Gobindaganj, Bangladesh – Indigenous people in Bangladesh are demanding justice for a Catholic government officer, Ovidio Mardy, who was killed in 2014. The protesters gathered in Gobindaganj, in the northern Gaibandha district, accusing a local lawmaker of being involved in the murder of Mardy, who was an acting assistant land commissioner at the time.
According to the protesters, Mardy was a prominent figure in the fight for land rights for tribal people during his tenure in Gobindaganj, which did not sit well with influential individuals, including the ruling Awami League lawmaker, Abul Kalam Azad.
The root of the issue seems to stem from Mardy’s efforts to prevent Azad and his associates from taking over land belonging to ethnic minorities. The protesters are concerned that the recent election of Azad as a lawmaker may hinder the pursuit of justice for Mardy’s murder.
Father Samson Marandy of the Dinajpur diocese, who is Mardy’s elder brother, plans to seek a judicial probe into the murder. Marandy emphasizes that Mardy’s murder was not an isolated incident, citing previous clashes over land rights involving Azad and his brother as well.
The body of Ovidio Mardy was exhumed for a post-mortem but the report has not yet been made public. The tribal population in Bangladesh experiences discrimination and struggles against land dispossession. These protests shed light on the ongoing challenges faced by indigenous communities in the country.
In a country where the indigenous population lacks formal recognition and faces ongoing struggles for rights and resources, the fight for justice in Ovidio Mardy’s case represents a broader struggle for land and human rights in Bangladesh.