Where do Bangladesh women stand?

March 08 is observed every year as 'International Women's Day' (IWD) around the world. Different kinds of events are organised with a view to inspiring women's activities and reflecting on their achievements. The celebrations take place locally and nationally where activities of women range from political rallies, conferences, seminars, governmental activities, theatric performances, fashion shows and more. Although the day is celebrated all over the world, few countries mark it as an official holiday. These countries include Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, China, Cuba, Georgia, Guinea-Bissau, Eritrea, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Madagascar, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Nepal, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zambia.
The traditions see men honouring their mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues, etc with flowers and small gifts. In some countries, IWD has the equivalent status of Mother's Day where children give small presents to their mothers and grandmothers.
IWD has seen its long and lovely tradition that has been observed since early 1990s. During 1990s, the world witnessed massive industrialisation with sharp population growth and the growth of radical ideologies where women faced oppression and inequality in terms of wages and voting rights. In 1908, more than 15,000 women held protest march through New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting rights.  Consequently, first IWD was celebrated in United States on February 28 in 1909 by the Socialist Party of America. Clara Zetkin, leader of the 'Women's Office' for the Social Democratic Party in Germany mooted the idea of an International Women's Day in the second international conference of working women in Copenhagen in 1910. She put forward the demand that a Women's Day should be celebrated on the same day in every country every year.  On the decision taken at Copenhagen in 1911, the first IWD was celebrated for the first time in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland on March 19. Over the period of 1918-1999, IWD has become a global day recognised by both developed and developing countries due to the boom of socialist movement.
Likewise other countries, Bangladesh celebrates IWD through organising various activities by the government and non-government organisations, women and cultural organisations. The spirit of IWD lingers only for a day in Bangladesh. When the day is over, the scenario of discrimination against women again continues spontaneously. Where do Bangladeshi women stand actually? They face discrimination economically, socially, culturally and politically since the independence of the country. The whole process of the society is dominated by males.
Although women occupied the top political jobs in Bangladesh, women's situation still remains unchanged over the last two decades. Overall the political position of women is very low in the national parliament. However, their condition in local government is little bit higher than national level politics. Women are hardly given space in decision- making bodies both at national and local governments. They are only encouraged to give vote, not for contesting the election.
The economic status of women is also negative. They get lower level positions in job markets and receive low salary in comparison to what males get. This is despite the fact that they contribute immensely to the country's economy by working in garments industries. However, their rights are neglected continuously. They are not given standard salaries, maternal and sick leave and house allowances. They are struggling to survive in unhealthy sanitation, impure drinking water, slums and so on.  Sometimes they are abused verbally and physically in the industry.
Although girls' literacy rate has increased, they face problem of harassment while they go to educational institutions. The news of suicides is regular across the country due to sexual harassment. We also observe frequent rapes. However, there is still no effective curative step by the government or any other organisation.
Due to achievement of the MDG target, women's health condition has improved. However, they are hardly given opportunity to get treatment in government hospitals. This situation should be improved significantly, especially for poor households in villages.
In the family, women are kept far way from decision- making process. They are assigned household activities and given limited opportunities to go outside. Their property rights are also not ensured by the male counterparts. The law allows a certain proportion of women's property rights in Bangladesh. However, they are deprived practically. Moreover, women have to face mental and physical violence by their male partners as well as other family members in the family.
The theme of the IWD is 'Make it Happen' in 2015. We expect that women can make their dreams come true in the upcoming days. We also urge to the government for declaring an official holiday on March 8 every year to celebrate IWD in Bangladesh.
The writer is Assistant Professor,  Public Administration Department  University
of Rajshahi.  
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