In recent days, I have watched with a familiar but painful urgency the reports from Dhaka University (DU), my heart heavy with the testimonies of young women harassed on a campus that should be a sanctuary. Thousands of Islamist attendees, gathered for a conference organized by Ulemah Mashayekh Bangladesh at Suhrawardy Udyan, spilled into university grounds, bringing with them a wave of harassment and moral policing aimed particularly at DU’s female students. These students bravely reported incidents of intimidation, inappropriate advances, and attempts to control their dress and behavior. Yet, as alarming as these accounts are, perhaps more disturbing is the relative silence of the mainstream press. New Age stands as an exception, breaking the silence with coverage that both acknowledges and validates the experiences of these women. But this media silence from other outlets speaks volumes, as does the passive response from university administration. It all points to a deeper and unsettling trend: the rising aggressions from Islamist factions that continue to go unchecked, inching closer to reshaping public spaces in Bangladesh to fit a narrow, exclusionary vision.
For many women, including those observing from afar, this harassment resonates on a deeply personal level. Dhaka University is more than an institution; it is a symbol of Bangladesh’s progressive ideals, an intellectual hub where young minds are meant to challenge authority, push boundaries, and ultimately claim their own futures.
Yet, for DU’s female students, these days of encroachment and policing mark a sobering reality: even within these walls, the right to self-expression and bodily autonomy is far from secure.
Accounts from students reveal an environment that is suffocating and invasive. These women report being verbally harassed, judged for their attire, and even physically coerced by conference attendees demanding that they cover themselves more modestly. Some men took it upon themselves to lay hands on female students, attempting to impose conservative dress standards that many of these young women had chosen to reject in favor of self-expression. The violation of personal space went even further, with groups of men invading women’s restrooms, crowding into areas meant to be safe spaces for female students.
In a hauntingly familiar echo of past experiences, one student noted, “I don’t feel safe on my own campus.” Her words carry the weight of a wider struggle faced by Bangladeshi women navigating public spaces where unsolicited judgments and forced modesty codes are an all-too-common reality.
The behavior of these Islamist attendees is a symptom of an escalating campaign of moral policing—a campaign that seeks to impose conservative religious norms on the public. Yet, most media outlets in Bangladesh have remained noticeably quiet, focusing instead on the traffic issues caused by the conference rather than the harassment endured by young women. New Age stands as a lone voice in this respect, daring to confront the uncomfortable truths of the harassment these students faced. This selective media silence risks normalizing such incidents, essentially giving tacit permission for this moral policing to continue. In a country where women already face a range of societal expectations and restrictions, this lack of coverage only adds to the sense that their struggles are secondary, that they are expected to endure rather than resist.
The passive response from the Dhaka University administration adds to this sense of disempowerment. Although the university’s proctor received complaints from over a hundred students, his response was, at best, disappointing. While he promised to send a letter of complaint to the conference organizers, requesting an apology, this gesture feels deeply inadequate. A letter is a symbolic action that does little to address the trauma these students experienced or to safeguard them from future harassment.
By failing to provide a decisive response, the university effectively abandoned these young women, sending a message that their discomfort and fear are of little consequence when weighed against the approval of powerful religious factions.
The Islamist presence on campus and the policing of female students’ attire reflect a larger issue that has implications far beyond Dhaka University. These groups are not simply exerting influence over one campus; they are attempting to expand their control over public spaces throughout Bangladesh, promoting an ideology that restricts women’s rights and freedoms in the process. Their presence at DU—a campus steeped in the legacy of Bangladesh’s secular and democratic movements—signifies a troubling shift in the power dynamics that shape Bangladeshi society. For a country built on the principles of freedom and independence, the encroachment of Islamist groups is not just a cultural setback; it is a direct threat to the country’s founding ideals.
The broader implications of this harassment become even clearer when considering the conference’s agenda. Organized to “protect” Islam, Tabligh Jamaat, and Qawmi madrassahs, the event echoed sentiments that seek to narrow the scope of Bangladeshi identity, demanding, for instance, that Ahmadiyyas be declared non-Muslims and that religious studies become compulsory at all levels of education.
These demands are more than just religious preferences; they reflect an attempt to reshape Bangladeshi society in accordance with a restrictive ideology that excludes and marginalizes those who differ. The refusal of the media to cover the harassment of female students only serves to reinforce this agenda, quietly allowing Islamist groups to impose their vision with minimal resistance.
