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This is a matter of great concern and regret
that, without taking the demands and opinions of all of the Women's, Social,
Political, Professional and Human Rights Organizations, into consideration,
the Government introduced the bill today the 17th March, 2004 in the
Parliament to move into motion under the 14th Amendment Bill, introducing 45
reserved seats for Women in the parliament, to be effective for a period of
10 years from the date of adoption of the bill in the parliament as an
amendment to the legislation for
adoption. The Speaker however, as normal practice have sent the bill for
examination to the Parliamentary Standing Committee for Law and
Parliamentary affairs, as usual but it is however been apprehended since the
ruling Government Alliance holds more than two-third seats in the
Parliament, the bill may very likely get adopted as legislation to be
effective as a matter of routine within a very few days without facing any
substantial debate and discussion, in the Parliament.
This may be recalled, on 8th March, 2004 on the eve of the International
Women's day, the Four party Alliance Government of Bangladesh, adopted a
resolution in the cabinet of the ministers to agree in principle, to move a
bill in the current session of the Parliament, bringing 14th amendment of
the constitution, introducing 45 reserved seats for Women in the parliament,
to be effective for a period of 10 years from the date of adoption of the
bill in the parliament as an amendment to the legislation.
The form and content of the proposal of the amendment met immediately with
adverse reaction from the Women's Organizations of the country because it
was totally in contradiction to the concept and perception on which the
nation as a whole was discussing during the last decade. Statements,
rallies, demonstrations became a daily affair. Criticism widely mounted in
the press and public meetings held across the country and those became a
growing concern of affairs since 8th March, 2004. But, ignoring all those
criticisms and protests, the Government without taking any heed to those
voices to be heard, moved ahead with the approval of the draft bill in the
cabinet to be moved in the Parliament. And then today Government introduced
the bill in
the Parliament as an amendment to the legislation for adoption.
The situation outside the Parliament however is totally different. The
movement taking turn to demonstrations of condemnation protests taking the
shape of token hunger strikes and which may take further stern turns
unabated.
The protests, demands and criticisms on the ground against the proposed
amendment are directed on three particular aspects. Clarity and unambiguity
of those justifications firmly demands re-consideration of the amendment by
the government parties:
1) Firstly, regarding the proposed number of reserved seats. The government
did never come up to give any explanation to the citizens of the country,
why they thought the number 45 to be appropriate. While the relevance of the
number needed a clarification, the women's organizations political parties,
social and human rights organizations demanded to make the number looking
relevant to be proportional to the existing numbers of electoral
constituencies, or to be proportionate to the administration units. But the
number chosen by the government appears extremely arbitrary in nature,
evidently that is the reason why the government could not present any
credible relevance in choosing this number. Therefore, it is expected that
the Government must choose a number which embodies a figure proportionate to
electoral constituency or administrative units of the country, and in line
with the nationally and internationally accepted proportion of women's
representation in local government and legislative bodies, which is nearly
one-third, particularly on the backdrop of the socio-economic perspectives
where empowerment of women has been identified as an important paradigm and
effective policy in formulation of policies and strategies for democratic
and
economic development of Bangladesh.
2) Secondly, it is known by every conscious person with understanding of
however little sense of parliamentary democracy or democracy at all, that
the inner meaning of public representation is public accountability. To
establish public accountability, it is imperative and necessary to define
the constituent area of the population whom the public representatives are
representing and unto whom they are accountable. In the proposed amendment
no such constituency have been defined, on the other hand, it is proposed
that the number of reserved seats shall be allocated to the political
parties proportionate to their number strength in the existing parliament of
300 seats, and then those political parties out of their own choosing shall
nominate their women members of the parliament to assume the reserved seats
according to numbers they become entitled to nominate in proportion, so
determined. This process clearly means that the women members in the
reserved seats of the parliament will remain accountable to the respective
political parties in which they belong and not the people. This system
totally
contradicts to the concept of public accountability embedded in the basic
principles of democratic rights defined in the constitution of the People's
Republic of Bangladesh, where the inevitability of the public accountability
of the people's representative is clearly perceived as the fundamental
principles of the constitution.
3) Thirdly, the system of nomination kept in the introduced amendment unto
the existing male dominant parliament with partisan divides can never be
meaningful at all to serve the cause of empowerment of women mass living
across the country. The failure of the system of nomination which existed in
the previous few parliaments have been found through real and practical
experience for long already to have been ineffective towards the basic cause
of the empowerment of women; in favour which the nation as a whole has
reflected unequivocal consensus of public opinion. All the political
parties, socio-cultural professional and human rights organizations with
nobody left out including the major ruling parties constituting the present
government, have voiced their commitment in favour of empowerment of women
for the cause of socio-political and economic development of the country
touching all the spheres of the society from rural to urban population.
Therefore, to ensure the grassroots representation of oppressed women free
from elite contacts of the government and the political parties, direct
election of women's representation in the parliament had become the national
demand in
consensus for more than a decade now. Therefore, the demand of direct
election advanced towards the cause of empowerment of women in the wider
perspective needs serious consideration by the government.
Through the united campaign lodged by all of the women's organizations, side
by side with the opinion voiced by all the political parties, social,
professional and human rights organizations, it is now more than clear that
there is absolutely a national consensus for bringing a meaningful amendment
in the constitution for the cause of empowerment of women: with fully
ensuring clearly defined adequate number of member for the women's reserved
seats in the parliament, identifying unambiguously the issue of public
accountability through establishment of people's constituencies and free
from elite contacts representing grassroots women hence elected through
direct adult franchise.
BNP, led by Begum Khaleda Zia, in last election manifesto, extended clear
commitment in favour of 64 reserved seats for women to be elected through
direct election, and if the government now deviates from the commitment
already made during the election allowing to doubt that such pledge had been
made at the time of election to attract women's votes as gimmick only and
further allowing to let it be termed as a serious breach to the election
pledge made to the people violating of the principles of public
accountability; the
principles which are an essential component of the country constitutionally
committed towards democratic development, then it will be definitely another
disaster to the hopes and aspiration of the people to look ahead for a
democratically strong Bangladesh, for which the ruling party BNP may have to
take the blame of the major share of the responsibility, in the view of the
people.
Therefore, in conclusion, it is re-iterated if the BNP led government shall
not now listen to the voices raised on the streets and the press, but go
ahead adamantly with proposed amendment placed by the Government in the
present form and contents, then it will not be an overstatement to point out
the fact that this issue is going to erode the electoral support of BNP very
dearly which BNP claims to be still holding at needed to stay in power.
There is still time to give a second thought in the Parliamentary Standing
Committee, and it is expected that the lawmakers belonging to the ruling
parties shall take up this issue to introduce necessary reformations giving
due respect to the items of public consensus particularly touching those in
which overwhelm expressions are already available on this issue, before
placing it to vote for adoption.
Dhaka, March 17, 2004 |
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