Endangered Species Summit and women issues

In Bangladesh the implementation of Policy on Equal Rights and Responsibilities for Women is expected to result in a huge social disaster. There is bound to be burgeoning number of illegitimate children all over the country! This is the forecast of an esteemed maulana. The startling information was highlighted in a prominent English newspaper of the country. Further the attention of all the women's organizations is addressed to such defamation and derogatory language to be more resilient. Bengali women as mothers, sisters, and wives (excuse me, as exponents of patriarchy!) are, an Endangered Species. Against this backdrop, the government effort to establish Women's Policy is a singular example; and there is a distinction between a policy and a law; and this is at best an endeavor to establish a guideline, a Citizen's Charter that is expected to guarantee citizen's the right to redress where public service fails to meet the fair standard and expectation. To ensure everyone hears you, you got to shout, raise your voice and be loud. To be double sure that you are heard you got to use sexist language and that is exactly what the maulana did. In other words equal rights will give women freedom over their own body function specifically the reproductive functions. Equal rights and responsibilities (for equal rights come with responsibilities) would amount to women having license over their sexuality and reproductive function. This then would result in the birth to many, many illegitimate children! Under the present circumstances women do not have this right. Policy of less than equal rights means women have less right over their reproductive functions. Their body is not within their control. Women's reproductive functions are curtailed and controlled by men; therefore women do not give birth to illegitimate children! And so the learned maulana fore warns that change in the status quo, meaning fore going the immoral task of controlling the body functions of another being would spell disaster. Illegitimate birth of children will happen. Therefore women's decision making capabilities should be limited and be less than equal! The use of the term 'Reproductive Rights' in Bangladesh is fairly recent. This term is used mostly by international organizations, NGOs, human rights activists and researchers. Generally the term implies that the women should decide and control their own bodily and reproductive behavior. Several field studies have revealed that women in the rural and urban areas are subject to physical, sexual, psychological and human rights violations. Findings from research work show that the lives of women in Bangladesh are dictated by others such as donors of foreign aids particularly through population control which is accurately viewed as 'nothing but a contraceptive distribution program' in the bodies of women. It is then almost clear that there is no 'right' involved in the population control program in Bangladesh. The constitution provides that Bangladeshi citizenship shall be determined and regulated by law. Within 1951 Citizenship Act women have equal rights with men to acquire, change or retain their nationality and may obtain passports without the signature of their husbands or fathers. However, only Bangladeshi men can confer citizenship upon their children and spouses. The significance of International Women's Day is in sensitizing opinion across society and disseminating the idea of equality. The true identity of a woman is reflected in her work. It is the human face of a woman. Women now have greater self respect, self confidence and independence. When a woman is free from prejudice, she then has no barrier and she can make contribution. As more than 90 per cent of people do not think that women are destined to work only inside their homes, many women have successfully established themselves in the field of business with their own dignity and power, even though many of them are from rural areas of the country. For the development and empowerment of Bangladeshi women, there is a need to go back to traditional products; and it is financial freedom which will come by rediscovering the history and creativity of Bangladeshi women. A woman faces the same hurdles as a man. People in the rural areas still do think that business is a field for men only. Women need to be adamant, bold, planned and be self confident. International Women's Day on March, the 8th coincided with the Endangered Species Summit in five major cities in the west. To fight back both men and women from the fashion industries, advertisement, media, education, psychotherapy and feminist joined together, shouting loudly 'enough is enough.' Their rallying cry: 'Take back your body', a campaign for new visual culture, a challenge to body beautiful culture. Launched in London last month the summit was a challenge to tradition that teaches women and girls to hate their own bodies, (how pathetic and defeating that was!). The aim: bring about change, where real beauty of women is valued and magnified. The target audience was government officials, educational institutions and multi-national companies. Turning the Bangladesh yellow pages is a list of beauty parlours that specialize in beauty secrets, beauty care, skin care, hair dressing, party make-up, model make-up and bridal make-up. Additionally beauty of women is defined by a range of laser based aesthetic and cosmetic treatment. The 52nd Miss World beauty contest was won by the only Muslim contestant Miss Turkey who said '. it is good for a woman to have this position.' Many women both Muslims and non-Muslims throughout the world do not regard such beauty contest as honorable for women. Naomi Wolf in her book: The beauty Myth writes: 'The qualities that a given period calls beautiful in women are merely symbols of the female behavior that that period considers desirable. The beauty myth is always prescribing behavior and not appearance.' The writer is a sociologist and columnist, and can be reached at E-mail : farida_s9@optimaxbd.net