International Day of the World's Indigenous People Today

Fresh call to protect rights

8 August 2009, 17:00 PM

Star National Desk

A colourful procession brought out on the eve of International Day of the World's Indigenous People parades the streets of Mymensingh town yesterday.Photo: STAR

On the eve of the Interna-tional Day of the World's Indigenous People yesterday, leaders of the indigenous communities in the country reiterated the call for protecting their rights for a harmonious society. To observe the day today, indigenous communities and different socio-cultural organisations have taken up various programmes including rallies, discussions, and cultural functions in the capital as well as in different districts. At a press conference at Sylhet Press Club yesterday the leaders of the communities placed a 12-point demand including the indigenous people's participation in all government safety net programmes, reports our staff correspondent from Sylhet. They also demanded arrangement of pre-primary and primary education in their mother tongue and appointment of teachers from their communities. Others demands include allotment of khas land among the poor adivasis, special arrangement at district level for settling land related complexities of the community members, special stipend for their poor children, quota for adivasi students in public universities and colleges and launching special income generation programme for poor youngsters. Ethnic Community Development Organisation Executive Director Lakshmi-kanta Sinha, also member secretary of the Sylhet chapter of Biswa Adivasi Dibash Udjapon Committee-2009, read out a written statement while Patro Kalyan Parishad President Gouranga Patro, also convener of the said committee, spoke, among others. The committee has arranged day-long programme including discussion, cultural function and procession in Sylhet today. Our Mymensingh correspondent adds: A day-long programme was held at Zila Shilpakala Academy yesterday marking the day. Mymensingh Additional Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Mohsin inaugurated the programme. Regional Director of CARITAS Theofil Nokrek, Prof Tahmina Parveen, Brother Gueum, Kazi Azad Jahan Shaheen, Dilip Hagidak and Dr Bilium Animesh Sangma spoke as special guests at the inaugural session presided by Tushar Daring, convener of International Indigenous Day celebration committee. The rights of the indigenous people in Bangladesh as well as in the world should be protected for a harmonious society, speakers said at the inaugural function. At a discussion titled 'Establishing social, cultural and land rights with constitutional reorganisation', at the same venue, Bangladesh Agricultural University Vice Chancellor Prof Dr MA Sattar Mandal addressed as chief guest. Greener Marak presented the key-note paper at the discussion presided over by Subash Jengsum, president of international indigenous day celebration committee, in the chair. As citizens of the country, indigenous people deserve all kinds of rights but their social, cultural and land rights are yet t0 be reflected in the constitution, the speakers said. They demanded a separate land commission to establish the indigenous people's rights on land and mitigate their sufferings caused by land grabbers. Earlier, a colourful rally paraded the main thoroughfares of the town. A friendly football match was also held marking the occasion in the afternoon.