Dhaka: Bangladesh’s approximately 15 lakh indigenous tribal population is feeling unsafe after a coordinated attack on their students in Dhaka on 15 January, said Parban Chakma, an indigenous youth activist and former public relations secretary of Dhaka University Buddhist Students’ Union.
Chakma, 26, a journalist with Bangladesh’s The Daily Star, told ThePrint in a phone interview from Dhaka that it is not just the physical violence, but the removal of the term “ethnic minority” from the textbooks for classes 9 and 10 that has stirred the most anger among the tribal population.
“There is an attempt to deny us our ethnic exclusivity in new Bangladesh,” Chakma said.
“Indigenous students were attacked near the Teacher-Student Centre of Dhaka University on 15 January by a radical Islamist group when they were protesting the removal of the term ‘indigenous’ (adivasi in Bangla) from textbooks,” Chakma said.
The Daily Star reported that at least 20 students were injured in the attack that was allegedly carried out by a group identifying themselves as “Students for Sovereignty”.
The report said the footage from the scene showed one student, Rupaiya Shrestha Tanchangya, “bleeding profusely from her head and lying on the ground as attackers surrounded her, repeatedly striking her with cricket stumps and sticks”.
Chakma said Tanchangya is a central leader of the Students Against Discrimination platform that had taken to the streets in July-August 2024 against Sheikh Hasina’s regime. “Yet, in new Bangladesh she is targeted on the streets,” Chakma said.
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What happened on 15 January
Chakma said a large group of students were protesting the sudden exclusion of the word “indegenous” from textbooks. “The group gathered at the Teacher-Student Centre of Dhaka University at 10 am and marched towards the National Curriculum and National Curriculum & Textbook Board office in Motijheel area beside Bangladesh Secretariat,” Chakma said.
He added that the group had no intention of violence and wanted to protest peacefully.
“We had got to know that a so-called organisation named ‘Students for Sovereignty’ had been insisting on striking off the word. The supporters of this organisation attacked the indigenous students without any provocation,” he said.
Chakma alleged that the police officers at the scene did nothing to prevent the attack and failed to assist Tanchangya, who is now hospitalised. “It was John Detra, a Garo student leader, who came to her rescue. He was also attacked and is hospitalised with a head injury,” he said.
In a report, The Daily Star quoted Rahee Nayab, one of the injured students, who alleged that the attackers chanted slogans like “Tumi ke, ami ke? Bangalee, Bangalee” (Who are you, who am I? Bangalee, Bangalee) and “Nara e Takbeer, Allahu Akbar” during the assault.
Chakma alleged that after Hindus, the indigenous population in Bangladesh is under attack. “The radicals, who have been given free rein, do not even want to be known as Bengalis anymore. They want everyone to be called Bangladeshis and all other religious and ethnic identities, except Islam, are now being perceived as unwanted,” he said.
Little access to govt services for minorities
Marginalised communities in Bangladesh have little access to government services due to their backgrounds, and they face difficulties even when they file complaints for not receiving the required services, a tbsnews.net report said.
Citing research by Transparency International Bangladesh, the report stated that weak accountability in government institutions and gaps in the legal framework are the primary reasons for the failure to deliver essential services in education, healthcare, land management, and relief for marginalised communities.
“Indigenous tribes like the Chakmas, the Khasis and the Hajongs have faced discrimination in Bangladesh since ages. But after the fall of Hasina, we can’t even peacefully protest in Bangladesh without being targeted,” said Chakma.
Bangladeshi journalist Sahidul Hasan Khokon said that while the attack on protesting indigenous students is concerning, the removal of the term ‘ethnic minority’ from textbooks is even more alarming.
“The Yunus administration is yielding to almost every demand of Islamist radicals. Whether it is turning a blind eye as mobs go on a rampage in various parts of Bangladesh on Hindu temples and properties, or attacks on Sufi shrines, or attacks on indigenous students. At this rate, Bangladesh will remain secular only in name,” he told ThePrint.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
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