B’desh: Rights bodies demand probe after Khagrachhari violence kills over 3 tribals

Dhaka, Sep 29 (IANS) After three tribals were killed and hundreds were injured in the hill district of Khagrachhari in Bangladesh following the protests over the gang-rape of a schoolgirl, several human rights, cultural, and political groups demanded immediate investigations into the violence.

The incident unfolded on Sunday afternoon at Ramesu Bazar in Guimara upazila of Khagrachhari, where demonstrators under the banner of ‘Jumma Chhatra Janata’ clashed with law enforcement agencies while protesting the gang rape of the school girl, local media reported.

Confirming the deaths, Khagrachhari district Civil Surgeon Mohammad Sabre stated that three individuals were brought dead to Khagrachhari Sadar Hospital on Sunday evening, after being transported from Guimara.

Additionally, in communal violence, 15 houses and 60 shops were set ablaze in the district, prompting widespread outrage from the public and human rights organisations.

Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), expressing outrage over the violent incident, questioned what crime the indigenous communities committed in voicing their legitimate demand for justice after the brutal assault of yet another young girl.

“Attempts to normalise the rape of indigenous women are not new. Why could the local administration and police under army authority not adopt timely and effective strategies to prevent this violence?” the rights body questioned.

“Is this indifference or complicity towards the destructive conspiracies of vested interests, through which the systematic deprivation of indigenous rights and ethnic suppression is being normalised?” Bangladesh’s leading newspaper, The Daily Star, quoted Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of TIB, as saying.

Condemning the incident, the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council demanded that the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government immediately put an end to the communal violence, arrest the perpetrators, compensate the victims for their losses, and ensure security for the affected communities.

Bangladesh Udichi Shilpigosthi has strongly condemned the attacks, looting, arson, and communal assaults carried out on indigenous people in Khagrachhari after they demanded justice for the rape of a teenage girl.

The organisation said that the barbaric attacks and incidents of rape are “inhumane, anti-democratic, and a disgrace to humanity”.

It demanded that those responsible for such heinous crimes be identified without delay, swiftly brought to justice, and handed exemplary punishment.

In a separate statement, 84 women’s rights activists under the banner of ‘Naribadi’ called for the immediate trial and punishment of those behind the rape incident.

They highlighted that seven indigenous women in Khagrachhari have been raped over the past year, and each time, the victims and protesters seeking justice faced attacks, delays in legal proceedings, and a lack of state support.

Bangladesh has been gripped by numerous protests and extreme lawlessness since the democratically elected government of the Awami League, led by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, was overthrown during violent protests last year.

The rising incidents of crime against women and children after the Yunus-led interim government came to power exposed the degrading law and order situation in the country.

–IANS

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