A different everyday in Dhaka

Dhaka, a city of never ending traffic, a city of crowds and a city of hustle bustle. Every day hundreds of people pour into this city to earn their bread. Its footpaths are over filled with people and its streets are flooded with buses, motorbikes, cars, rickshaw and all kinds of other vehicles. With its ever growing problems and boundaries, Dhaka has grown a million of hues of its own.

But what COVID-19 has done to this city for better or for worse might be a matter of great change.

While going back home from grocery shopping, in these days of lockdown, I was amused by the empty streets of Dhaka. I have not, in fact none of Dhakaties, ever witnessed this Dhaka. No cars, no people, only army, police and a few rickshaw pullers. Empty roads, empty footpaths, and shuttered shops. It is like an after apocalypse vision from a Hollywood movie.

Considering the everyday hassle on roads women carry on their shoulders, it would be lying if I said I was not craving for an empty Dhaka now and then. But such unrealistic reality was never expected. It is funny to mention that a thousand times (perhaps), I, like many other women prayed in mind to see no people on roads while I’m taking certain roads in Dhaka.

That day after every day’s crowd when I witnessed only a few people on the streets, it felt good and secured until this thought of the pandemic started bugging me.

The city is sick. The country is suffering.

But is not the city Dhaka always suffering?

It is suffering from the burden of over population, traffic and over housing which has made it a jungle of concrete.

This city can hardly breathe. Even if it does, it gets choked by the smell of open urination, open waste containers and open manholes.

Its eyesight even under mid-day sun is blurry because of the increasing air pollution.

Dhaka’s vision is locked in short-terms because its mind cannot think while stuck in traffic jam for an hour to reach the fifteen minutes distance.

Its freedoms of creativity, ability of free walk, strength of look straight in the eyes are stuck within the boundary of patriarchy.

That day in the length of 4-5 kilometres only two three shops were open. A few people were busy either working or walking. All of them were men. No women on the street at all. Surprisingly, none had time to stare at me. None tried to touch me inappropriately. Almost every one of them was wearing masks and gloves.

It sounds unrealistic, right?

I have been inclined to believe that good times would never seem so good.

Are these extremely empty streets safe for women?

Or in fact for anyone?

Harassment, theft and robbery at Dhaka’s roads are among ‘normal’ acts to take place on a daily basis. Are these empty roads safe for people who have to go for work on roster basis and grocery shopping?

Well, for now it is difficult to answer.

Maybe being afraid of getting contaminated by coronavirus, criminals are in quarantine too. Or else, meanwhile they are trying to adopt their new methods to do their job or busy hiding the aid food items in their backyard.

According to Europol crime rates have been increased during coronavirus pandemic. And, Bangladesh is no stranger to that.

Just when I started writing this article, I got the news of a man broadcasted killing of his wife on Facebook. Just when I was thinking of being safe on road, a woman got killed at her home.

During this lockdown how many women are safe at own house should be a big concern. According to UN Women violence against women and girls are increasing in a greater number in this lockdown. Also Centre for Policy Dialogue recently stated that child marriage and violence against women have increased in Bangladesh amid this pandemic.

At the time when we are threaded with death by an invisible virus regardless of gender, ethnicity and social class system, cannot we expect better behavior? Is that too much to ask for?

Are we going to remain same once this pandemic ends? After such a disastrous event why cannot our behavior change for good? They say human beings are the best among all species. Cannot we make that a reality?

History repeats itself and human beings hardly learn anything from the past.

But this time let us learn. Let us be more careful. For now we are concerned about our health and physical cleanliness. Let us not only clean the dirt from our hands but also clean our perception and be more humanistic.

Let us forget focusing on everything that is worthless to notice, i.e. who is wearing what and who is going where. Let us stop spitting here and there, throwing garbage everywhere, smoking in open places, driving on the wrong side of the road, etc.

Only if we change our behavior for good and be cooperative with the system, the nation will be able to restructure financial and non-financial incentives a bit easily. Families will remain bonded in these difficult times.