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Publications of the Moment

Recognizing August 9, 2009 as
International Day of the World’s Indigenous People
the BDRC provides

a list of recent publications related to indigenous people in Bangladesh
and
some additional information

  • Bal, Ellen (2007) “Becoming the Garos of Bangladesh: Policies of Exclusion and the Ethnicisation
    of a ‘Tribal’ Minority”, South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies, Vol. 30, No. 3 (December),
    pp. 439-455.
  • Bangladesh Society for the Enforcement of Human Rights (BSEHR) (2008) Legal and human
    rights of ethnic minorities in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: Bangladesh Society for the
    Enforcement of Human Rights (BSEHR)).
  • Chakma, Mangal Kumar; Pallab Chakma; and Makfie Farah (2009) “A Brief Account of the
    Human Rights Situation of the Indigenous Peoples in Bangladesh”, in: Asia Indigenous Peoples
    Pact (AIPP) Foundation (ed.) Indigenous Peoples’ Human Rights Report in Asia 2008:
    Bangladesh - Burma - Lao (Chiang Mai, Thailand: Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP)
    Foundation), pp. 12-61.
  • Fredlund, Jessie (2007) “Indigenous women overcome multiple obstacles”, Geneva, Switzerland:
    International Labor Office, World of Work, No. 59 (April), pp. 8-11; available at: http://www.ilo.
    org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---dcomm/documents/publication/wcms_082631.pdf
  • Gunter, Bernhard G.; Atiq Rahman; and A. F. M. Ataur Rahman (2008) “How Vulnerable are
    Bangladesh’s Indigenous People to Climate Change?”, Falls Church, VA, USA: Bangladesh
    Development Research Center (BDRC), Bangladesh Development Research Working Paper
    Series (BDRWPS), BDRWPS No. 1 (April); available at: http://www.bangladeshstudies.
    org/files/WPS_no1-rev2.pdf.
  • Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (2009) Bangladesh: Indigenous people and religious
    minorities still affected by displacement (Geneva, Switzerland: Internal Displacement Monitoring
    Centre (IDMC), Norwegian Refugee Council, July); available at: http://www.internal-displacement.
    org/8025708F004BE3B1/(httpInfoFiles)
    /5E9692B6E4E0A918C12575F5004F95C3/$file/Bangladesh_Overview_Jul09.pdf.
  • Jamil, Ishtiaq and Pranab Kumar Panday (2008) “The Elusive Peace Accord in the Chittagong
    Hill Tracts of Bangladesh and the Plight of the Indigenous People”, Commonwealth and
    Comparative Politics, Vol. 46, No. 4, pp. 464-489.
  • Oxfam GB (2008) “Finding a Voice for the Voiceless: Indigenous people gain recognition in
    Bangladesh”, in: Oxfam GB (ed.) Speaking Out: How the voices of poor people are shaping the
    future (London, UK: Oxfam GB).
  • Rahman, M. Ashiqur (2007) “Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord in Bangladesh: Reconciling the
    Issues of Human Rights, Indigenous Rights and Environmental Governance”, in: M. Faizul Islam
    and Syed Saad Andaleeb (eds.) Development Issues of Bangladesh-III: Human Development
    and Quality of Life (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Ltd.), pp. 355-378.
  • Sarker, Profulla and Gareth Davey (2009) “Exclusion of indigenous children from primary
    education in the Rajshahi Division of northwestern Bangladesh”, International Journal of
    Inclusive Education, Vol. 13, No. 1 (February), pp. 1-11.
  • World Bank (2008) Bangladesh - indigenous/tribal population and access to secondary schools
    (draft), Washington, DC, USA: World Bank, Report No. IPP280 (Indigenous Peoples Plan, April).
For further resources, please see the Bangladesh websites of:

  • Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) at:
     http://www.internal-displacement.org/countries/bangladesh

  • Oxfam Australia at:
     http://www.oxfam.org.au/world/sthasia/bangladesh/

  
Two recent news articles related to indigenous people in
Bangladesh:




Some Basic Information on Indigenous People in Bangladesh
(as provided at Virtual Bangladesh)
Note: The numbers provided may be out of date and should be considered to be indicative only.

Bangladesh’s tribal population consists of about 1 million people, just under 1 percent of
the total population. They live primarily in the Chittagong Hills and in the regions of
Mymensingh, Sylhet, and Rajshahi. The majority of the tribal population (778,425) live in
rural settings, where many practice shifting cultivation. Most tribal people are of
SinoTibetan descent and has distinctive Mongoloid features. They differ in their social
organization, marriage customs, birth and death rites, food, and other social customs
from the people of the rest of the country. They speak Tibeto-Burman languages. In the
mid-1980s, the percentage distribution of tribal population by religion was Hindu 24,
Buddhist 44, Christian 13, and others 19.

The four largest tribes are the Chakmas, Marmas (or Maghs), Tipperas (or Tipras), and
Mros (or Moorangs). The tribes tend to intermingle and could be distinguished from one
another more by differences in their dialect, dress, and customs than by tribal cohesion.
Only the Chakmas and Marmas display formal tribal organization, although all groups
containe distinct clans. By far the largest tribe, the Chakmas are of mixed origin but
reflect more Bengali influence than any other tribe. Unlike the other tribes, the Chakmas
and Marmas generally live in the highland valleys. Most Chakmas are Buddhists, but
some practiced Hinduism or animism.