Women's Empowerment in South Asia

NGO Interventions and Agency Building in Bangladesh

Pranab Panday

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2016
• Topic: Social Sciences
• eBook ISBN:
  9781317372639
• Subtopic: Ethnic Studies
• Index: Social Sciences

Economic development in the poorest countries often makes better progress when women become involved in, and take a lead in, development projects. Encouraging women's involvement, however, is often a major difficulty in societies where traditionally women's status has been inferior and where women are expected to be domestic and passive. This book, based on extensive original research, considers major projects undertaken by non-governmental organisations in Bangladesh to encourage women's participation. The book identifies the factors which motivated women to be active, discusses how women achieved the level of capacity and knowledge to enable them to serve their communities appropriately, assesses the major difficulties and recommends how empowerment projects can be improved in future. The book concludes that established institutions and traditional customs are often the greatest barrier to women's participation.

1 Introduction

The empowerment of women is considered one of the key components of the poverty reduction strategy. It is not only seen as a development objective in itself, but as a means of promoting growth and better governance, and reducing poverty (World Bank 2001). The contemporary gender studies literature (Campbell and Wolbrecht 2006; Atkeson 2003; Hansen 1997; Koch 1997; Verba et al. 1997) repeatedly emphasizes that the political system can be changed only if more women enter politics. Therefore, a critical mass of women in government may create noteworthy advantages for society in general.

Furthermore, the democratic theory of representative government proposes that all citizens should have the same opportunities to participate in political affairs, regardless of gender, race and other such categories; rather, that all these people should be proportionally represented in the national legislature. Therefore, the entry of women into political institutions is an issue of equality and democracy. It is important that women come forward and perform a vital role in political activities not only for a healthy political system but for economic and social good. More opportunities to participate in the political process will enhance women’s economic and organizational capacities. In this way, they can gain more self-confidence and try to obtain a better share of the political system.

The global under-representation of women at all levels of governance has created enormous demand for greater representation of women in political bodies. The participation of women in politics is now a major objective of the global women’s movement (IDEA 2006). Owing to the importance of increasing women’s participation in the political process, gender quotas for women’s representation in legislative bodies have been introduced in many countries around the world (Krook 2009; Tripp and Kang 2008), and this is now considered to be a valid mechanism for enhancing women’s ability to participate in policymaking (Chattopadhyay and Duflo 2004).

Dahlerup (2006) stated that ‘women’ is a politically relevant category that has the right to be represented in spite of all the philosophical and political objections. Thus, the use of quotas as a tool to create historical leaps in women’s representation is becoming a global trend. As a consequence, women’s access to elected office has increased considerably over the past two decades. This has been reflected in the increasing number of women in parliaments in countries such as Rwanda, Sweden, Argentina and Nepal. One of the major causes that have helped the process of increasing the participation of women has been the adaptation of gender quota policies aimed at increasing the proportion of female candidates to political office. In different forms, gender quotas now exist in more than 100 countries (Krook 2006, 2009; Tripp and Kang 2008; Baldez 2006; Nanivadekar 2006).

Gender quotas have been adopted in most South Asian countries. For instance, in India, 33 per cent of gender quotas were created by the Constitution of India, at the grass-roots local politics level, through the 73rd amendment in 1992 (Beaman et al. 2010, 2012). Like India, women’s participation in politics in Bangladesh is at two levels, national and local. At present, 45 seats out of a total of 345 have been reserved for women in the national parliament. This reservation was done by a constitutional amendment in 2004.¹ The amendment also specified that the quota for women would be distributed among political parties based on a proportional representation system. As in the national parliament, there is a provision for the reservation of three seats for women in the UPs which was enshrined by the Local Government (UP) (Second Amendment) Act of 1997 (Panday 2008, 2013)².

Like Bangladesh, the existence of gender quotas is evident in Nepal. Article 33 of the Interim Constitution (2007) directs the state to ‘enable women to participate in all organs of the State on the basis of proportional inclusion’. Article 63 states that ‘a minimum of one-third of the total number of candidates nominated shall be women, taking together the number of candidates on the basis of proportional representation’. Article 7(4) of the Election Act (2007) states that at least 33 per cent of the candidates for the 240 seats filled by the first-past-the-post system shall be women. Meanwhile, Article 7(3) states that political parties must ensure proportional representation of women, which has been explained under Schedule 1 of the Act as meaning that 50 per cent of the candidates on party lists should be women. The Local Self Governance Act (1999) states that each of the nine wards comprising a village development committee should have at least one woman on the ward committee (UN Women 2012).

