Ensuring women's coexistence in family and society is essential for establishing women's rights: Speakers at BJIM discussion

On the occasion of International Women's Day, Bangladeshi Journalists in International Media (BJIM) organised a discussion, supported by Counterpart International, held at Alliance Francaise de Dhaka on Wednesday evening.

Produced by BJIM co-founder Muhammad Ali Maj and moderated by BJIM member Abir Abdullah, the panellists included former Member of Parliament Shamima Akhter Khanam, former Member of Parliament Rumeen Farhana, Associate Professor of Sociology Department of Dhaka University Samina Luthfa, Development Researcher and rights activist Maha Mirza, and Rishi Community representative Konka Das.

BJIM convener Sam Jahan and Counterpart International's Chief of Party Katy Crowe gave opening speeches. 

Konka Das, the representative of the Rishi community, highlighted their life struggle in the discussion meeting. She said, "Being a lower-caste community, we have to suffer negligence in various areas of the society. Being neglected while going to medical care or school. Even within our own community, women cannot move freely."

In response to the question whether the role of the government is sufficient to eliminate discrimination, former member of parliament Shamima Akhter said, "In our society, the word women is relatively pronounced. First of all we have to consider whether women's rights are practised in our families. Women have to secure their own positions to secure their rights. This requires education, which the government has made available to girls with unpaid schools up to higher secondary."

She added, "Just as much as the state has a role to play in establishing women's rights, citizens should also come forward. Someone has to take the responsibilities. To realise the goal of Smart Bangladesh by 2041, backward women must be brought forward."

Rumeen Farhana said, "We have entered a strange society. Whether a woman is from the upper, middle or lower class, the battlefield is the same. Not only men, women are victims of bullying by women today."

Professor Samina Luthfa said, "The patterns of discrimination in villages and cities are different. Rural farmer women are the worst victims of labour exploitation. Their work is not even recognised as economic work."

She further said, "Domestic violence and sexual abuse have increased. Women are becoming a commodity in our society."

Development researcher and rights activist Maha Mirza said, "In the last one-and-a-half decades, we have seen nothing but despair. Basically, men and women have no rights in an oppressive society. The workers are in more trouble. Bangladesh is number 3 or 4 in child marriage when we are developing development."

She further said, "The number of people who will not send a girl child to school is fewer now. However, the cost of education is so high that coaching centre business, guidebook business has taken over the education sector. It has the biggest impact on female students. And we are using working women like sugarcane. So just talking about women empowerment is kind of a farce."