Bangladesh-India boundary talks

That both parties have agreed to meet yearly is certainly a very significant development that we hope would lend more effectiveness to the JBWG. What would be also very heartening news to the citizens' of the enclaves is the prospect of yearly visits to their areas by the Working Group.

The issue of border management, we feel, has been greatly hindered by the fact that the Land Boundary Agreement of 1974 has not yet been ratified by the Indian government, on the grounds that the 6.5 km area remains to be demarcated. Thus we must address some ground realities that continue to hamper the just and equitable application of all the articles of the Boundary Agreement of 1974.

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There are clearly two very distinct matters that have to be tackled head on. One is the ratification of the treaty by India, which has been made conditional by it on the completion of demarcation of the border. And the second is the equally important matter of demarcating the remaining 6.5 kilometers of the border. And this is the crux of the issue that dominates the gamut of Indo-Bangladesh border management. This is where we are caught in a vicious cycle, and much as Bangladesh would wish to come out of this, it can't.

We must approach the Indo-Bangladesh border issue in a holistic rather than piecemeal manner. Very few will contest the assertion that the Bangladesh India border is less than peaceful and that Bangladesh has unfortunately lost a large number of its citizens to the reckless firing of the BSF. The need is to move expeditiously to resolve the hindrances to fulfilling the border agreement provisions. The prospect of waiting another thirty-two years before the boundary treaty is fully operational is too alarming to contemplate.