Empowering Linguistic Minority to Realize Rights in Bangladesh June, 2018- May, 2019 

Annual Report | Click for PDF File

Council of Minorities and Namati are supporting the community-based paralegals to work in Urdu-speaking camps across five cities in Bangladesh. The paralegals are empowering their fellow Urdu-speakers to understand their rights as citizens and to obtain and use legal identity documents. Paralegals also track each case to build an empirical understanding of how relevant laws are implemented.

Community history and context

Approximately 300,000 Bihari Urdu speaking camp dwellers have been living in 116 camps of 13 regions in urban settings across Bangladesh. In 1947, India was partitioned into two country-India and Pakistan. That partition forced the religious minorities of both countries to leave their ancestors’ homes and take shelter in Pakistan or India to protect and promote their religion, culture, language and economic interests. The Urdu speaking Muslim minority of the Indian provinces of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Orisha  and West Bengal migrated to the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).

In 1971, East Pakistan revolted against the rule of West Pakistan and fought a 9-month war of liberation, which resulted in the emergence of Bangladesh in 16^th December 1971. A small section of the Urdu speaking community played an anti-liberation role by siding with the Pakistan army and therefore, at the end of the war Biharis became victims of the situation and were forced to abandon their homes, business, properties and employment. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) built large and small settlements Camps all over in Bangladesh and to provide shelter, food and medical support to the displaced Biharis. These settlements, approximately 116 in number, are commonly known as Bihari camps. Residents were in effect stateless, without identity documents to recognize citizenship in any country.

However, in 2008, the High Court of Bangladesh confirmed that the Ur-du-speaking camp dwellers are Bangladeshi citizens, and this landmark verdict raises a hope among the young Urdu-speakers ending of decades-long struggle with statelessness. The landmark decision was the result of filing a writ petition by 11 camp residents on behalf of the whole community. After this 2008 verdict, the Election Commission complied with court orders to enroll camp residents in the national voter lists and issue national identity cards.

Due to lack of mass awareness on the High Court landmark verdict among the general people and government official, the camp dwellers have not only been deprived from their civil and political rights but also from their socioeconomic and cultural rights. The Urdu speaking camp dwellers are yet to enjoy the citizenship rights and have been facing difficulties to get their national identity card, enroll in voter list, passport and access to basic services provided by government and non-government service providers.

Considering their deprivation and sufferings to have full access to citizenship rights, since June 2013, in partnership with Namati Council of Minorities have been working to promote their citizenship rights considering the following objectives:

• To build an effective model for using legal empowerment approaches, specifically community-based paralegals, to facilitate the acquisition and use of identity documents to gain access to rights and opportunities part of the core content of citizenship;
• To develop robust evidence on the relationship between identity documentation and statelessness, including current government practice and discrimination that may contribute to an ongoing lack of effective citizenship, despite the possession of identity documents;
• To encourage use of this evidence for national litigation and national or international advocacy efforts related to gaining access to effective citizenship rights, if necessary.

Legal empowerment approach through community paralegal:

In order to bridge between law and real life of the Urdu speaking communities in the country, we have been providing paralegal legal support through five communitybased paralegal centers in Dhaka (Mirpur and Mohammadpur), Mymensingh, Khulna, Chittagong, and Syedpur. Camp dwellers and others who have questions or need on legal support come to our paralegal centres. 15 youths are assigned as community based paralegals to provide knowledge on law and government information to the community people and providing skills like negotiation, community education, approach of organizing and advocacy to seek concrete solutions to instances of injustice. In addition, they are serving as a dynamic “frontline” of justice service providers, paralegals focus on empowerment. They are not only working for resolving client’s legal issues but also building each client capacity that they can deal with problems related with access to justice in future.

Paralegals do outreach, every day door to door visit, organize community group meeting and community forum. At paralegal centers, paralegals provide information about the law, prepare application in the paralegal center, accompany theclients to government office to apply and they do follow up on delays and denials of the cases.

KEY FACTS AND FIGURES | June 2018- May 2019

Activities Summary table

June 2018 to May 2019

Legal Education

Paralegals organize community group meeting, community legal forum and community advocacy meeting. They invite 10-15 women, men, boys and girls to attend the community group meeting. In the group meeting they disseminate the message of 2008 high court judgment and realize them how Biharis have ended their statelessness through the high court. In the group meeting and forum they discuss about the importance and uses of the civil documentations in their daily life. In every center every month they organize one community forum and invite 50 community members including men, women, boys and girls.

Community Group Meeting, June 2018 to May 2019

Community Legal Form, June 2018 to May 2019

Community Advocacy Meeting, June 2018 to May 2019

Once in a year they organize community advocacy meeting and invite 40 members including men, women, boys and girls and discuss about the importance and uses of the civil documentations in their daily life.

Weekly Outreach, June 2018 to May 2019

Every day paralegals are doing outreach inside the Camp. During the outreach they disseminate the message of 2008 high court judgment, importance and uses of the civil documentation like birth certificate, national identity card, passport, trade license and other many services.  Every day they are assigned to visit at least 5 houses in their rotational weekly plan.

Weekly Outreach, June 2019 to November 2019 (Semi-annually)

Every day paralegals are doing outreach inside the Camp. During the outreach they disseminate the message of 2008 high court judgment, importance and uses of the civil documentation like birth certificate, national identity card, passport, trade license and other many services.  Every day they are assigned to visit at least 5 houses in their rotational weekly plan.