Overview

Freedom of expression, association and assembly remained unnecessarily restricted under the interim government. Individuals, including human rights defenders, were subjected to arbitrary arrests and harassment for exercising their right to freedom of expression. The interim government’s ban on the Awami League political party brought into question their commitment to upholding freedom of association. The Cyber Security Act of 2023 continued to be used until it was replaced by the Cyber Security Ordinance in 2025. Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal sentenced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal to death, after convicting them in their absence, of crimes against humanity for their roles in using unlawful force against protesters in 2024. The interim government proposed a draft ordinance on enforced disappearances and extended the mandate of the national commission appointed to investigate cases. For the first time, former military officers were arrested on charges of enforced disappearance. Proposed reforms aimed at protecting women’s rights faced pushback from Islamist groups. The humanitarian crisis for Rohingya refugees deepened due to cutbacks in humanitarian funding, despite Cox’s Bazar sheltering new arrivals from Rakhine State. At least 59 members of the Indigenous Bawm community remained in detention on baseless terrorism charges. Negotiations continued between the interim government and labour rights and trade union leaders over the urgent need to reform labour laws and improve wages and working conditions. Workers protested against low wages, harassment and anti-union repression. The climate crisis entrenched gender and caste-based inequalities.