One year ago, on August 5, 2024, a student uprising in Bangladesh culminated in the resignation and flight of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, ending her nearly 15-year rule. The movement, sparked by protests against a controversial civil‑service quota system, soon evolved into a nationwide demand for democratic change — and at its core was a remarkable surge of female participation that transformed it into a symbolic people’s revolution.
Young women, particularly students, led mass demonstrations, blockaded roads, and clashed with security forces, wielding sticks and stones after Sheikh Hasina resignation. Their activism became a defining image of the uprising and one of its driving forces. As an organizer from Jahangirnagar University described it: “It is because of women that the movement became a people’s revolution. Without women, none of it would have been possible”.
As the revolution succeeded, an interim government was installed under Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. He vowed to restore democracy, enforce accountability, and enact systemic reforms. But amid the political shift, many of the women who had symbolized the uprising now express concern that their voices have vanished from decisions that shape the future.
Umama Fatema, a key student activist and one-time spokesperson for Students Against Discrimination, reflects on that gap. She says the movement’s core demands—transparent governance, justice, and women’s rights—remain unaddressed. As the movement fragmented, men increasingly claimed leadership roles while women were relegated to token positions. Fatema laments: “If women are included merely as tokens, they hold no real power”.
Voices from diverse corners of society echo this frustration. Garment worker Shompa Akhter highlights economic hardship: spiraling living costs, stagnant wages, and lack of negotiating power for female labour make daily life a struggle. She argues that enduring change requires women’s inclusion in decision‑making at every level.
For transgender model Triaana Hafiz, the hopes of a more inclusive society have been dashed: discrimination and transphobia have intensified under the new regime, and legal protections remain absent. She calls for laws that protect all gender identities and foster true equality in the new Bangladesh.
Accord‑based activist Rani Yan Yan, representing Indigenous communities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, stresses persistent impunity and violence. She demands justice and an end to military‑backed repression of Indigenous women, priorities she says remain unmet despite revolutionary promises.
Student‑politician Samanta Shermeen warns that sidelining women undermines the revolution’s ideals. Highlighting recent acts of misogyny—such as vandalism before the women’s football match—she also celebrates the national team’s rise, seeing it as proof that Bangladeshi women remain unstoppable when given opportunity.
Meanwhile, the interim government faces multiple crises. A United Nations fact‑finding mission revealed mass casualties—around 1,400 killed—and widespread gender‑based violence during the uprising, used as a tool of intimidation against female protesters. Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina now faces formal charges of crimes against humanity, with prosecutors accusing her of orchestrating coordinated attacks that targeted civilians and activists alike. Politically, the banned Awami League’s remnants, Islamist groups like Hefazat‑e‑Islam, and emerging parties such as the National Citizens Party are battling over the country’s future direction.
As Bangladesh stands at this crossroads, the legacy of the women who built the revolution is at risk of being buried. With unresolved injustices and rising social exclusion, activists and ordinary women alike warn that the revolution risks betraying its most profound promise: inclusive, accountable governance that empowers the excluded — especially women.
