Bangladesh Mahila Parishad has called for a significant overhaul of the current system of reserved seats for women in the National Parliament, demanding that at least one-third of parliamentary seats be reserved for women and filled through direct elections. The demand was made in a statement issued on Wednesday, signed by Mahila Parishad President Fawzia Moslem and General Secretary Maleka Banu.
The organization expressed disappointment over the ongoing discussions led by the National Consensus Commission, noting that despite multiple meetings since July 14, political parties have failed to reach an agreement on the structure and election method for women’s seats. The statement also criticized the exclusion of women’s representatives from political parties, the interim government’s Women’s Commission, and national women’s organizations from the decision-making process.
Citing previous shortcomings of the nomination-based system for reserved seats, Mahila Parishad argued that this method has failed to ensure meaningful representation or accountability. They outlined six key demands: maintaining general seats open to all voters, expanding the number of reserved seats to at least one-third of total parliamentary seats, abolishing the nomination system for these seats, and implementing a direct election system from specific constituencies for two to three terms. According to the organization, these reforms are necessary to uphold the rights and democratic participation of women in Bangladesh.
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