¶¶Òõ¾«Æ·

Independent University, Bangladesh and Soroptimist International Club of Dhaka jointly organised a seminar titled Workplace Harassment of Women at the DMK Lecture Gallery of IUB on September 13, 2025, said a press release.

The seminar addressed legal, institutional, and social responses to workplace harassment through expert presentations, survivor testimonies, and a panel discussion.

The seminar, facilitated by the Career Guidance Placement and Alumni Relations office of IUB, commenced with a welcome speech by Yasmin Rahman, president of SICD and chairman of Paragon Group.

In his opening remarks, Professor Daniel W Lund, pro-vice-chancellor of IUB, said, ‘We are honored to host this event with the Soroptimist International Club of Dhaka. We wish you all the best, and we hope to learn as much as we can to make positive changes happen in our workplaces.’

IUB faculty, management, staff and students attended the seminar and took part in the discussion.

Guests, included representatives from Bangladeshi Ovhibashi Mohila Sramik Association; Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit; Kamrun Nahar, human rights activist from Naripokkho; Foundation for Law & Development; and Arifa Rahman from the Institute of Modern Languages, University of Dhaka.

Farah Kabir, country director, ActionAid, said, ‘Harassment is not just an individual instance, it is a structural issue rooted in power imbalance and gender norms. Women's participation in workplaces cannot be meaningful without safety and dignity. The guidelines from the Supreme Court remain one of the strongest tools but implementation is failing. Employer's responsibility is a legal and moral responsibility, not optional.’

She added that women constitute 51 per cent of the population and called for stronger laws, effective monitoring, and survivor-focused complaint mechanisms.

Taqbir Huda, human rights lawyer and senior fellow of Tech Global Institute, said, ‘We need to take a different approach; we should be introspective, we should not look at sexual harassment law in isolation.’

Representatives from BOMSA and RMMRU brought survivors to share their experiences. BOMSA presented the testimony of Hafeza, while RMMRU introduced Kulsum Begum, who described her struggles abroad. Their accounts highlighted challenges faced by women migrant workers and the impact of workplace abuse.

Fawzia Kabir Firoze, senior advocate at the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, said, ‘Any speech or action with even a touch of a sex element is considered sexual harassment. Previously, the law did not define actions against these offenses which is why we have worked so diligently over the years to define and determine what is sexual harassment and what falls under its purview.’

Shamim Matin Chowdhury, past president of SICD said, ‘There are various kinds of harassment – verbal harassment being a lowkey harassment that is really hard for people to detect. Sexual harassment encompasses any type of comment, physical gesture or advance on either or both men and women. Even a meaningful look is also considered sexual harassment and any kind of harassment can cause psychological or physical trauma.’