Society for Environment and Human Development (SEHD) has been paying great attention to man-made disasters in its research and investigations for two and half decades. With the works of SEHD and other researchers in hand, SEHD has organized a seminar on 28 September 2017 at 09:30 am at CBCB, 24/C, Asad Avenue, Mohammadpur, Dhaka.
Edited by Philip Gain | English PBK, 220 pages, 2016 | Price: Tk. 400 US$15
In the latest government record (2010), the number of the ethnic communities in Bangladesh was 27 (duplications considered, their actual number is 24). The ethnic communities themselves estimate the number of their communities to be more than 45. Of thesecommunities 11 live in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT). In its recent (2014-2015) inventory, the Society for Environment and Human Development (SEHD) has estimated the number of the ethnic communities outside the tea gardens and the CHT to be 37 in addition to those on the official records. These communities are concentrated basically in 25 districts of the Northwest, North-
The book, Lower Depths: Little-known Ethnic Communities of Bangladesh is a recent publication of SEHD that focuses on the little-known ethnic communities found in 16 districts in Rajshahi and Rangpur Divisions, seven districts in the North-centre and two districts in Northeast of Bangladesh.
It contains brief profiles of 40 communities of the plains land giving succinct description of their history of origin, life, livelihood, education, culture, tradition and customs. Each profile is accompanied by a portrait, a table showing spatial distribution of the community and a geographical map showing its locations (upazilas and districts).
In addition to the profiles of the ethnic communities, it includes a chapter with a good number of investigative reports on brutal attacks, killings, arson and other atrocities associated with adivasis in North Bengal. These investigative reports, first published in national and local newspapers and magazines, show the pattern of abuses that the adivasis face.
A special addition to this volume is the agenda of the tea plantation workers and ethnic communities developed with their active participation. It focuses on their political protection, wage deprivation, work condition, health, sanitation, difficulties women and children face, education, living conditions, access to land, language and culture, etc.
Tallied with other communities in the volume on the tea communities (Slaves In These Times) and the photo album (On the Margins: Image of Tea and Ethnic Communities), one will find that there are at least 110 ethnic communities in Bangladesh excluding Bangalees, which means the government is yet to recognize a large number of ethnic communities. This book and other SEHD publications on adivasis stand unique to assist the government and other non-state actors in coming to a consensus about the number and identities of these ethnic communities.
The key message that this book communicates is that the ethnic communities are one of the most vulnerable people in Bangladesh. They continue to remain socially excluded, overwhelmingly illiterate, deprived and disconnected. They have also lost their original languages in most part as well as their culture, history, education, knowledge and unity. It is in this context that they deserve recognition of their identities and special attention from the state, not just equal treatment.
Edited by Philip Gain
English PBK, 220 pages, 2016
Price: Tk. 400 US$15
“On the Margins: Images of Tea Workers and Ethnic Communities” documents life, culture and diversity in Bangladesh’s tea workers and little-known ethnic communities. It gives readers a rare glimpse into the fascinating lives of Bangladesh’s invisible and often forgotten ethnic communities. The book transports us through the tea gardens of Sylhet to the plains of the Northwest and North-centre to the lush forests of the Chittagong hill tracts. It is, at its core, a vibrant andcolourful celebration of Bangladesh’s geography and unacknowledged cultural diversity.
Edited by Philip Gain | English, PBK 232 Pages, 2016 | Price: Taka 1000, US$20
The book reveals the faces of Bangladesh’s hidden and unrecognized ethnic communities and allows us a peak into their daily lives and different aspects of their existence and culture. The album features portraits of individuals from various ethnic communities and depicts key aspects of their lives including their often gruelling working conditions, their colourful and eclectic cultural rituals and traditions as well as their continuing struggle for recognition of their basic rights.
This book is a perfect guide for those seeking a visually appealing and approachable introduction to Bangladesh’s ethnic communities. It presents one of the most comprehensive listings of and introduction to ethnic communities in Bangladesh—80 communities in the tea gardens and 43 in the plains outside the tea gardens and those in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT). The album is clearly a labour of love and the product of a long and exhaustive research process.
One community that is particularly highlighted are the tea communities of Sylhet, Maulvibazar, Hobiganj and Chittagong, where inhabitants represent ethnic communities from throughout the subcontinent, the descendants of indentured labourers who were brought to Bangladesh by the British tea garden owners to work the land. This book transcends the superficial scenic beauty of these locations and delves deeper into the realities of their lives and their continued exploitation and marginalization.
The key message of this book is clear: Bangladesh’s small and little-known ethnic communities contribute to Bangladesh’s cultural diversity and richness and should be recognized, celebrated and protected. Their vulnerability and oppression must be acknowledged and alleviated so that Bangladesh can move towards a path of just and inclusive development.
August 22, 2016
LGED Auditorium, LGED Bhaban,
Agargaon, Dhaka-1207
Organized by
Society for Environment and Human Development (SEHD), Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC), Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh (CCDB) and Gram Bikash Kendra (GBK)
The moral urgency of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) lies in four fundamental words–LEAVING NO ONE BEHIND. While Bangladesh has commendable progress on many fronts, the twin problems of marginalization and exclusion continue to haunt a wide range of ethnic minorities, particularly from the plains land and other excluded groups. Society for Environment and Human Development (SEHD) in partnership with Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC), Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh (CCDB) and Gram Bikash Kendra (GBK) and with support from the European Union and ICCO Cooperation have launched a multi-year initiative to define the excluded groups, map their current status, and strengthen their capacity and partnerships.
