Summary of Key Issues and Rights Violations 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 Urdu-speakers could again become stateless through arbitrary measures. Below we explain in more detail the current situation of implementation of these rights for Urdu-speakers and offer recommendations to the Bangladesh government for better alignment with international human rights standards. Introduction & Background 2. Approximately three hundred thousand Urdu-speaking Biharis, a linguistic minority, are living in 116 inhuman camps in Bangladesh. In Bangladesh they are identified in the local society by different nomenclatures, such as non-Bengalis, Biharis and Urdu- speaking, among others. In 2008 the honorable High Court of Bangladesh confirmed their citizenship and gave their name as Urdu Speaking Bangladeshi. 3. The history of the Urdu-speaking Bangladeshi community goes back to the partition of the Indian sub-continent. In 1947 the sub-continent experienced two historical events: the creation of India and Pakistan and the mass migration of Hindus, Muslims and Sikh communities. When India was divided the creation of Pakistan forced many Indian Muslims to migrate from their original homeland to East and West Pakistan. Most of immigrants from the Indian States of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal came to East Pakistan (which is now Bangladesh). The majority of them were Urdu-speaking. They were called as “Mohajirs” meaning refugee, and later they became known as Biharis and Stranded Pakistani in Bangladesh. 4. In December 1971, Bengalis in East Pakistan won independence after fighting the ninemonth war of liberation with the Pakistan Army. During the war a section of the Urduspeaking Bihari community opposed the creation of Bangladesh. For that, after the emergence of Bangladesh in 16 December 1971, the Biharis became victims of political violence. About one hundred thousand Biharis were killed by Bengali freedom fighters. They lost their properties, services, jobs, and became homeless and stateless. 5. During that time the Geneva-based International Community for Red Cross (ICRC) took the responsibility to provide the Urdu-speaking community with food and health care and built refugee-like Camps in urban centers in different districts in Bangladesh. Geneva Camp in Dhaka is one of the first camps. 6. Bihari camp dwellers are Bangladeshi citizens. However, they are not treated as a linguistic minority in Bangladesh. 46 years after the independence of Bangladesh the camp dwellers have now stayed over four decades in these settlements, which is a classic example of a subhuman lifestyle. 2