Implement pledges to ensure rights of excluded community
The first-ever two-day national human rights conference on Dalit and excluded community ended in the city yesterday with a call to the government to implement its pledges in the election manifesto regarding excluded community.
The programme concluded with a 17-point declaration, including demands of formulating fresh law and policy to protect rights of the deprived by announcing any discrimination, be it based on profession, ethnicity and race, a punishable crime against humanism.
The speakers also demanded constitution of a separate cell for Dalit and excluded community in the National Human Rights Commission and formulation of a special commission to extract information from field level across the country involving discrimination.
Bangladesh Dalit and Excluded Rights Movement (BDERM) and Nagorik Uddyog jointly organised the conference which was inaugurated by its adviser litterateur Selina Hossain at Rabindra Sarobar in Dhanmondi area on Friday.
“By making such a conference a success, you have proved your existence in the society and made it clear that it has to be accepted,” said human rights activist Khushi Kabir, adviser of BDERM.
“You have also proved that if the spirit of 1971 is a society free of any discrimination to be implemented, we have to change our attitude first,” added Khushi, who presided over the concluding session at the WVA auditorium.
The declaration includes demands for taking specific steps to ensure education, health habituation, preservation of diverse culture of different excluded communities, resisting child marriage, polygamous marriage and, especially ensuring rights to women in the communities.
“We have found a platform to cry for our demands and to move forward to have those implemented,” said Suresh, a Dalit community member, who hailed from Rajshahi to attend the event.
Around 300 representatives from five divisions thronged the conference to exchange their views and share experiences of discrimination and deprivation they have been experiencing over the years.
The declaration also demanded reformation of electoral law to ensure the community members' participation in the national election. The demand for ensuring representation from the community in different committees, be it at national or local level, is also made from the conference.
“A knowledge-based movement must be waged as development will not take place in real sense unless equal dignity is ensured to every individual,” said Philip Gain, executive director of SEHD, during a seminar titled 'Types of poverty, untouchable and discrimination' as part of the conference.
The seminar was presided over by DU teacher Dr Mahbuba Nasrin. Another seminar on 'Political empowerment of Dalit and excluded community and technique to flourish' was also held.
Four other seminars were held on the first day, while exhibitions of arts, books, publications and handicrafts, all prepared by Dalit and excluded community members, were also held at the WVA building.
Executive Director of Nagorik Uddyog Zakir Hossain was also present at the concluding session.
The organisers also called on the authorities to take necessary step to stop election campaign in Tala Upazila in Sathkhira by chanting slogan like “Resist the cobbler, save the country,” where a Dalit community member named Udoy Das, who is a cobbler by profession, is contesting the poll.
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