Nilima Jahan

Twelve-year-old Rubaiya’s world is limited to her bed. A resident of the Korail slum in the capital, she lives in a dark windowless tin-shed shanty. She has not seen a glimpse of the sky in the last three years. The last time she went on a trip outside was seven years ago, at her grandmother’s home in Cumilla.

The instalment of CCTV cameras in city buses by the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs has generated a positive response among female commuters as well as bus staffers, as they believe the initiative has brought a change in the behavioural pattern of the overall commuters.

What forces abused women to return to live with their tormentors even after repeated incidents of domestic violence?

Moriom Begum has been a victim of domestic violence ever since she got married in 2016 for not being able to pay dowry money.

Sabina, 33, a young professional from Rangpur, tries hard to forget about the horrific day in 2019, when she was raped by her uncle. But even after three years the memory of her ordeal is fresh and has turned her days into a harrowing quest for survival.

How much does a kilo of green papaya from Manikganj’s Singair upazila cost? Well, depending on whom you are buying from, the price can be anywhere from Tk 7 to Tk 25.

It has been 13 years since the High Court gave directives to form sexual harassment complaint committees in the workplace and educational institutions, but there has been little to no progress so far.

The much talked about Evidence Act (Amendment) Bill 2022 incorporating the admissibility of digital evidence by the court was passed unanimously in parliament yesterday.

It was almost one o’clock at night. A woman in her 30s was screaming for help from inside an auto-rickshaw near Farmgate. The roads were almost empty, and the few people nearby were reluctant to check what was going on, as they feared that they might land in trouble.

Sixty-year-old Asiya Begum, a resident of the capital’s Korail slum, lives in a tiny makeshift  room made of tin, slightly larger than the size of a grave, with no ventilation or fan. At first glance, it might look like she has been buried alive.

Shantona’s parents started worrying about her height when she was four years old, as she was not growing as tall as the other children of her age.

Although Sustainable Development Goals target ending abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against children by 2030, Bangladesh is yet to go a long way in this regard.

The rate of caesarian deliveries has increased almost eight-fold in Bangladesh. In 2004, the rate stood at four percent. However, a recent analysis revealed that the rate was found to be 33 percent in 2017-18.

Violence against children not only obstructs the growth of children but also contributes to slowing down a country’s economy and social development, said child rights experts.

Hazera Begum never got married or had any biological children. Yet, she is the “ammu” (mother) to 40 children, who once struggled for their identities, for what their biological mothers do for a living.

Back in 2017, a baseline survey conducted by Kapasia Upazila Family Planning Office (UFPO), Gazipur found that more than 90 percent of the mothers-to-be of the subdistrict were unaware of the maternal and neonatal danger signs, the idea and importance of antenatal and postnatal care or keeping their medical records during pregnancies, the importance of knowing their own blood groups, and keeping contact of potential blood donors or an ambulance.

After her husband lost his job at a pharmacy in 2017, Leuza Akter Kristy’s family plunged into a struggle to put food on the table.

Last month, when 22-year-old Mitu Dhar was struggling to make her newborn stop crying at a private hospital in Dhaka, as she couldn’t produce enough milk for him, her family members got desperate to get some artificial milk for the baby.

Eighteen-year-old Falguni (not her real name) is the eldest of 40 siblings. After passing her HSC exams with a GPA of 4.08, she has made her “ammu” immensely proud.

Hazera, the mother of 40 children, has been proud of her oldest daughter who recently passed the HSC exam, and now dreams of doing something big and leading a life full of dignity.