On 5 August 2024, Sheikh Hasina resigned as prime minister of Bangladesh and fled the country, the culmination of a student uprising that saw the most widespread participation of women in street protests in Bangladesh’s history.

Armed with sticks and stones, Bangladeshi women headed marches and stood defiant against riot police and the military. Their presence became a defining image of a revolution that has rewritten Bangladesh’s political and social narrative.

The uprising led to the establishment of an interim government under the Nobel peace laureate Muhammad Yunus, which has focused on stabilising the country. But in the wake of the political shift, many women still feel they are not being heard. In May, thousands joined the Women’s March for Solidarity demanding the government take action to ensure women’s rights and safety.

Here, five Bangladeshi women share their experiences of what life has been like for them over the past year, and suggest the changes they think need to be made.

Umama Fatema, student activist

When Umama Fatema persuaded a group of fellow female students at Dhaka University to leave their dormitories to join one of the protests last year, she had no idea how far things would go.

“Everything happened so quickly and soon the uprising spread to every corner of the country,” says Fatema, a student activist and key coordinator of the July protests.

“It is because of women that the movement became a people’s revolution. Without women, none of it would have been possible.”

But one year on, Bangladesh’s student movement has fractured and optimism is waning.

“The movement raised important questions regarding governance, accountability and women’s rights, which remain unresolved,” Fatema says. “Instead of addressing them, people have focused on forging their own political paths.”

Fatema says that after a while, the atmosphere became so toxic that women’s participation in the movement quickly began to drop. Until recently, she was the spokesperson for Students Against Discrimination, the organisation that spearheaded the student revolution.

“If women are included merely as tokens, they hold no real power,” says Fatema. “As a result, issues like rape and sexual harassment are not given proper attention by the state because within the existing power structure of Bangladesh, women are still considered secondary.”

Fatema argues that the interim government’s lack of decisive action has led to growing public frustration. “People expected swift justice, but the process has moved too slowly,” she says. “All this talk about reform and justice for the dead now feels like empty promises.”

Shompa Akhter, garment worker and activist

Shompa Akhter has worked in Bangladesh’s garment industry for nearly two decades. In her village in Kushtia, western Bangladesh, there are few opportunities for women, so like many, she moved to the capital in search of work.

Employed at a factory on the outskirts of Dhaka, Akhter works long hours and earns roughly 15,000 taka (£90) a month – not nearly enough for her family to get by.

“The cost of everything has gone up – rice, lentils, vegetables, oil and gas – but our wages haven’t kept pace,” says Akhter.

“My children’s school fees are a constant worry. We skip nutritious meals just to cover that. And God help us if any of them falls ill! I often have to borrow money from family or loan sharks just to make ends meet.”

Akhter recently took part in protests demanding higher wages and better working conditions for Bangladesh’s 4.4 million garment workers, the majority of whom are women. The garment sector, considered the lifeblood of the country’s economy, contributes $47bn (£35bn) annually, amounting to 82% of total export earnings.

“We garment workers keep the factories running and yet we are treated as disposable,” says Akhter. “But our voices matter and we demand wages that reflect our labour and allow us to live with dignity.”

“Being a woman in Bangladesh still means fighting for your place – whether it’s in your home, workplace or community,” Akhter adds. “My dream is for my daughters to grow up in a country where they don’t have to fight just to be heard.

“The government must bring us to the negotiating table. Women need to be involved at every level of decision-making if we want real, lasting change in Bangladesh.”

Triaana Hafiz, transgender model

When the transgender model Triaana Hafiz moved to Dhaka in 2023, she thought things might be different. Growing up in Khulna, south-west Bangladesh, she faced constant discrimination and harassment.

“I knew I was different and so did everyone else. I tried to keep my head down but society would not allow me to exist, even quietly,” says Hafiz.

“It got so bad, I thought about committing suicide on multiple occasions.”

Her big break came when she landed a modelling job in the capital. “It wasn’t easy but in Dhaka I felt I could finally start living my life as I truly am. I found a beautiful community of open-minded people who didn’t question or belittle my identity as a transgender woman.”

When the student protests broke out in 2024, Hafiz felt hopeful. “The main motto of the revolution was that there would be no more discrimination,” she says.

“I am not so naive as to think this automatically applied to me. But I had hoped that this younger generation of leaders would be more tolerant and inclusive.

“If anything, in the past year, discrimination has gotten worse, with politicians openly spreading transphobic hate,” she says.

Hafiz wants the interim government to incorporate the rights of people with diverse gender identities into new and reformed laws.

“Everyone in the new Bangladesh has the right to live with dignity and security,” she says. “We need to be a country where diversity is celebrated, not just tolerated; one where everyone belongs, regardless of gender, sex, religion, ethnicity or class.”

Rani Yan Yan, Indigenous rights defender

The Indigenous rights defender Rani Yan Yan hails from the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) in south-east Bangladesh, which has for decades been a site of ethnic conflict, violence from the military and Bengali setters, displacement and tension.

The region has long had a significant military presence, which has been linked to human rights violations and the suppression of Indigenous rights, including killings, enforced disappearances, land confiscation and sexual violence against Indigenous women and girls.

In 2018, Yan Yan was violently beaten by members of the security forces while helping two girls from her community who had been sexually assaulted. In May this year, an Indigenous woman, Chingma Khyang, was brutally gang-raped and murdered. “This attack was typical of hundreds that have occurred over the years, where perpetrators have been granted impunity,” says Yan Yan.

“The interim government must immediately put an end to the culture of impunity that has long persisted in the Hill Tracts.”

In June, human rights group Ain o Salish Kendra warned of a serious failure of the state to protect women and a breakdown in security. The organisation has urged the government to send a clear and firm message that such barbarity has no place in Bangladesh.

“There is still so much work to be done, but as a priority, we must ensure that the rule of law prevails in Bangladesh, with an open and democratic government that is accountable to all its citizens,” says Yan Yan.

Samanta Shermeen, student activist

Samanta Shermeen was recently elected senior joint convener of the National Citizen party.

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“During the [July] uprising, we saw Bangladeshi women play an extremely active and powerful role. But since then, they have been systematically sidelined,” says Shermeen.

“If we can’t give women the proper respect and recognition they deserve, the revolution would have been for nothing.”

Earlier this year, she condemned attacks by radicals who vandalised a pitch ahead of a women’s football match. “It was a blatant act of misogyny and a violation of the principles that underpin Bangladesh’s core values,” Shermeen says.

“Despite this, our women’s national football team has just qualified for the final round of the Women’s Asian Cup for the first time,” she says proudly.

“Bangladeshi women are unstoppable. The more you try to hold us back, the more determined we are to succeed. The revolution proved that – and it was only just the beginning.”