Women's Reproductive Rights and the Politics of Fundamentalism

Abstract

As women become more involved in public life and break patriarchal control in the process, they also deal with the backlash of cultural, traditional and religious reaction. Various interpretations of Muslim law are promoted by different groups in the struggle over women's rights. Sadly, however, actual experiences are overlooked in the process, including the significance of such knowledge in setting standards with which to secure women's rights.

The Bangladesh 1972 Charter guarantees basic freedoms that include the right to life, liberty, equal protection before the law, etc.; the right to health and education is explicitly stated as government's obligation. The articulation of reproductive rights, however, is subsumed under the right to health on the basis that access to health security is a basic need.