SUBMISSION IN ADVANCE OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF MIGRANTS VISIT TO BANGLADESH Introduction 1. Council of Minorities, Free Rohingya Coalition, and the Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion (ISI) make this joint submission to Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants in advance of the visit to Bangladesh. This submission focuses on the human rights of the camp-based Urdu speaking community in Bangladesh and the human rights of Rohingyas in the camps of Bangladesh and on the move from Bangladesh. 2. Council of Minorities is a Bangladesh-based Human Rights organization with a special focus on establishment of minorities and indigenous rights. In this submission Council of Minorities focuses on the human rights of the camp-based Urdu speaking community in Bangladesh. 3. Free Rohingya Coalition is a global network of Rohingya activists and friends of Rohingyas who share common concerns about Myanmar’s ongoing genocide and the need for Rohingya survivors to play an active role in seeking a viable future for their group. 4. The Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion (ISI) is the first and only human rights NGO dedicated to working on statelessness at the global level. In this submission ISI focuses on the human rights of Rohingyas in Bangladesh and taking onward journeys from Bangladesh. This submission has been drafted with the support of an expert country researcher on the human rights of Rohingyas, Kathy Win. The Human Rights of the Camp-based Urdu speaking community Summary of Key issues 1. Despite a 2008 High Court judgement that confirmed the Urdu-speaking community as Bangladeshi, basic rights to non-discrimination, documentation, employment, an adequate standard of living, adequate housing and security of land, and health remain elusive for hundreds of thousands of Urdu-speakers in Bangladesh. As a linguistic minority, few options exist for the community to fully enjoy and perpetuate its culture or the Urdu language, and constitutional provisions have restricted the ability of minority groups and indigenous peoples in Bangladesh to get full recognition of their identity. A current draft Citizenship Bill (2016) also increases the risk that Urduspeakers could again become stateless through arbitrary measures. Below we explain in more detail the current situation of implementation of these rights for Urduspeakers and offer recommendations to the Bangladesh government for better alignment with international human rights standards. 2. This policy brief is based on community advocacy meeting and community dialogue in Mirpur, Adamjee, Saidpur, Khulna and Chittogram jointly organized by Al-Falah