Turkey--+Women's+Rights

Turkish women have the more freedom than women in many other Muslim countries. They have the right to vote, access to education, the right to divorce, and the right to abotrion. In 1993 the Turks elected a woman Prime Minister. However... The EU's standards are higher than this. At least one third of Turkish women are victims of domestic violence in which they are "hit, raped and, in some cases, killed or forced to commit suicide". Honor killings -- murders of women accused of bringing shame on the family by conducting illicit affairs -- affect Turkish society as they do other Muslim cultures. But the true figure for these deaths is unclear.  Gender equality is an important issue raised in Turkey’s EU accession negotiations. Turkey needs to implement many related reforms on this issue. These reforms need to be monitored by independent NGOs working for women’s empowerment. Women Entrepreneurs Association of Turkey, KAGIDER believes in the importance and the potential impact of its role in the process. On 25th and 26th May, at Bahcesehir University Istanbul, KAGIDER held a conference in the scope of the ‘Women’s Way to Europe’ Project funded by the European Union. The conference aimed to discuss the existing situation in Turkey, the EU accession gender equality requirements and actions that need to be taken to meet these requirements. Furthermore, the conference also provided an opportunity to NGOs in Turkey to learn from other EU experiences and to lay the premises of a road-map for rightful gender equality in Turkey. The ‘Women’s Way to Europe’ Conference brought different stakeholders together, which included: the European Commission, the European Parliament, Turkish authorities, and women’s NGOs from Turkey and Europe. We will continue to organize gatherings to enhance the relationship between the women’s NGO and the government agencies and monitor the process in achieving gender equality. **Obviously nothing is going to change overnight - and there are still cultural issues to get over, mentalities to change in what is still a very patriarchal society** Selma Acuner, Kader

http://www.kagider.org/intPageStructureNo=11&sintLanguageID=0&bytContentType=2&intPageNo=70&strHitCountParam=2%7C11%7C0%7C184%7C910