Indigenous activism in Bangladesh: translocal spaces and shifting constellations of belonging
Taking the movement for the rights of indigenous people in Bangladesh as an example, this article elucidates how recent attempts to institutionalise the concept of indigenous people at the global level relate to local claims. These attempts are intrinsically interlinked to identity politics targeting the national political arena, and by adopting the conceptual offerings provided by the UN system as well as those from other parts of the world, activists seek to promote more inclusive approaches. Contemporary translocal indigenous activism, however, is prone to contradictions. On the one hand, identity politics rely upon old-established images of indigenous people with essentialist connotations. On the other hand, it can be observed that the activist configuration, thought in ethnic terms, becomes increasingly porous, for a variety of reasons. After providing an overview of the way indigenous activism in Bangladesh has unfolded recently, the conditions under which the boundaries of belonging to the activist...