Please urge the Bangladesh government to ratify ILO 169
© Survival International
Please send a letter to the Bangladeshi government, urging it to ratify ILO 169 as a matter of urgency. In 2008, Bangladesh said it would consider ratifying ILO169, but it has still not done so.
In the meantime, the rights of the country’s Jumma tribes continue to be cast aside as they suffer displacement by settlers and violent repression by the Bangladesh military. Ratifying ILO 169 would protect the rights of the Jummas and help stop abuses against them.
Sheikh Hasina
Prime Minister
Office of the Prime Minister
Old Sangshad Bhaban
Dhaka – 1215
BangladeshJanuary 30, 2012
Dear Prime Minister,
I am writing to urge you to ratify International Labour Organization Convention 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples as a matter of urgency.
ILO 169 is the only international law that recognizes and protects tribal peoples’ land rights, and sets a series of standards regarding consultation and consent. The Convention recognizes tribal peoples’ rights to equality and freedom from discrimination, and their right to determine their own futures.
I note the government’s commitment to consider ratifying the Convention, made in October 2008 as part of the National Strategy for Accelerated Poverty Reduction II. This commitment should be acted upon immediately. Several states ratified the Convention recently, bringing the total to 22. This figure, alongside the recent adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples by Australia, New Zealand and the United States, indicates the increasingly universal acceptance of tribal peoples’ rights.
By ratifying ILO 169, Bangladesh would bring its stance on tribal peoples’ rights in line with international standards and show the international community that it is committed to the protection of its tribal people.
I urge your government to ratify ILO Convention 169 without delay.
Yours sincerely,
_________________________
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