THIS CHAPTER LOOKS MORE CLOSELY AT EQUALITY AND NON-DISCRIMINATION; RIGHT TO HEATH AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC RIGHTS,4 AND MAKES THE FOLLOWING CALL TO ACTION TO THE GOVERNMENT AND OTHER RELEVANT STAKEHOLDERS: BANGLADESH This publication focuses on the COVID-19 impact on the Urdu speaking community commonly referred to as the 'Bihari', who experienced many decades of statelessness, the legacy of which endures to this day. Their situation is explored through the lens of the work of CESF Consortium Member, CoM. Please note that hundreds of thousands of stateless Rohingya refugees also live in Bangladesh.5 from Bihar, during the partition of the sub-continent in 1947. Many of this community chose to side with Pakistan in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, leading to their loyalty to the new state being questioned. Bangladeshi authorities later recognised them as waiting to be ‘repatriated’ back to Pakistan. As a result, they were not recognised as Bangladeshi and most were rendered stateless. In 2008, Bangladesh’s Supreme Court recognised Biharis’ right to Bangladeshi citizenship and ordered the issuance of ID cards and their inclusion on voter rolls. However, they still face discrimination in access to citizenship rights, with many unable to access civil registration services or passports. The community still endures structural inequality and is subjected to prejudice which prevents its members from enjoying the rights and services they are entitled to. They face poor sanitation conditions, inadequate access to clean water, inadequate housing, high levels of poverty and unemployment and poor access to education.6 At present, there are nearly 300,000 members from the Urdu-speaking community residing in Bangladesh, approximately 151,000 of them living across 116 urban ‘refugee camps’7 established after 1971. compel Bihari parents to remove their children from school so they can earn income. “In April, a COVID-19 positive case was iden- or Bengali”?”9 FGD Participant, Female, 36, Hatikhana Camp, Saidur RIGHT TO HEALTH In the second week of April 2020 two residents of Geneva Camp10 tested positive for COVID-19. They were not allowed to isolate in government quarantine centres.11 Community leaders believe this is due to discrimination against this minority group. Further, neighbourhood hospitals have refused to admit COVID-19 patients. They have reportedly also denied healthcare to non-COVID-19 patients from the Geneva camp. As of July 2020, camp residents were granted access to government hospitals, however, they still do not have information or access to government run quarantine centres. EQUALITY AND NON-DISCRIMINATION There has been a rise in discrimination and intolerance directed towards those living in the camps since the beginning of the pandemic. Pre-pandemic, the Bihari faced social alienation because of their ancestry, including mockery, harassment and discrimination. Many Biharis try to hide their identity by speaking only Bangla in their camp address. Employers often decline to employ Biharis, particularly for government jobs, or demand large bribes for positions and the dif- ENSURE EQUAL ACCESS TO ALL HEALTHCARE - EMERGENCY AND ROUTINE, COVID-19 AND NON-COVID-19 - TO THE BIHARI COMMUNITY AND ALL OTHER STATELESS PEOPLE AND REFUGEES. ENSURE THE BIHARI COMMUNITY AND ALL OTHER STATELESS PEOPLE AND REFUGEES HAVE EQUAL ACCESS TO QUARANTINE FACILITIES IN CASES OF POSITIVE OR SUSPECTED CASES OF COVID-19 AND HAVE ADEQUATE ACCESS TO THE DISTRIBUTION OF PPE INCLUDING MASKS, SOAPS AND HAND SANITISER IN REFUGEE CAMPS ACROSS BANGLADESH. a cold and severe ear pain. I went to govern- 12 The conditions within which the Bihari are forced to live have been aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic. On 26 March 2020, Bangladesh imlater extended to 30 May.8 The country has since gone through various waves of COVID-19 with the latest lockdown being implemented on 14 April 2021. Bangladesh has a high poverty rate, high population density, poor public health infrastructure and a lack of clean water and other life resources which increases the risk of COVID-19 transmission. The Urdu speaking community, in particular, those living in the ‘refugee camps’, are at heightened risk because of their living conditions and lack of access to services. ENSURE EQUAL ACCESS TO COVID-19 VACCINATIONS TO ALL RESIDENTS, INCLUDING MEMBERS OF THE BIHARI COMMUNITY AND ALL OTHER STATELESS PEOPLE AND REFUGEES. PROVIDE EQUAL ACCESS TO STATE RELIEF EFFORTS REGARDING FOOD SECURITY FOR THE BIHARI COMMUNITY AND ALL OTHER STATELESS PEOPLE AND REFUGEES. FGD participant, Female, 39, Mirpur SOCIO-ECONOMIC RIGHTS Exclusion from Emergency Relief: During the lockdown, Bihari camp residents were generally excluded from government relief schemes. For example, in April 2020 the government launched a cash distribution scheme for those living in poverty, but most in the ‘refugee camps’ were excluded on the basis of their camp address ADDRESS ALL ISSUES REGARDING THE RIGHT TO NATIONALITY AND STATELESSNESS AND PRODUCE A BILL WHICH ALIGNS WITH ALL RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS. speaking community. The government implemented a low-cost food relief scheme for daily wage earners to purchase rice at reduced cost.13 However camp residents reported that they did 14 The local Bengali and Diaspora Bengali and Bihari community, as well as a few NGOs, provided food support to the camp dwellers who were unable to provide it for themselves. Lost Livelihoods: The disproportionately severe impact on Urdu-speaking people’s livelihood during this pandemic has been in part, due to the discriminatory social and legal structures 3