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Specific law needed to protect rights of indigenous people

Says Raja Debashish

Staff Correspondent
Specific law is needed to protect the rights of the indigenous and minority people and save them from all kinds of repression, said Raja Debashish Roy. special assistant to the chief adviser, at a meet ing yesterday.
4 Anyone trying to deprive any indigenous or minority people would think twice if we can enact specific law to ensure their rights and save them from deprivations,” said Debashish who is in-charge of the ministries of Chittagong Hill Tracts, environment and forest.
fhe view-exchange meeting was organised by Sampreeti Mancha, a citizen s platform, at the National Press Club in the city to uphold the human rights situation of indigenous and minority community in the country.
Debashish said the present human rights situation of indigenous and minority people is not very well.
indigenous language veteran, freedom fighter and President of
Rakhain Kalyan Samity Wu Suye said, "1 feel taking birth in a minority community is a sin, and it is more sin that I am an indigenous person.”
“We fought the language movement and the liberation war alongside our Bangalee brothers, but they are now repressing us,” he
lamented.
Wu Suye said most of the Rakhains are illiterate, and their lands have been grabbed by land grabbers making false document.
He demanded solution of their land problems, stipends for Rakhain students and education by their mother tongue.
"We just want security for our lands and rights,” said Prof Dalem Chandra Barman of Dhaka University.
He said the indigenous people demand the assurance that thet would not be disturbed and theii lands would not be grabbed.
Rabindranath Tribedi, a formei secretary, said as the minority and indigenous people are the citizens of the country, the state should protect their rights.
He said the vested property act that gives chances to land grabbers to grab the lands of the minority people should be cancelled and the government should also resolve the land-related disputes of indige- -nous people.
Moderated by Robaet Ferdous, associate professor of Dhaka University, the meeting was also addressed by Prof Ajoy Roy convener of Sampreeti Mancha, women leader Rokeya Kabir, noted writer Selina Hossain, General Secretary of Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Rights Movement Sanjib Drong and Dr SouravSikderofDhaka University.