LGBT rights in Bangladesh

The first attempt to create an LGBT organisation in Bangladesh came in 1999, when a man called Rengyu, described as a "middle-aged foreign-educated guy from an indigenous tribe", opened the first online group for Bangladeshi gay people, called Gay Bangladesh.[32] It drew over 1,000 members; however, after Rengyu's death, its activity slowed down and the group itself became neglected.[32] In 2002, two other online groups appeared on the Yahoo! portal: Teen Gay Bangladesh (TGB), and Boys Only Bangladesh. Both groups were deleted by Yahoo! authorities in December 2002, and after several restarts and name changes, TGB formed under new name Bangladesh Gay Boys (BGB) and Boys Only Bangladesh, now called Boys of Bangladesh (BoB). The group is the largest network for Bangladeshi gay men, organising numerous LGBT rights-related events in Dhaka since 2009. Boys of Bangladesh aims at building a gay community in the country and repealing Section 377.[33]

LGBT rights rally during the Bengali New Year's festival (2015) in Dhaka.

In January 2014, Bangladesh's first LGBT magazine was published. The magazine is named Roopbaan after a Bengali folk character who represents the power of love.[34]

Since 2014, every year at the beginning of the Bengali new year on 14 April, a Pride event called Rainbow Rally has been organised in Dhaka. After threats, the 2016 event had to be cancelled. In 2014, Bangladesh held its first Trans Pride parade.[35] On 25 April 2016, Xulhaz Mannan, a founder of Roopbaan and organiser of the Rainbow Rally, was killed in his apartment together with a friend.[7]

Many people have turned to Boys of Bangladesh to discuss their feelings and connect with similar individuals who face the same problems they do. The forum has not registered as an organisation because they do not want to associate themselves with the MSM (Men who have sex with men) label. They do not wish to fall under the umbrella of being MSMs because they view it as a degrading term. The group's coordinator has stated that the MSM label is only about men having sex with other men. It is considered more than that.[36] The online forum arranges events for gay men to meet and socialise. Not all people have access to their group because they do not have access to the internet. Nonetheless, BoB has more than 2,000 registered members, including PhD holders and doctors.[36]

The UN Population Fund and several NGOs have put pressure on Bangladesh to address issues such as LGBT rights and sexuality education. These issues were discussed at the Sixth Asian and Pacific Population Conference which began on 16 September 2013. Bangladesh altogether opposed the UNFPA's idea to support LGBT rights. Bangladesh's permanent representative to the UN, Abulkalam Abdul Momen, said that adopting such policies would go against the country's social norms.[37]

In September 2014, at the International Conference on Population Development, Bangladesh refused the idea of providing rights to the LGBT community. Abdul Momen made similar comments in regards to the situation as he did the previous year at the Sixth Asian and Pacific Population conference. He was quoted saying that, like other Muslim or even Christian countries, Bangladesh does not support LGBT rights because it does not represent their values.[38]

In April 2016, LGBT activist Xulhaz Mannan, founder and publisher of Roopbaan, the only magazine for the LGBT community in Bangladesh was killed along with Mahbub Rabbi Tonoy another LGBT activist.Ansar-al-Islam, an Al-Qaida-linked group claimed responsibility for the murders stating as he had himself confirmed his sexuality he needed to be killed according to shariah law.[39] In May 2019, Eight extremists were charged by Bangladesh police for the murders. Four of the eight are in custody and police are still searching for the others.[40][41]

In 2017, the United States Department of State reported the following, concerning the status of LGBT rights in Bangladesh:

• "The most significant human rights issues included: extrajudicial killings, torture, arbitrary or unlawful detentions, and forced disappearances by government security forces; restrictions on civil liberties, including freedom of speech, press, and the activities of non-governmental organizations (NGOs); a lack of freedom to participate in the political process, corruption, violence, and discrimination based on gender, religious affiliation, caste, tribe, including indigenous persons, and sexual orientation and gender identity also persisted and, in part, due to a lack of accountability."[42]
• Freedom of Expression, Including for the Press
  "Non-governmental Impact: atheist, secular, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) writers and bloggers reported they continued to receive death threats from violent extremist organizations. In November, a human rights lawyer claimed he received death threats for writing about and advocating for the country’s LGBTI community."[42]
• Acts of Violence, Discrimination, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
  "Consensual same-sex sexual activity is illegal under the law. LGBTI groups reported police used the law as a pretext to bully LGBTI individuals, as well as those considered effeminate regardless of their sexual orientation, and to limit registration of LGBTI organizations. Some groups also reported harassment under a suspicious behavior provision of the police code. The transgender population has long been a marginalized, but recognized part of society, but it faced continued high levels of fear, harassment, and law enforcement contact in the wake of violent extremist attacks against vulnerable communities.
  Members of LGBTI communities received threatening messages via telephone, text, and social media, and some were harassed by police.
  In May, RAB forces raided the Chayaneer Community Center in Keranigan during a dinner organized by the LGBTI community from that area. According to witnesses, 28 individuals were arrested of the 120 persons present at the time of the raid. The witnesses also stated RAB separated the diners into small groups and beat them before identifying individuals for arrest. During the raid RAB announced to the media the raid was conducted based on suspicion of homosexual activity and allowed the media to photograph some of the arrested individuals. RAB later announced the attendees were not engaged in “illegal sexual activities” at the time of the raid and were instead arrested for possession of narcotics—specifically yaba (a combination of methamphetamine and caffeine) and cannabis. The court system remanded four of the individuals. Of the remaining 24 individuals, 12 were detained for further questioning and 12 were sent directly to jail.
  Following these events and continued harassment, many members of LGBTI communities, including the leadership of key support organizations, continued to reduce their activities and sought refuge both inside and outside of the country. This resulted in severely weakened advocacy and support networks for LGBTI persons. Organizations specifically assisting lesbians continued to be rare. Strong social stigma based on sexual orientation was common and prevented open discussion of the subject."[42]
• HIV and AIDS Social Stigma
  "Social stigma against HIV and AIDS and against higher-risk populations could be a barrier for accessing health services, especially for the transgender community and men who have sex with men."[42]
• Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation
  "The labor law prohibits wage discrimination on the basis of sex or disability, but it does not prohibit other discrimination based on sex, disability, social status, caste, sexual orientation, or similar factors."[42]