Witnessing this from abroad, I am struck by a sense of both familiarity and loss. This encroachment on women’s rights and public spaces is a struggle that many of us know too well, yet it feels especially painful to see it unfold within the walls of Dhaka University, a place synonymous with progressive thought. For women like myself, who grew up viewing DU as a beacon of freedom and resilience, the silence of mainstream media and the inaction of university authorities are heartbreaking betrayals. To ignore the harassment faced by DU’s female students is to erase their experiences and to deny their right to feel safe within a space meant to empower them.
New Age’s coverage of both the harassment and the traffic disruptions is commendable, highlighting the realities that other outlets have chosen to ignore. This courage to report honestly is not just good journalism; it is an act of resistance against a culture that increasingly seeks to silence women. For as long as mainstream media downplays these incidents, Islamist groups will continue to act with impunity, spreading their conservative vision across the public domain with little opposition. In such an environment, even a single newspaper’s commitment to the truth stands as a beacon of accountability and resistance.
However, the university administration’s weak response indicates a larger failure to confront the threats posed by Islamist groups within Bangladesh’s public spaces. The reluctance of officials to challenge these factions suggests an unspoken fear—a fear that standing up for students’ rights might provoke backlash from powerful religious groups. But in a society that prides itself on secularism and progressive ideals, this reluctance is self-defeating.
Bangladesh cannot afford to prioritize the comfort of conservative factions over the safety and dignity of its citizens. The university’s decision to address the harassment with a mere letter of complaint is a disservice to its students and a disturbing signal of how institutional passivity allows conservative ideologies to take root.
For young Bangladeshi women, the message is clear: their safety and autonomy are secondary concerns, overshadowed by the presence of men who feel entitled to judge and control them. This normalization of moral policing is not an isolated incident; it is part of a systematic effort to reshape public spaces and social norms in a way that diminishes women’s rights and freedom. By downplaying the harassment at DU, the media and university administration are, intentionally or not, validating the actions of these Islamist groups. This validation emboldens them to push further, to take greater liberties in policing the behavior of others and imposing their values onto public spaces.
These developments carry disturbing implications for the future of Bangladesh. As Islamist groups grow bolder, the secular foundations of the nation are under threat. These groups do not merely advocate for religious observance; they push for a societal overhaul that would marginalize women, suppress secular voices, and dictate strict moral codes for public behavior. The harassment of female students is a glimpse into this potential future—a future where public spaces are no longer neutral zones of coexistence but battlegrounds for ideological dominance.
From where I stand, I see an urgent need for change. The silence surrounding the harassment of women is not just a failure of journalism or administration; it is a failure of society to protect its citizens. New Age has shown that the media can and should hold these factions accountable, that it is possible to confront conservative forces without compromising journalistic integrity.
But the efforts of one publication are not enough. The voices of Dhaka University’s female students must be amplified, and their stories must be acknowledged as part of a larger struggle for the rights and safety of all Bangladeshi women.
The women who spoke out about their experiences deserve our collective support. Their voices represent more than a call for safety; they are a demand for respect, autonomy, and recognition. To ignore these voices is to concede to an ideology that views women as objects to be controlled rather than individuals to be respected. If Bangladesh is to uphold its ideals of secularism, justice, and freedom, it cannot afford to remain silent in the face of Islamist aggression. The media, university administrations, and society as a whole must stand together to protect public spaces, ensuring they remain places of inclusion and respect.
The harassment at Dhaka University is a reminder that the struggle for equality and justice is far from over. It is a call to action, a moment that demands accountability from institutions, from the media, and from every one of us who believes in a free and inclusive Bangladesh.
The courage of New Age to report the truth must inspire other outlets to follow suit, to break the silence that enables such behavior. And as these students continue to fight for their right to exist freely on campus, we must amplify their voices, support their efforts, and ensure that their demands for safety and respect do not go unheard.
Bangladesh has come too far to allow conservative factions to roll back progress. Dhaka University, as a symbol of the nation’s resilience and spirit, deserves better. Its students—especially its women—deserve better. As Bangladeshi women, whether at home or abroad, we must continue to support each other, to call out these injustices, and to demand a society where no woman has to feel unsafe in her own university. This is not just a fight for women’s rights; it is a fight for the soul of Bangladesh, for a future where all citizens can walk freely and live without fear.
