A Brutal Discovery in the Hills
On the afternoon of May 5, 2025, villagers in the remote Tindu area of Thanchi upazila in Bandarban, Bangladesh, found the lifeless body of 27-year-old indigenous woman Chingma Khyang. The mother of three had left home that morning to work on her jhum field. When she failed to return by midday, her family began a frantic search.
Their worst fears were realised when they found her body in a ditch near an under-construction road. Her eyes were gouged out, and her face and head showed signs of having been crushed. Drag marks were discovered in the field, suggesting a violent struggle.
The preliminary police investigation confirmed multiple injuries on her body. A rape and murder case has since been filed by her husband, Sumon Khyang. Locals suspect the attackers were Bengali construction workers whom Chingma had previously found intimidating.
Grief Turns to Protest
News of Chingma’s death has triggered protests in Bandarban, Dhaka, and other regions with significant indigenous populations. Activists from the Parbatya Chattogram Pahari Chhatra Parishad (PCP), Durbar Nari Network, and the Indigenous Student Society staged rallies demanding swift justice. Demonstrations took place in front of the Bandarban Press Club, Shahbagh in Dhaka, and university campuses.
Organisers accused the state of systemic neglect. “This isn’t an isolated case,” said Donai Pru Neli of the Durbar Network. “Our women are constantly under threat, and the silence from authorities is deafening.”
Speakers at these rallies highlighted the pattern of violence against indigenous women in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), alleging state complicity and media indifference.
Indigenous Rights in Bangladesh
Despite being home to 54 Indigenous communities who speak over 35 languages, Bangladesh does not officially recognise the term “indigenous.” In 2022, the government even instructed media outlets to avoid using the term ‘adivashi.’ This refusal to acknowledge indigenous identity and rights has intensified long-standing grievances.
The 1997 Chittagong Hill Tracts Accord promised land rights, protection, and political autonomy for indigenous groups. However, nearly three decades later, the accord remains largely unimplemented.
As development projects advance and tourism spreads in the CHT, indigenous people continue to lose ancestral land to state and corporate interests.
According to the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), indigenous peoples worldwide face disproportionate poverty, marginalisation, and violence—none more so than women and girls. In Bangladesh, social exclusion and weak legal protections worsen these vulnerabilities. Activists say gender-based violence in indigenous communities far exceeds national averages, and authorities rarely deliver justice.
Calls for Accountability
Thanchi Police launched a full investigation and sent the body for autopsy. However, doubts over transparency have emerged. Rights organisations condemned reports downplaying the rape allegations and suspect attempts to cover up the incident.
At a press conference, Bandarban Deputy Commissioner Shamim Ara Rini and Superintendent of Police Shahidullah Kawsar pledged to bring the perpetrators to justice, urging the community to cooperate and report any information to the police without delay.
Yet for many, these words ring hollow.
A Cry for Justice Echoes Across the Nation
For now, the Khyang community and broader indigenous rights networks refuse to let Chingma’s story fade into silence. Her name is now a rallying cry against impunity and structural violence in the hills of southeastern Bangladesh.
“Justice for Chingma Khyang,” read banners in Shahbagh. But the justice they seek is not only for Chingma. It’s for every indigenous woman who walks into the forest and never comes back.
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