Bangladesh Ends Rule Requiring Female Officials to Be Called “Sir”
The interim administration in Bangladesh has abolished a long-standing practice of addressing female officials as “sir,” describing it as an unusual holdover from the leadership of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The caretaker government, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, assumed power last year after Hasina was removed from office amid protests led by students, which forced her to leave for India.
In a statement released late Thursday, the government's press office confirmed the directive requiring women in official positions to be called “sir” had been revoked.
“Reports indicate that during Sheikh Hasina’s nearly 16-year rule, a directive was issued instructing public officials to refer to her as ‘sir,’” the statement read. “This was later extended to other senior women in government, a practice that remains visibly unusual.”
Authorities have also established a new committee to review additional protocol guidelines, according to the statement.
An unnamed female official told AFP that the decision was made without consulting women in public service.
“The practice began under Sheikh Hasina’s government, but many female officials favored it, viewing the term as gender-neutral,” the official said.
Hasina, 77, who has ignored orders to return to Dhaka, is facing multiple charges before Bangladesh’s international crimes tribunal over alleged offenses during the protests that led to her removal. Her political party, the Awami League, has dismissed the tribunal as illegitimate.
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