STAFF CORRESPONDENT

The interim government yesterday gave the final approval to a draft ordinance aimed at preventing sexual harassment at workplaces and educational institutions.

Called ‘Workplace and Educational Institutions Sexual Harassment Prevention Ordinance, 2026’, it defines sexual harassment broadly to include all forms of unwanted and degrading physical, verbal, non-verbal and online conduct.

It also brings sexual harassment through social media, email, messaging platforms and other digital technologies under its purview. It makes these protections enforceable across the country as well as in other government-affiliated organisations operating outside Bangladesh.

The development comes 16 years after the High Court issued a set of guidelines and directives defining sexual misdemeanours to prevent any kind of physical, mental or sexual harassment of women, girls and children at their workplaces, educational institutions and other public places including roads.

The directive, which comes following a writ petition, stipulates the authorities concerned to form a five-member harassment complaint committee headed by a woman at every workplace and institution to investigate allegations of harassment of women.

It also directed the government to make a law on the basis of the guidelines and ruled that the guidelines will be treated as a law until the law is made. However, no law was enacted and the directives were seldom observed.

In April 2010, the education ministry issued a circular directing all educational institutions to form such committees within three weeks.

While many institutions did set up the committees, they have largely remained ineffective due to the absence of any monitoring mechanism.

The ordinance approved yesterday is expected to provide a strong legal foundation for ensuring safety, justice and accountability in workplaces and educational institutions.

It will play a pivotal role in fostering an honourable, inclusive and humane society, according to a press release from the Chief Adviser’s Press Wing.

Every workplace and educational institution will be required to set up an Internal Complaint Committee (ICC) within a stipulated timeframe.

The ICC will be tasked with receiving and investigating complaints, ensuring the complainant’s safety during the inquiry and recommending appropriate disciplinary action. Penalties may range from formal reprimand to demotion, termination or even expulsion in the case of educational institutions.

The ordinance mandates survivor-centric procedures to safeguard the complainant’s safety, confidentiality and dignity.

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