On August 16, 2024, students from various upazilas of Khagrachari district participated in a protest in Khagrachari town organized by the ‘Chittagong Hill Tracts (Adibashi) Student Society’.
– They voiced their opposition to the prohibition of painting graffiti and the removal of existing graffiti.
– Following the overthrow of the Sheikh Hasina government during the student uprising on August 5, students across the country initiated a graffiti and wall writing campaign to protest against injustice, exploitation, and discrimination.
– In the Chittagong Hill Tracts, students used graffiti to depict various forms of oppression and abuse occurring in the hills.
– However, they encountered resistance from the army and settlers in several places, including Khagrachari.
– Students painting graffiti in Khagrachari were attacked, subjected to baton-charges, and forcibly removed while their paint cans were kicked away.
– Notably, the graffiti depicting Kalpana Chakma, who was abducted by Lt. Ferdous Gong in 1996, was defaced.
Bangladesh Feminist Archives 