JMBF Statement on International Transgender Day of Visibility 2026

Paris, France | 29 March 2026: On the occasion of the International Transgender Day of Visibility, JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) stands in solidarity with transgender, hijra, and gender-diverse communities in Bangladesh and around the world. This day is both a celebration of courage, resilience, and identity, and a call to confront the persistent discrimination, exclusion, and violence faced by transgender people.

JMBF Annual State of LGBTQI+ Report in Bangladesh 2026

In 2025, LGBTQI+ individuals in Bangladesh continued to face systemic and multifaceted violence, reflecting entrenched social stigma and gaps in institutional protections. During the reporting period, JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) documented 260 distinct incidents affecting 426 individuals nationwide. These incidents reportedly included physical assaults, harassment, blackmail, arbitrary detention, social ostracism, and other forms of discrimination carried out by both state and non-state actors.

PRESS RELEASE: JMBF Releases State of LGBTQI+ Rights in Bangladesh 2026

Paris, France | 30 March 2026: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) has released its Annual Report 2026: “State of LGBTQI+ Rights in Bangladesh under the Interim Government (January–December 2025)”, presenting a comprehensive, evidence-based assessment of the human rights situation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) individuals in Bangladesh.

JMBF Leadership Bilateral Meeting with Asylum and LGBT Rights Lawyer in Paris

Paris, France | 15 March 2026: Advocate Shahanur Islam, Founder and President of JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), along with Advocate Mohammad Alamgir, Secretary General of JMBF, held a significant bilateral meeting in Paris with French lawyer Marion Dupourqué, a specialist in asylum law, on March 13, 2026.

JMBF Joins EU-Wide BIPOC Youth Network Through MoU with #DiasporaVote!

Paris, France | March 01, 2026: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) has officially become a founding member of a new EU-wide network of BIPOC-led and youth-led organizations following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) coordinated by #DiasporaVote! ASBL.

JMBF Leaders Attend Seminar on Gender Data Rights at French National Parliament

Paris, France | 21 February 2026: Representatives of JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) participated in a high-level seminar on the limits of processing gender-related data, held at the French National Parliament Building on 22 January 2026.

JMBF Becomes Official Member of Pan-European Bi+ Equal Network

Paris, France | 18 February 2026: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) has officially become a member of Bi+ Equal, a pan-European umbrella organization advocating for the rights, visibility, and inclusion of Bi+ communities across Europe, as of February 2026.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF Expresses Deep Concern and Strong Condemnation Over the Handover of Two Students to Police in Dinajpur on Allegations of Homosexuality

Paris, France | 14 February 2026: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) expresses its deep concern and strong condemnation over the incident in which two young men were detained, interrogated, confined, and handed over to the police on allegations of “homosexuality” in an area adjacent to Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University (HSTU) in Dinajpur on 19 January 2026. JMBF firmly considers this incident to be a blatant violation of fundamental human rights, particularly the right to privacy, and a heinous example of unlawful mob persecution.

JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) Calls for Stronger International Action on LGBTI Rights in Bangladesh

Paris, France | 04 February 2026: Advocate Shahanur Islam, a Bangladeshi human rights defender, 2023 Laureate of the French Marianne Initiative for Human Rights Defenders and Founder and President of JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), has called for stronger international engagement to address the deteriorating situation of LGBTI rights in Bangladesh under the current interim government led by former Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus.

JMBF Founder Shahanur Islam Presents Landmark Paper on Queer Asylum at Major European Conference

“বাংলা ভাষার সম্পূর্ণ সংস্করণ দেখার জন্য, নিচে স্ক্রল করে ‘More’ এ ক্লিক করুন।” "Pour consulter les versions complètes en français, faites défiler vers le bas et cliquez sur ‘Voir plus’.”

Paris, France | 21 December 2025: Advocate Shahanur Islam, Founder President of the JusticeMakers Bangladesh Foundation (JMBF), presented a landmark paper at Shaping Tomorrow: Queer Asylum in Europe, a high-level international conference held in Amsterdam on 20 and 21 November 2025, organised by COC Netherlands.

