Let’s say no indigenous people will be left behind in Bangladesh

By Arjan Chakma, member at MY WORLD2030 Asia Pacific

​Most of the indigenous peoples of Bangladesh are still unaware of the SDGs. In this article, we will be focusing on the climate change effects on Indigenous communities of Bangladesh and the importance of indigenous people human rights defenders(IPHRDs).

A workshop of indigenous peoples human rights defenders in Dhaka, Bangladesh

​Not only as a human rights defender but also as an active youth citizen of the country, there are some responsibilities we must execute, which will help to implement the SDGs more sustainably. We see that today’s youths are more open and accepting diversity than before. They are additionally happier with working or being neighbors with somebody of an alternate race or nationality.On March 23, 2019, the government of Bangladesh officially recognized 50 indigenous communities instead of 27 by issuing a gazette notification, which is a good action of forming a united whole. Though there is a controversy on the total number of communities added in the list. We can hope that by this gazette notification, indigenous communities’ participation will increase in every institution which will result in more peace, stability and effective governance in Bangladesh. But we must say, a significant procedure has started which associating the SDGs straightforwardly to those most marginalized groups.

Throughout my experience, I learned more than I ever expected. I networked with the most astute and pleasant individuals I’ve ever met. Realized how grassroots level workers play a vital role in the betterment of Indigenous communities. They work as a counselor and human rights defender simultaneously. Before the pieces of training and workshops, most of the indigenous communities did not know about their rights and the Sustainable Development Goals.A few days ago, IPHRDs spoke upon various issues at a workshop held in Dhaka. The workshop aimed to strengthen the network, coordination among the IPHRDs of Bangladesh, share and learn the present regional human rights situations through the representatives.Participation in public life and access to land is very significant for indigenous communities to survive. Some countries have already declared that “Indigenous people groups” are among the first to confront the immediate outcomes of environmental change, because of their reliance upon, and cozy relationship, with the earth and its assets. Unfortunately, indigenous peoples in rural and remote areas are mostly unaware of their civil rights hence they easily fall into traps and are deceived.

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​Climate change is already affecting the many areas of Chittagong Hill Tracts. For example, illegal stone extraction and continuous stone-mining are turning Bandarban (One of the Hill districts) into a desert. Besides, the depletion of local natural resources, pollution and waste problems, gradual deforestation are also affecting the local indigenous communities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region because of unplanned tourism development activities. Meanwhile, the eco-travel industry offers a greener option.The novel connection among indigenous groups and their territories has been extensively perceived in international human rights law. So Bangladeshi government must safeguard the special connection of indigenous peoples and their territories by which that ensures their social, cultural and economic survival.​