Bangladesh overturns ‘Sir’ protocol for female officials, calls it relic of Hasina era | World News

Bangladesh’s caretaker government has revoked a long-standing official protocol that required female public officials to be addressed as “sir,” calling the practice an outdated remnant of former Prime Miner Sheikh Hasina’s adminration. In a statement released Thursday evening the caretaker adminration’s press wing, the directive mandating the use of the male honorific for women in government roles was declared null and void.
According to AFP, the government described the protocol as “clearly odd” and said it originated during Hasina’s 16-year tenure, which they referred to as “autocratic.”
While the caretaker government inss the change is a step toward modernising bureaucratic norms, not all female officials were consulted in the decision. One female officer told AFP that the decision came without prior discussion with women in public service. “The tradition began during Sheikh Hasina’s tenure, but many women officers supported it, finding the address gender-neutral,” the official said.
Story continues below this ad

A committee has now been set up to review and potentially revise other outdated or controversial adminrative directives.
Sheikh Hasina 77, came to India after being ousted a student-led uprising last year. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus now heads the interim government that replaced her adminration.
Hasina faces several charges at Bangladesh’s international crimes tribunal, including allegations of command responsibility during the government’s crackdown on anti-regime protests in mid-2024. According to United Nations estimates, up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August of that year.
Hasina has denied all allegations. Her political party, the Awami League, has strongly criticised the tribunal proceedings.
(With inputs from AFP, The Guardian)