With the recent submission of the report prepared by the Women Affairs Reform Commission, Bangladesh is finally on the verge of becoming the truly egalitarian nation that it has always had the potential to.
In the five decades since Bangladesh earned its sovereignty, women empowerment has been limited to the increased participation of women in the economy. While this was most certainly a positive development, focusing on this one aspect does injustice to the many social and infrastructural issues faced by women in our nation. To that end, the report spells out some very pressing recommendations which the current administration must pay heed to.
The report makes the case for sweeping constitutional changes, provisions which have long resulted in women’s oppression -- for example, equality and non‑discrimination provisions in Articles 19, 27, 28 and 29 of our Constitution, while affirming broad principles, lack enforceability and any clear gender focus, allowing religion‑based personal laws to override them.
This has to change.
For too long have women been kept from enjoying their full rights as citizens due to retrograde religious views, everything from their right to bodily autonomy to property rights. To this end, the commission’s recommendation of enacting a “Discrimination Elimination Act” that would ensure no law -- religious or civil -- can contradict the constitutional promise of equality and would create clear pathways to challenge discriminatory practices and institutional inaction, is sound.
Similarly, the commission’s recommendation of full‑scale amendments to enshrine explicit, enforceable gender equality guarantees in the Constitution -- alongside the withdrawal of Bangladesh’s two reservations to the CEDAW Convention and the ratification of ILO Conventions 189 and 190 to uphold international standards on domestic worker rights and the prevention of workplace violence and harassment -- could further prevent the abuse of women workers in the informal sector, a sector where women are already over-represented.
However, it is the recommendations which seek to increase women’s participation in our political ranks which perhaps need to be taken with the utmost importance. Bangladesh’s political spectrum has long been void of any meaningful participation when it comes to women, and a higher scope for women in our parliament would all but ensure that women’s issues are brought to the forefront.
The Women Affairs Reform Commission’s proposals are a step in the right direction, but Bangladesh has seen enough well-meaning reports gather dust. True empowerment requires political courage, sustained investment, and societal commitment. If the government is serious about gender equality, it must treat this not as a box-ticking exercise but as a national imperative.
