, a resident of Fatrajhiri area in Valukyapara, Ghumdhum Union, says: \u201cIf we don\u2019t go to the hills, we can\u2019t eat. But now going means risking death.\u201d

He explains that people in this area grow bananas, papayas, ginger, mangoes, jackfruit, and betel leaves on the hills to earn a living. Unable to access their land, they are now facing extreme financial hardship and food insecurity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Does the BGB Say?<\/strong>

34 BGB Commanding Officer Lieutenant Colonel S.M. Khairul Alam says an investigation is underway into the source of the mines found near the border.

Preliminary assessment suggests that during clashes between Myanmar\u2019s junta forces and the Arakan Army, some mines may have been planted or left behind in areas near the Bangladesh border.

\u201cThe matter is still under investigation. We don\u2019t want to say anything definitively.\u201d

He adds that BGB is conducting awareness campaigns in border areas \u2014 going house to house, warning residents not to touch any suspicious object and to immediately inform BGB.
He also notes that in many hilly border areas, the zero line is not clearly demarcated, so locals often cannot tell whether they are inside Bangladesh or have crossed to the other side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why This Cycle of Impunity?<\/strong>

South Asian geopolitics analyst Altaf Parvez believes the root cause is the lack of effective control over the border.

\u201cThere is a state of war at the border. There is the Arakan Army, there are Rohingya armed groups, there is the Myanmar military. But ordinary people are bearing the greatest cost.\u201d
He argues that keeping the border safe is the state\u2019s responsibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut in reality, border people are living in a kind of uncertainty. Everyone knows what is happening, but there is very little social or political discussion about it.\u201d

In his view, these people are effectively among Bangladesh\u2019s most marginalised citizens.
\u201cCity people live safely. Border people have to live with the risk.\u201d

He adds: \u201cThese people are not at the centre of any discussion. They are not part of power politics. So their deaths do not become electoral issues.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Should the State Do?<\/strong>

Former Myanmar consulate head and security analyst Major (Retd.) Mohammad Emdadul Islam says the current situation is extremely complex \u2014 because in most cases the accused is not a state, but non-state armed groups.

\u201cBangladesh cannot take direct judicial action against groups like the Arakan Army. But it is urgent to strengthen mine detection, mine clearance, and preventive security measures along the border.\u201d

He believes Bangladesh should build stronger preventive measures at the border and increase diplomatic pressure on Myanmar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are Border People Second-Class Citizens?<\/strong>

Hosne Ara. Hujaifa. Shaifuching. Akyamong. Chikyang. Wamong. Hanif.
These are just a few names.

But within these names lies the long history of insecurity, fear, and impunity endured by the border people.

They did not fight. They are not members of any armed group.

They were simply at home, working their land, catching fish, raising their children.
But they are the ones paying the price of war.

Coxs Bazar District Bar Association President Abdul Mannan asked the question: if a Bangladeshi citizen is killed by a mortar shell, shot dead by a bullet, disabled by a mine explosion, or goes missing inside Bangladesh \u2014 who bears responsibility for that?

\u201cAnd if responsibility is never determined, where will justice come from? In one word \u2014 the state itself must take responsibility for the safety of its citizens.\u201d

People are dying at the border. But as they die, the possibility of justice seems to die with them \u2014 and that, perhaps, is the greatest tragedy in all these stories.

Abdul Mannan asked: \u201cAre the people of the border second-class citizens?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bangladesh\u2019s people are paying the price for Myanmar\u2019s conflict \u2014 with no accountability, no human rights Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":101,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[11,10],"class_list":["post-100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insight-story","tag-11","tag-featured"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpen.thebayinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}