Women were at frontlines of July protests, but absent from leadership a year on: Speakers

A year ago, women stood boldly at the frontlines of July protests, chanting slogans and taking up defiant positions in the streets. But a year on, their absence from key political leadership roles has become glaring, speakers said at a dialogue held in Chattogram today (26 July).

Leaders from various political parties, local public representatives and members of the civil society participated in the event, titled "Empowering Women and Youth in Politics", organised by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS) at the Chattogram Theatre Institute and moderated by CGS President Zillur Rahman.

Zillur Rahman said, "At this time last year, women were leading protests from the front. They showed immense courage and took the risk of standing up. Yet a year has passed, and no political party has made room for them in central leadership."

Shahadat Hossain, former president of BNP's Chattogram metropolitan unit and ex-mayor, said women are a vital part of the political landscape.

"We aim to increase their participation further. BNP's Vision 2030 clearly states our commitment to empowering women politically."

He claimed that BNP has many active female leaders working on the ground.

Shahjahan Chowdhury, former ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami's Chattogram unit, said, "Women in our party are actively involved in politics, especially in education, dawah and social development."

Mentioning that national leadership requires time, he added, "We are progressing gradually in that direction."

Zobairul Arif, coordinator of the National Citizen Party (NCP) in Chattogram, said that they have proposed that 100 parliamentary seats be reserved for direct competition among women.

Claiming that mainstream parties remain far from the demands of youth and women, Arif said, "NCP is the only party fundamentally based on the active involvement of women and youth."

Ashok Saha, a central committee member of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), said, "The absence of women in leadership is not just a political failure, it reflects our social and cultural backwardness."

According to Ashok, family, society and religion create barriers to women's progress.

Moni Swapan Dewan, former state minister for the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs, said, "Although women and youth were at the forefront during the protests, we must now ask ourselves what change have we actually brought about after a year?"

"In the hill tracts, women's participation is gradually increasing, but across the country, state-led initiatives are essential to ensure effective youth and female engagement," Dewan added.

Hasan Maruf Rumi, Chattogram coordinator for the Ganosamhati Andolon, posed a powerful question, saying, "Why are the brave women who shielded their brothers from arrest during the movement, now facing online harassment? Why are their voices being silenced?"

Over the past 15 years, political activism has been extremely risky for women and the situation has slightly improved post-movement, but much remains to be done, he added.