Politicians, academics, rights activists and ethnic minority leaders on Sunday stressed the need for constitutional recognition of ethnic minorities and importance of observing the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples nationally to attain a Bangladesh where equal rights of all peoples are ensured.
They made the demand in a virtual discussion organised by Bangladesh Adibasi Forum in the afternoon marking the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, being observed across the world on Sunday under the theme of ‘COVID-19 and indigenous peoples’ resilience’.
The speakers said that the country’s ethnic minorities were marginalised and they had become more marginalised due to COVID-19 crisis as their livelihoods were seriously affected due to the outbreak.
They stressed the need of providing the affected ethnic minorities with financial incentives immediately for their survival.
Addressing the discussion, Workers’ Party president Rashed Khan Menon said that the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples is yet to be recognised and still not observed nationally though the leaders of both ruling Awami League and opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party had earlier used to greet the ethnic minorities on this very day.
Not giving recognition to this special day is an offence since the day has been designated by the United Nations and Bangladesh is a member state of the UN, he said, alleging that efforts were on to make people forget the issues concerning the ethnic minorities.
He stressed the need for shunning the politics of denial and to take initiatives to bring the ethnic minorities to the mainstream.
The veteran politician said that lack of full implementation of the Chattogram Hill Tracts accord had been brewing discontentment and hopelessness in the members of the ethnic minority communities.
WP lawmaker and Parliamentary Caucus on Ethnic Minorities’ convener Fazle Hossain Badsha alleged that the ethnic minorities were deprived of their rights and they were being evicted from their lands, even during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.
He made an appeal to all to ensure ethnic minority children’s education in their mother tongue and alleged that the ethnic minority schools were being deprived of the entitlement to the government’s monthly payment order.
He also stressed that it was important to form a separate authority to oversee the issues of ethnic minorities in plain lands.
Addressing the event on behalf of the host, the Forum general secretary Sanjeeb Drong said that over 1,00,000 ethnic minorities had become new poor due to the COVID-19 crisis and demanded that 25,000 ethnic minority youths be given the opportunity to work at part time jobs which would ensure their survival.
Transperancy International executive director Iftekharuzzaman, Shaheen Anam of Manusher Jonno Foundation, Shamsul Huda of ALRD, Dhaka University teachers Mesbah Kamal and Sadeka Halim and ethnic minority leaders, including Abhilash Tripura and Myentthein Promila, also spoke.
