Govt committed to ending discrimination against ethnic communities: PM

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Thursday pledged to build a prosperous, discrimination-free Bangladesh, saying his government is committed to ensuring equal rights and opportunities for all communities, including ethnic minorities.

He made the remarks during a meeting with representatives of ethnic minority communities at the Cabinet Division conference room at the Bangladesh Secretariat, according to the Prime Minister's Deputy Press Secretary Suzauddhoula (Suzon Mahmood).

Describing ethnic minority communities as an inseparable part of Bangladesh, Tarique said his government is committed to building a country where no community faces discrimination.

"My government and I are working to build a discrimination-free Bangladesh. We want to move forward together in building the Bangladesh that people aspire to. We do not consider anyone to be separate. No one will be left behind in building a new Bangladesh," Suzon quoted the prime minister as saying.

During the meeting, representatives of ethnic minority communities presented a series of demands, including the formation of a land commission to resolve land disputes involving ethnic communities in the plains, a national convention for disadvantaged ethnic groups, recognition of communities by their respective ethnic identities instead of the term "ethnic minorities", constitutional recognition as indigenous peoples, the establishment of a central cultural centre, an end to evictions from settlements in the name of development projects or reserved forests, and easier access to loans.

Responding to the demands, the prime minister said the country is passing through an extremely difficult period.

"The fascist government destroyed the country's institutions and economy. About $16 billion was siphoned abroad every year. Had that money not been laundered, many of your problems could have been resolved," he said.

Tarique said the government is addressing the issues in phases, giving priority to those that can be resolved immediately.

He also stressed the importance of national unity.

"The struggle before us is much bigger. To overcome it, everyone must remain united, work together and move forward together. We have to think about how we can build a better future," he told the meeting.

Referring to the country's current challenges, Tarique said he was surprised that many long-standing issues remained unresolved.

"These issues should have been addressed over the past 17 years. Had they been dealt with then, many of today's problems would not exist," he said.

He added that although people had long been promised development, the current government is now dealing with the consequences of years of mismanagement while trying to meet high public expectations.

"We are trying to overcome this situation and rebuild the country," he said.

The prime minister also accused the previous government of severely damaging the country's education and healthcare sectors, and outlined his administration's efforts to restore them.

Recalling that Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman launched the upazila health complex programme with 31-bed hospitals and that BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia later upgraded them to 50 beds, Tarique said the government has now decided to expand them to 101-bed facilities.

He also criticised the previous government's community healthcare centres at the union level, saying many remain largely non-functional.

Tarique further noted that the 2026-27 budget increased allocations for the health sector and reduced taxes on essential medical equipment, including kidney dialysis machines and heart stents.