Still a long way to go for women journalists in Bangladesh
Saturday, 7 January 2012
Fauzia Sultana
On completion of her Master's degree in Journalism from Rajshahi University, Shirin moved to Dhaka in search of a job. But she had little idea that having a job these days is not an easy catch. After a long search, she got one as a trainee in a private TV channel.
An elegant and smart girl, Shirin (not her real name) soon got popular among her colleagues - both seniors and juniors. She also earned the appreciation of all for her talent and hard work. But her good days did not last long.
Things moved into a wrong direction after a few months when her news editor started calling her into her room frequently, sometimes for no valid reason. Shirin feels discomfort whenever he calls her in.
What she had apprehended in the beginning came true when the newsroom boss came up with an indecent proposal one day, and this became his regular practice. Having failed to endure the harassment, Shirin last of all quit the job.
Shaila (also not her real name) works in one of the country's leading English dailies. As she applied for maternity leave, the management approved her four months' leave as per the government rule. After four months, she took another two-month leave without pay.
At the year-end, there had been a salary hike for all, including the juniors. But Shaila got surprised when she saw discrimination in her own salary hike, as she got half the amount that others received. She tried to know from the management what was actually wrong, but there was no satisfactory response. She just wonders: availing of the maternity leave is a fault?
A good number of female journalists who talked to this scribe wishing anonymity said they have to face harassments in one way or the other in their workplaces just for being women. "We try to adjust and work hard, but eventually we cannot overcome the odds," says one of them.
The number of women journalists is gradually increasing in the country with the increase in the rate of higher education of women. But the question remains whether the male-dominated media or the society is ready to accept that.
There has been a media boom in Bangladesh. The country has more newspapers and TV channels than those in many neighbouring countries.
As of December 31, 2010, the number of national dailies in the country was 80 while 186 outside capital Dhaka. The number of TV channels and radio stations is on the rise. The country now has over 20 TV channels and four radio stations.
With the increase in the number of media houses, the job opportunities for university graduates, particularly those from journalism and communication have widened. But the female journalists who are now in a better position said they are not happy the way they are treated in their workplaces.
There is nothing new in the involvement of women in journalism. It has, in fact, started from the British period when Noor Jahan Begum published the 'Begum Magazine', a month before the independence from the British rule in 1947. But their presence in newsrooms does not go far way back. They started joining the mainstream journalism only in the 80s. Now women are working in over 100 media houses of the country.
Though there is no official data, a conservative estimate shows that female journalists in Bangladesh media, including TV channels, account for over 5.0 per cent. The encouraging sign is that their numbers are increasing day by day.
"My hard work and sincerity have made me what I'm today. I work 10 times more than my male counterparts. I had to face many challenges at the family and social levels, and even in my workplace," said Farzana Laboni, a reporter of Kaler Kantha.
Laboni, who covers the financial bit, said: "Now it's clear to me that I'll have to work much more than what our male colleagues do if I have to survive in this profession. If two good reports land in the newsroom, the report filed by my male colleague captures the lead, not the one I filed because I'm a woman."
Many women work in newspapers as contributors and most of them in the feature page or any other low-key pages. Even if those who want to work permanently, they are suggested to work in the feature page and in some cases they are forced to work in the desk, mostly in less important pages. They are hardly considered capable to cover business or political bit or any other important bit.
"The attitude of our male-dominated society has changed little," says Kakoli Paradhan, who once worked as a photojournalist of Kaler Kantha. Kakoli, now a freelancer, goes on: "May be women are weaker than men physically. But there is no logic to keep women away from potential bits showing the reason of moving frequently with a short notice. There's no change in the attitude towards women. They're being pulled back on various lame excuses."
Mahbuba Jannat, who works in a private TV channel, says, "I used to work in the leading English daily, The Daily Star. I had got the opportunity to join the daily on completion of my internship. Initially, I had to cover women and children bit. I was ready to cover any bit as I was not at all concerned about any risk, no matter whether it is hartal or a fatal accident. Later, I switched over to health bit."
Mahbuba says the management usually does not want to send girls to cover any far-away event, and the one that involves risks. "This is also true that girls also think about security issues and many of them do not want to cover events that have hassles and risks."
According to Mahbuba, male reporters get bikes along with fuel cost to cover events, but female reporters hardly get the conveyance.
About discrimination in salary and other facilities in media houses, Shanchita Sharma, assistant news editor of Boishakhi Television, says: "It differs from management to management ... It depends on their attitude. There are some girls who want to take advantage of being girls. When it comes to harassment, I would like to say it may happen in other professions too, not only in journalism. So, the girls need to know how to adjust with the situation."
The plight of female journalists working in mufassil areas from where Bangladesh's journalism, in fact, started its journey is even worse.
Dil Ruba Zaman, a journalist of Palli Kantha published from Jamalpur, says, "The biggest problem we face is in our movement at night what we have to do occasionally for professional reasons, but there are some people who don't take it easily. They try to raise questions about our character."
Asked about the problems of female journalists, New Age editor Nurul Kabir said, "My suggestion for the female journalists is not to take help from their male counterparts. They will have to build their careers with their own efforts and studies, and they should make the best use of their merits. There is no alternative to professional efficiency. They should treat themselves as journalists, not as female journalists. It is also important for them to be united to overcome the problems." (News Network)
On completion of her Master's degree in Journalism from Rajshahi University, Shirin moved to Dhaka in search of a job. But she had little idea that having a job these days is not an easy catch. After a long search, she got one as a trainee in a private TV channel.
