The Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, under section 18(2), provides that:
“[t]he State shall adopt effective measures to prevent prostitution and gambling.”
1
Despite that intention, prostitution is legal as long as the prostitute is female and is an adult. Bangladesh does, however, prohibit the prostitution of minor girls under the age of 18.
The Bangladeshi Penal Code, under sections 372 and 373 prohibit the selling and buying of minors for the purpose of prostitution, and provide for a penalty of up to ten years imprisonment and a fine.
2
The inducement of a minor girl to go to a place where she may be forced or seduced to engage in illicit intercourse is also explicitly prohibited under section 366A of the Penal Code:
Whoever, by any means whatsoever, induces any minor girl under the age of eighteen years to go from any place or to do any act with the intent that such a girl may be or knowing that it is likely that she will be, for[c]ed or seduced to illicit intercourse with another person shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to 10 years and shall also be liable to fine.
3
The preamble to the Suppression of Immoral Traffic Act of 1933 states:
“it is expedient to make better provision for the suppression of brothels and of traffic in women and girls for immoral purposes.”
4
The punishments provided for under this Act seem to be fairly lenient. For example, under this Act if a female girl is detained against her will in a place of prostitution, or in any premises with the intent that she engage in sexual intercourse with a male other than her husband, the punishment for such an offense is “imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine which may extend to one thousand Taka or with both.”
5 Further exposing the leniency of punishment provided for under this Act is the punishment provided for the solicitation of a prostitute: “imprisonment of either description which may extend to one month or with fine which may extend to one hundred Taka or with both.”
6 Some other provisions of this Act make it a punishable offense to keep a brothel or live on the earnings of a prostitute, to name a few. For such offenses, the punishment provided is typically not more than a few years at most. An interesting aspect to this Act is that if the minor girl is removed from such a situation, she may be placed in temporary custody as deemed suitable by the government.
7 As such, it is possible for girls to be placed in the same facilities as criminals, unless a safe house can be provided.
The enactment of the Prevention of Oppression against Women and Children Act of 2000 was instrumental in providing legislation that deals directly with the trafficking of women and children. Since trafficking in persons often involves forced prostitution it is important to discuss this Act here. Under section 5(i) the trafficking of a woman for the purpose of, inter alia, prostitution:
Whoever fetches from abroad or dispatches or sends abroad for prostitution . . . for the purpose of torturing her in rent or otherwise or, keeps a woman in his possession, custody or security for such purpose, he shall be punished with death or transportation for life or with rigorous imprisonment of either description which may extend to twenty years but not less than ten years and also with fine.
8
And lastly, under Section 5(iii), “
f the caretaker of a brothel or any person engaged in the management of the brothel, keeps in his possession or custody of any woman through sale, rent or otherwise, he shall be deemed, if not proved otherwise, to have bought or rented or taken in possession or custody of that woman to use that woman as a prostitute and shall be punished under sub-section (і).9
http://www.impowr.org/content/current-legal-framework-prostitution-bangladesh