Denied Life, denied dignity: allegations of state persecution over the death of indigenous Bawm detainee

A 30-year-old indigenous Bawm man, Lal Theleng Kim Bawm, has died in custody at Chattogram Central Jail, allegedly due to gross medical negligence, igniting a firestorm of condemnation from indigenous community leaders who denounce the incident as part of a broader campaign of “systematic state killing” targeting the Kuki-Chin community.

Lal Theleng Kim, son of Lalmin Lian Bawm, hailed from Beth-el Para in Ruma upazila of Bandarban.

He was one of 49 villagers—including women and children—arrested during a sweeping joint military-police crackdown on April 8, 2024, as part of a high-profile operation against the Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF).

Held without trial for over a year, his health reportedly deteriorated severely behind bars.

Despite repeated pleas from his family for proper treatment, authorities allegedly failed to provide meaningful medical care.

He was finally transferred to Chattogram Medical College Hospital on Thursday morning—only to be declared dead at 9:00 a.m.

“He was denied not only justice but also basic humanity,” said a relative, speaking under condition of anonymity due to security fears.

“When he was finally taken to the hospital, it was already too late. He died en route. This is not just negligence—it’s annihilation disguised as law enforcement.”

Iqbal Hossain, Senior Superintendent of Chattogram Central Jail said, Lal Theleng Kim had been held in the Karnafuli Unit’s Ward No. 15.

“On Thursday around 8:0 am he awoke screaming in pain, his body convulsing. Prison authorities transported him to the jail hospital before he was moved to CMCH.”

Doctors later cited cardiac arrest as the cause of death. His body has been sent to the morgue for autopsy, the official added.

He had been transferred to Chattogram from Bandarban on June 26, 2024, and was facing four criminal cases, including allegations of bank robbery and abduction.

Indigenous leaders say Lal’s death is emblematic of a harrowing pattern of extrajudicial punishment and ethnic persecution under the veil of counterinsurgency.

The outcry was intensified by an emotional public statement from Lal’s childhood friend, Sujit Dewan, who mourned him on social media:

“My friend’s name was Lal Theleng Kim Bawm. A simple, ever-smiling soul. We lived together in the Monghor hostel for years. Last year, he was taken in the wake of the so-called bank robbery. For months, he was locked away in Chattogram Jail and became gravely ill. Today, he died in a hospital bed.

Oh State! How many more innocent sons of the hills must be slaughtered before you’re satisfied? How many mothers’ tears and lands must be stolen before your thirst is quenched? You must answer for this injustice.”

In a tragic parallel, Sangmoy Bawm, 55, also detained during the April 2024 operation, is now fighting for his life in a “prisoner-patient” ward at CMCH.

Suffering from severe gastrointestinal illness—possibly cancer stemming from untreated ulcers—he is reportedly unable to consume food without vomiting and is slowly wasting away.

“He is dying a slow, silent death,” said a local student who recently visited him. “He may never return home alive. What kind of nation permits this cruelty?”

Among the April 2024 detainees were 23 women and 4 children, many of whom remain incarcerated more than a year later.

Despite repeated bail petitions and no proven involvement in armed activity, their applications have been denied—while senior members of banned extremist groups have been granted bail and released during the same period.

“Imagine being born behind bars, not because of your own actions, but because your mother was ensnared by circumstance,” said a legal activist from Rangamati.

“This is not justice—it’s inherited incarceration.”

A bawm community leader from Bandarban seeking anonymity said that what began as a security operation against KNF has now metastasized into an indiscriminate campaign against the entire Bawm population.

“If you stay in your village, they arrest you. If you flee to the forest, they shoot you. If you’re jailed, you die of neglect”, he said.

“It’s a grotesque perversion of the rule of law”, he said.

“What we are witnessing is not incidental—it is systematic. These deaths are not tragic accidents; they are the inevitable outcome of a regime that has made suffering its strategy”, he added.