Bianet, which keeps a tally of violent incidents against women, compiled its list from mainstream news media. Most of these events were reported on page three together with car crashes, burst water mains and other daily disasters. These deaths, however, were not accidents and they were not isolated.The list may not be comprehensive, but it is detailed enough to show clear patterns.
The majority of the incidents that led to women being severely injured or killed, however, involved men who could not deal with the fact that their partner or wife was leaving them or had already divorced them. One father killed his 15-year-old daughter because he deemed her lifestyle too free. There were also cases of women who were raped by strangers or young girls forced into prostitution.
Currently, most people in Turkey are focusing on the ongoing political battle to redefine relations between civilians and the military. It is a painful process, and one that is neither linear nor smooth. Turkey can expect quite a few bumps along the way, but the tussle is clearly part of the country's progression toward a more democratic environment.
The types of attacks that are reported against women make me think that a parallel process is under way at the social level. The lines guiding gender and family relations are being redrawn gradually and in this case, too, the path is fraught with tension and entrenched obstacles.
Just as ordinary citizens are increasingly uncomfortable with the paternalistic and authoritarian rule of the army and other state institutions, a growing number of women are rebelling against the diktat of authoritarian fathers and husbands. When they do so, they face the threat of violence.
The parliamentary commission on gender equality is currently preparing a study on underage marriage. Preliminary findings suggest that 30 percent of women were married in adolescence, between the ages of 12 and 19.
Until recently, women had little choice once they were married: Even if their union was unhappy, even if they faced domestic abuse on a regular basis, the community expected them to fulfill their duties as wives and mothers, at the expense of their own happiness. Lack of financial resources left them dependent on their spouses and pressure from their environment to accept their fate was simply too strong.
These days, women want to find a better balance between their family responsibilities and their own well-being. Men, it appears, are still struggling to cope with the change. Unemployment has already left many feeling emasculated and, as media reports suggest, in many cases, anger, frustration and a sense of helplessness is leading to increased violence. The statements made by the perpetrators suggest that they are still unable to envisage more equal relationships with their partners. “I wanted a reconciliation; when she refused, I lost it,” explained a man who killed his estranged wife.
A while back, I heard of a municipality official who had justified his decision not to open a shelter for battered wives -- as the law dictates for municipalities with a population of over 50,000 -- by saying, “If we open a shelter, our wives will leave us.” It didn't occur to him that creating a more comfortable and pleasant environment at home might do more to secure his marriage than to keep his wife under social lock and key.
As is the case at the political level, the framework has yet to adjust to the winds of change. But at the political and at the social level, Turkey is undergoing major transformation. As the Bianet tally suggests, the transition is taking a heavy toll, but the clock won't easily be set back.
