According to ARTICLE 19’s Global Expression Report, Bangladesh remains ‘in crisis’ for the exercise of the right to freedom of expression. As the country heads for elections in February 2026, it is essential that the interim government ensures an enabling environment for the right to freedom of expression and information and protects journalists and civil society actors.
The July 2024 uprising and resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina prompted a political reset and major reforms in the digital regulatory framework.
While some developments are welcome – including the repeal of the Cybersecurity Law – an array of new draft laws risk severely restricting the rights to freedom of expression and information, privacy, and other related rights online, including through criminalisation of protected speech, overbroad content takedowns, intrusive surveillance, weak transparency, and due process gaps.
Over 13 years ago, journalist couple Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi were killed in their apartment and there has been no adequate investigation into their murder, despite repeated calls for accountability by UN experts. Their murder is emblematic of the ‘appalling and pervasive’ climate of impunity for egregious human rights violations against journalists and media workers in the country – from killings, to physical attacks, to harassment. In 2025, journalists Asaduzzaman Tuhin and Khandaker Shah Alam were killed.
Women journalists in Bangladesh face uniquely gendered risks – from workplace harassment to online rape threats and physical attacks – especially those that face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination.
We call on the Bangladeshi government to reform draft legislation and the wider legal framework to ensure it is fully compliant with international human rights standards for the right to freedom of expression. We also call on the interim government to ensure accountability for all attacks against journalists through the conduct of impartial, prompt, thorough, independent, and effective investigations, including through taking a gendered and intersectional approach.