Debate erupts over launch of ‘Female Zone’ at DU’s TSC cafeteria

The introduction of a separate “Female Zone” for women students at the cafeteria of the University of Dhaka’s Teacher-Student Centre (TSC) has sparked debate across the campus.

Supporters say the initiative is a necessary and inclusive step, particularly for students who wear the niqab or observe strict religious modesty.

Critics, however, question why creating a separate seating area was prioritised before addressing long-standing issues such as inadequate sanitation, poor restroom facilities, and safety concerns for female students.

The Female Zone was inaugurated on Thursday alongside the launch of a new cafeteria menu. Since then, the initiative has generated mixed reactions on social media and across the university.

Explaining the rationale behind the move, Umme Salma, secretary of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) Cafeteria and Reading Room, told Prothom Alo that many female students had been requesting improvements to the prayer space at TSC as well as a small separate seating area where they could dine more comfortably.

She added that women’s clothing—whether a sari, gown, or other attire—may sometimes require adjustment in private, making a separate space convenient in such situations.

Salma noted that while female-only seating already exists in the Arts Building common room and the DUCSU cafeteria, no such facility had previously been available at the TSC cafeteria.

 “Since the common room, reading room, and cafeteria fall under my responsibilities, we introduced this initiative after considering those needs,” she said.

Students critical of the initiative insist that their objection is not to providing additional facilities for women but to what they see as misplaced priorities by the university administration and DUCSU.

According to them, longstanding problems—including unhygienic women’s washrooms, non-functioning sanitary pad vending machines, shortages of handwash, and insufficient seating—remain unresolved.

One student from the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism wrote on Facebook:

“Anyone who has used the women’s washroom at TSC knows what should have been the real priority. Yet the student leadership is focused on creating a separate corner for women in the cafeteria. People are suffering because of poor sanitation and hygiene, while DUCSU is preoccupied with segregation in the name of religion.”

Mansura Alam, a reserved-seat lawmaker nominated by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), also criticised the move on Facebook, writing, “I simply don’t understand why a co-educational institution’s cafeteria needs a Female Zone. If we stay silent today, tomorrow we’ll see Female Zones in classrooms and even at tea stalls. This kind of thinking only alienates people.”

Rejecting the criticism, Umme Salma described it as politically motivated and rooted in misunderstanding.

“If anyone tries to label or victimise this initiative for political reasons, I would say it reflects their political misconceptions and insecurity,” she said.

She emphasised that the Female Zone occupies only a single table and does not replace the existing mixed seating arrangement.

“We are not taking away the combined seating area, nor are we forcing any woman to sit in the Female Zone. It is simply an optional, small space for those who feel they need it. Those who are comfortable sitting with everyone else can continue to do so. I don’t believe there was any need to turn this into a political controversy.”