Research On Integration of indigenous communities with the main stream culture in Bangladesh

Introduction:

Indigenous peoples in independent countries (are those) whose social, cultural and economic conditions distinguish them from other sections of the national community and whose status is regulated wholly or partially by their own customs or traditions or by special laws or regulations.

Bangladesh is a poor country. But, it may not be wrong to say that, with very few exceptions, Bangladesh's indigenous peoples are by and large the poorest among the poor. It cannot be denied that they face discrimination in education, employment, and civil rights. Decades of violence between indigenous-led insurgencies and government security forces in the Chittagong Hill Tracts gave rise to social tensions there which still persist despite the signing of a peace accord nearly ten years ago. Allegations of serious human and civil rights abuses against members of indigenous communities surface every now and then.

There are about 35 smaller groups of Indigenous communities in Bangladesh covering about two percent of the total population have been living in different pockets of the hilly zones and some plain lands in the country. On the other hand according to the Bangladesh Adivasi Forum, there are 45 ethnic groups with approximately 2.5 million living side by side with the Bengali majority people. According to the government statistics the total number of Adivasi is 12,05,978 which is only 1.03 percent of the total population. However enough doubts remain about this number of Adivasis.

Problems faced by the indigenous population of Bangladesh may be categorized as follows:

Mithushilak Murmu writes about the plights of the indigenous labors who work in the tea gardens of Sylhet after visiting them:

They get a wage of Taka 30 (35 US Cents) after the day's hard work. In the early morning they start to pluck tea leaves and fill the bamboo buckets and continue till the evening and takes them to the factory. The price of tea has increased day by day, but their benefits and wages haven't.

Malobika Tudo said:

The tribal children learn their first words in Bangla, which is not their mother tongue. And it seems there is nobody in this country to speak for them.

·         Extreme poverty and lacking of education among the indigenous peoples

·         Absence of democratic and secular rulers in the country.

• Policy makers and civic polity of the country are not sensitive to the indigenous peoples issues.
• The traditional land rights of the indigenous peoples are denied
• Lacking of opportunity in the participation of public representatives
• In addition to facing discrimination due to their ethnicity, members of indigenous communities face hardship in education, employment, and everyday life.
• Lacking of strong unity and solidarity among the indigenous peoples across the country
• Lands of the indigenous peoples have been encroached upon and settled by newcomers. With little legal protection, indigenous peoples can rarely recover the lands they traditionally occupied. Sometimes government agencies in the name of development work take over lands belonging to the indigenous people.
• The International Laws, such as, ILO Convention No. 107 and 169 are ignored
• All over the north of Bangladesh, indigenous people say they are concerned about what they call encroachment onto their traditional homelands by Bengali settlers.
• Indigenous communities are mostly situated in remote, rural areas, where they lack infrastructure and access to larger markets.
• Indigenous communities have also played a historically important role in environmental protection. Traditional livelihoods in indigenous communities may depend upon agriculture and raising animals. Environmental damage, therefore, is having a severe impact on their economies.
• Land reform and property laws have restricted some indigenous groups like Khasis at Moulvibazar or Garos at Modhupur, making their traditional occupations untenable.
• As they are mostly marginalized, indigenous and tribal peoples lack clout in national and even in most local governments, with the limited exception of local governments of Chittagong Hill Districts. Their interests and needs are often ignored by decision-makers.
• Years of discrimination have cast the indigenous people into poverty, thus further damaging their chances at empowerment and opportunities to improve their situation.

·         Land and resource right these minorities living in their ancestral land and lead they live through cultivating and extracting resources from those lands. But the government proclaims those lands as government property and evict them from their own land.

Recommendations to integrate indigenous people with mainstream culture people

• ·         Reduce the extreme poverty and lacking of education among the indigenous peoples
• ·         All tribal communities should integrate into a single community; which held them to fight for the fundamental right.
• ·         We should request for strong support of International community; ensuring human right and welfare.
• ·         Give the opportunity in the participation of public representatives.
• ·         Giving them proper education that will help them to achieve their rights in a systematic way.
• ·         Mainstream people should treat them friendly.
• ·         We have to ensure that Indigenous people are like us.
• ·         The Government also treats them as a general person.
• ·         They should study with us; if necessary they can go abroad for higher education.
• ·         To implement the international law “ILO Convention No. 107 and 169”

Conclusion

Indigenous people is one part of our nation, we will stringer when all integrate and draw a conclusion to the matter of conflicts between us . Through analyzing their need and demand we can take attempt to ensure fundamental right , safeguard for personal property , quality education and good accommodation ; we can make them brisk and vigil to terminate the struggle with arms.

The newly elected Australian prime minister recently apologized to the indigenous people of Australia. Prime Minister Kevin Ruddtold parliament: "We apologize for the laws and policies of successive parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering, and loss on these our fellow Australians."

Our government should take that type of action or do something positive for them. So we should find out their problems and needs and give the equal right as mainstream culture people.

References:

1.      Bangladesh ethnobotany online database. Report of Indigenous communities of Bangladesh. http://www.ebbd.info/indigenous-communities.html.

2.      Bangladesh Watchdog. Report on Bangladesh: the plights of the Indigenous people. http://bangladeshwatchdog.blogspot.com/2012/03/bangladesh-plights-of-indigenous-people.html.  Access: March 27, 2012

3.      The Daily Star. Report on Indigenous people of Bangladesh: http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=46025. Access: July 17, 2008

4.      Topic:“Implementing  Indigenous Peoples’ Rights : Challenges and Opportunities”

Co-organised by Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum and International Labour Organisation. Venue: Lakeshore Hotel, 29 November 2011

Statement by Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma, President, Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum

5.      Expert workshop of indigenous people and migration ,Geneva on 6-7 April 2006

Topic: Migration and indigenous people; a perspective of Bangladesh.

Speech given by: Binota Moy Damai; assistant general secretary of Bangladesh indigenous people forum

6.      The Daily Star. Report on Indigenous peoples' expectations. http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=72703. Access: January 25, 2009

7.      Ethnic community development organization. Report on Current Situation – Past and Present. http://www.ecdo-bd.org/indigenous-communities-of-sylhet/the-situation-the-past-and-the-present/.

8.      Humanitarian news and analysis(IRIN). Report on BANGLADESH: Indigenous groups face land-grabbing in north. http://www.irinnews.org/report/94558/bangladesh-indigenous-groups-face-land-grabbing-in-north. Access: October 9, 2012.