Despite the existence of gender quotas, the situation of women’s participation at different levels is not at all encouraging. Male domination and patriarchy continues at all levels of government in many countries (Murray et al. 2009; Sgier 2004). This is reflected in the fact that women form a disproportionately small segment of representation in elected bodies across all levels of government. Studies have indicated that even those women who are elected as representatives suffer severe limitations on their participation in different South Asian countries (Beaman et al. 2010, 2012; Chattopadhyay and Duflo 2004).

The women’s movement in South Asian countries has been gaining strength in the last two decades. Demands for more equitable representation are being voiced across the sub-continent. Although some countries have introduced affirmative legislation to ensure a minimum level of representation of women in governance, such measures alone have been insufficient to make a significant sustainable impact on the participation of women in governance (UN Women 2012; Panday, 2013).

Those concerned with development and equality issues are beginning to realize that representation is not enough if it does not put those represented in a position to improve the situation of their groups. Therefore the discussion is not merely about representation but rather about ‘empowerment’ of disadvantaged people, including women. Representation without empowerment is merely cosmetic change, i.e. no real change at all. The term ‘empowerment’ is popular for its broader dimensions and different meanings in different contexts. In development activities, actors undertake many initiatives to achieve empowerment. Throughout the world, women as a community or group are considered as a disadvantaged community. In this connection, ‘empowering women’ has become a frequently cited target of development efforts. Thus state and non-state actors have undertaken numerous activities to empower them.

The socio-economic and political situation of women in developing and underdeveloped countries is comparatively worse than that in developed countries. Considering this reality, development actors, both national and international, are taking actions to keep the issue of the empowerment of women at the fore. They have maximized their efforts to bring women into the mainstream of economic and social activities.

In such an environment, politics has got less attention, since it is considered to be a male- dominated world, not suitable for bringing about the empowerment of women. Political decisions rarely reflect women’s worldviews and unique perceptions. Women are poorly represented in the political arena and, as explained above, have limited impact on it, even if they are represented.

Yet politics is where decisions about fund allocation and benefit distribution are made. If women cannot become effective in politics, they will not enjoy many of the benefits to which they are entitled and which they need. Therefore, those who seek women’s empowerment can no longer afford to ignore the political dimension of their goals. So, two types of programmes have been implemented by the NGOs. The first seeks to build the capacity of women to be more effective in participating in politics, while the second strives to create a more enabling environment that welcomes, encourages and acts upon women’s contributions and concerns.

Women’s empowerment at the local level can be a stepping stone towards empowerment at a higher level. When women become confident in their ability to change local policies or overcome local obstacles, they may subsequently feel empowered to tackle challenges at a wider, possibly regional or national, level. The empowerment of women in the management of basic services can lead to their engagement in the wider political process.

With a view to improving women’s involvement in the political process and to widening the scope of available opportunities for entering the system of governance, NGOs have launched numerous programmes around the world, particularly in developing and underdeveloped countries. In Bangladesh, a South Asian developing country where there is a dominance of masculinity in every sphere of life, non-state actors, popularly known as NGOs or Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), have been working to create an enabling environment to ensure equity and justice for disadvantaged communities, including women.

Sharique operates in selected areas of Bangladesh to empower the country’s disadvantaged communities, including women, to play an active role in the process of local governance. This book assesses to what extent the project has played a vital role in empowering women in a patriarchal society. In addition, the book seeks to identify the factors that motivate women to become active and take responsibility in managing community affairs; to investigate how women achieve the level of capacity and knowledge necessary for them to serve their communities appropriately; to indicate what major difficulties lie in their path; and to reveal potential gaps are which a project like Sharique might aim to close in the future.

Context and situation of women in Bangladesh

Women in Bangladesh face many challenges in performing political and social activities. Traditionally, their role is to prepare food to feed their families and to look after the household. The opportunity to expand their work beyond a household level or develop other kinds of businesses is often limited because of the dominance of patriarchy. Also, they do not enjoy the same access as men. Women are also often constrained by laws or social discrimination that prevents them from owning property, free movement, and gaining access to information and services. The dominance of patriarchy is an influential factor in all sectors of Bangladesh. The patriarchy of Bangladesh has been characterized by some Arabic Muslim concepts such as izzat (honour, focusing in particular on the control of women’s sexuality), lajja-sharam (shame) and purdah (purdah, which places restrictions on women’s mobility) (Drinkwater 2005). These concepts shape the social norms and values which act as hindrances to women’s social movements. In other words, these patriarchal features remove their fundamental rights.