An elegant and smart girl, Shirin (not her real name) soon got popular among her colleagues - both seniors and juniors. She also earned the appreciation of all for her talent and hard work. But her good days did not last long.
Things moved into a wrong direction after a few months when her news editor started calling her into her room frequently, sometimes for no valid reason. Shirin feels discomfort whenever he calls her in.
What she had apprehended in the beginning came true when the newsroom boss came up with an indecent proposal one day, and this became his regular practice. Having failed to endure the harassment, Shirin last of all quit the job.
Shaila (also not her real name) works in one of the country's leading English dailies. As she applied for maternity leave, the management approved her four months' leave as per the government rule. After four months, she took another two-month leave without pay.
At the year-end, there had been a salary hike for all, including the juniors. But Shaila got surprised when she saw discrimination in her own salary hike, as she got half the amount that others received. She tried to know from the management what was actually wrong, but there was no satisfactory response. She just wonders: availing of the maternity leave is a fault?
A good number of female journalists who talked to this scribe wishing anonymity said they have to face harassments in one way or the other in their workplaces just for being women. "We try to adjust and work hard, but eventually we cannot overcome the odds," says one of them.
The number of women journalists is gradually increasing in the country with the increase in the rate of higher education of women. But the question remains whether the male-dominated media or the society is ready to accept that.
There has been a media boom in Bangladesh. The country has more newspapers and TV channels than those in many neighbouring countries.
As of December 31, 2010, the number of national dailies in the country was 80 while 186 outside capital Dhaka. The number of TV channels and radio stations is on the rise. The country now has over 20 TV channels and four radio stations.
With the increase in the number of media houses, the job opportunities for university graduates, particularly those from journalism and communication have widened. But the female journalists who are now in a better position said they are not happy the way they are treated in their workplaces.
There is nothing new in the involvement of women in journalism. It has, in fact, started from the British period when Noor Jahan Begum published the 'Begum Magazine', a month before the independence from the British rule in 1947. But their presence in newsrooms does not go far way back. They started joining the mainstream journalism only in the 80s. Now women are working in over 100 media houses of the country.
Though there is no official data, a conservative estimate shows that female journalists in Bangladesh media, including TV channels, account for over 5.0 per cent. The encouraging sign is that their numbers are increasing day by day.
"My hard work and sincerity have made me what I'm today. I work 10 times more than my male counterparts. I had to face many challenges at the family and social levels, and even in my workplace," said Farzana Laboni, a reporter of Kaler Kantha.
Laboni, who covers the financial bit, said: "Now it's clear to me that I'll have to work much more than what our male colleagues do if I have to survive in this profession. If two good reports land in the newsroom, the report filed by my male colleague captures the lead, not the one I filed because I'm a woman."
Many women work in newspapers as contributors and most of them in the feature page or any other low-key pages. Even if those who want to work permanently, they are suggested to work in the feature page and in some cases they are forced to work in the desk, mostly in less important pages. They are hardly considered capable to cover business or political bit or any other important bit.
"The attitude of our male-dominated society has changed little," says Kakoli Paradhan, who once worked as a photojournalist of Kaler Kantha. Kakoli, now a freelancer, goes on: "May be women are weaker than men physically. But there is no logic to keep women away from potential bits showing the reason of moving frequently with a short notice. There's no change in the attitude towards women. They're being pulled back on various lame excuses."
Mahbuba Jannat, who works in a private TV channel, says, "I used to work in the leading English daily, The Daily Star. I had got the opportunity to join the daily on completion of my internship. Initially, I had to cover women and children bit. I was ready to cover any bit as I was not at all concerned about any risk, no matter whether it is hartal or a fatal accident. Later, I switched over to health bit."
Mahbuba says the management usually does not want to send girls to cover any far-away event, and the one that involves risks. "This is also true that girls also think about security issues and many of them do not want to cover events that have hassles and risks."
According to Mahbuba, male reporters get bikes along with fuel cost to cover events, but female reporters hardly get the conveyance.
About discrimination in salary and other facilities in media houses, Shanchita Sharma, assistant news editor of Boishakhi Television, says: "It differs from management to management ... It depends on their attitude. There are some girls who want to take advantage of being girls. When it comes to harassment, I would like to say it may happen in other professions too, not only in journalism. So, the girls need to know how to adjust with the situation."
The plight of female journalists working in mufassil areas from where Bangladesh's journalism, in fact, started its journey is even worse.
Dil Ruba Zaman, a journalist of Palli Kantha published from Jamalpur, says, "The biggest problem we face is in our movement at night what we have to do occasionally for professional reasons, but there are some people who don't take it easily. They try to raise questions about our character."
Asked about the problems of female journalists, New Age editor Nurul Kabir said, "My suggestion for the female journalists is not to take help from their male counterparts. They will have to build their careers with their own efforts and studies, and they should make the best use of their merits. There is no alternative to professional efficiency. They should treat themselves as journalists, not as female journalists. It is also important for them to be united to overcome the problems." (News Network)