On Monday, 25th August 2025, at 3:30 PM, a sharing meeting with the recipients of legal aid was held at the Sufia Kamal Bhaban Milonayoton of the central office of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad (BMP). The meeting, organized by BMP, aimed to further integrate the legal aid activities for preventing violence against women.
The meeting was presided over by Dr. Fauzia Moslem, President of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad. Legal Aid Secretary Rekha Saha spoke about the objectives of the meeting. The organization’s General Secretary Maleka Banu and Joint General Secretary Advocate Masuda Rehana also delivered speeches. Program Officer (Counseling) Sabikun Nahar presented a data-based written statement. Among the panel lawyers, Advocate Aminul Islam gave a speech.
During the open discussion, legal aid recipients Sumaiya Sara, Habiba, Mousumi Akter Eva, Maksuda, Sonia Akter, Asad Al Sayem participated and shared their experiences and views.
Dr. Fauzia Moslem stated that if women remain silent, their problems will never be resolved. Women must demand their rights. Courage of breaking the silence must be instilled within them. To address the complexities of handling legal cases and to create pressure, they must be organized and strengthened collectively. To prevent harassment when victimized women file cases, efforts must be made to reform the legal process, for which the support of lawyers is essential. She further added that the task of changing society is not easy. The victims need to be organize to obtain justice.
Regarding the purpose of the meeting, Legal Aid Secretary Rekha Saha said, “The service recipients are also part of Mahila Parishad. The better the organizational relationship with the service recipients is, the more effective and beneficial the service delivery process will be. Women in Bangladesh are facing violence from family members and also in public spheres and they need various types of supports. This meeting has been organized to discuss how the legal service delivery process can be made more extensive and more victimized women and girls friendly.
In her speech, General Secretary Maleka Banu said, “The organization’s legal aid activities function in a complementary manner to each other. In this process, the experiences of women who are victims of violence are given importance. Discriminatory attitudes towards women exist at various levels of society. On the other hand, the organization is working to overcome the discriminatory circumstances that persist in the legal service process. In this regard, the organization values the opinions and suggestions of the legal aid recipients.”
Advocate Masuda Rehana Begum said, “In cases of violence against women, the woman becomes isolated from her family. Legal cases are handled with a focus on preventing violence against women, prioritizing how a woman can live with dignity in her family. In conducting mediation activities to prevent domestic violence, the opinions of both the plaintiff and the defendant are considered, along with the perspective of gender equality. Factors such as the challenges in conducting these activities and whether the family is coming forward are being examined.”
While presenting a data-based written statement, Program Officer (Counseling) Sabikun Nahar highlighted the types of violence, the organization’s service delivery methods for women and girls who are victims of violence—such as legal counseling, application intake, mediation processes, legal case assistance, and post-violence mental health services—and presented updated information on legal services provided over the past year (including legal advice, direct complaint, mediation meetings, follow-up mediation sessions, resolutions through mediation, and the recovery of dowry and alimony through mediation sessions, among others).
Panel Lawyer Advocate Aminul Islam said that to receive legal aid, we must be well-organized; committees of BMP must be formed through legal aid providers in every neighborhood to prevent various types of violence against women. Bangladesh Mahila Parishad provides comprehensive supports to ensure justice for victims of violence. Most of them is now doing well in their personal lives.
Participants in the open discussion said that many women who are victims of violence hide the incident to keep the family intact. Women who are victims of rape are still blamed, pressured to settle, and weak investigation reports are submitted; justice must be ensured for them. Girls are not weak by nature but they need support to stand against their rights violation.
Leaders of the central committee of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad, service recipients, panel lawyers, and staff were present at the consultation meeting.
The event was conducted by the Director of Legal Advocacy and Lobby of Legal Aid sub-committee of BMP, Advocate Dipti Sikdar.
