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Women voters defy hurdles

Sohel Parvez and Amena Khatun
Her face flushed with triumph, an eight-month pregnant Shefali Begum Moina finally cast her vote at about 4:30 pm after struggling to keep standing in an overcrowded line for about three hours.
"Yes, I made it!" she exclaimed, coming out from a polling booth at Maniknagar Government Primary School, where over 5,800 women voters were supposed to vote to deliver their judgement for Dhaka-9 constituency. •
Saber Hossain Chowdhury of the grand alliance and Shirin Sultana of the four-party alliance were the main contenders for the parliamentary seat. Moina came to vote at the polling centre at about 2 pm hoping that the crowd would ease after the lunch hour, but it didn't. The long line from the morning hours yesterday remained long even after 3:30 pm, requiring Moina and over one hundred of her fellow female voters to jostle and elbow one another for position.
As the last minutes for casting votes came nearer, the situation became intense, leading the presiding officers to allow these standing voters into the narrow passages and congested rooms of the three-storey primary school that contained two centres and 11 booths for voting.
The crowd become more intense, and Moina, tired and infuriated at the jostling, was about to leave even though she had reached the door of the booth, but luckily she had to stay as there was no room to turn around and leave.
"My husband discouraged
me from coming to vote with this current state of my health. But I came here to express my opinion, although there is the risk of being ill," she said. "Now I am really very happy. I have been able to make it even though I had to undergo many painful hours."
Such enthusiasm among women voters was seen at a number of polling centres in the capital. These women voters, irrespective of age, were found to be enduring and overcoming the hassle of searching from one place to anotherfor the polling centres or for their voter ID numbers.
"I came out at 8:30 am to vote, but I didn't get my voter ID number at one place. Later, I have come and have got it," said 45-year old Sultana at Manda under Dhaka-9.
Even for the first time voters like Juli. Shahida, and Rehana, things were quite easy, as they knew about their ID numbers and polling centre in advance, being informed by party activists.
Pushpita, another first time voter and a lower-middle class housewife in Mirpur area, said she came to vote with an expectation that the prices of essentials would decline. "The high prices have made our living tough," she lamented.
Locals in different parts of the city also said that more women have attended the polls than in previous elections. not only because of their high numbers in the national voter list but also because of their desire to select their preferred candidates. A voter ID card with photo has also attracted many to vote without fear of facing trouble.
"I have hardly ever seen such spontaneous participation by women. I hope, nearly eighty percent of women voters have cast their votes in my centre," AKM Faisal Islam, the presiding officer of one of the two centres at Maniknagar Government Primary School, just after closing the voting at about 4:30pm.