A national workshop to share initial findings and facilitate a national conversation on key issues has been arranged for Monday, 22 August, 2016 at 10 a.m. at the LGED Auditorium, Agargaon. Dr. Gowher Rizvi, International Affairs Advisor to Honourable Prime Minister will be present as the Chief Guest. Professor Wahiduddin Mahmud, Ms. Hameeda Hossain, Md. Abdul Karim, Harishankar Jaladas Rambhajan Kairi and Dr. Dipankar Roy will be present as Special Guests and Distinguished Speakers. Representatives of excluded communities from across Bangladesh, national policy makers, civil society, academia, media and others will participate. You are cordially invited.
Dr. Hossain Zillur Rahman Philip Gain
Executive Chairman, PPRC Director, SEHD
Joyanta Adhikari Moazzem Hossain
Executive Director, CCDB Chief Executive, GBK
10:00 Registration, information fair and tea
11:00 Welcome address and project presentation
Philip Gain, Director, SEHD
11.20 Keynote on marginalization and exclusion in Bangladesh
Dr. Hossain Zillur Rahman, Executive Chairman, PPRC
11.40 Distinguished speakers
Dr. Harishankar Jaldas, Writer
Rambhajan Kairi, GS, Bangladesh Cha Sramik Union
Dr. Dipankar Roy, Deputy Director, BBS
EU Representative
12.15 Special Guests
Prof. Wahidduddin Mahmud, Eminent Economist
Dr. Hameeda Hossain, Chairperson, RIB
M. Abdul Karim, Managing Director, PKSF
12.40 Chief Guest: Dr. Gowher Rizvi, Adviser for International Affairs to Honourable Prime Minister
12.50 Chair: Professor Sakhawat Ali Khan, Chairman, SEHD
1:00 Lunch
Chair: Joyanta Adhikari, Executive Director, CCDB
2:00 Sharing of experiences and insights from the ground
Eugin Nokrek, President, Joyenshai Adivasi Unnayan Parisad
Nirmal Chandra Das, GS, Bangladesh Harijon Yokkha Parishad
Rabindranath Soren, President, Jatiyo Adivasi Parishad
Shahnaz Begum, Jiboner Alo
A.K.M. Maksud, ED, Grambangla Unnayan Committee
Ashok Das, General Secretary, Bangladesh Dalit Parishad
Milon Das, Executive Director, Paritran
Tutia Bashfor, Horijon Kallyan Parishad, Rangpur
3.20 Open discussion
4:30 Vote of thanks, Moazzem Hossain, chief executive, Gram Bikash Kendra
4:40 Closing tea
Society for Environment and Human Development (SEHD)
1/1 Pallabi, Mirpur, Dhaka-1216
T: +880-2-9026636, M: +8801715009123, +8801711443131
E: sehd@sehd.org, www.sehd.org
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30-minute documentary film on soil and blood in Northwestern districts of Bangladesh
When politics, religion andpoverty collide in the struggle for land, the results can be catastrophic. Such is the nature of the stories described in Elegy on Land or Matir Maya, a 30-minute documentary film produced by Society for Environment and Human Development. The film gives a vivid description of the struggles of different ethnic communities of the Northwestern districts of Bangladesh to retain the ownershipto their lands.
Direction and screenplay: Philip Gain | Produced by: Society for Environment and Human Development | Available in English and Bangla
The film takes us through the plains of Rajshahi to Dinajpur to Gaibandha and tells the stories of five cases of land dispossession and the subsequent quest for justice. Fear of murder, pillage and destruction are ever-present throughout this documentary. Its ultimate message is simple: urgent action must be taken to protect the land rights of Bangladesh’s impoverished, deprived and excluded ethnic communities.
The documentary starts off with the story of Sicilia Hasda of Pachondor village in Rajshahi, a Mahle woman whose family lost everything when their house was demolished with the help of the local police following an eviction decree based on false claims of ownership by Bangalees from a neighboring village. Her emotional recounting of her tale poignantly illustrates the current situation and what is at stake for many in Bangladesh’s ethnic communities.
In Nawabganj, Dinajpur, we are introduced to Robi Soren, a Santal from Kachua village, whose father and grandfather were both killed by land grabbers and saw no justice for their crimes. His story illustrates the cycle of violence, poverty and fear that affects generation after generation of ethnic minority communities amid the lawlessness that is endemic of Bangladesh’s convoluted land tenure system.
In Chapainawabganj, Bichitra Tirki, an Oraon woman recounts her struggle to regain control of her husband’s rightful property after his death and the terror and constant attacks she had to endure as a result.
In Chirakuta village of Dinajpur, clashes between the Santals and Bangalees over control of land have led to bloodshed and heartbreak for both communities. In the documentary, we are introduced to individuals from both sides of the clash as they recount what they have lost and the pain that they have had to endure as a result of the conflicts. Their stories poignantly illustrate the true human cost of Bangladesh’s hunger and obsession for land.
In Gobindaganj upazila of Gaibandha, we are introduced to a local adivasi land rights movement called, Shahebganj Bagda Farm Bhumi Uddhar Shongram Committee (Shahebganj Bagda Farm Land Reclamation Struggle Committee) and the activists that are fighting to regain control of the land they lost when the Pakistan government acquired it to establish the now-defunct Rangpur Sugar Mill in 1955.
These stories cover a wide range of ethnic groups and geographies but the underlying themes remain the same. A lack of legal protection coupled with the passivity of the state makes minority groups vulnerable to violence and predatory land grabbers and creates a cycle of landlessness and poverty, which has socioeconomically crippled many of these communities.
The documentary takes us through an emotional journey. The ending, much like the subject matter, remains open and unresolved. The ultimate fate of the characters we have met in the documentary remains unknown. In these stories, there are likely no happy endings.