Bangladesh
Following the 2008 general elections, women's participation in politics incre...
Following the 2008 general elections, women's participation in politics increased with their election to 12,828 reserved seats in local government and 64 members in the parliament. We also have five women cabinet ministers (in charge of Agriculture, Home, foreign Affairs, Women and Children Affairs, and Labor), a female Opposition Leader, the Deputy Leader, a female Whip, and of course, the Prime Minister is a woman. For the first time in our history, two women MPs have been made chairperson of Parliamentary Standing Committees. Women now occupy high positions in High and Supreme Courts, in civil, police and armed services and in UN Peacekeeping missions. Female business ventures also receive support from the Small and Medium Enterprise Foundation
For development, we have integrated women's education in our state policy. Th...
For development, we have integrated women's education in our state policy. They say, "If you educate a boy, you educate a person, if you educate a girl you educate a family and a whole nation." Therefore, during our first term from 1996-2001, we adopted a National Women's Development Policy revised during this tenure to make it more relevant. The Policy provides for the empowerment of women, their participation in decision making and their protection and gender equality. Education for girls is free till class 12 and steps are on for their free tuition till graduation.
Throughout my half a century in politics, I have always been a crusader of pe...
Throughout my half a century in politics, I have always been a crusader of peace. I believe that peace is achievable with the removal of injustice, which includes repression and absence of rule of law, inequality and economic disparity, deprivation and poverty, suppression of self determination, denial of secularism and multi- ethnicity, negligence of equal rights for women and the marginalized, and the lack of transparency and accountability of governments. These types of injustices, according to the Uppsala Conflict Data program, have led to the loss of over 5 million lives from 1964 to 2011. I believe these deaths may be avoided by strengthening the UN's mediation instruments, and by placing people at the center of peace and development.