In this context, Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) is implementing a project titled ‘Promoting Rights through Inclusion and Empowerment’ (PRiTIE) supported by RFSU (The Swedish Association for Sexuality Education), which aims to build a more inclusive environment through respecting and protecting the SRHR of individuals irrespective of their gender identity or sexual orientation, addressing discriminatory laws and practices around SRHR for reform, enhancing the knowledge of duty bearers and service providers to ensure adequate and necessary SRHR support for young people, and creating safe spaces, platforms and opportunities for young people and strengthening their knowledge and understanding to lead the SRHR dialogue and directly participating in advocating for the protection and promotion of their SRHR.

Project objectives:

• To address discriminatory laws, policies and practices related to marriage and sexual violence in the context of Bangladesh and international human rights standards – BLAST does this through undertaking research, review and critical analyses of laws, and through advocacy with policy makers for legal reform.
• To create platforms for University students and young professionals in the project area to express their views and experiences on their freedom to express, choose and consent to matters related to their own lives, and strengthen their knowledge and understanding and increase their participation in ensuring their rights – BLAST works with six public universities across all six divisions in Bangladesh to provide these platforms for young people – ‘Safe Space’ groups have been set up in each of these universities with groups of 30-40 students, who meet every two months to participate in orientation sessions (‘Love, Life and Law’ sessions) on human rights, gender and diversity, SRHR and mental health. BLAST also arranged university dialogues with private universities on SRHR issues, and also organises photo competitions and short film competitions on SRHR, equality, diversity and personal liberty and freedoms, for your people all over the country.
• To enhance the capacity of service providers on sexual and reproductive health and rights – BLAST does this in partnership with BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health at BRAC University, providing capacity building trainings (a Short Course on SRHR and Law, and a Training on National and International Human Rights Mechanisms) to lawyers, academics, service providers, and activists and NGO representatives.