KATHMANDU, Jan 22: Amid the buzz of election fever in the chilly January air, candidates for the House of Representatives (HoR) election on March 5 have been enthusiastically filing their nominations.
Despite decades of pledges to ensure women’s political empowerment, the upcoming national election paints a starkly different picture, with female representation on the ballot remaining alarmingly low.
A 2025 Democracy International poll shows strong public demand in Bangladesh for greater political inclusion, with 96% supporting participation of persons with disabilities, 85% calling for better ethnic minority representation, and 81% backing stronger involvement of r
More than 150 participants – including political party representatives, government officials, civil society leaders, young people and aspiring women candidates – gathered on 3–4 December in Port Moresby for the National Forum on Women’s Political Leadership.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has raised alarms over an increase in violence targeting women, children, and religious minorities in Bangladesh as the country prepares for the 13th National Parliamentary Elections scheduled for February 12.
This week, the Minister of Solidarity, Social Integration and Family, Naïma Ben Yahya, announced the launch of a national campaign to raise awareness about women’s political participation.
The political structure and processes in Bangladesh remain predominantly patriarchal and under male control.
On Saturday, January 17, the Ministry for the Status of Women and Women's Rights (MCFDF) took a decisive step for 2026. The Ministry launched a three-day strategic and professional retreat at the Montana Hotel in Pétion-ville.
It has been more than 40 years since I was imprisoned in Iran for speaking out against human rights abuses and state executions, and for defending women’s rights. I spent eight years behind bars in Iran’s notorious Evin prison. I was tortured. I remember it as if it happened yesterday.