“Honour Killings” ?

The practice of so-called “honour killings” appears to continue in Turkey.  This time a young nurse was the victim.  She had filed for a divorce, and this was her husband’s response…

English :: The Common Reason for “Honourable” Men to Kill – Bianet.

Court of Appeals: Virginity as Essential Wedding “Qualification” – Bianet

Words are beginning to fail me.  What century are we in?  It is known that women have committed suicide, rather than have a “virginity test”, on the basis that even this test could render them “de-flowered”.  What can we do to bring a halt to these barbaric practices and ignorant judicial decisions?

English :: Court of Appeals: Virginity as Essential Wedding “Qualification” – Bianet.

Pure?

Just as I thought Turkey was forging ahead, and was finally becoming “modern”, I have only to read the local newspapers to be advised otherwise.

This is a quotation from an article in Sunday’s Zaman

“The rise in hymenoplasty doesn’t mean that the hymen and virginity have gained importance, but indicates that women are increasingly possessedof more spending power and medical knowledge and that physicians are less conservative with regard to these operations,” psychologist Dilek Akıcı Tayanç explained in an interview with Sunday’s Zaman. “Women have gained economic strength and knowledge over the years, but this development hasn’t enabled them to break the taboos regarding virginity, but to more effectively be able to protect themselves from the results of these taboos.”

So it’s only a facade. All the modern clothing, Ugg boots, miniskirts, going to university, getting jobs, and seemingly being independent, all of it fades away and we are back in the dark ages. The taboos still exist,  and women have learned to circumvent them, instead of abolishing them.

Perhaps that isn’t possible in this particular country. Or perhaps it’s a very slow process. It’s certainly a challenge to the bravest of them all.

 

http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-188120-160-women-turning-to-surgery-to-combat-virginity-taboos.html

 

Women’s Rights in Turkey

Yet again Turkey makes headlines regarding women’s rights.

The thinking is, given enough exposure, one day things will change for the better.  The more voices there are, the better they can be heard.

English :: Women’s Rights Must be Implemented in Daily Life – Bianet

Shared via AddThis

What’s in a women’s name?

Women’s rights are important everywhere, and Turkey is no exception. Except that sometimes they are only important to the women. Sometimes it’s  not a life and death situation. Sometimes it’s the seemingly small things, like their surnames.

According to the Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM), a report by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Turkey is way down at number 101, out of 109 countries. This index measures the female participation in the economic and political life of a country.

The law in Turkey still states that a woman must take her husband’s name on marriage. This can be changed by a court order, and its attendant costs. One woman, in 2004, took her case to a higher authority, The European Court of Human Rights, and won her right to keep her maiden name.  Other women have since won their cases in Turkey, quoting the Strasbourg decision. Consequently, the Turkish law has been ruled against and should be changed. There seems to be no action in that direction.

Why is it important to the Turkish authorities that women lose their identity on marriage? A wife and children in Turkey are still the “property” of a husband. It’s nearly 2010. The Turkish Civil Code should and needs to be changed.