Violence against women, children: Police data shows decline, rights groups disagree

Over one lakh cases of violence against women and children have been reported in Bangladesh over the past five years, according to police data.

While the police assert that the rate of abuse has gradually decreased, human rights organisations argue that the figures do not reflect the actual situation.

The crime statistics, published on the Police Headquarters website, were recently released by Police Commissioner Baharul Alam after a hiatus of more than five years.

From 2019 to December 2023, 107,124 cases of abuse were reported nationwide.

The statistics indicate an average of 59 women and children have been victims of abuse each day.

The data show a slight increase in abuse cases during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, with 22,517 cases reported, compared to 21,764 in 2019.

Since then, the number of cases has steadily declined to 22,136 in 2021, 21,766 in 2022, and 18,941 in 2023, marking a reduction of over 2,500 cases over the five-year period.

Among the divisions, Dhaka recorded the highest number of cases at 17,159, while Sylhet reported the lowest at 4,571.

Abuse cases were most prevalent in metropolitan areas, with Dhaka Metropolitan area reporting 10,430 cases over the five years, averaging six incidents per day. Conversely, Barishal Metropolitan area reported the fewest cases (813).

However, human rights activists contend that these figures do not provide an accurate representation of violence against women and children in Bangladesh.

Advocate Salma Ali, executive director of the Bangladesh Women Lawyers Association, highlighted the issue of underreporting.

"For the past five years, the country has been under one-party rule. During that time, women and children who were victims of abuse by ruling party members were afraid to report it to the police. Additionally, social stigma, fear, and the lengthy legal process deter many from filing police complaints," she said.

Salma further noted that many victims opt for local mediation instead of pursuing justice through the legal system.

"We often see accused individuals out on bail, while victims are forced to attend court hearings for months on end," she added.

Supporting the police data, Advocate Saidur Rahaman, chief executive of Manabadhikar Shongskriti Foundation, acknowledged a slight decline in incidents of rape and attempted rape.

However, he pointed out that assaults by husbands for dowries remain unchanged.

"Local influential people often suppress incidents of women and child abuse. However, students have recently brought about a revolutionary change by working at the grassroots level. If we can engage them at various levels, incidents of abuse will decrease," he said.

Women development organisation Nari Maitree's Gender Equality and Women Empowerment Lead Laila Arifa Khanam drew attention to the rise in online harassment against women.

She stated that due to legal complexities, police stations often refuse to accept complaints regarding such incidents, resulting in their exclusion from official data.

"Women are regularly bullied on social media, but since it is not considered a cognisable offence under the law, the concerned police stations do not directly accept complaints or file cases," she explained.

Recent studies by ActionAid Bangladesh and the United Nations suggest that violence against women and children is on the rise in the country.

Child marriage remains a severe form of abuse, while the absence of effective legal remedies for online harassment adds to the challenges in addressing the issue.

Activists stress that relying solely on police data provides an incomplete picture of the situation, as many cases go unreported due to fear, social stigma, and legal barriers.