Persecution of tribals in Bangladesh 'worsening'

Dhaka, Bangladesh, 27 February 2014: More than 200 families belonging to ethnic minority groups in Bangladesh were forced to flee their homes into neighboring India last year as persecution by majority Bengalis worsened, according to a tribal rights group.

A report released by the Kapaeeng Foundation in Dhaka on Tuesday said that 11 tribal people were killed, 15 tribal women and children were raped and hundreds of homes were attacked in 2013. The report added that influential politicians from the ruling Awami League Party were also involved in the confiscation of nearly 1,620 hectares of land from tribals.

Neglect of minority groups by the central government has fueled violence, said the report, entitled Human Rights Report 2013 on Indigenous Peoples in Bangladesh.

Before the 2008 elections, the Awami League promised to recognize tribals as indigenous to Bangladesh, stop land grabs and settle land disputes, but reneged on the promises after it gained power.

“Violence against tribals is met with sheer negligence from law enforcers and the administration,” said Rabindranath Soren, a tribal leader based in northwest Bangladesh. “Instead of prosecuting criminals, often false cases are filed against tribals to harass them and it encourages crimes.”

Of Bangladesh’s 160 million population, about three million are tribal people, belonging to around 45 ethnic groups.

Much of the violence results from land disputes between tribals and Bengali settlers in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) and in the northwest and northeast of Bangladesh where tribal people are concentrated.

The CHT region has had an influx of Bengali Muslim settlers over the past 20 years, which has led to land disputes, violence, armed resistance against settlers and counter-insurgency measures by successive governments.

“Tribal people are mostly poor and powerless. So, in most cases they are denied justice because their torturers are powerful and can easily influence the administration and law enforcement,” said Imran Chowdhury, a legal advocate for ethnic minorities.
Source: UCAN