The Bangladesh Online Activist Forum (BOAF) has called for ensuring the rights of minorities during the national election.
“It is unfortunate that during parliamentary elections, the minorities are often attacked,” BOAF President Kabir Chowdhury Tonmoy told a discussion on communalism at the National Press Club on Friday.
Speakers at the program said that the government should consider the protection of rights of the minority communities on a priority basis.
They noted that apart from religious minorities and indigenous people, atheists, secular bloggers and liberals have borne the brunt of extremist attacks. They observed that most communal violence is driven by political rivalries in Bangladesh.
Journalist Syed Ishtiaque Reza said that most of the time, the minorities do not get justice. “The culture of injustice is one of the reasons for violence against the minorities,” he added.
Supreme Court lawyer Yadiya Zaman said communal discrimination is not based on religion only, it can be based on culture, economy and beliefs too.
“Without creating equal opportunities for all, we cannot ensure a non-communal state,” Yadiya added.
Speakers at the event highlighted the Noakhali riots, in October–November 1946, a year before India's independence from British rule. MK Gandhi had then camped in Noakhali for four months, and toured the district in a mission to restore peace and communal harmony.
In the October 2001 election, the incidents of violence were the highest. Bangladesh's Hindu community was under grievous assault, particularly in Bhola area.