‘They Just Wanted to Talk’: Bearing witness to Violence against Women in Bangladesh

During 16 Days of Activism, this story exposes how much violence remains hidden and why amplifying women’s voices is the first step to ending it.

"All this time, no one like you came to visit me. When I needed help, I had no one," said one survivor to Sumaiya Noor, a data collector of the Violence against Women Survey conducted in Bangladesh a year ago by the National Bureau of Statistics in partnership with UNFPA.

Sumaiya first entered the data field in 2007 and is hardly a stranger to high-stake surveys. Yet this time, things felt different, more personal, and far more urgent.

Her deployment to the northern region of the country coincided with the local Upazila Parishad elections. Along with her team, she moved from one upazila to another, constantly trying to stay ahead of the election season. The data collection continued, amidst the everyday challenges of booked-out hotels and political uncertainties.

“I have never felt tired, not even for a day. I believed in the work we were doing,” Sumaiya recollected. This drive to keep going was made stronger every time she interviewed a survivor. 

“In all the surveys I participated in, people were usually impatient. They want to finish the interview and return to their day. With this survey, women wanted me to stay and spend time with them. They just wanted to talk,” she explained.

With the full report released now, the survey uncovered that nearly 2 in 3 survivors did not disclose their experiences to anyone, until data collectors like Sumaiya arrived.

“Numbers alone don’t show the whole picture,” Sumaiya said. “You can’t truly understand what it means to sit with these women, to have them trust you with their stories, unless you were there.”

And the evidence bears this out—much of the violence women experience stays hidden beneath the surface until efforts like the 2024 Violence Against Women Survey helped bring it into view. 

By providing a safe space where survivors are met without judgment, supported by trained interviewers, and assured of anonymity, these surveys allowed them to come forward on their own terms.

The survey revealed that when women choose to disclose violence, they most often turn to family members, starting with their parents. Even among those who speak up, many remain reluctant to seek formal justice, with 58% of survivors still approaching local community leaders to take action.

Sumaiya witnessed firsthand how survivors face multiple barriers when trying to seek help. The most common is the belief that disclosure is unnecessary, cited in nearly 39% of cases. Survivors also speak of shame, social judgment, and the escalated risks they might face – of divorce, further violence, or rejection from their own families. These fears are deeply internalized and often interlinked. 

“When a woman leaves her husband, people blame her. They think a good wife endures, no matter what,” shared one of the survivors.

Yet more survivors (7%) are now stepping forward to seek legal action. In 2015, only 2.6% had taken this step.

As Sumaiya travelled across the country, it became clear that survivors, despite their different backgrounds, shared one thing in common: many of them did not know support services existed. This lack of awareness is a key barrier to seeking help.

Simply knowing that there are systems in place to support survivors, could be a ‘game-changer,” Sumaiya argued. She questioned whether awareness was being prioritized enough. “How can women benefit if they don't know about these services?”

The survey data confirms her concerns: half of the respondents didn’t know where to report violence. Even for the most basic toll-free services, awareness is low. 55% of survivors didn't know about the government’s 999 helpline, and 88% were unaware of the 109 helpline. 

The survey results reached the public this year, and Sumaiya hopes it becomes a turning point, leading to real change.