Adivasis demand habitat rights

The tribal organisations in the state are happy with the Centre's decision to implement the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, from January 1, 2008.

At the same time, however, they have expressed their concern over the government's decision to declare the forests as critical tiger/wildlife habitats by amending the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, which they said would take away the rights of the adivasis over their habitats.

In Karnataka, all important forests have been declared national parks and sanctuaries from 1792 onwards. This declaration made the tribals homeless and live in fear all the time without livelihood resources from their natural habitats "" forests, the tribal organisations said in a joint statement.

"We were hopeful this injustice would be corrected through the Forest Rights Act," bemoaned Lalitha Karumbaiah, Convener, Tribal Joint Action Committee, DEED, Hunsur and P K Ramu, Convener, Nagarahole Tribal Rights Protection Committee, Kodagu and Mysore districts, in a joint statement.

"If the forest rights are taken away in the name of critical wildlife habitat by ignoring the Forest Rights Act, it is a betrayal of the Adivasis by the government. Therefore, we urge the government to protect the rights of the tribals who are living in national parks, sanctuaries and other reserve forests, by implementing the Tribal Forest Rights Acts and dropping the critical wildlife habitat declarations," they said in an appeal to the President, the Prime Minister and others.

"We are not against wildlife protection "" be it tiger, or elephant or any other wildlife. We have been living with them harmoniously for centuries. The wildlife distraction is not from the adivasis. This needs to be understood by the administrators, they said in the memorandum signed by 26 other tribal organisations, including those from Mysore, Chamarajanagar, Kodagu and Shimoga districts. INSAF and National Adivasi Andholan, Karnataka State units, are among them.

If the government wanted to declare critical wildlife habitats, it should follow its own guidelines and consult tribal traditional gram sabhas, while identifying areas for critical wildlife habitats.

The Ministry of Environment and Forest should not declare on its own any area as critical wildlife habitat without consulting the local adivasi communities, they said urging the Centre to intervene immediately.

"Torest and wildlife should be managed and protected with the traditional wisdom of the tribal communities. We request respect for our forest rights by involving the traditional gram sabhas of adivasi communities as per PESA 1996," they added.

The adivasi organisations have planned a dharna in front of the Gandhi Statue in Bangalore to press their demand.