The conference brought together activists, scholars, legal professionals, LGBTQI+ community organizers, and refugees to examine the rapidly evolving landscape of LGBTIQ+ asylum in Europe. Discussions focused on the impact of shifting asylum policies, changing societal attitudes, political discourse, and the introduction of the EU Migration Pacton people seeking protection due to their sexual orientation or gender identity.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF Expresses Deep Concern Over the Conspiratorial Arrest of a Gay Teacher of Dhaka University

“বাংলা ভাষার সম্পূর্ণ সংস্করণ দেখার জন্য, নিচে স্ক্রল করে ‘More’ এ ক্লিক করুন।” "Pour consulter les versions complètes en français, faites défiler vers le bas et cliquez sur ‘Voir plus’.”

Paris, France; 15 November 2025: The France-based human rights organization JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) expresses deep concern and condemnation over the conspiratorial arrest and imprisonment of Dhaka University (DU) Chemistry Department Professor Dr. Ershad Halim on 13 November, based solely on fabricated and conspiratorial allegations of sexual harassment of male students, allegedly due to his belonging to the gay community, as part of the continued pattern of discrimination and targeted harassment against sexual minority groups in Bangladesh.

Shahanur Islam Represents JMBF at the IGLYO Annual Members’ Conference (AMC) 2025 in Zurich

“বাংলা ভাষার সম্পূর্ণ সংস্করণ দেখার জন্য, নিচে স্ক্রল করে ‘More’ এ ক্লিক করুন।” "Pour consulter les versions complètes en français, faites défiler vers le bas et cliquez sur ‘Voir plus’.”

Paris, France; November 21, 2025: Advocate Shahanur Islam, Founder President of JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), participated in the IGLYO Annual Members’ Conference (AMC) 2025, held in Zurich in collaboration with local member organisation Milchjugend. The gathering brought together more than 70 LGBTQI youth activists from across Europe, reaffirming IGLYO’s role as one of the world’s largest networks of queer youth organisations.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF Deeply Concerned Over Violence and Arbitrary Arrests of the Hijra (Third Gender) Community in Chattogram and Narayanganj

“বাংলা ভাষার সম্পূর্ণ সংস্করণ দেখার জন্য, নিচে স্ক্রল করে ‘More’ এ ক্লিক করুন।” "Pour consulter les versions complètes en français, faites défiler vers le bas et cliquez sur ‘Voir plus’.”

Paris, France; 19 October 2025: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), a France-based human rights organization, expresses deep concern and strong condemnation over the brutal attacks and arbitrary arrests of members of the Hijra (third gender) community on 10 September in Boalkhali, Chattogram, and on 17 September in Rupganj, Narayanganj.

JMBF calls for the immediate arrest and exemplary punishment of the perpetrators, as well as the unconditional release of the arrested Hijras and the withdrawal of all false cases filed against them.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF strongly condemns and protests the vandalism of the food cart and threats against sexual minority intersex woman Jannatul Nayeem Pori in Dhaka

To read the Bengali and French versions, please scroll down and click ‘More’

Paris, France; August 27, 2025: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) expresses deep concern, strong condemnation, and outrage over the incidents of vandalism, destruction of a food cart, and threats made by local influential individuals against sexual minority intersex woman Shawon Islam, also known as Jannatul Nayeem Pori, in Uttara, Dhaka, on August 17 and 18, 2025.

At the same time, the France-based human rights organization JMBF has strongly urged the immediate arrest of those involved, the filing of cases under existing laws, and the swift and transparent trial of the perpetrators to ensure exemplary punishment.

JMBF Leaders Raise Alarming Concerns over Violence against LGBTQI+ People in Bangladesh at International Conference in France

To read the Bengali and French versions, please scroll down and click ‘More’

Paris, France; August 22, 2025: Advocate Shahanur Islam, Founder President of JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), and Advocate Mohammad Alamgir, Secretary General of JMBF, joined the 2025 Euro-Mediterranean Summer Universities of Homosexualities (UEEH), held from August 10 to 21, 2025, in Vic-en-Bigorre, France.