In Bangladesh, women’s access to decision-making positions and the power to take necessary action for their own lives and their community is minimal, their occupational choices are narrower, and their earnings are lower than those of men (Goswami 1998). During the anti-colonial struggles, the language movement, the liberation war of 1971, and efforts to restore and deepen democracy in the 1980s and 1990s, women enjoyed active participation but their role in these struggles has rarely received much recognition (Jahan 1982; Nazneen and Sultan 2010). This typifies the marginalization of women in Bangladesh.

Women’s participation in politics in Bangladesh is at two levels, national and local. At the national level, they can play a role as law- and policymakers, while at the local government level, they play a role only in development policy implementation. Two women, Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia, who have dominated the politics of Bangladesh since 1991 (except for 2007–2008³), came to power mainly because their fathers or husbands were popular men or presidents. They did not act as leaders of women especially and their political advancement did not ensure significant advances in government for other women. Overall, the position of women in politics has not improved significantly during this period.

Women in the national parliament

Bangladeshi women who do not come from prominent political families have not totally failed to make a mark in politics nor has Bangladesh been insensitive to the issue of gender justice in the political arena. In the 2001 election, 48 women contested non-reserved parliamentary seats, and 13 were successful. It is important to note that Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia were among this number and contested ten seats (both contested five seats each). Khaleda Zia won five seats, and Sheikh Hasina won four. Aside from these two women, only six women were successful in elections for general seats. Among the rest of the candidates, only ten women managed to garner more than 15 per cent of the total votes cast, while other female candidates polled negligible numbers. A subsequent by-election brought in another woman legislator, bringing the total number of women members of parliament from non-reserved seats to seven (Bangladesh Election Commission 2008).

The picture of the past six parliamentary elections was worse than the situation prevailing in 2008. The available data suggest that during the parliamentary election of 2008, the total number of female candidates nominated for non-reserved seats from the main political parties was less than seven per cent (the percentage of women candidates in Awami League (AL) was 6.56 per cent, while the percentage in the Bangladesj Nationalist Party (BNP) was 5.08 per cent).

Surprisingly, some smaller political parties nominated more female candidates than did the larger parties. For instance, the percentage of female candidates in Gono Forum (People’s Forum) and Jatiya Samajtantrk Dal (JSD) was 11.11 per cent and 16.67 per cent, respectively. However, Gono Forum did not win representation in the parliament. JSD won only three seats in parliament.

Hence, the political parties’ tendency to nominate fewer women for general seats has confined women to the reserved seats only. As a result, only a small number of women have been represented in the national parliament. In the first parliament (1973–1975), provision was made for 15 reserved seats for women; these were filled through indirect election by the members of parliament. From the second parliament (1979–1972) until the seventh parliament (1996–2001) provision was made for 30 reserved seats for women. The mode of election was indirect. In the eighth parliament (2001–2006) (through the 14th constitutional amendment) provision for 45 seats to be reserved for women was introduced and the mode of election was changed to the proportional representation system. No women won any of the general seats in the first parliament. From the second to the ninth parliament the number of female representatives elected to the national parliament in non-reserved seats were two, three, four, four, three, eight, seven and 20, respectively (Panday 2013).

Women in local government (UPs)

There is little encouraging news regarding the performance of women in local government elections for general seats (those which are not reserved for women). The available data show that in the UP elections of 1988, 1992/93 and 1997, women’s participation in the election to the UP general seats was well below 1 per cent of the total number of candidates. The total figures were 0.75 per cent (863 out of 114,699 candidates) in 1988, 0.67 per cent (1,135 out of 169,683 candidates) in 1992/93, and 0.45 per cent (617 out of 137,909 candidates) in the 2003 elections (Panday 2008, 2013). Data for the 1997 election were not available. In comparision to the number of women seeking election to general seats, it appears that in 1973 only one woman won election to the position of chair of one of the 4,359 UPs, while in 1977 four women won election to the post of chairperson, and in 1984 six (ibid.). On the other hand, 79 female candidates out of 18,566 candidates contested the post of chair in 4,401 UPs (constituting only 0.43 per cent) in the 1988 election (ibid.), whereas in 1992 the number was 115 women out of a total of 17,444 candidates (constituting only 0.66 per cent) in the 4,450 UPs. Of the 115 women w...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• List of illustrations
• Preface
• List of abbreviations
• 1. Introduction
• 2. NGOs in agency building and women’s empowerment: State substitutes in a neo-liberal world
• 3. NGOs in Bangladesh
• 4. Getting women heard
• 5. Transformation of power: A wave of change
• 6. People change the system
• 7. Conclusion
• Index