When Progress Fails to Protect: The Quiet Crisis of Gender-Based Violence in Bangladesh
Bangladesh often presents a story of progress. Women lead the nation’s politics, drive its garment industry, and shape its social movements. Yet behind this narrative lies a stubborn and painful truth. For millions of women, safety remains fragile, conditional, and uncertain. Gender-based violence continues to define everyday life, cutting across homes, streets, workplaces, and now digital spaces.
The contradiction is striking. How can a country that ranks high in women’s political empowerment still fail to ensure basic security for half its population? The answer lies not in leadership alone, but in deeply rooted social norms and weak systems of accountability. Patriarchy remains woven into daily life, shaping how women are seen, valued, and controlled. Violence persists because society continues to normalise it, excuse it, or silence it.
The scale of the crisis is difficult to ignore. A 2024 survey by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics and UNFPA found that 76 per cent of ever-married women aged 15 and above have experienced intimate partner violence at least once in their lives. Nearly half faced violence in just the past year. Emotional abuse and controlling behaviour were most common, showing that violence does not always leave visible scars, but it leaves lasting damage.
Violence follows women everywhere. It occurs inside homes through physical and sexual abuse, outside through harassment and assault, and online through threats, image-based abuse, and coordinated cyber attacks. Technology-facilitated violence is growing fast, particularly against young and politically active women. After July 2024, online abuse targeting women who spoke out surged sharply, turning digital spaces into tools of intimidation.
Social and economic vulnerability make the risk even higher. Poverty, limited education, child marriage, dowry practices, and climate-related displacement all increase exposure to violence. Girls are often married off early, not for protection, but because families see them as burdens or possessions that must be transferred elsewhere. Dowry demands then fuel further abuse, trapping women in cycles of fear and dependence.
Yet violence does not exist only in private spaces. During the July uprising of 2024, women marched, organised, and mobilised alongside men. They also carried an extra burden, the fear of sexual harassment from state forces and political groups. Many joined protests knowing the cost could be humiliation or assault. After the movement, these women were erased from public recognition, then targeted through slut-shaming, threats, and physical harassment. Some perpetrators were publicly celebrated, creating a culture of impunity that sends a clear message about whose dignity matters.
Silence compounds the harm. Most survivors never seek help. Only a small fraction of people access medical care or legal support, often due to stigma, fear of retaliation, or lack of awareness. Violence is still treated as a private matter, rather than a serious violation of rights and citizenship.
Ending gender-based violence requires more than laws on paper. Economic independence for women must be prioritised through education and decent work. Existing laws must be enforced, and gaps addressed, including the absence of a comprehensive sexual harassment law. Social norms must shift to engage men and boys as allies, not bystanders. Support services must be survivor-centred, accessible, and confidential.
Bangladesh cannot move forward on one wheel alone. Until women are safe, free, and equal, progress will remain incomplete. Gender-based violence is not a women’s issue. It is a national failure, and confronting it is a national responsibility.
Source:
1. The Daily Star
2. The Financial Express