UEEH, first launched in 1979, is one of the world’s longest-standing international initiatives created entirely by and for LGBTQIA+ communities. Unlike conventional conferences, it functions as a self-organized grassroots gathering, where participants live and work together in a setting rooted in solidarity, inclusivity, and mutual respect. Over the years, it has become a vital platform for knowledge exchange, activism, and community building across Europe, the Mediterranean, and beyond.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF expresses deep concern and outrage over the lifetime expulsion of transgender female student Sahara Chowdhury from Sylhet Metropolitan University

To read the Bengali and French versions, please scroll down and click ‘More’

Paris, France; 20 August 2025 – JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) has expressed deep concern, anger, and strong protest over the lifetime expulsion of transgender female student Safwan Chowdhury Rebel, also known as Sahara Chowdhury, from Sylhet Metropolitan University on 10 August. The expulsion was carried out under pressure from organized groups solely on the basis of her gender identity and sexual orientation, without any specific reason being provided.

JMBF believes that this decision is not only unjust and discriminatory, but also contrary to the Constitution of Bangladesh, existing laws, international human rights treaties, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Depriving a student of the right to education based on gender identity or sexual orientation constitutes a violation of fundamental rights.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF Deeply Concerned Over Persecution and Expulsion of LGBTQ+ Students at DUET

To read the Bengali and French versions, please scroll down and click ‘More’.

Paris, France; August 7, 2025: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) expresses deep concern over the incident at Dhaka University of Engineering & Technology (DUET), Gazipur, where seven students were detained and tortured in their dormitories on July 19, 2025, merely on the accusation of being sexual minorities—specifically homosexual—and were subsequently temporarily expelled from their dorms on July 22 and 24 by the university administration.

JMBF condemns this horrific discriminatory act and violation of personal privacy rights at DUET, which contravenes the Constitution of Bangladesh, the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and other international human rights treaties.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF Deeply Concerned Over the Brutal Killing of Gay Man Rafiqul Islam in Gazipur

To read the Bengali and French versions, please scroll down and click ‘More’.

Paris, France; 26 July 2025: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), a Paris-based human rights organization, expresses grave concern and strongly condemns the premeditated and brutal murder of Mr. Mohammad Rafiqul Islam, a gay man, in Gazipur on the night of 19 July 2025.

JMBF firmly believes that the deliberate killing of Rafiqul Islam solely based on his sexual orientation constitutes a gross violation of fundamental human rights and human dignity.

BANGLADESH ALERT: JMBF Condemns the Brutal Murder of Gay Electrician Parvez Hasan and Urges Immediate Action to End Violence Against the LGBT+ Community

To read the Bengali and French versions, please scroll down and click ‘More’.

Paris, France; 13 July 2025: France-based human rights organization JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) expresses deep concern and strongly condemns the brutal murder of gay electrician Parvez Hasan (35) in Rupganj, Narayanganj, widely recognized as a hate crime rooted in his sexual orientation.

JMBF firmly believes that murdering a person solely because of their same-sex relationship constitutes a grave violation of existing laws, the Constitution of Bangladesh, and the fundamental human rights enshrined by the United Nations.

FRANCE: JMBF and SIL Participate in “Paris Parade 2025” — The Largest Annual LGBTQI+ March in Paris

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Paris, France; June 29, 2025: JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), the only France-based human rights organization advocating for the rights of Bangladeshi LGBTQI+ individuals, and Solidarity International LGBTQI (SIL), an organization working globally for LGBTQI+ rights, proudly participated in “Paris Parade 2025,” the largest annual LGBTQI+ march held in Paris.

The vibrant event took place on June 28, beginning at 2 PM from the historic Louvre Museum and continuing to Nation Square, bringing together a sea of participants in a powerful demonstration of solidarity.