Dhaka, Nov. 26 -- It has been 13 years since the High Court gave directives to form sexual harassment complaint committees in the workplace and educational institutions, but there has been little to no progress so far. The HC issued a directive with guidelines, urging employers to form a seven-member sexual harassment complaint committee, headed by a female employee, if available, and with at least two members from outside the organisation -- preferably those working on gender issues and sexual abuse.

Till now, an overwhelming majority of government and private institutions do not have any such committee, and sexual harassment continues to be an everyday affair for a large number of working women. Out of 40 working women, 28 said female ...