We, the Bangladesh Feminist Archives, express our deep concern and outrage that on September 23, 2025, a Marma teenage girl was subjected to gang rape in Khagrachhari. In protest, Indigenous communities organized demonstrations and rallies. To suppress this movement, Section 144 was imposed on September 27, and protesters were detained.
According to Indigenous activists and testimonies shared on social media, Bengali settlers—backed by the military—have since launched coordinated attacks on Indigenous villages. From September 28 onward, assaults have been reported across Khagrachhari, leaving multiple dead and many more injured. Indigenous sources insist the toll is far higher than mainstream media reports, though verification is restricted by state repression and fear. A year ago, similar violence followed the imposition of Section 144, deepening the insecurity of Indigenous communities.
We stand in solidarity with Indigenous peoples’ struggle to end military rule in the hills and to secure their rightful civil and political rights. Like Kashmir and Palestine, the Chittagong Hill Tracts reflect the violence of settler colonialism. What happens in the hills today may happen in the plains tomorrow—as seen during the July Movement. We call on all citizens to rise against the ethnic persecution of Indigenous peoples.
We stand in solidarity with Indigenous peoples’ struggle to end military rule in the hills and to secure their rightful civil and political rights. Like Kashmir and Palestine, the Chittagong Hill Tracts reflects the violence of settler colonialism. What happens in the hills today may happen in the plains tomorrow—as seen during the July Movement. We call on all citizens to rise against the ethnic persecution of Indigenous peoples.
Our Demands:
-Constitutional recognition of Indigenous peoples.
-Withdrawal of military rule and restoration of democratic life in the hills.
-Full investigation of all attacks, murders, lootings, and arson, and exemplary punishment for perpetrators—including state forces.
-Immediate state-funded advanced medical care for the injured.
Bangladesh Feminist Archives 