Bangladesh women fear for rights as hardline Islam rises ahead of historic election

DHAKA, Bangladesh – Bangladesh is preparing to hold its first free election in 17 years this coming Thursday, following a violent student-led uprising that ousted the regime of Sheikh Hasina in August 2024. While the revolution ended a long period of autocratic rule, the high cost of the revolt—which left more than 1,000 people dead—has given way to growing concerns over the rise of conservative Islamic politics.

Many women who served on the front lines of the revolution now express fear and frustration that their hard-won freedoms are at risk. The Jamaat-e-Islami party, which was banned under Hasina’s government, has mobilized a powerful comeback and is expected to capture a significant portion of the vote.

The party currently has no female candidates, and its leaders have faced sharp criticism for rhetoric viewed as hostile toward women’s rights.

Public disillusionment has intensified following an alliance between the Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen’s Party (NCP), a political group formed by the student leaders of the uprising. Representation for women remains low across the political spectrum; the major opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has fielded a candidate list where less than 5% are women.

Rights activists warn that the upcoming polls may fail to capture the inclusive spirit of the revolution. They fear the new political landscape could prioritize conservative religious agendas over the democratic reforms many protesters originally envisioned.

The political developments in Bangladesh this week underscore a classic post-revolutionary paradox: the collapse of an autocratic regime frequently leaves a power vacuum that is most efficiently filled by the most disciplined and ideologically rigid factions. The resurgence of Jamaat-e-Islami serves as a stark case study. By leveraging superior organizational machinery, the hardline group has swiftly outmaneuvered the nascent student movements and activist networks that originally sparked the uprising.

The strategic decision by the National Citizens’ Party (NCP)—the purported vanguard of the revolution’s progressive ideals—to form an alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami represents a pivot toward cold political pragmatism. While perhaps calculated to consolidate power in the short term, the move is a profound departure from the reformist spirit of the protests. For the women who stood on the front lines of the demonstrations, this new political architecture suggests a rapid descent into marginalization.

Beyond the erosion of civil liberties, the policy platform championed by Jamaat-e-Islami poses a structural threat to the national economy. A proposal to cap women’s working hours at five hours per day, framed under the guise of "support," would be a significant regression in labor productivity. Women constitute 44% of Bangladesh’s workforce—the highest participation rate in South Asia—and are the primary drivers of the country’s critical garment export sector.

Restricting the economic agency of nearly half the labor force strikes at the heart of Bangladesh’s growth model. Consequently, the current transition is more than a struggle over democratic norms; it is a decisive moment for the country’s economic future, with women’s participation in the global supply chain serving as the central point of contention.