Alarming Rise in Sexual Violence Against Women & Girls in Bangladesh

For Immediate Release
March 12, 2025

The Human Rights Congress for Bangladesh Minorities (HRCBM) is deeply alarmed by the escalating sexual violence against women and girls across Bangladesh. Recent reports reveal a disturbing surge in rape, gang rape, and other forms of sexual violence, exacerbated by a culture of impunity.

On March 12, 2025, HRCBM held a press conference at the Bangladesh Crime Reporters Association (CRAB) to expose the severity of these crimes and call for urgent action. HRCBM presented alarming evidence of rape, gang rape, and the intimidation of rape victims' families, including the murders of fathers and other family members of survivors. Shocking cases of the murder and decapitation of rape victims were also documented.
Additionally, HRCBM cited reports from other human rights organizations, highlighting that in the first two months of 2025, 295 women and girls were subjected to brutal sexual violence. Among them, 96 were victims of brutal rape, including 44 girl children.

Government Fails to Act Despite Public Outcry

Despite widespread calls and protests demanding the immediate implementation of stricter punitive laws to protect women and children, the Bangladesh government has failed to enforce effective measures. Instead of addressing the crisis, the government has turned against protesters, suppressing demonstrations and, in some areas, barring activists from continuing their protests.

HRCBM Highlights Shocking Cases of Sexual Violence & Impunity

🔴 On March 12, 2025, the father of a gang rape survivor was murdered by the perpetrator-an attempt to silence the family and suppress justice.

🔴 On March 8, 2025, a perpetrator attempted to rape a girl in a public toilet and then tried to eliminate evidence to avoid prosecution.

🔴 Perpetrators are using videos of gang rapes to blackmail and repeatedly assault victims, ensuring their continued subjugation through fear and control.

🔴 Objectionable images of women are being circulated on fake social media accounts to shame and silence them.

This culture of impunity has emboldened perpetrators to act without fear of consequences. Racially and religiously motivated attacks against minorities in Bangladesh have historically used rape and gang rape as tools to intimidate and subjugate the country's minority communities. Successive governments, both past and present, have concealed these atrocities against minority women and children, allowing perpetrators to continue fostering their behavioral pathology.

This same behavioral pathology-left unchecked-has now reached pandemic proportions, extending beyond minorities and threatening the entire society. The continued failure to address these crimes has allowed sexual violence to become normalized, jeopardizing the safety of all women and girls in the country.

This Is a Human Rights Emergency

The systematic sexual violence against women and girls, particularly those from minority communities, is a crime against humanity. When such crimes are committed with the intent to destroy a community, they meet the legal definition of genocide.

HRCBM Demands Immediate Action

✅ Immediate legal action against perpetrators, with no exemptions or political interference.
✅ Stronger enforcement of laws protecting women and girls.
✅ International intervention to hold the Bangladesh government accountable for its failure to protect victims.
✅ Protection for survivors and their families against further retaliation.

We urge the international community, human rights organizations, and global leaders to take immediate action before Bangladesh descends further into lawlessness. Justice delayed is justice denied!

📢 Stand with us. Speak out. Demand justice.

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please email us: info@hrcbm.org

The Human Rights Congress for Bangladesh Minorities (HRCBM) is a globally recognized human rights organization dedicated to advocating for the protection and justice of persecuted minority communities in Bangladesh. As an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), HRCBM works to expose human rights violations, provide legal assistance, and mobilize international support to safeguard vulnerable populations.

For over two decades, HRCBM has been at the forefront of documenting violence, discrimination, and systemic persecution against Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, Adivasis, and other marginalized groups in Bangladesh. The organization actively fights against religious and ethnic cleansing, gender-based violence, forced conversions, land grabbing, and extrajudicial killings targeting minorities.

HRCBM's initiatives include:

✅ Human Rights Monitoring & Reporting - Conducting fact-finding missions and publishing reports on human rights abuses to raise awareness at national and international levels.

✅ Legal Advocacy & Support - Filing lawsuits and petitions to hold perpetrators accountable and provide justice to victims of violence and discrimination.

✅ Policy Engagement & UN Advocacy - Engaging with the United Nations, international human rights bodies, and foreign governments to push for diplomatic and humanitarian interventions.

✅ Community Assistance & Relief Work - Providing humanitarian aid, shelter, and rehabilitation support to displaced and victimized communities.

✅ Empowering Women & Girls - Fighting against sexual violence, forced conversions, and trafficking while advocating for stronger protections and justice for survivors.

HRCBM continues to be a voice for the voiceless, ensuring that the world does not turn a blind eye to the systematic oppression of minorities in Bangladesh.

This release was published on openPR.