49pc women, girls feel insecure in city

Staff Reporter :
In the wake of increasing women repression in Bangladesh, the UK Aid is matching funding for ActionAid’s ‘Safe Cities for Women’ campaign here to reaching a target of 2.8 million people.
A recent study conducted by ActionAid on safety and security of women in seven cities in the country found that over 49 percent of women and girls surveyed do not feel safe in the city or when using public transport. On the other hand, over 14 percent said they feared sexual violence in the workplace. This promotional campaign will also run in Myanmar, Kenya and Zimbabwe, helping directly over 60,000 men and women, boys and girls worldwide.
The newly launched project aims to highlight sexual violence against women and girls living in urban areas; provide a platform for women and girls to make their experiences of sexual violence in cities recognised, understood and acted upon; help men and boys to understand and reject social norms and behaviours that support violence against women; gather evidence to influence national policies on violence against women and train in office holders in the police, education and transport authorities how to prevent and respond to violence against women.
Meanwhile, the visiting UK Minister for International Development Lynne Featherstone met women and girls at Mirpur in the city and at Manikganj on Tuesday with a view to promoting the campaign.
She also launched the ‘Safe Cities for Women’ campaign, a joint project with ActionAid to mobilise communities and offer support to victims of violence.
 The UK Minister saw how UK Aid is contributing to their education and security, helping them to support their families, and supporting their communities in reducing violence against women and girls, including preventing child marriage.
Lynne Featherstone started the day in Manikganj, hearing from families how the installation of solar electricity systems in their homes, with UK Aid support, was allowing their children to study longer, providing better security at night and providing jobs for over 1000 women who have been trained to install the systems.
She went on to meet a community group of women and girls at Rahmat Camp, a slum in Mirpur that is home to 12,000 people. They talked about how they are helping prevent violence in their community by working together with the support of UK Aid. At the launch of the Safe Cities for Women campaign, the UK Minister recalled her discussion with Shabnaz, one of the girls lives at Rahmat Camp.
She told me how her father had been about to marry her off at 14. She went to a leader of her community group, Dolly, and asked for help. Dolly talked to Shabnaz’s father and shared with him the impact that early marriage would have on Shabnaz’s health and well-being, on her entire future. The marriage was called off and Shabnaz is continuing her studies.
“We are working hard to make sure that girls like Shabnaz stay safe in their homes and communities, and that they can claim their right to a secure and happy childhood, and a life free from violence and poverty. Only by working together we will be able to the elimination of violence against women and girls a reality in Bangladesh and around the world.”
Earlier on Monday, at the Bangladesh Girl Summit, the UK Minister encouraged people across Bangladesh to campaign against violence against women and girls and help end child, early and forced marriage.
The summit was a follow-up to the Girl Summit held in London in July, which resulted in over 470 governments, organisations and individuals signing a charter calling for an end to female genital mutilation and child, early and forced marriage, and 170 commitments made to take action. An international team will be created to track progress and report annually.
During the visit, Lynne Featherstone also met Finance Minister AMA Muhith, Minister for Women and Children Affairs Meher Afroze Chumki, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam and Speaker of the Parliament Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury.
She commended the Bangladesh government’s work to address violence against women and girls. She also encouraged Bangladesh to take forward the commitments it made at the Girl Summit to end child marriage.