A UCC would help address discrimination faced by women across the subcontinent, including issues related to family laws and inheritance, she said.”Even Hindu women in Bangladesh are under religious laws where they do not get equal rights or inheritance; they face various forms of discrimination. All such discrimination will disappear if a Uniform Civil Code is implemented,” she said.
Many developed countries have civil laws that are not based on religion but instead focus on equal rights and human rights, the writer said, as reported by ANI.”Every civilised country in the world has a Uniform Civil Code. Laws should not be based on religion. In those countries, family or personal laws are not religious; they are based on equal rights,” Taslima said.
She also spoke on the situation in Bangladesh, saying that she supports democracy and calling for the ban on the Awami League to be lifted, allowing the party and its leader, and former prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, to participate in active politics in the country.”I believe in democracy. Let the ban on Sheikh Hasina’s party be lifted, and let her participate in politics. This ban should be removed, and every political party should have the right to practice politics. I want Sheikh Hasina to return,” she said.
Taslim criticised religious-based politics though, saying such movements often undermine women’s rights.”I am against religious politics. Politics based on religion is not truly good politics because it is always misogynistic,” she said.
Speaking about the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, the largest far-right political party in the country, the writer said she would not object if its politics were restricted, stating that the party supports Sharia law and policies that would affect women’s and minority rights.
“If Jamaat-e-Islami’s politics are banned, I will not object because they want Sharia law and anti-women laws. If they come to power or gain political rights, minorities will have no right to live. Women will have no rights at all; forget equal rights, they won’t even get the most basic rights,” Taslima said.
When asked about her plans to return to Bangladesh, she said that she continues to wish to return but is currently not permitted to do so.”I always have plans to return home, but I am just not allowed to return,” she said.
Taslima also spoke about Begum Rokeya, saying she visited Panihati to pay tribute to her and protest against religious fundamentalism.”When Begum Rokeya died in 1932, the Muslim fundamentalists of Kolkata did not give her a place; they did not allow her to be buried. Because she was a feminist writer, she fought against fundamentalism, campaigned for women’s education, and established schools,” she said.
Describing Begum Rokeya as a symbol of the struggle for women’s education and equality, Taslima said that her visit to her grave was a tribute to the writer’s legacy.
