Female parliamentarian arrives in NA with son, laments lack of nursery

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistan People’s Party parliamentarian arrived at the National Assembly on Wednesday accompanied by her minor son, symbolizing the dual responsibilities women face when they enter the workplace.

Mehreen Razzaq lamented the lack of day care facilities in the parliament. “A nursery for children in the assembly is a distant dream.”

“I had no one to take care of him, so I brought him with me today,” said Mehreen, who has been elected on a reserve seat for women.

Internationally women have been fighting for the right to bring their babies to work.

In 2010 an Italian parliamentarian Licia Ronzulli broke the internet when pictures of her carrying her six-week baby in the assembly went viral.

"It was not a political gesture. It was first of all a maternal gesture – that I wanted to stay with my daughter as much as possible, and to remind people that there are women who do not have this opportunity [to bring their children to work], that we should do something to talk about this,” Ronzulli said speaking about her decision to bring her daughter to work, international media reported.

Her daughter accompanied her to the assembly for a couple of years, till she was ready to go to school.