Church leaders in Bangladesh have welcomed Anna Minj, the country's first Catholic Indigenous woman lawmaker, for using her first budget-session speech to press for the development of long-neglected Indigenous communities.
On June 14, given the floor in the National Parliament during the budget session, Minj first thanked Almighty God. "Today I am representing the ethnic minority groups of the plain land of Bangladesh in this Parliament," she said.
Welcoming the proposed budget, she said: "This budget is a people-oriented and inclusive budget."
"I would like to specifically mention that the budget has increased the special allocation for ethnic minority groups in the prime minister's office," Minj said. "Similarly, the allocation for ethnic minority groups in the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock has been increased in this budget. In the National Parliament I highly appreciate and I firmly believe that these two projects will play a special role in the development of the ethnic groups of the plain land."
At the same time, she drew attention to several concerns, noting that development allocations had been increased across various ministries. Those allocations, she said, should reach the marginalized and those who are truly in need among ethnic minority groups so they can genuinely develop.
"We all know that the socioeconomic condition of the people of the ethnic groups of the plain land is very fragile. Ninety percent of them are daily wage laborers; many times they sell their agricultural labor in advance. In that case, we ask everyone to involve them in various developmental activities such as education, technical education, and provide them with work opportunities," Minj told Parliament.
Praise from deputy speaker
After her speech, Deputy Speaker Kayser Kamal thanked Minj and acknowledged that the country's Indigenous people have remained disadvantaged.
"When martyred President Ziaur Rahman formed the BDR [Bangladesh Rifles], many Indigenous people were involved, many were involved in primary education, but their participation has decreased with the passage of time," he said. "Thank you very much for addressing this issue."
Mixed reaction in the Church
Holy Cross Father Liton Hubert Gomes, secretary of the Integral Human Development Commission of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Bangladesh, welcomed Minj's speech. He told EWTN News that her statement on Indigenous rights was sound and that the increased government allocation was a positive step, but he said other problems still needed to be addressed.
"She has created a mixed reaction among the Indigenous people because she didn't address them as Indigenous but as a small ethnic group. Again, she is not only an MP [member of Parliament] for the Indigenous people, she is also an MP for the Christian community," Gomes said.
The voices of both Indigenous people and Christians should be heard in Parliament, the priest said, because Catholics and other Christians contribute heavily to the country, especially in education, health, and social development, yet that contribution is not recognized by the state.
Gomes said he was hopeful, adding: "Anna Minj will work for our society and work to achieve the rights of Indigenous people and will highlight the contribution of Christians to the nation so that others can use our good teachings for the development of the nation."
A historic first
Minj is a leader from the Oraon Indigenous community and has served for over three decades in leadership roles at BRAC International, an entrepreneurial and solutions-focused nonprofit development organization.
Of the 350 seats in Bangladesh's National Parliament, 300 are filled by direct election, which was held on Feb. 12, and 50 are reserved for women. Minj was elected to one of those reserved women's seats as a nominee of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which formed the government.
In Muslim-majority Bangladesh, only 1% of the 180 million people belong to various ethnic minorities, while 99% are ethnic Bengalis.
