Deputy Speaker Rana sees need of at least 33% women’s victory in direct election

House of Representatives (HoR) Deputy Speaker, Indira Rana, has said it has been essential to ensure a minimum of 33 percent women’s participation in the parliament through the first-past-the-post electoral system.

Addressing a programme organised by the Agro-Forestry, Basic Health and Cooperatives (ABC) Nepal, marking the 16-Day of Activism against Gender Based Violence (November 25- December 10) here today, the Deputy Speaker said, ” It is essential to enable atmosphere for women’s wider participation and at least 33 percent victory in the direct election and the State is responsible for making this possible.”

Addressing the issue of Gender-Based Violence (GBV), Rana acknowledged its persistent existence in the country. She underscored the importance of treating children equally, irrespective of gender differences, and urged proactive measures against GBV, advocating for initiatives to commence at schools, within households, and throughout society.

National Women Commission under-secretary Sita Adhikari said efforts from all quarters are necessary to combat GBV while National Child Rights Council’s information officer Ram Bahadur Chand said, “Though a decrease in ratio of violence against girls, expected results remain unmet.”

According to him, last year’s report about the state of children in Nepal documented cases of violence against 2, 100 children.

ABC Nepal’s founder and patron Durga Ghimire and organisation chair Mina Khatri spoke the need of more actions to combat violence against women.