Musings on the condition of women and children

The pandemic has opened our eyes to the actual condition of human rights in Bangladesh. Occasionally the images of human rights protection seemed positive in the pre-Covid-19 context; however, the pandemic-induced lockdown exacerbated the human rights condition of the country, particularly with regard to rights of women and children.

Very often we see that a man provides maintenance and financial support to his wife, but he also physically tortures her. It cannot be said that the man is ensuring his wife's rights. On the other hand, if the man maintains all the comforts for living toward his wife but her right to freedom of movement is curtailed, it will also be considered as a violation of human rights. The maintenance of human rights means preservation of all the fundamental rights. Therefore, absence of any particular right may constitutes an infringement.

It is observable that the right to live with liberty and dignity of women has declined in multifarious ways during the lockdown period in Bangladesh. Many women were increasingly exposed to physical and mental abuse by intimate family members, sometimes to unprecedented degrees. Health experts suggested that all the citizens stay at home in order to maintain social distance that can help to save the country from the deadly effect of Covid-19. Unfortunately, the home appeared as the most unsafe place for many women and girls. Rising incidents of rape and harassment are worth highlighting. It is true that women are contributing a lot in various sectors including garments, health care, politics, social service but they are also becoming victims of harassment. All the workplaces cannot be considered safe for female employees and women are increasingly discouraged from pursuing work outside homes. Moreover, public roads and transports are also unsafe for travel. Only the opportunity of employment cannot be viewed as improvement of rights unless safe working condition and secure commute to and from work is also ensured.   

The matter of violation of children's rights cannot be ignored either. Girl children have been facing excessive pressure of household duties while continuing home quarantine. It can be stated that domestic violence and rights of children are sometimes connected to each other. Furthermore, home quarantine may include staying with distant relatives which may expose children to increased risks of sexual and other kinds of abuse. The prolonged restriction upon in-person education has also had notable impact on mental health of students which adds to the growing tension of the home environment.

The current human rights scenario of Bangladesh reflects that the mindset of the society towards protection of human rights has not improved at the expected rate. Human rights organisations in the country should come forward to discuss how to bring substantive and meaningful shift in people's attitude.

Nazia Amin, Advocate of the Judge Court, Dhaka.