On this Human Rights Day 2025, Bangladesh stands at a crossroads where rights are not abstract principles but matters of survival, dignity, and memory. Across the country, communities continue to navigate shrinking civic space, political repression, rising extremism, and the routine silencing of those who dare to speak. Human rights here are not guaranteed by declarations, they are carried by people who resist every day, often at great personal risk.
From Bauls threatened with violence, to Indigenous communities fighting for land and recognition, to garment workers demanding fair wages, to journalists, queer people, and women facing harassment, the landscape of rights in Bangladesh is shaped by constant struggle. The violence is not always visible, but it is structural, intimate, and deeply woven into the ways power operates.
Human Rights Day reminds us that accountability cannot be selective. Freedom of expression cannot apply only to those aligned with dominant ideologies. Law cannot become a tool to discipline dissent or serve the loudest mob. The rights of minorities, artists, feminists, queer communities, workers, migrants, and the rural poor are not optional; they are the core of any functioning democracy.
Yet despite everything, people continue to speak, march, archive, remember, and refuse erasure. Bangladesh’s human rights story is not only one of violation, it is one of relentless resistance. Memory-workers, cultural activists, feminist organisers, students, and ordinary citizens keep pushing back against fear, reminding us that rights are upheld not just in laws, but in the everyday courage of those who refuse silence.
On this day, we honour not just the declaration, but the people who live its promise through struggle: those who protect cultural heritage, defend the vulnerable, document injustice, and imagine a Bangladesh where dignity is non-negotiable.
Bangladesh Feminist Archives 