Human Chains, Rallies Across Country
'Say indigenous, not ethnic people in constitution'
Indigenous people form human chains in front of Khagrachhari Press Club, and Central Shaheed Minar in Sylhet city yesterday demanding their constitutional recognition as indigenous people, not 'ethnic groups'. Similar programmes were held in several other places of the country.Photo: STAR
Indigenous people across the country yesterday rejected a parliamentary committee's decision to give them constitutional recognition as 'ethnic groups' and urged the government to consider them as 'indigenous people'. They organised human chains and rallies to press home their demand and submitted memoranda to the district administration of Rangamati, Khagrachhari, Barisal, Thakurgaon, Natore, Sylhet and Moulvibazar. After a meeting of the parliamentary special committee on constitutional amendment on March 15, its co-chair Suranjit Sengupta told media that the committee would recommend constitutional recognition of the ethnic groups. The indigenous people across the country yesterday urged the government to recognise them as 'indigenous people', not 'ethnic groups' or 'ethnic minorities'. Our Rangamati correspondent reported that the indigenous people formed a human chain in front of the deputy commissioner's office in the town yesterday and later held a rally at the venue. Addressing the rally, the adivasi leaders urged the government to meet their demand. Otherwise, they threatened to launch a tougher agitation programme. Chaired by Goutam Dewan, president of CHT Nagorik Committee, the rally was addressed, among other, by Prakriti Ranjan Chakma, president of Bangladesh Adivasi Forum CHT unit, Nirupa Dewan, member of National Human Right Commission, Shakti Pada Tripura, organising secretary of the central committee of Bangladesh Adivasi Forum, Prof Moungshanu Chowdhury and Anjulika Khisa. CHT Nagorik Committee and Bangladesh Adivasi Forum CHT unit jointly In Khagrachhari, Bangladesh Marma Unnayan Sangsad, Bangladesh Marma Students Forum, Bangladesh Tripura Kalyan Sangsad, Tripura Students Forum, Khagrachhari Zila Headman-Karbari Association and Bangladesh Adivasi Forum jointly organised a human chain in the district town to press for the same demand, according to a correspondent. Our staff correspondent from Sylhet reports, Sylhet Bibhagiya Adivasi Janogosthi, a forum of indigenous people in the greater Sylhet, yesterday formed a human chain in front of the Sylhet Central Shaheed Minar, urging the government to recognise them as 'indigenous people' instead of 'ethnic groups. The forum also held a similar programme in Moulvibazar yesterday Jatiya Adivasi Parishad Thakurgaon unit formed a human chain in the district town yesterday demanding their constitutional recognition as 'indigenous people' instead of 'ethnic groups', says our correspondent. Rakhine community in Patuakhali and Borguna formed human chains, took out processions and held rallies at the district headquarters yesterday on the same demand, reports our Barisal correspondent.
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