As women comprises about 50% population of Bangladesh, for economic
development of the country as a whole, the role of women and their
participation in the process of socio-political and economic uplift
is imperative.

Bangladesh is carrying the legacy of the backwardness of the women as
a suppressed and exploited class which is found to happen during the
centuries down in the history due to the evolution of vested
interested of a male dominant society although long back in history
of Bengal, women had dominant as well as equal social status in the
beginning of the agrarian society.

However, given the situation of the present, there are several socio-
political issues, which need to be addressed step by step to empower
the women in Bangladesh to enhance their participation in the socio-
political and economic activity.

Although the constitution of Bangladesh has envisaged equal right of
women side by side with men, but the real environment is not up to
that which gives women to be able to exercise equal right against men
in the present socio-economic conditions. The worse example is that,
in some Unions in the country side, due to serious inflict of stigma,
even during even the national elections the women are not allowed to
visit the polling centers and caste their vote through secret ballot
to their chosen candidate.

First of all if we look into the statistics, we would find that
comparatively the participation of the girl children attending
schools to undertake formal education is very poor. The consciousness
in the society in this respect is inflicted with several stigmas.
Except in a very small section of the society in the urban area, the
vast majority of the urban poor and generally in the rural area, a
girl child is severely neglected in the family as far as the question
of formal education being required as the fundamental right of a
citizen as has been inspired in the constitution of Bangladesh,
because it is generally considered by the male head of the family
that education was not much necessary for the girl child, because,
eventually the girl will be confined indoor and essentially be
engaged in household work, and only further to the extent of putting
her labour in the domestic processing of the agricultural yields on
which the vast section the Bangladeshi population is depending
economically.

However, severe poverty and unemployment has driven quite a
considerable section of the rural women in the unskilled and semi-
skilled labour market of Bangladesh, as construction labourers,
factory or household workers, and lack of education has deprived them
even the opportunity to enter into the skilled or of even better
fields in the limited labour market of Bangladesh. But, women in the
labour market also are facing severe discrimination and exploitation
in terms of unequal treatment in considering the wages while compared
with her male co-worker.

This situation of discrimination, exploitation and suppression of
women as a class cannot be changed up to the spirit of the
constitution of Bangladesh, which is the achievement of sacrifice of
women too in the war of independence, unless there is an integrated
program of the Political Parties, the Government and the NGO's, taken
emphatically for the empowerment of the women politically, socially
and economically.

The social impediments rest in the low level of consciousness of the
vast majority. In this respect the role of the Political Parties and
the NGO's are important. Although the role of the NGO's engaged in
awareness and micro-credit programs involving the rural women had
shown some positive results, but the role of the political parties in
creating congenial environment for the smooth functioning and
advancement of the NGO's in this respect was never adequate, and in
some instances had even been in the negative. The NGO's have been
reported to be facing hindrances in some areas of the country where
misinterpreted religious sanctions propagated by a bunch of half-
educated Mullahs have largely affected the propagation of the
awareness programs for the women folk undertook by them. In this
conflict, the role of the grass root leaders of the democratic
progressive political parties have been found in many occasions to be
shy and even the members of the major political parties like AL or
BNP in the grass root level particularly BNP being leaned towards
attracting support of the so-called dubious religious political
forces for the vote also took timid or dubious role.

Although, both AL and BNP have written program for action in their
own manifesto, the commitment for the support and implementation of
the awareness programs for the empowerment women in the society in
all respects but their grass root leaders never had been found to be
interested to support and undertake such campaign, understandably for
the reason of petty patriarchal interest of male hegemony.

In this respect, an example may be cited that, although the present
BNP led Government directed a program of "Food for Education" for the
girl children but those allocated food never achieved its desired
objective, because the persons mainly male who were responsible to
implement the program rarely acted sincerely and honestly.

Therefore, in this context the agenda of giving women the reserved
and protected number of positions in the Parliament, the central
Government, the local Government and in the Government services
(specially by increased quota in the education, health & family
planning, social welfare and judiciary) through legislative action
has its relevance.

The women in Bangladesh had been looking forward that a comprehensive
bill shall be moved in the coming winter session of the Parliament,
to bring about the necessary legislation to help undertake the
political steps for the empowerment of women so that we can witness
the improvement in participation of women in the socio-political and
economic activity. Specially, the Four Party alliance commanding the
required two-third majority required to bring about the expected
legislations had now this opportunity to prove their sincerity
towards their election manifesto consisting their commitments to
undertake necessary legislative action for the political empowerment
of women in Bangladesh.

But, unfortunately it is reported that, in a meeting held on 14th
January, 2004, the leaders of Four Party Alliance chaired by Prime
Minister Khaleda Zia, agreed to start the process to put forward a
bill in the coming winter session of the Parliament expected to be
commencing from 18th January, 2004, introducing 50 reserved seats
only for women in the Parliament. It was further agreed that, only
the Political Parties who have now secured the elected seats in the
Parliament and in the numbers proportionate to their existing
original numbers should nominate the reserved seats for women. They
also agreed that, this amendment of the constitution should be made
effective from the same session.

The reaction outside the Four Party Alliance was mixed and faced
severe criticism in a few particular aspects, because the Women
Organizations for long were demanding for at least 100 reserved seats
in the Parliament to be secured through direct election.

It obviously caused discontent among the Women Organizations, because
they were not discussed by the ruling Alliance before taking of this
particular decision on this matter.

The leader of the Coalition of Woman's' Organizations, Mrs. Ayesha
Khanam giving her response informed that, last year in a meeting of
the Coalition of The Woman's' Organizations with the Law Minister,
Barrister Moudud Ahmed, happened to have expressed at that time to
agree with the demand for introducing 100 reserved seats for women in
the Parliament through direct election, but now the decision taken by
the Four Party Alliance, is disappointing.

Barrister Tania Amir commented that, the days for women securing
ornamental nominated reserved seats in the Parliament should end.

It is strongly felt that, by keeping the system of nomination rather
than direct election the expectation of the women to attain their
just, proper, dignified, unbiased, independent and unfettered
representation will not be ensured, rather the women representative
becoming nomination seekers have still to depend greatly on the
existing Political Parties and in such a situation obviously as it
had been found from experience in the previous occasions that the
activity of those nominated MPs mostly became influenced and guided
by the partisan agenda of the existing political parties and for whom
the agenda for Empowerment of Women had always been a secondary
issue.

The Unity of the Women Organizations clearly explained during a
meeting held today, 15th January, 2004 at the central Sahid Minar
that, the above reason for demanding direct election and for at least
64 reserved seats distributed in the manner to be each one from an
area of the existing Police Station, and demanded with this view to
strongly consider the issue. The Four Party Alliance under the
leadership of Begum Khaleda Zia being a woman herself called upon
once again to take steps accordingly without shifting her own
position committed during her election campaign in 2001. The
demonstration and rally of the women pressed their demand to the
Government particularly to the Prime Minister to show Begum Khaleda
Zia now her sincere intention to keep her commitment and undertake to
move the appropriate legislative amendment to open up the real
opportunity to get the true representatives of women seeking
empowerment getting directly elected as MP with dignity for a change.

Adding much to the disappointment that the legislation for
introducing and enhancing the number women as and where applicable
through directly elected reserved seats at the local Government level
and the other issue for enhancing the reserved quota for employment
in the public services, were not discussed at all, at this point of
time.

Afroza Begum
15th January 2004