Rights group JMBF publishes report on discrimination against hijras in Bangladesh
The human rights organisation JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) published a report on the situation of hijras in Bangladesh in Paris on October 12, 2026. The authors say the state’s recognition of the community in 2013 has not removed discrimination or barriers to basic services.
Hijra is a historically established social and cultural identity in South Asia, often described as a third gender. It overlaps with transgender identities but is not interchangeable with them or with intersex variations. Following the Bangladeshi authorities’ 2013 decision, an official recognition notice was published in January 2014.
The report draws on documents, research and accounts of individual cases, mainly covering 2013 to August 2026. It reviews existing evidence rather than presenting a new nationwide survey. The authors describe reports of violence and harassment, exclusion from employment, education, healthcare and housing, and difficulties obtaining identity documents.
One study cited in the report was published in PLOS ONE in 2022. It involved 346 hijras in five Bangladeshi cities in January 2019. Of those surveyed, 59.3% reported rights violations in education and 46.4% in employment. These figures describe a particular sample and do not establish the prevalence of such violations nationwide.
The report cites the preliminary 2022 census count of 12,629 hijras. However, a later official summary from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics records 8,124 people. Both figures relate to the same census; the difference alone does not show that the community has shrunk. The report’s authors also warn of possible undercounting.
Identity document problems were also reported by The Daily Star on August 13. According to the newspaper, civil society representatives at a conference held the previous day in Dhaka said the lack of birth certificates and identity cards prevents hijras from accessing education, healthcare and social support.
Government assistance programmes also operate in the country. The Department of Social Services lists allowances, education stipends and vocational training for hijras.
JMBF recommends statutory protection against discrimination, investigations into violence and accessible documentation procedures without degrading medical examinations. The organisation argues that welfare payments should be accompanied by legal safeguards and effective complaints mechanisms.
