International Women's Day was observed on March 8 with a march and rally including 14 USAID partner NGOs. The rally was organized by the newly formed AED/BHRAP (Bangladesh Human Rights Advocacy Program) Action Network to Combat Violence Against Women (ANCVAW).

The network/coalition includes Bangladesh’s leading NGOs providing support, outreach and assistance to women and children. The rally was attended by BHRAP grantees and over 200 women convened by MSS (Manobik Shahajya Sangstha/Human Rights Assistance Organization). Attendees wore t-shirts (with the USAID logo) and displayed a variety of slogans about violence against women and their rights.

The march was a genuine collaborative effort among grantees and a starting point for working together as a coalition. The day’s activities were covered in the press by Bhorer Kagoj, the Independent, the Daily Janakantha, the Daily Prothom Alo, the New Age, the Bangladesh Today and Channel I.

Participants formally declared an action and campaign program to combat violence against women at all levels of the society.

The ANVAW declared the following objectives on International Women's Day, 2004:

• Laws related to violence against women should be reformed and enforced.
• Rights of women should be included in the national school syllabus.
• Action shall be taken to stop sexual assault and sexual harassment.
• The state and government fulfill their legal obligations to provide services to survivors of violence and abuse.
• Elimination of domestic violence should be made a priority in efforts to combat violence against women.
• Disciplined, coordinated and fresh programs must be initiated at both the local and national levels.
• Social movements must be launched against women's oppression.
• We demand direct election for reserved parliamentary seats for women.
• We have to forego going at it alone, we must all unite in the struggle to establish women's rights.

Bangladesh's Program Objectives

Selected Activities

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Global Snapshots: Bangladesh Homepage