Ringrong Mro
Ringrong Mro is a prominent indigenous leader and human rights defender from the Mro community in Lama Upazila, Bandarban. He has been at the forefront of grassroots efforts to protect indigenous lands and the environment, particularly against illegal encroachment by corporate interests. His human rights work focuses on land grabbing by companies such as Lama Rubber Industries Limited, which has been accused by the local indigenous communities of forcibly occupying the ancestral lands of indigenous peoples.
Human rights defenders in Bangladesh face judicial harassment, arbitrary arrest, fabricated charges, abduction, physical attacks, torture and extrajudicial killings. Local extremist groups pledging allegiance to Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent often claimed responsibility for the attacks, which have targeted HRDs who write about women’s rights, indigenous peoples’ rights, freedom of religion, and other human rights issues. Despite these risks, there was no impetus on the part of the government to address the protection needs of HRDs. The authorities have so far failed to properly investigate a majority of the murders and impunity remains a serious concern.
