Staff Correspondent, Dhaka
The Women’s Affairs Reform Commission in its report has recommended increasing the number of parliamentary seats to 600, proposing one general seat and one reserved seat for women in each constituency—both to be filled through direct elections.
On Saturday afternoon, members of the commission met with Chief Adviser Professor Dr Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna and formally handed over the report. During the meeting, they also presented a summary of their key recommendations.
The commission made 15 major recommendations in total. It believes the proposed expansion of parliamentary seats could be implemented during the interim government’s tenure.
The report also suggests that if a decision is made to establish an upper house in the national parliament, 50% of the seats should be filled proportionately by political parties using the “zipper” method—nominating an equal number of male and female candidates.
The remaining 50% should be filled on a non-partisan basis, ensuring representation from five women’s movements among other groups.
Other recommendations include ensuring women’s participation in public spheres and political parties through the promotion of democratic practices and the creation of supportive environments.
It also calls for the removal of social and corruption-related barriers to women's political participation through appropriate regulation, and for mandatory provisions in the Representation of the People Order (RPO) regarding women’s participation.
To ensure women’s representation in local government, the commission proposes that each ward include one general seat and one reserved seat for women. This system would be implemented as a temporary special measure for the next three local government elections.
Additionally, it recommends establishing mechanisms to make female members of parliament accountable to women in society.
