Femicide Remains Major Problem in Turkey, Report Warns

A report by the Federation of Women Associations of Turkey, TKDF, says femicide and violence against women continues to be a major problem in Turkey.

According to the report, published on November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, this year until November 11 at least 327 women had been killed by men.

“In our country, where we do not understand the importance of protecting a woman’s right to life, we witness the massacre of women almost as much as the days of the month,” the report wrote.

The report shows that more femicides happened in major cities. It notes 64 in Istanbul, 19 in Izmir, 17 in Ankara, 13 in Antalya and 10 in Adana.

Women were mostly killed by their partners and family members, the report explains.

In 2022 so far, 116 women were murdered by their partners, 75 women’s murders remain unresolved, 37 women were murdered by family members, and 31 by men who women were trying to divorce or to break up with.

Women’s organisations in Turkey said they will take streets on Friday to protest against violence against women and femicide, even after the governor’s office in Istanbul’s Beyoglu district, where the main protest was planned to take place, banned such protests and events.

“We do not want permission but a life without violence. We will meet in Taksim … despite all the bans,” November 25 Women Platform said.

Police blocked streets and alleys in and around Istanbul’s iconic Taksim Square before the protest was due to start at 7pm on Friday.

Turkey was the first country to ratify the Council of Europe’s Convention on Combating Violence Against Women, the so-called Istanbul Convention.

But Islamist and conservative critics claimed that it undermined traditional family values, and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan withdrew the country from the treaty.